VGA -> ???? gives DV or better quality

[PiedPiper]

i currently use a scan converter to convert a 800x600 vga signal to svideo for mixing with, until recently this quality was enough.

now i need to look to broadcast type quality, is there some kind of box that acts like a scan converter but will convert my monitors vga signal to another high quality format, DV, digital betcam or somehting, HDTV?

also i'd love it if anyone could explain to me what SDI is?

Thanks

PiedPiper

[KillingFrenzy]

If you want exact information, just look up "SDI" or "D1".
But here's my "laymans terms" version.

SDI is the hardware side of a standard for digital video. You use BNC connectors, and the data is transferred as a "D1" component video signal. D1 is compressed, but not very much. The information is sent as 4 tracks of audio data, 1 track of video, and 1 track of timecode. D1 is unidirectional, meaning you have an "in" line and an "out" line, as opposed to DV, which carries data both directions on the same line.


DV is a much more compressed standard, allowing much more video to be stored on a smaller tape, albeit with a fair degree of artifacting.

Uncompressed Digital Video
- Used in animation and film and usually held on a drive, as opposed to actually being committed to tape.

D1
- On a variety of formats, from D1 (big fatty tapes, 1" digital) to digibeta... though I think Digibeta actually is a weird bastardization on the tape (it does hardware compression and decompression of D1 input).

DV Codec
- Used heavily in prosumer and home video and stored on DV, DVCAM, DVCPro, or Digital 8 tapes. The differences between DVCAM and DVCPro are in their methods of handling timecode, replacing the DV timecode with a true timecode. They also offer some higher quality audio options with more channels.

So, if you can get D1 out of your Computer, that would be great, but unless you have somewhere to go with it... it won't be that much more useful than just converting VGA to Component analog video (RGB). Higher quality scan converters should have an RGB output.

[Amukidi]

You can buy broadcast quality scan converters - but they cost about ?4-5000!! In my opinion, established clubs should have this gear installed, it would significantly improve the A/V side of their opperation, and, bearing in mind tha last club I VJ'd at was charging ?4 for a bottle of Becks and ?8 for a Vodka and mixer, from 8pm till 4am - ?4000 is peanuts!