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Author Topic: getting video from hotel channels  (Read 17166 times)

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abovethefirehouse

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getting video from hotel channels
« on: January 06, 2008, 07:27:48 AM »

how can i get the video when they bolt everything down and can't get to the RCA cables to a laptop to capture..

any toys i could get?

dolbyman

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getting video from hotel channels
« Reply #1 on: January 06, 2008, 10:37:35 AM »

I had the same problem in paris .. I gave up and only got the audio :-/
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abovethefirehouse

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getting video from hotel channels
« Reply #2 on: January 06, 2008, 01:42:02 PM »

Quote from: dolbyman
I had the same problem in paris .. I gave up and only got the audio :-/


hmmm some one must know some one in A/V.

marni1971

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getting video from hotel channels
« Reply #3 on: January 06, 2008, 03:21:12 PM »

If you can`t physically get to the cables then it`s a no. Best bet would be to try to tape the screen - I had some luck with this method in DLP.

Make sure the cameras locked off in a darkened room, with no lights on and manually focus on the screen. You`ll have to play with apature settings to get the right balance, and frame rates to loose the raster line if it`s a CRT, and also manually white balance.

As for audio, either take it live in a silent room (not the best) or take the audio as Dolby did (headphone line perhaps) and edit it in post, as they say.
« Last Edit: January 06, 2008, 03:22:00 PM by marni1971 »
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dolbyman

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getting video from hotel channels
« Reply #4 on: January 06, 2008, 06:09:43 PM »

Quote
take the audio as Dolby did (headphone line perhaps) and edit it in post, as they say.


I had not even a headphone jack .. so I had to place the mic in front of the tv spaker .. but quality is quite good for that
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Lex the Robot

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getting video from hotel channels
« Reply #5 on: January 06, 2008, 06:30:51 PM »

Quote from: marni1971
You`ll have to play with ... frame rates to loose the raster line if it`s a CRT...


Do all cameras have variable frame rates? I'm looking at all the settings available on my older-model Sony digital HandyCam (DCR-TRV130 NTSC) and I'm not finding any way to adjust the frame rate. I would LOVE to be able to film things off monitors around home without getting the lines.

Lex
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marni1971

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getting video from hotel channels
« Reply #6 on: January 06, 2008, 07:40:20 PM »

Quote from: Lex the Robot
Quote from: marni1971
You`ll have to play with ... frame rates to loose the raster line if it`s a CRT...


Do all cameras have variable frame rates? I'm looking at all the settings available on my older-model Sony digital HandyCam (DCR-TRV130 NTSC) and I'm not finding any way to adjust the frame rate. I would LOVE to be able to film things off monitors around home without getting the lines.

Lex
Sorry - to make it clearer I should have said shutter speed. In lieu of a professional scan sync unit (which I doubt any of us carry around with us) try and tweak the cameras shutter spead. You may find you get flicker and no line which is just as bad, or may get lucky and be able to `hold` the line at the extreme top or bottom of the screen as the raster line comes back around for the next field.
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Mr. Fusion

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getting video from hotel channels
« Reply #7 on: January 06, 2008, 09:54:06 PM »

Lex, you may be in luck, some Sony camcorders have a little control over the shutter speed.  Mine for example, the DCR-TRV17, can be adjusted in the menu under MANUAL SET -> D EFFECT -> SLOW SHTR.  It's not precise, but it does the job in a few cases.  You may also need to manually adjust the exposure too.

BTW, this setting works WONDERFUL for fireworks.  :)
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dajatje

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getting video from hotel channels
« Reply #8 on: January 06, 2008, 11:10:05 PM »

I used a Sony DCR-TRV310 to tape Impressions de France flicker free (as can be seen in Martin's tribute) using SLOW SHTR and manual lighting settings.

The first try of Impressions de France was flickering a lot and was unusable. I actually practiced with the settings using the tv in my room. After some practice I was able to record flicker free from the TV. I gave IdF another try later that week with great results. Bear in mind though that I have a PAL camera which might make things a bit different.
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abovethefirehouse

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getting video from hotel channels
« Reply #9 on: January 07, 2008, 05:00:30 AM »

but i would not use that.  i prefer direct source.

Lex the Robot

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getting video from hotel channels
« Reply #10 on: January 07, 2008, 06:39:26 AM »

Thanks for the slow shutter advice everyone. I'm playing around with my camera, which I've owned for years, and learning a tantalizing new possibility thanks to your expertise. I think slow shutter speed 2 works best. I wish I'd known about this a LONG time ago!

Lex
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Guest

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getting video from hotel channels
« Reply #11 on: January 09, 2008, 12:41:39 AM »

Consider a trip to the local Wal-mart - there's one on I-192 in Kissimmee - and buy the cheapest VCR you can find, with a couple of screw-on (unless you want to risk higher signal degradation with cheap push-on) cables. Disconnect the cable from the back of the TV, routing it to the tuner input on the VCR and connect the output from the VCR back to the TV. Perform VCR tuner setup operation and you'll be able to record directly to VHS.

I've done this a couple of times - leaving a $40 VCR behind once - and have fed the composite out and audio signals into my miniDV camcorder for even better results.

The set-top boxes at the Tokyo Disneyland Resort hotels made it even easier - unplug the composite and audio cables from the back of the TV and plug into the inputs on the camcorder... I had to monitor via the camcorder LCD and speaker but it worked great.

Things aren't always as bolted down as they originally appear. A pair of pliers and a multi-bit screwdriver can usually make the cable connection on the back of the TV available... I rarely travel without them in my checked luggage.

A more "permanent" solution which doesn't involve throw-away hardware might be to find a USB TV tuner - make sure it tunes "cable" as well as over-the-air analog and digital (HDTV) channels. Set it up on your laptop and route the cable from the wall to the USB tuner. You'd then use whatever PVR application is supported by your hardware to record the channels. After proper channel setup you might find - depending on the resort - an "extra" channel which isn't programmed into your room TV: the "keep kids occupied in the lobby" channel which shows cartoons and Disney movies 24x7. It's good to explore. ;)
« Last Edit: January 09, 2008, 01:02:36 AM by Guest »
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SpectroMagical

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getting video from hotel channels
« Reply #12 on: January 09, 2008, 04:37:23 AM »

Just curious...

Does anyone know how the TVs are bolted down? (type of bolt, screw, etc...)

If I know what kind of tool to pack, I could take a DVR on my next vacation and get some good source stuff.
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Jarvis

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getting video from hotel channels
« Reply #13 on: January 09, 2008, 04:50:24 AM »

Quote from: dolbyman
I had the same problem in paris .. I gave up and only got the audio :-/

Paris' are the only hotels where I've tried and not gotten anything...and I even had a local friend bringing me cables and his VCR, trying to see if maybe it was a SECAM thing.  Nuttin'.
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dolbyman

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getting video from hotel channels
« Reply #14 on: January 09, 2008, 07:35:54 AM »

the above solutions wont work if you have either a "secured" the set that just doesn't have any removable cables .. it's just the power and the antenna cable, but you can unplug them (like in paris)


also hotel tv (with localized playout center) can't be recorded that way (only if the tv set has video/audio outputs
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