ok not happy now......

[DeckstarDeluxe]

Had an amazing night tonight brilliant gig and used my trussing for the first time. The show was brilliant! Spent £350 on a video camera today too....

http://www.play.com/Electronics/Electronics/4-/9037952/Sanyo-Xacti-VPC-WH1-Waterproof-HD-Camcorder/Product.html?source=5065&engine=froogle_electronics&keyword=Sanyo+Xacti+VPC-WH1+Waterproof+HD+Camcorder+(Blue)

The quality of the video is awful! Ive done tests with me speaking into the camera just now and the sound isnt even in time with my mouth moving. ALl the clips Ive taken tonight are rubbish quality even worse than my mobile phone!

Not sure where I would stand on getting a refund but Im really gutted now. Washed aload of money and had a great gig but no video now to show for it! :(:(:(

[OllieJames]

Had an amazing night tonight brilliant gig and used my trussing for the first time. The show was brilliant! Spent £350 on a video camera today too....

http://www.play.com/Electronics/Electronics/4-/9037952/Sanyo-Xacti-VPC-WH1-Waterproof-HD-Camcorder/Product.html?source=5065&engine=froogle_electronics&keyword=Sanyo+Xacti+VPC-WH1+Waterproof+HD+Camcorder+(Blue)

The quality of the video is awful! Ive done tests with me speaking into the camera just now and the sound isnt even in time with my mouth moving. ALl the clips Ive taken tonight are rubbish quality even worse than my mobile phone!

Not sure where I would stand on getting a refund but Im really gutted now. Washed aload of money and had a great gig but no video now to show for it! :(:(:(

Are you watching the clips on the camera or in an editing application?

[djgordyp]

If you're watching the clips on your computer, try recording a few clips in standard definition. You may well need to invest in a capture card capable of handling HD video. I think only the very latest computers are able to handle HD video.

[DeckstarDeluxe]

the video was captured in HD 1024x768 and saved to an SD card and then ripped to the computer. VIdeo is in mpeg4 format and the memory for a minutes worth of video is 80 odd meg. Sound quality is fab considering how loud it was but picture aint great.

[Tom]

Looks like the video and audio are out of sync. Have you tried to sync them together???


Could be wrong though.

[spin mobile disco]

Looking at the specs closely it says the camera is only 1.10 megapixels. Not sure but that sounds pretty low to me.

[DeckstarDeluxe]

Looking at the specs closely it says the camera is only 1.10 megapixels. Not sure but that sounds pretty low to me.

thats just regarding still photos rather than video I thought?

[OllieJames]

Yeah, I also thought the same as Matt. Although stills have a 'megapixel' rating, i'm sure video has a simlar style rating.

HD filmed at 1024x768 sounds odd? My HD camera shoots at 1440x1080?

Are the clips bad quality after editing or before?

[Marc J]

If you have the quality set right on the camera then the raw footage from it should be perfect. Any loss in quality after that is due to the processing / editing / compression / playback on your PC.

[DeckstarDeluxe]

I havent edited them. I just put the sd card into the laptop and downloaded the clips. WMP doesnt like them and crashes so watched them using quicktime.

[Vectis]

If it records to SD card then I'm 99.9% sure the content is already compressed.

I went through the wrangler a year or so ago trying to find a camera that recorded raw yet in HD and in low light situations.

Ended up with Canon HV20s which use DV tapes (still) and am extremely pleased with them, as are my clients.

[DeckstarDeluxe]

but if the content is compressed then the file sizes for the length of video are quite high still? arent they?

[Marc J]

I havent edited them. I just put the sd card into the laptop and downloaded the clips. WMP doesnt like them and crashes so watched them using quicktime.
If you haven't edited them and are playing the files that came from the camera, then there are only 2 suspects for the poor quality - compression (quality) settings on the camera, or poor video playback on your laptop.


If it records to SD card then I'm 99.9% sure the content is already compressed.
Not necessarily. My Sony camera records onto a 16Gb Stick Pro, and you can get SD cards bigger and cheaper than them (http://www.play.com/Electronics/Electronics/-/267/347/-/6108330/Play-com-32GB-SD-HC-Memory-Card/Product.html?searchtype=genre). I'm can't remember exactly, but I think it fits around 2 and a half hours of uncompressed full HD video onto 16Gb (or if it is compressed, it's lossless).


but if the content is compressed then the file sizes for the length of video are quite high still? arent they?
HD video files will always be rather large, even compressed.

[DeckstarDeluxe]

If you haven't edited them and are playing the files that came from the camera, then there are only 2 suspects for the poor quality - compression (quality) settings on the camera, or poor video playback on your laptop.


Not necessarily. My Sony camera records onto a 16Gb Stick Pro, and you can get SD cards bigger and cheaper than them (http://www.play.com/Electronics/Electronics/-/267/347/-/6108330/Play-com-32GB-SD-HC-Memory-Card/Product.html?searchtype=genre). I'm can't remember exactly, but I think it fits around 2 and a half hours of uncompressed full HD video onto 16Gb (or if it is compressed, it's lossless).


HD video files will always be rather large, even compressed.


That answers my question then. Picture quality on the laptop is really good.. :(

Have to try and get my money back tomorrow........

If they only offer me store credit any ideas of cameras around £350 that would be suitable Marc? Or even what main features should I be worried about

[Marc J]

That answers my question then. Picture quality on the laptop is really good.. :(

Have to try and get my money back tomorrow........

If they only offer me store credit any ideas of cameras around £350 that would be suitable Marc? Or even what main features should I be worried about

That depends what you mean by "picture quality on laptop". Can you watch any other HD video on your laptop? Have you tried viewing your recording on another PC? Playback depends on loads of factors - processing power, RAM, Hard Disk speed, video card capabilities....it might be that your laptop just isn't up to the job...take it out of the equation before possibly spending more money on a camera.

And if it IS the camera, sorry I wouldn't know what to recommend. I've got a Sony HDR-CX6 which is great for me, Shaun (EliteDJ) has the same. I couldn't say how good it is in low light etc., but Shaun posted a demo video a while back which looked pretty good to me.

[Shaun]

And if it IS the camera, sorry I wouldn't know what to recommend. I've got a Sony HDR-CX6 (http://www.amazon.co.uk/Sony-HDRCX6-Definition-Memory-Camcorder/dp/B000RF7TQQ/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=electronics&qid=1246215613&sr=8-1) which is great for me, Shaun (EliteDJ) has the same. I couldn't say how good it is in low light etc., but Shaun posted a demo video a while back which looked pretty good to me.

I've found the Sony to very good in low light situations. No complaints from me.

[DeckstarDeluxe]

YouTube - 16th birthday Dnb theme 27/6/09 in Chipping Camden

its ok but i expected better. Am I just expecting too much?

[CRAZY K]

YouTube - 16th birthday Dnb theme 27/6/09 in Chipping Camden (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sy4bGMPysBQ)

its ok but i expected better. Am I just expecting too much?

I have taken a load on my Canon Camera using the vid facility, the sound quality is quite reasonable on mine considering its a £130 camera;)

See this---using Peavey Pro 15s---

YouTube - VIRGINIA REEL WESTERN PARTY STYLE

Your clip doesnt sound much different.

I just bought a Sony Video Camera DCR ---SR 37E for about £289 from John Lewis and Im very pleased with Holiday vids on it---havent tried it yet for Disco/ Barn dance yet.

Its got a 60GB hard drive and I believe will run for 8 hours:D

CRAZY K