Hi all, I would like to know the differences in the single black cord you can hook a VCR to a TV and the three cord hookup (red, yellow, & white) that you can hook a VCR to a TV. What kind of hook ups are they, what are their names, and what's different about them? Can you point me to any web pages that have diagrams and go into detail about it? The reason I'm wondering is because I'm looking at these 2 video capture cards. http://www.bestbuy.com/detail.asp?e=11121321&m=488&cat=521&scat=1751 http://www.bestbuy.com/detail.asp?e=11101006&m=488&cat=521&scat=1751 The first one is an anolog only card and the second one is analog and digital. If you click the "Connections" link on the 2 sites, you can see the cards. The first one has 2 "in" ports. One looks like an S-video port and the other looks like the "single black cord" mentioned above. The second one has 4 "in" ports. One looks like an S-video port and the other three look like the "three cord hookup" mentioned above. One more question. Would the "single black cord" work plugged into the second card's yellow port without the white & red audio cords and still have sound? Well, that's enought for now. Maybe I'll have a few more questions after a few people respond. Thanks in advance for any help. Steve

The Studio AV card is an Analog capture card only. It captures video using either the S Video input or a Composite video input (an RCA plug). the audio is captured thru your audio card using seperate audio cables and an adapter. The Studio Deluxe Card is a Firwire/Analog card that converts the analog to a DV format. It uses a Breakout Box (BOB) which has connections for S Video and Composite. The audio is also connected to the BOB for analog and the analog is converted to DV format. The firwire part is used to hook to a DV or Digital Camera. The audio and video is transferred via Firewire cable. Dave T2

Dave, So you're saying the Studio AV doesn't do audio at all? When you capture video though the card and sound through your sound card, does it pair them up so they match on the computer? So do you think the Studio Deluxe Card is nicer since it handles both the audio and video together? Which is considered the Composite video input (an RCA plug), the "single black cord" or the "three cord hookup". Steve

The AV card will marry the audio together as a digital video stream. It just uses the soundcard. The only issue in this is in some cases there are audio/video sync problems. I use this card and don't have any sync problems. The Studio Deluxe card is better because it allows you to mix analog video sources (like your VCR, 8mm camcorder) with Digital Video sources (like a DV Cam, or Digital 8 camcorder) without any further conversion. The analog source is converted to DV while capturing. Also the audio/video are captured through the same hardware so it is less likely to have sync problems. If you plan on getting a Digital Camera or already have one and still want to use an Analog source, the Studio Deluxe is better suited for that. If you are only going to be capturing from a VCR or 8mm camera, then the Analog capture card works well. There is a big difference in price (about $200 US), so that should be considered. Dave T2

Dave, You said you use the AV video card? Will you email me so I can ask you a few more questions through email. Thanks. shail@match.org Steve