Bulet cam/recorder set-up help please!
 

I now have a bullet cam and an Archos Av120 recorder, but I'm a little disapointed with the quality of the final image.

The camera is a high res sony jobbie, recording about 520 lines, I'm sure its more than capable.

I think the limiting factor is with the recorder, which only has a resolution of approx 350 x 250 (thats a guess, don't quote me on that).

So my question is, what do camcorders record like, and is their resolution any better?

Anyone record to camcorder ???

I'm debating whether to sell this unit and get a Camcorder with AV in if the image is better?

I'm not an expert, but I set up a bullet can to Mini DV system earlier in the year. Resolution is pretty good, but if you save it to any form of compressed format, the resolution suffers big time. If you save the Mini-DV tape in a relatively uncompressed DVD format, its fine, but if you save it to a compressed format to provide a smaller file size, it probably ends up exactly the same as you get out of your Archos.

I guess part of the problem is that its a demanding task being attached to a vibrating bike and asked to provide clear pics of fast moving scenery. The Archos is probably fine for fairly stationary tasks, but the extra resolution of a Mini DV camcorder prabably pays dividends for on-bike stuff

...and another daft question.

What kind of formats are out there...I mean, when I last used a camcorder they involved tapes etc...whats the score now?

I assume they now record to dvd or some form of digital? Does that mean the digital recorders use SD cards etc, as I find them a bit of a pain, and they are yet more expense if you need a 1 or 2Gb one?!?!

I wouldn't bother with anything other than tape if I was you, DVD cams won't be suitable for bike applications due to vibration etc, and SD cams although solid state probably can't get the data stored quick enough so will use some hefty compression to perform the task in hand, tapes cheap and reliable IMO

Yes, the Archos is only 352 x 288 pixels BUT this is the same quality as VHS - 352 lines at a (rough) 4:3 ratio!

You could always go for one of the higher spec Archos players, as the AV120 is quite old now, such as the AV500 which offers DVD quality (720x576 @ 25 f/s for PAL) recording in a 30GB or 100GB package.

Before you moan - PAL is 625 line, 25 frames a second (50 field), 50HZ system, but it's interlaced to give 312 lines, and that's why the Archos gives the same quality as VHS.

Harv - where do you put it on the SP? Or is it only on the DR to date?

I use a bullet cam and a mini mike feeding into a digital 8 sony handycam. Its a bit of a house brick but gives good results in a car, never tried on the bike .........yet.

From what I have seen TV co.s avoid the vibe issues in the machine they are recording onto (as opposed to cam vibe issues) by using an uplink to an aircraft or helicopter, Bit OTT fer a trackday unless of course you are Lord R.

Guido on here and maybe a few others are well into "bike cam" setups.

Ray.

...so how does this all compare to a typical camcorder set-up? Any ideas?

and when you say its the same quality as VHS, I don't really understand what that actually means in real terms.
:puzzled: All I know is when saved to my PC and then straight onto DVD, the fianl picture quality on TV is not all that. On the PC, when played in a smaller window then it looks OK (ish).


I've only had it on the DR to date, actually on my helmet, so no issues with vibration etc. When I have a go on the Duke, I imagine it should be pretty straight forward to locate somewhere on the nosecone, or on the seat unit for rear facing action!

It will be as good as most analogue cameras, although the definition on something like a Hi-8 camera will be better as that's around 380 or more lines.

If you go for a miniDV camera, than you're looking at between 400 and 520 lines, which is equivalent to DVD quality.

Be careful that you're not compression the video when you transfer it onto DVD, as this compression reduces the quality of the image. You should create your DVD disk at the maximum/best/uncompressed quality to ensure the best picture.