Not everyone's entered into the digital age and there'll always be someone without access to a DVD player. So one particular question often arises in the video editing forums: "how can I record digital video to an analogue VHS cassette tape?". For those with an Nvidia graphics card, the answer is simplified greatly by one extremely useful piece of software - TVTool. This nifty programme will allow your digitally created masterpiece to be output straight from your PC to your TV (or VCR).
Before I explain how to set up the software, it's probably worthwhile giving a quick overview of what hardware you require. First off, you Nvidia grahics card must come with a TVout connection. This will come in the form of either an S-video or composite connection as below:
You'll need a suitable cable to connect to your VCR - for example s-video to s-video. **Hint: if you're using an S-video cable and you get a black and white picture, try using an s-video to composite converter. You'll also need to connect the audio from your soundcard to your VCR. To do this, you'll need to connect the audio-out on you soundcard (probably labelled blue of denoted by the an upward pointing arrow - chances are it's already connected to your speakers). To connect the sound, you'll probably need a 2 x RCA female to 3.5mm phono Jack cable:
Plug this the 3.5mm jack into the back of the soundcard, then connect a standard 2 x RCA audio cable from these female connections to the audio in on the back of your VCR. A variety of cables are available to cater for every imaginable scenario - "s-video + 2 x RCA audio" to "Scart"... the list goes on. The best thing to do is check the connections on your VCR, check the connections on your graphics card, then search the web! A good place to start isGreatCables.com orBetterCables.com.
You'll most certainly find what you need at the above two sites - and if you don't want to buy online, simply print out what you want having found the right cable and take it to your local electronics shop), you should now have the computer hooked up to the VCR. Once you've found the right cable and hooked the audio and video to the inputs on you VCR (be it s-video, composite or scart!), swith the video recorder to the appropriate AV channel, the switch your TV to your VCR channel. At this stage you'll just have a black screen.
Now lets install TVtool. Download the latest trial version from the website. After installation you'll be presented with the following screen:
If you're eager to see your video on TV, simply click the big friendly green button marked TV mode. You should then see your video on TV. (to get back to the PC click F2 on your keyboard).
You'll need an application in which to play your video on your PC. For this I choose Zoom player (download available in the downloads section), as you'll be able to adjust the size of your video easily to fit your TV. Once you've played around with the setting of both programmes and are happy with what you see on the TV, simply click record on your VCR (after inserting a blank tape!) and hey presto - analogue video from a digital source.
