Video from video surveylance cards

[abysas]

We are going to build computer with video surveylance card VG4C-RT4 from Vguard.net. As stated by this card manufacturer: "VG4C-RT4 is using TI 's (Texas Instruments) latest low power consumption and high performance DSP chip. Adopting the most advanced H.264 (MPEG-4 part 10) intelligent video compression technology, which is developed and designed aiming on the professional surveillance and monitor recording". As I understand it uses it's own hardware compression technology based on H.264. The problem is that for converting video files to other video formats I have to use it's own convertor which is quite limited in it's features, e.g. if I want to convert this file to MPEG2 format I will have to convert first to some loseless video format and the use other MPEG2 encoder. Software which comes with this card do not install any DirectShow video decoder. I want to ask is avisynth able to open such MPEG4 compliant files directly via "Avisource"? I cannot test it by myself because I will only receive this card next month. Thanks in advance and looking forward for the answer.

[actionman133]

you should be able to open mpeg-4 video with avisource as far as i know. if it plays in windows media player, but not with avisource, then you should be able to open it with directshowsource.

if you can't open it with media player, then you'll have to look for some kind of decoder filter and install it.

[abysas]

actionman133, thank you for your reply. As far as I know video files generated by this card are not playable via Windows Media Player. Software which comes together with the card has it's own player. That is what I'm worrying about - whether Avisynth is able to open such files when there is no DirectShow decoder though these files are compatible with MPEG4. I gues it will not be clear until I get this card and test it by myself.

[Boulder]

ffdshow can decode h.264 but I don't know how well or if it can decode the streams produced by that card.

[abysas]

ffdshow can decode h.264

That's a good idea. I'll try that. Thanks, Boulder.

[moon1234]

If the program will show you the currently installed directshow filters to encode with, you could always use FFDSHOW. This would let you do pretty much anything you want. Is this what you are looking to do?

[abyss]

If the program will show you the currently installed directshow filters to encode with, you could always use FFDSHOW. This would let you do pretty much anything you want. Is this what you are looking to do?
Not exactly. My concern is at ability to open such encoded MPEG4 files with other encoders like TMPEG or CCE. Software which comes with this card has a converting utility which can convert it's files to any format using correspondent DirectShow codec installed on that system. Our organisation is working with sexually abused children whose testimonies recorded to DVD we would provide for the legal investigation and present to the trial. That's why we need to convert recoded video files into the MPEG2 format. I was curiuos maybe somebody has had any experience with such video surveillance cards and file format they create while recording video.

[Boulder]

ffdshow, that is, using DirectShowSource in the script, is probably the best option if it just can decode the file. If it can't and there's no DirectShow or VfW codec available, there's not much you can do.

You might want to check some sites with codecs for download, for example codec-download.com. Maybe they have a codec which can decode the video. Another option would be asking milan, the ffdshow developer, whether he could add support for the video.

It could also be that the video just has a weird FourCC code, and it could be decoded with XviD, DivX or ffdshow just by changing it to some other MPEG4 code.

[abyss]

Thanks a lot Boulder for your thoughts and suggestions. As soon as I get that card I'll check it out and post my findings. It will happen pretty soon. For me it looks unlikely that some company would invent unique video file format, where video frames are coded in such unique fashion, unsuported by other video edit tools, converters and players, especially when that format is MPEG4 compliant.