How to Capture SD Video in VirtualDub2, Deinterlace in StaxRip, and Upscale to HD in Topaz Video AI

In this tutorial video I cover how to use both the Diamond Multimedia VC500 and the StarTech.com HDMI Video Capture Device to capture standard definition 4:2:2 video using VirtualDub2, how to use StaxRip to deinterlace (using QTGMC) and upscale the resulting AVI files, and finally how to upscale the videos to HD using Topaz Video AI.
QTGMC code to paste into StaxRip:
QTGMC(preset="Placebo", InputType=0, sourceMatch=3, sharpness=0.2, tr2=2, ediThreads=8, AssumeTFF())
00:00 - Intro
00:39 - Downloading Drivers and Software
04:02 - Installing Drivers and Software
07:52 - Setting up VirtualDub2 for 4:2:2 Capture
10:03 - Setting up the StarTech Device in VirtualDub2
11:15 - Setting up the Diamond Multimedia VC500 in VirtualDub2
14:00 - Capturing Video in VirtualDub2
16:35 - Deinterlacing using QTGMC and Upscaling in StaxRip
25:45 - Upscaling to HD using Topaz Video AI
PRODUCT LINKS:
Diamond Multimedia VC500 - amzn.to/48JFQ4y
StarTech.com HDMI Video Capture Device - amzn.to/3Sv3g8f
VirtualDub2 (free) - sourceforge.net/projects/vdfi...
StaxRip (free) - github.com/staxrip/staxrip/re...
7 Zip (free) - www.7-zip.org/download.html
Topaz Video AI - topazlabs.webflow.io/topaz-vi...
DRIVERS:
StarTech.com HDMI Video Capture Device - www.startech.com/en-us/audio-...
Diamond Multimedia VC500 - www.diamondmm.com/product/dia...
NOTE: Two of the links above are affiliate links to Amazon, so if you purchase either of those two items I might make a few pennies on the dollar.

[@user-zh2bj8em7n]

Hi Tim, I just wanted to thank you again for posting this great video and for all your help in getting me started capturing and editing VHS tapes. I’ve gone from the clueless newbie stage to the sorta know what I’m doing but still dangerous stage. I’m now comfortable doing VHS TAPE lossless 4:2:2 captures to an AVI file, cutting the AVI archive video file into smaller AVI files, and deinterlacing and upscaling (960 x 720) the individual AVI files. I purchased Topaz Video AI (TVAI) and I’m starting to get familiar with the various settings. I can attach a file (if you want) that shows the various tools and settings that you suggested in your video (and other additional tools and settings that I ended up using). Hopefully, some of your subscribers (the newbies) would find this information useful in getting started. BTW - I have to give high praise to Topaz Labs - their customer support is amazing. I do have one suggestion on your recommended settings in TVAI. I found that the settings were great on medium quality VHS video (such as tapes recorded from cable box like HBO), but were a bit too harsh for some of my lower quality 35 year old VHS camcorder videos. Topaz tech support worked on a sample of one of my videos and provided me with suggested settings that worked better. I included this information in the attached file. Thanks again, Charlie

[@timfordphoto]

I'm glad the video helped! I'd also love to see the suggestions from Topaz. Can you send a link to the file?

[@donmuraoka]

You are a godsend. I’ve had so many sleepless nights trying to figure out how to properly digitize my home videos. Thank you thank you thank you. Been back and forth on OBS trying to deinterlace my videos from another video that showed how easy it was but I’m not sure what’s going on with the software cause it just doesn’t seem to work. So glad I ran across your video. Thanks again.

[@timfordphoto]

I'm glad the video helped!

[@donmuraoka]

Hey Tim thanks again for the video. I did my first capture and deinterlace last night and noticed that dark areas that I could see detail in the capture were then completely black after the deinterlacing process. Also the same goes for the white areas. Is there a way to adjust so this doesn’t happen? It’s like if the exposure was changed. Was also wondering if there was a way to adjust the volume when capturing? Thanks Tim.

[@timfordphoto]

Did you use the preview feature in StaxRip to see if it showed the dark/light issue prior to rendering the video? It might also be an issue with the encoder, are you using ProRes or something else? I'll check on the audio level question, it seems like something that you should be able to do.

[@donmuraoka]

@@timfordphoto I think it was just the difference between the video being delaced and not. The colors become richer from not being interlaced. I would like to know what you come up with for the audio volume issue. Thanks again.

[@donmuraoka]

Have one more question Tim. Do you also have a process like this one for deinterlacing video via FireWire? I captured a video in virtual dub via FireWire but when I try to deinterlace it in staxrip it shows me an error message. I would like to use the dv video capture if possible. It captures as an avi file but I’m guessing it needs something else done for Staxrip to recognize it.

[@seasonstudios]

I like Virtualdub and am just learning about the changes that were made in 2 but I never understood why the Proc Amp isn't monitored when you try to make adjustments. If a certain card needs to be adjusted it would be better if you could actually see the adjustments your're making at the time.

