Continuing video capture problems

[joea64]

The whole video capture issue is driving me just plumb crazy.

When I had my motherboard replaced last month, the tech at the computer shop put in a bunch of updates to Win98SE, and also updated the drivers for my Radeon 7200 to the most recent ATI Catalyst (3.6) version and also put in DirectX 9. One of those updates must have broken something, because I can't capture video any more on my system with my Hauppauge WinTV Go PCI card, even after updating to the latest WinTV WDM drivers (3.35), using Cyberlink's PowerVCR II Deluxe version 3. When I start PowerVCR II, I keep getting the following error message: "S0023 Unable to run preview graph" and the video display screen remains black unless I click the record button. Files I capture that way aren't really useful, either, because the frame rate on them is all wrong - they run too fast or too slow.

I upgraded to the most recent Hauppauge drivers because the version I was previously using (3.31) was returning error messages declaring errors in connecting the "VBI_pin" and "XFormTee" filters when WinTV2000 was started. Installing the latest version of the WinTV driver and the WinTV2000 program has corrected that problem, though.

I've tried Intervideo's WinDVR, versions 1.5 (OEM bundled with another video-capture card) and 3.0 (trial), but that program has a somewhat similar problem. It launches OK and displays the picture from the TV source (composite video) correctly, but refuses to record. That is, when I click the record button, the application display window goes black and then displays a frozen picture until I click the stop button, at which point the normal TV picture comes back, but the file produced by the recording is zero-byte-sized and therefore useless.

Furthermore, neither PowerVCR II nor WinDVR will display a picture at all - their display windows simply show static - unless WinTV2000 has run first. I'm pretty much at a loss as to what to do, because repeated uninstalls and reinstalls and applications of patches haven't solved any of those problems.

-Joe-

[Budfred]

I am not much up on the intricacies of video capture, but I am aware that there are some programs being put out by the media companies in various forms that are designed to prevent copying of copyright materials and sometimes block legit use in the process. You may want to run HiJack This and post the log to see if any of the experts around here can figure out if you have one of these things running.... The one I have heard of is called Cdilla.

[joea64]

For what it's worth, here's the HijackThis log:

Logfile of HijackThis v1.95.1
Scan saved at 16:33:28, on 8/17/03
Platform: Windows 98 SE (Win9x 4.10.2222A)
MSIE: Internet Explorer v6.00 SP1 (6.00.2800.1106)

Running processes:
C:\WINDOWS\SYSTEM\KERNEL32.DLL
C:\WINDOWS\SYSTEM\MSGSRV32.EXE
C:\WINDOWS\SYSTEM\MPREXE.EXE
C:\WINDOWS\SYSTEM\ATI2EVXX.EXE
C:\PROGRAM FILES\SYGATE\SPF\SMC.EXE
C:\WINDOWS\SYSTEM\mmtask.tsk
C:\WINDOWS\EXPLORER.EXE
C:\WINDOWS\SYSTEM\SYSTRAY.EXE
C:\WINDOWS\RUNDLL32.EXE
C:\PROGRAM FILES\NORTON SYSTEMWORKS\NORTON UTILITIES\NPROTECT.EXE
C:\PROGRAM FILES\NORTON ANTIVIRUS\NAVAPW32.EXE
C:\PROGRAM FILES\COMMON FILES\STARDOCK\SMARTEXCEPTION\SMARTEX.EXE
C:\PROGRAM FILES\COMMON FILES\STARDOCK\SMARTEXCEPTION\MCPSERVER.EXE
C:\WINDOWS\SYSTEM\WMIEXE.EXE
C:\PROGRAM FILES\OPERA7\OPERA.EXE
C:\DOWNLOADS\HIJACKTHIS.EXE

