Using OBS to Capture Videotapes with a USB Capture Device on Windows 

60fps for my computer

Hi Tim , thank you for the tutorial . I still can't get the audio to work.

​@@JackieShroffFanWhich capture device are you using?

Unfortunately I don't have a Mac or the EasyCap device. Did the EasyCap device come with any software you can use to at least verify that it's working correctly? It's possible that it's not compatible with OBS, I had that happen with a Diamond Multimedia capture device on Windows. OBS just didn't like it for some reason.

I've not seen the video on converting VHS to 60p. My video was mainly meant to be a fairly simplified version of how to reliably digitize standard definition source material using OBS, so I didn't want to get into anything too in-depth like changing frame rates. I do hope to be able to record another video on lossless capture of standard definition material via OBS, in which I hope to discuss my preferred method for deinterlacing, which results in a 60 fps file. Even in that case though, I prefer to capture the source material at it's native frame rate. If you like the look of your captures at 60 fps though, I don't see any reason why it's a problem. I didn't really notice an issue with the contrast using the Startech.com device. I believe that device is introducing its own type of compression, so it's definitely possible that some adjustments could be necessary. I can take another look at it when I get a moment. For the resize filter, it might depend on your source. I usually use filters like those when postprocessing using AviSynth after capturing the video, and even then I'll mess around to see which one does the best job for the particular tape I'm working with. But again, if you like the results you are getting out of using Lanczos, go for it! Things like resizing are often trial and error in terms of what works best, which is why I kept my tutorial as simple as possible. Hope this helps!

I wonder if it is your capture device causing issues. Even without deinterlacing, the video playback on recorded files should be 25 fps without any issues with choppiness. I usually recommend doubling the frame rate after you've recorded your initial file if you are doing more advanced deinterlacing (using a tool like AVISynth, for example), but with a more "all in one" solution like the one I teach in the tutorial, there shouldn't be an issue with choppy playback. But, if doubling the framerate worked for you with the capture device you are using, great! Which capture device is it that you are using if you don't mind me asking?

@@timfordphoto A few questions. 1: Why 720x480? Why not 640x480? 2: Why 29.97 FPS? Isn't all media shot at 24 FPS?

@@alexslusher16 720x480 and 29.97 fps are industry standards for digitizing standard definition NTSC video. 24 fps is generally used for film production.

I would upscale in post rather than during the capture process. There are better tools than OBS out there for that kind of work.

I prefer to do upscaling after capturing, I think you can get better results with several other programs. You might also have performance issues depending on your computer. But it might still be worth giving it a shot just to see if you like the results. I've personally been doing that using Topaz Video AI.

Not sure, maybe you could try raising the Kbps to something higher than the 3500 that I suggested? The files will be larger but it should improve the quality. Maybe go as high as 5000 and see if it helps.

@@timfordphoto thanks mate!! I’ll give it a crack

See my comment, I had the same problem

Very strange. Which adapter are you using?

@@timfordphoto Roxio Video Capture USB. It seems to work fine in the Roxio software but the recording is not as sharp.

I haven't used that adapter. Maybe there's a compatibility issue between it and OBS. Does it show up as a "camera" in the Windows Camera app?

@@timfordphoto No, it showed up as a game card and video card. I went ahead and used the Roxio software instead of OBS. Thanks for your help anyways. Your video was great!

OBS doesn't work with FireWire devices. I use Scenalyzer Live for FireWire capture (it's free - www.videohelp.com/software/ScenalyzerLive)

Thanks for the quick reply! @@timfordphoto

Depending on how much work you want to put in, you could try going a different route and capture the video using VirtualDub, then go through the process of upscaling it after the fact. I just put together a video showing how that's done. You can view it here - ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-66F4l0dqdX8.html Alternately, you could try changing the settings in OBS so that your Base/Canvas Resolution and the Output Resolution are both 1440x1080, the FPS is 59.94 and then bump your recording bitrate to something significantly higher, such as 10,000 Kbps. Hit "OK", then right click on your preview in OBS and choose "Transform" and then "Fit to Screen." Lastly, right click on the preview and choose "Scale Filtering" then select "Lanczos." I'm assuming you've also already set deinterlacing to "Yadif 2x."

@@timfordphoto Tim, thanks for the speedy reply and providing a couple of options. I'll give it a try. Thanks again.

For the aspect ratio, you can try 768x432. For the audio, you'll need to disable the desktop's mic. If you open the Settings window, then go to the "Audio" tab (on the left), you can entirely disable your desktop audio. I'm not entirely sure how or why OBS is considering your MiniDV camcorder as well as the desktop's mic as the same source, but I'm guessing that disabling the desktop mic should result in you only hearing the MiniDv audio. Here's what the settings menu looks like with the desktop audio disabled - timfordphoto.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/01/disable-all-audio-2023.jpg

You could try getting a separate audio device and use it as the audio source. Just plug your audio outs from the camera into the audio input device. I have this one and it works well with OBS - amzn.to/3J8Ay6V. You'll need to configure OBS to use that device as the audio source, but it should just be a matter of choosing a new "Audio Input Capture" device and then selecting that new adapter as the source.