[@timfordphoto]

You can actually do this in OBS, but the settings don't "stick" - you'd probably need to do a screen grab once you get the settings dialed in using OBS, then change them again once you go back into VirtualDub.

[@bigvancrush]

fantastic! thanks for the great guide. is though virtualdub2 compatible with older usb cards?

[@timfordphoto]

Yes, it should be. VirtualDub2 is fairly old software.

[@bigvancrush]

@@timfordphoto will try it! virtualdub 1 though does not work with my usb card, terratec cinergy htc xs hd

[@timfordphoto]

I'm curious to hear if it works or not.

[@jaredkwek1291]

Thanks for the video, Tim! I am working on digitizing some family home videos on VHS and am adopting this method, especially since I have the VC500 capture device. What settings do you use in VirtualDub2 under "Capture -> Timing" with the VC500?

[@timfordphoto]

Glad you liked the video! Here are the timing settings that I use with the VC500 - timfordphoto.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/vc500-timing.jpg

[@pelebr14]

Hi, Tim. I followed your procedure and it turned out great. Did you happen to test the HD conversion using Topaz before deinterlacing using staxrip? the result with vhs videos seemed better in this order, but a problem appeared: the video is out of sync with the audio after the QTGMC deinterlacing process, and it seems to me that it has to do with ffmpeg2source, since with Avisource it is correct . Do you have any suggestions for making the video exported by Topaz compatible with Avisource in a format that does not have any loss of quality? thanks a lot

[@timfordphoto]

So you upscaled but didn't deinterlace using Topaz? And then deinterlaced the upscaled footage using StaxRip? I haven't tried that method before but I can give it a try and see what happens. How long was the clip you were working with?

[@pelebr14]

@@timfordphoto In fact, I took the file captured by VirtualDub2 (avi/utvideo/720x480/pcm) and improved the video using "Iris - face/ LQ-MQ model": Input condition: (Low Quality) and manual parameters. I chose "Progressive" as Video Type, even though the video was still interlaced. If you choose "Interlaced" Topaz will do the deinterlacing too, so the video would supposedly have two deinterlacings if we still use QTGMC afterwards? lol. I only tested it the first way and I liked the result (I don't know if you would think the same), especially since I didn't upscale it in Topaz, I used the resize command (1440x1080) only in staxrip together with QTGMC in the file exported by Topaz, this way the process carried out in Topaz was much faster due to the lower resolution of the video. The clip I used is 23 minutes long, and there are no synchronization problems in the file generated by the VirtualDub2 capture, only after QTGMC deinterlacing. (But if I use an avi file compatible with Avisource, the deinterlacing does not generate desynchrony between audio and video).

[@timfordphoto]

That's interesting. I haven't tried it in that order. I wonder if you could extract the correctly timed audio as a WAV file and then use something like Shutter Encoder to replace the audio on the out of sync file. I'll do some testing on Monday.

[@pelebr14]

@@timfordphoto I changed my mind, I think vhs footage enhancement is better in this order: 1. VirtualDub2 utvideo capture (720x480) 2. QTGMC deinterlacing (placebo) WITHOUT using a resize filter and through Avisource so the audio does not get out of sync 3. Topaz Video Ai 4 (Iris LQ manual parameters - low quality video input condition) with 2x upscaling to export the final file. Thank you for your attention, your tutorial helped a lot!

[@tylerdurden783]

Which is better, and why? The Diamond VC500 you use here, or the StarTech USB Video Capture Adapter Cable you used in your older video using OBS?

[@timfordphoto]

Between those two I like the VC500 better for lossless capturing. But between the two devices in this video, I like the Startech device better (although it's more expensive). I think the Startech device shown in this video offers better quality overall for lossless capturing.

[@tylerdurden783]

@@timfordphotoYeah, would love it, but the Startech device in this video is out of my price range. Ok, got it, so you would buy the VC500 over the Startech cable. Thank you!

[@PedroChehoud]

hey, what is your gpu? can you make a tutorial how to use topaz video in vhs tapes? to get better image

[@timfordphoto]

I'm running an nVidia RTX A4000. This tutorial is actually entirely about VHS tapes - the section at the end on using Topaz Video AI is all about improving the image quality of a VHS capture.

[@PedroChehoud]

@@timfordphoto oh thats awesome, thank you so much!!

[@henryward1457]

When i import my SD 29.97i file the export timecode pops up as 25fps. Is there a way to change this to 59.94?

[@timfordphoto]

Is this out of StaxRip or Topaz Video AI?

[@henryward1457]

@@timfordphoto It's in staxrip. I dont get an error message when i setup the field deinterlace tool QTGMC, but after i set it up, i import my file, then get an error "System exception - illegal instruction". Not sure what i'm doing wrong. thx for response

[@timfordphoto]

What kind of file is it?

[@henryward1457]

@timfordphoto Thanks for the reply's. I was able to do the QTGMC process in Hybrid.

[@timfordphoto]

Great!