R0 - HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Internet Explorer\Main,Start Page = http://www.comcast.net/
R1 - HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Internet Explorer\Main,Window Title = Microsoft Internet Explorer provided by Comcast
N2 - Netscape 6: user_pref("browser.startup.homepage", ""); (C:\WINDOWS\Application Data\Mozilla\Profiles\default\ewxrp5so.slt\prefs.j s)
N2 - Netscape 6: user_pref("browser.search.defaultengine", "engine://C%3A%5CPROGRAM%20FILES%5CNETSCAPE%5CNETSCAPE%206%5 Csearchplugins%5CSBWeb_02.src"); (C:\WINDOWS\Application Data\Mozilla\Profiles\default\ewxrp5so.slt\prefs.j s)
O2 - BHO: NAV Helper - {BDF3E430-B101-42AD-A544-FADC6B084872} - C:\Program Files\Norton AntiVirus\NavShExt.dll
O2 - BHO: (no name) - {06849E9F-C8D7-4D59-B87D-784B7D6BE0B3} - C:\PROGRAM FILES\ADOBE\ACROBAT 5.0\READER\ACTIVEX\ACROIEHELPER.OCX
O3 - Toolbar: Norton AntiVirus - {42CDD1BF-3FFB-4238-8AD1-7859DF00B1D6} - C:\Program Files\Norton AntiVirus\NavShExt.dll
O3 - Toolbar: &Radio - {8E718888-423F-11D2-876E-00A0C9082467} - C:\WINDOWS\SYSTEM\MSDXM.OCX
O4 - HKLM\..\Run: [SystemTray] SysTray.Exe
O4 - HKLM\..\Run: [Cmaudio] RunDll32 cmicnfg.cpl,CMICtrlWnd
O4 - HKLM\..\Run: [SmcService] C:\PROGRA~1\SYGATE\SPF\SMC.EXE -startgui
O4 - HKLM\..\Run: [NPROTECT] C:\Program Files\Norton SystemWorks\Norton Utilities\NPROTECT.EXE
O4 - HKLM\..\Run: [NAV Agent] C:\PROGRA~1\NORTON~2\NAVAPW32.EXE
O4 - HKLM\..\Run: [SmartException] C:\Program Files\Common Files\Stardock\SmartException\smartex.exe
O4 - HKLM\..\Run: [1A:Stardock MCP] C:\Program Files\Common Files\Stardock\SmartException\mcpserver.exe
O4 - HKLM\..\RunServices: [ATIPOLL] ati2evxx.exe
O4 - HKLM\..\RunServices: [ATISmart] C:\WINDOWS\SYSTEM\ati2s9ag.exe
O4 - HKLM\..\RunServices: [SmcService] C:\PROGRAM FILES\SYGATE\SPF\SMC.EXE
O9 - Extra button: Net2Phone (HKLM)
O9 - Extra 'Tools' menuitem: Net2Phone (HKLM)
O9 - Extra button: AIM (HKLM)
O9 - Extra button: ATI TV (HKLM)
O9 - Extra button: Messenger (HKLM)
O9 - Extra 'Tools' menuitem: Messenger (HKLM)
O9 - Extra button: Real.com (HKLM)
O9 - Extra button: Related (HKLM)
O9 - Extra 'Tools' menuitem: Show &Related Links (HKLM)
O9 - Extra 'Tools' menuitem: Sun Java Console (HKLM)
O9 - Extra button: ComcastHSI (HKCU)
O9 - Extra button: Help (HKCU)
O9 - Extra button: Support (HKCU)
O12 - Plugin for .spop: C:\PROGRA~1\INTERN~1\Plugins\NPDocBox.dll
O16 - DPF: {0E5F0222-96B9-11D3-8997-00104BD12D94} (sys Class) - http://www.pcpitstop.com/pcpitstop/PCPitStop.CAB
O16 - DPF: {78960E0E-0B0C-11D4-8997-00104BD12D94} (AV Class) - http://www.pcpitstop.com/antivirus/PCPAV.CAB
O16 - DPF: {D27CDB6E-AE6D-11CF-96B8-444553540000} (Shockwave Flash Object) - http://download.macromedia.com/pub/shockwave/cabs/flash/swflash.cab
O16 - DPF: {9F1C11AA-197B-4942-BA54-47A8489BB47F} (Update Class) - http://v4.windowsupdate.microsoft.com/CAB/x86/ansi/iuctl.CAB?37826.6602199074

For what little it may be worth, I swapped out the Radeon 7200 for the Radeon 9000 I had in my system before the motherboard replacement. The Catalyst drivers recognized the card without a problem, so I went to take out the WinTV and run HCWCLEAR to clean out all the software associated with it, then installed an AVerTV card (very similar to the WinTV card, same Conexant 878 chipset, but certain additional functionality). I had problems getting a picture to show up in the AVerTV display window until I clicked the "Text" box, at which point a high-quality picture appeared (the recording application won't work, though, for some reason). I then uninstalled and reinstalled PowerVCR II, and went through the same contortions until I found the "Composite Video" pulldown menu item in the setup window, at which point I got a good picture from the composite video source (I have the video card connected to the VCR via a RCA/composite video cable). There are still some significant issues, though:

1) The "Error 0023; unable to run preview graph" error message still comes up;
2) I am still having problems with the videoclips I record running out of sync (this is not actually a big problem for the short clips I make for purposes of grabbing vidcaps for my site, since I use freeze-frame a lot anyway, but it could become serious if I try to make feature-length MPEG's for DVD's or SVCD's);
3) PowerVCR might not run properly unless AVerTV runs first; and
4) I have to manually reset the program to take input from the composite video source every time I run it.

-Joe-

[joea64]

I have to mention that I am wondering if maybe part of the problem was in fact the video card I was using. You will note that in the previous post, I said I swapped out the Radeon 7200 I currently had installed for the Radeon 9000 that was in the system before the motherboard was replaced. Back when I was trying to figure out why I was getting so many spontaneous reboots and BSOD's last month (before the problem was isolated as bad caps on the mobo), I had in turn swapped out the 9000 and replaced it with the 7200.

Well, today I found that another application that I had unsuccessfully been trying to get to run since I had the new motherboard put in - over the course of several weeks during which I had the Radeon 7200 in place - suddenly started working properly when I re-installed the Radeon 9000. This leads me to wonder if maybe part of the problem might be that the Radeon 7200 isn't really suited to handle DirectX 9, which, you will recall, was also installed when the mobo was replaced. If that's the case, it might explain a lot (though I don't know how compatible the Radeon 9000 really is with DX9, either, the fact is that I have gotten video capture working, after a rather ramshackle fashion.)

-Joe-

[Inka]

Yeah, it does sound like an issue with the Radeon card. I have a similar prob at the mo with an ATI card. It does all the diagnostics fine but I have issues with odd apps. Different card works fine.

Think its a conspiracy to make us buy more graphics cards :p

[joea64]

I should also add that when I tried changing the drivers for the Radeon 7200 this morning (going back to an older version, on the theory that the Catalyst version 3.6 might be too modern for PowerVCR II, which is after all a 2001-vintage app), I was simply not able to get any of the several different driver versions I had on hand to install. I had a older driver (dating from last summer) written specifically for the Radeon 7200 on Win98SE, and several older Catalyst versions, and tried them all after uninstalling the current Catalyst and going back to basic VGA. Every one of them crashed during install with either a blue screen or a popup error message. I couldn't even re-install the Catalyst version 3.6, and ended up having to restore a backup. Talk about pains.

-Joe-