Interlaced NTSC video is 29.97 fps. There are methods to deinterlace the video into a 59.94 fps clip, but that's not the purpose of my video. 1440x1080 is upscaling of the video, which I generally do in post processing. I tried to keep this tutorial as simple as possible and not introduce concepts that were too advanced for most folks.

@@timfordphoto I see. Thanks for the video! It taught me some settings I did not know before, like the rate, control bitrate, and tune.

Would you be willing to try using a separate device altogether for the audio capture portion?

Are you talking about standard definition widescreen (letterbox) or do you mean converting a standard definition video to something like 1920x1080? If it's the latter, I don't recommend forcing a standard definition video into a widescreen format. Instead, I'd upscale the video incrementally, starting with a deinterlaced upscale to 960x720, then upscale that file to 1440x1080. That's how I usually do it. I'm hoping to put a video together at some point showing the steps I take on upscales like that one. 1440x1080 works well on RU-vid.

@@timfordphoto Looking forward to the next video already! Yes, I'm hoping to make the videos more "RU-vid" friendly. In short, I can make the video output (scaled) resolution setting in OBS 960x720, leaving the base (canvas) resolution at 720x540 for a 29.97 common FPS value?

@@ldjack2 What I'd do in that case is make the "Base (Canvas) Resolution" 720x480 and the "Output (Scaled) Resolution" 960x720. No need to rescale the input twice. When I do my larger upscales (the ones that go up to 1440 x 1080), I've been using Topaz Labs Video Enhance AI. I'm hoping to do a longer tutorial on how all of that works at some point.

Go to "Settings" and then choose "Audio" from the list of options on the left. In the Audio options, under "Global Audio Devices", click on the dropdown for "Desktop Audio" and select "Disabled". Do the same for "Desktop Audio 2" if it's listed. Alternately, if "Desktop Audio" is shown in your Audio Mixer (in the main interface) just drag the level slider all the way to the left. You should only have one input device showing levels in your Audio Mixer when digitizing from a VHS tape.

@@timfordphoto thank you! And should the mic auxiliary be clicked under global audio or the usb link?

@@chuckcelano5605 Mic/Auxiliary audio should be disabled. I'm not sure what you mean by USB link though.

I'm not sure, I'll try to do some searching to see what's compatible with OBS on a Mac and captures fields.

A few things to try first - turn off "Game Mode" in Windows (Just type in "game mode" in the Windows search bar and the setting should come up). Under "Encoder Settings" (in the "Output - Recording" setting) try using CRF for rate control instead of CBR. The default value of 23 is a good starting point. Then (in the same menu) change your "CPU Usage Preset" to one of the faster settings like "veryfast". The reason my footage looked choppy is because I used Camtasia to record the tutorial and it doesn't handle recording me recording a video very well. It's basically trying to do a screen capture of a computer that's simultaneously doing a video recording. The actual file that I recorded had smooth playback.

@@timfordphoto Much appreciated, Tim, but no change. The problem appears before recording--choppy when just playing the tape, and the settings seem unable to improve on the original signal but can make it worse (e.g., setting to "veryslow"). It's the same across multiple setups...PC, Mac, different capture devices, different tapes, different VCRs. The only common element is OBS.

Which capture device are you using?

@@timfordphoto Digitnow Capture Card, HDMI upscaler + Guermok Capture Card, and ADS Pyro A/V Link...all choppy

I've used the Digitnow capture card with success, so that one should work. Are you capturing to a network drive or some kind of shared (or cloud) storage? Also, if you look in your settings, then go to the Audio tab, are all of those inputs disabled? I've seen audio inputs create lag in other programs like VirtualDub, so that could be happening in OBS as well if you have multiple inputs enabled.

Which USB adapter are you using?

I'm not sure. Which USB adapter are you using?

@@timfordphoto Exactly the one you suggested. I believe it is defective.

Hmm, you might want to check with startech.com support to see if that's a known issue and if they can send you a replacement. Have you tried any other tapes in the machine?

There are various free video encoders out there that can be used to compress video. I like Shutter Encoder. www.shutterencoder.com/en/

Which USB adapter are you using?

@@timfordphoto It's a VGB100 from August International. It works on Windows 10 with the Honestech VHS to DVD software they sent. I don't believe they've updated their drivers in quite awhile.

Yeah, that's the issue then. Not all of these USB capture devices work the same way. As long as everything else works though you should be fine.

