VGA To Svideo

How to do Video Capture from a Computer Monitor

Often times, people are faced with the need of video capture from a PC, Mac, or other computer monitor, but are for some reason not able to install third party video capture software. For example, this might be because installing additional video capture software either impairs the computer’s ability to function properly or the software is simply unable to record the screen.

 Furthermore, other computer-based devices such as game consoles like the Microsoft X-BOX 360 usually have the same DVI or VGA outputs like on regular computers, but are not able to natively perform video capture.

 In order to properly and accurately record the picture from a computer screen or monitor, a VGA video capture device is required. Often, these devices are referred to as frame grabbers because they “grab” an image or video from a computer monitor, convert it to a readable digital format, and then send the image over to the computer where it can be saved. There are several advantages that VGA capture devices have over software-based solutions for video capture applications. First of all, VGA capture devices do not take up system resources as they are external stand-alone hardware. As well, a VGA capture device can capture from any VGA (and often DVI) source, regardless of the operating system installed or the device that is being captured from.

 The cheapest external video capture device for VGA video is the Epiphan Systems VGA2USB. Just like the name suggests, it allows you to convert a VGA video signal source into a USB output, which you can then connect to any laptop or PC. Once the VGA2USB is capturing from a VGA source, connecting it to a computer allows one to save the VGA output to an AVI or a series of JPEG files. Furthermore, the VGA2USB can do video capture from any VGA signal at resolutions up to 2048 x 2048 and supports VGA capture rates up to 30 frames per second. If video capture is central to your solution, then a video capture device like the VGA2USB is something which you should seriously consider.

Just trying to go over the video capture setup from the hardware perspective. The items that arrived today are to be used to split the audio while minimizing signal loss. Using a 3.5mm to RCA Audio adaptor, I plug the audio into the CE Labs Composite splitter (the audio-only portion.) Then, from the four outgoing ports, I plug in more RCA Audio cables and use an RCA to 3.5mm female adaptor to return back to the 3.5mm world. The KVM and the TV are plugged into these while the third audio output is extended with two 20ft RCA extension cables. (This provide the Red + White wires for the computer-output video capture portion.) The computer itself has two DVI outs, both of which have DVI-to-VGA adaptors. The secondary DVI port goes straight into the TV (as VGA). The primary DVI port goes to a VGA splitter to split it into two VGA signals, one going to the KVM and the other going to a VGA-to-Composite/Svideo converter. Using a 20ft RCA extension cable, this provides the Yellow wire for the computer-output video capture portion.) With all three composite cables (Yellow + Red + White) I now have standard plugs and can video capture the contents of my computer as easily as the GameCube. The top Composite Switch has three inputs: DVD Player 1, DVD Player 2, and the Computer Composite out. This switch can be operated via remote. It outputs into the bottom Composite Switch. The bottom Composite Switch is a cheap manual switch. The SNES, PS2, GameCube, and top Composite Switch are its …
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