Here are some of my experiences with the unit. I received a C2 unit on July 22nd. Installation was a breeze, and everything worked perfectly. I just built a new computer at the beginning of July - Asus P5K Deluxe, E8400 processor, 4GB Ram, EVGA 512MB 8600 GTS, XP Pro.
Capturing with the bundled software uses 1% CPU. I can surf the web, watch previous clips, edit with H264ts cutter, or work with other non-intensive programs while capturing with no problems. (Haven't tried any high CPU programs while capturing) Playback using Media Player Classic (with CoreAVC installed) results in about 30% CPU average. Sometimes both cores are equal, sometimes one is at about 50%, and the other is at about 20% For some reason HW acceleration is not working with MPC. Watching a clip using the bundled Total Media Theater uses full HW Acceleration and results in about 4% CPU in both cores.
I burn the files to a 4.7 GB AVCHD disk using the bundled software. I play the disks on my PS3. This process is rather quick. Time to process and burn a full 4.7 GB disk is 12 minutes.
60 min of 720p material at constant bit rate:
9.0 average, 13.5 peak - 4,140,217 KB
13.5 average, 20.2 peak - 6,216,367 KB
60 min of 1080i material at constant bit rate:
9.0 average 13.5 peak = 4,274,207 KB
12.0 average 18.0 peak = 5,539,267 KB
13.5 average 20.2 peak = 6,215,804 KB
I have discovered a couple of quirks. Sometimes while capturing, the preview window will lock up. The timer will continue to count, and capturing does continue without any glitching. When I hit the Stop button, it does stop capturing, but I have to use the task manager to end the CaptureModule.exe. (program listed as not responding in task manager) I thought it might have been the screen saver kicking in while left unattended, but even with the screen saver and all power saving options disabled, it still does this. It is less likely to happen when I am using the computer while capturing. For example, while typing up this post for the past hour, the capture window is still working. However, sometimes it will still lock up even when using the computer. Not a deal breaker to me since the resulting files are perfectly fine.
When editing down a 1080i capture using H.264 ts cutter, I ran into some problems on playback with the PS3. The first segment would play back fine, but once it would get to where a cut point was, the playback would start to stutter. The audio would continue on as normal, but the video was like a slideshow. The file would play back perfectly fine on the computer. I found that 720p didn't have this problem, so I have my STB set to 720p only as a workaround.
The analog audio inputs are still reversed.
Now on to the fan/heatsink issues.
Quote:
Originally Posted by
sleonard; 
The fan was connected to what was to be the power for the bling lights. That is why if you disable the bling in the application it disables the fan. As long as you do not disable bling in the app the fan should turn on whenever you are recording video and turn off when not recording.
Quote:
Originally Posted by
neuron2;
Yes, but that is crazy. No reputable company would release such a thing. Also, the encoder is still working even in preview, so it makes no sense for the fan not to be on all the time.
My final solution was to cut a 3-inch diameter hole in the top, mount a 12V fan on, and drill a row of 9 3/8-inch holes on each side for exhaust. The fan is powered by a cheap 12V Radio Shack adapter.
No artifacts! And I'll sleep easier knowing that my chips are nice and cool.
Now I need to write a nice TS editing tool.
My unit is very different than these posts say. I have a C2 unit. It does have the 4 blue bling lights, and I could hear a fan running. I finally got around to opening it up this afternoon. Upon opening it up, the location of the fan is almost useless. The suction side of the fan is right up against the wall of the case, so it cannot suck any air in. It also makes it noiser than open-air running. The bling lights only light up when capturing, and they do respond to the "Disable bling lights" in the menu. The big difference in my unit is the fan behavior. It runs any time the capture window is open - when previewing and when capturing. It also is not affected by the "Disable bling lights" menu setting. Unfortunately when the capture window is closed the fan doesn't run. It appears that the encoding chip is still doing something when just in passthru since the temperature is higher than when capturing.
I will either cut a hole in the case by the fan, or move the fan closer to the heatsink.
Here are some temperature readings I took of the heatsink - all with the fan on the side.
Preview 2 hrs, cover off - 115 degrees
Preview 1 hr, cover on - 140 degrees - general temperature inside case is 105 degrees
Capture 1 hr, cover on - 141 degrees - general temperature inside case is 105 degrees
Passthru 1 hr, cover on (no fan running) - 151 degrees - general temperature inside case is 110 degrees
After these tests, I tilted the fan down at about a 45 degree angle in its original location. This blew air across the PC board hitting the heatsink. After 1 hr of preview, cover on - 125 degrees - general temperature inside case is 100 degrees
Here's a picture of the inside of the unit - the black pin header just to the lower left of the heatsink is where the bling lights plug in.
http://img295.imageshack.us/my.php?i...530copyte3.jpg
I'll update some of the temperature readings as I try different things.
Michael