@@timfordphoto I'm able to record video, but presently I'm not getting audio.

Can you look at your Microphone settings and make sure that Microphone access is turned on, as well as "let apps access your microphone"? I know your input isn't technically a microphone but Windows often doesn't know the difference.

Good idea on a video explaining resolution and overscan. Overscan literally varies from tape to tape depending on the source, so it can be confusing. You can handle it either by cropping it out during the capture process, or you can crop it out later if you plan to do any video editing. 720x480 is a 4:3, non square pixel aspect ratio that is intended to be viewed on older standard definition equipment, which nowadays most people no longer have - the result being that the captured video looks a bit stretched out when viewed on a modern device. If you are capturing your tapes with the intent being to be able to watch them on any type of modern device (even an HD TV), then 720x540 is the way to go in order for them to display with a correct aspect ratio. The only time I'd stick with 720x480 is if you plan to either burn the files to a DVD (for use in a DVD player) or if you want a more "pure" source that you are going to be performing further video editing on at a later time. If you plan to do some video editing in a tool like Premiere, you can do your aspect ratio adjustment and cropping in the software rather than during the capture process. I put this tutorial together as more of a "one stop shop" kind of solution, but you might consider keeping the files at 720x480 for archival purposes if you have access to video editing software. I also have a written tutorial on lossless capture using OBS on my website if that's something you might be interested in. The resulting files using that method are pretty massive though. Hope this helps.

@@timfordphoto Thank you for replying. I tried the 720x480 / 720x540 setting and it looks like what I got was that many pixels carved out of the full 1920x?? available pixels in the monitor area of OBS -- I probably sound like a clueless idiot here -- and only a portion of the image from the Hi8 camera. I'm using the ClearClick Video2USB capture device, FWIW. I'm a pretty savvy computer user, photo editor, photographer, but this has me stymied.

@@timfordphoto Also, I've noticed the stretched-out that you mentioned in the output...

Is this the device you are using? amzn.to/46RpSUM If so, it looks like it's trying to upscale your video to a 1080p resolution, which would explain the somewhat strange results you are getting in OBS. Are there any settings you can change on the device?

Yes, that's the device. Looks like it wants to give me 1440x960, or 720x480 x2. What output ratio would I select with that to get square pixels?@@timfordphoto

Which USB adapter are you using to digitize from your camera?

@@timfordphoto It’s solved by asking my local, it seems like S-Video only convert black and white thru my easycap, and then I bought a/v out and it works!

Probably, yeah. There are so many of those capture devices out there. I tested three of them and liked the StarTech.com one the best because it played well with OBS and captured audio in stereo.

Any idea how to get the color working? Everything else is set to your recommendations. The tapes work in color on a TV, just not in OBS.

@@AlexSalikan Hard to say without having the device to play around with, but you could close OBS, then open the Windows "Camera" app (just type in "camera" after hitting the Windows key on your keyboard) and see if Windows recognizes the device as a camera. You'll see a little icon in the top right that lets you switch from your webcam to the capture device if Windows sees it. I'm assuming you have a webcam. If not, Windows might just automatically recognize the device as the default "camera." If the device is working in there, see if the signal is showing up as being in full color. If not, the device itself might have issues.

@@timfordphoto Yeah, it’s still in black and white when I do that. Is there anything I can do to fix this device, or is it garbage?

@@AlexSalikan Doesn't sound very promising. You could try a couple more things - try a different USB port, or try deleting the device from the Windows Device Manager, then have Windows re-install it. You could also maybe try a different playback device just to see if it's an issue with your VCR (or whatever you are using to playback the content). I think it's an issue with the device though, honestly.

You might have two audio sources in use. Double check to make sure that everything is disabled other than your capture device for audio. In the OBS settings, Click the “Audio” tab (on the left) and use the dropdown next to all of your listed audio sources and choose “Disabled.” I also have a tutorial you can read here - timfordphoto.com/digitizing-vhs-tapes-using-obs/

@@timfordphoto Thanks Tim, I'll try it later today. Very kind of you to reply!

I am using an Elgato capture device. Wondering if I need to use OBS at all - since the videos will be likely used in Premiere Pro.

Well, after a hard boot of the system, the audio is back, thanks

doh.. have to type it in, i didnt have audio on the first time viewing ha. thanks

Which adapter are you using?

Which capture device are you using?

No, OBS doesn't work with FireWire. I use Scenalyzer Live for that (it's free). www.videohelp.com/software/ScenalyzerLive

Not all of the USB devices will have that as an option. You'll be fine with it grayed out.

So what was wrong is: I had to change the audio setting in the properties of the device to the avermedia video card I was using, still though all the tips in the video are much appreciated, and the video and audio I’m getting is as clear as it can be with tape. Thank you and everyone in the comments for all the help