No analogue ports on Click To DVD

[FergusB]

Hi,

I am trying to capture analogue video using the Click To DVD program supplied with my VGX-XL301 (Vista). The first couple of times I tried it, it seemed to work OK but now the program is not giving any analogue source selection options (only i.LINK). I know that the tuner cards are working as I can see the analogue video when viewing live TV in Media Centre. My current version of Click To DVD is 2.6.00.11281. Anyone have any ideas, please?

FergusB

[Blencogo]

Hi FergusB,

This has become a more frequent topic recently and so I have reported this issue to Sony Support.

Can you give us a bit more information?

What changes have you made since it worked OK? In particular have you installed any DVD burning programs or analogue video editing software?
Have you tried a System Restore to before a date when this was working?
Are you using the analogue inputs on the FRONT of your Vaio or the inputs on each TV Card at the back?
Are both your TV Cards set up and registered in Media Centre? I must admit, I am not quite sure how analogue inputs are handled with two TV Cards installed.

While we wait for a reply from Sony, you may like to try the following: -

1. Connect all the Analogue inputs BEFORE you boot your Vaio.
2. Open Task Manager by pressing Ctrl+Alt+Del. Check if a process "ehRec.exe" is running. If it is click on it to select it and then choose "End Process". Media Centre can sometimes hold on to your TV Card and not allow other programs to use it. Stopping this process should release the card for use by Click to DVD.

[FergusB]

Hi Blencogo,

Thanks for your response. To answer your questions:

I haven't made any major changes like you mentioned. The first time I tried the program, it saw the analogue ports OK. I had only shut down the program for a short time and on restart, they were gone. Nothing had been installed in the meantime. After several attempts at starting the program, it saw the ports again and captured OK. However, since then I haven't been able to get it to work.

I tried a system restore to a point before I had even tried the program but the problem remains.

I am using the S-Video and composite ports at the rear of the Vaio. Both cards work OK in Media Centre although the analogue quality is very poor compared to Click To DVD capture but I presume that's a different story altogether. When everything is working, Media Centre and Click To DVD see the cards as S-Video, S-Video_1, etc.

Analogue video is always present when I start the Vaio.

You were quite right regarding Media Centre not releasing ehRec.exe but stopping the process still doesn't resolve the problem. I notice that Click to DVD doesn't call up this process when I start the program. I have tried stopping the process before starting Click To DVD and also rebooting the PC before starting Click To DVD but, in both cases, the process doesn't start.

I hope this helps. Thanks again.

FergusB

[Blencogo]

Thanks FergusB - I'll pass the info on to Sony.

Let's hope they come up with an easy answer. You are not alone with this problem but the broken Search facility makes it difficult to find the others! It is mainly XL users but other models RC, AR, FE have all had this problem occasionally.

Both my AR31S and RC102 work OK although it can take a little while for Click to DVD to find the Analogue inputs. I wonder what Service or Process it uses to discover the AV Inputs?

[jamesbramsdon]

I would also be grateful for an official response from Sony on this.

I have an XL201 running XP, and when I use the full version of Click-to-DVD (i.e. not the special version you can access via Media Centre) I cannot see/select analogue inputs.

I have tried the same things as FergusB i.e. stopping the ehRec.exe process, but this doesn't help. I think there may be another process which also needs to be stopped as well to get the Card released?

Unlike FergusB, I have never even seen the analogue input showing as an option in Click-2-DVD.

Cheers

[Blencogo]

OK - Sony Support have come back on this and asked if you can post screenshots of your Click to DVD Version screen (Help -> About...) and the screen where the Analogue and Digital choice is made.

If you will do this, they will make further investigations.

For info - I think these are the two screens they want to see: -



and



Thank You

[kee-lo_]

Interesting - it uses zlib

[jamesbramsdon]

Blencogo

Thanks for this.

How do I take a screen print?

Thanks

[Blencogo]

Kee-Lo did a thread about this -

http://club.vaio.sony.co.uk/clubvaio/gb/en/forum/viewthread?thread=37524

First you need to make a file to attach. With the window you want on screen and active, press AltGr+PrtSc.
Open Paint (Start -> All Programs -> Accessories -> Paint
Edit -> Paste
Edit/resize/crop if necessary
File -> Save As (as a .jpg)
Use this file to attach.

[jamesbramsdon]

Here they are..

Hope this helps

Thanks for your efforts!