Real Producer Plus 8 (featuring Real System 8)

For years that people talk about using their home computers to record quality video directly to the hard disk [HD]... Of course this is already possible, but still at a very high price - and I am not writing about hardware price...

A personal computer that can handle the challenge of recording video, realtime, is expensive, but people determined to do it, have found that, no matter the hardware's cost (unless we are talking about tens of thousands of USD...), the biggest problem will be the (much) time required to compress and edit the gigantic files that can be generated.

For example, most of the persons who do record video on their personal computers, do it by first capturing the video signal as an uncompressed AVI stream, and then convert it to MPEG format, which is something that, in the best case, will require twice the time of the original feature, depending on many factors, such as the desired compression (more compression = smaller file + lower quality) and on the CODEC...

Another trend is NOT to convert the AVI to MPEG and just try to encode it in realtime (there are great MPEG encoders for AVI streams), as the show is being broadcasted. This approach is only possible for those with lots of processing power, if their computer is to remain usable for other tasks, other than the video capture.

Trying to use the computer while it is capturing + encoding the video source, is asking for trouble, in the sense that frame drops and / or audio-synching errors will probably happen.

Direct to the point, recording video on the PC can be something that requires LOADs of free time, tons of HD space and a very fast processor. It is quite possible, but not practical, at all.

Well, this was until Real Producer Plus 8.

Real Producer Plus 8 [RPP8], can produce quality digital video, in realtime, with a processor load that is below what most MPEG encoding requires, and - most important - in files that are can be burned in a CDROM, ie, files with a size that is HD friendly.

To be blunt, things have been like this, since Real Producer Plus 7... but because the quality gain in system 8 is very noticeable, lets identify RPP8 as being the landmark for true desktop video, in realtime. It is really amazing - at least I am amazed!

I first tried Real Producer (7) months ago, and the thing that really impressed me, was the very low processor load and the very small files (1 hours = 35 MB!).

The basic versions of Real Producer 7 and 8 were my starting point, in the search for an alternative to MPEG. Both programs are available for free, from www.real.com, but they are limited to a 150 kbps (150 k bits per second) quality, so while my 1st recording was happening, I thought that the low processor occupancy and the low disk usage, was because of the low quality I would get.

I was really surprised with quality of the final 150 kbps file! The file was encoded with a very low bandwidth, and yet, at 320x240 resolution, I was getting a more than reasonable crispness and acceptable sound quality (in relative terms).

I was so satisfied with the results (try them yourself by downloading the producers), that I got interested in the "professional" versions of the producers, selling for 150 USD, from Real Network's website.

I bought RPP8 and since the day I did it, I record all the videos that interest me, directly on the computer. No more VHS for me.

To make a long story short, when using a high quality source (a PC TV capture card, for example), a resolution of 320 x 240, a bandwidth of 580 kbps, and some not-that-important options available on the software, I get VHS quality, in realtime, at an average file size of 650 MB / 150 minutes.

Real Networks says that the new Real System 8 delivers DVD quality at 1.5 Mbps (the double of the data rate I use), but I don't have hardware capable of pushing tests that far @ 640 x 480. I can indeed record @ 1.5 Mbps, but the processor occupancy goes to 100%, and I learned through experience that the producer tools don't just drop frames when this limit is reached (they drop quality too), meaning that the file - that does get built - is not a trusty example of the tool's power.

If you want examples of the quality I am using for my videos, go to the videos section and search for REAL SYSTEM 8 streams @ 580kbps. You'll need Real Player 8 to play such streams; older versions don't work.

That written, RPP8 is my new VCR. Of course my true VCRs (still) gets me better quality, are less noisy, and so on... but their advantages aren't now enough to make me go back to the VHS tape days - tapes are big, prone to magnetic erasures, and take ages to catalog and find in cases :) ... computer files are so much better from those POVs...

Last notes:

- RPP8 comes with an editor tool (Real Media Editor);

- my average CPU occupancy for 580kbps / 320x240 / 25 fps is 42%. Check info about my monster pc on 130900.