Miglia Alchemy TV manual

A lchemyTV U ser G uide Revision 1.0 (c) 2003, Miglia T echnology Ltd[...]

T able of contents Introduction and Overview of AlchemyTV . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .1 System requirements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .2 T echnical support contact . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .[...]

I ntr oduction and Over view of A lchemyTV AlchemyTV™ User Guide Page 1[...]

Introduction Thank you for choosing AlchemyTV™ from Miglia T echnology . AlchemyTV™ allows you to watch TV on your PowerMac and enables you to record your favorite programmes onto your hard drive in a supported QuickT ime format of your choice. System requirements: • PowerMac with a free PCI slot • G4/400 MHz or higher processor • 256 MB [...]

Overview of AlchemyTV™ Video inputs AlchemyTV™ features several video inputs: • TV input • Composite input • S-VHS input • Radio antenna connector • Stereo audio input (jack type) • Stereo audio output (jack type) • TV/Antenna connection: This connector should be used for your analogue TV cable coming from an RF antenna or a cable[...]

H ar dwar e and Softwar e I nstallation AlchemyTV™ User Guide Page 4[...]

I. Hardware Installation The installation of AlchemyTV™ is a two step process starting with the hardware installation into your PowerMac. AlchemyTV™ is a PCI card that should be installed in a free expansion slot of your Mac. 1. Open the side door of your PowerMac. Locate an unused PCI slot. Using a small Phillips-head screwdriver , remove the [...]

S etting up the TV tuner for viewing and r ecor ding AlchemyTV™ User Guide Page 6 TV tuner connection[...]

I. Setting the TV T uner preferences This section describes step-by-step how to watch television on your monitor . 1. Make sure the TV window is open. As no channel are set, you should see a window displaying ‘snow’. If no window is displayed, go into: View > TV Window 2. Open the ‘T uner’ preferences located in AlchemyTV > Preference[...]

AlchemyTV™ User Guide Page 8 The TV T uner preferences menu allows you to search and store TV channels.[...]

4. If you wish to adjust a particular channel, you can hightlight it in the list and click on fine tuning. Move the slider to the left or right to get the best possible reception. Once you have fine tuned (if necessary) the channels and named/organised them, you can close the TV tuner preferences. Y our video settings will be saved automatically . [...]

4. If you wish to record your TV programme, you will need to adjust the compression settings according to the type of PowerMac you own. The faster the overall performance, processor speed being a major factor , the higher the resolution or possible compression rate. Click on the “Compression” tab to get acces to the list of QuickT ime™ codecs[...]

AlchemyTV™ User Guide Page 11 The Codec list allows you to select the type of video compression you wish to apply[...]

Choosing the right video codec The recommended codecs for capture with the AlchemyTV are Motion-JPEG and MPEG-4. Motion JPEG: This codec has some fairly large space requirements, but has the advantage of requiring less processing power to encode (eg. record) and remains editable in some video applications. Y ou can for example open a MJPEG video in[...]

III. Setting the audio preferences 1. Open the ‘Sound...’ preferences menu located under AlchemyTV > Preferences The sound preferences allow you to choose the source, compression and sample rate. 2. Select the compression tab to get access to the various compression methods. If you intend to capture video in MJPEG to later export to MPEG-1 ([...]

3. The source tab allows you to select the type of connection used to capture audio. Select TV T uner in the AlchemyTV list. 4. The sample tab sets the bitrate, size and channels (mono or stereo). 32 KHz/16 bit/Stereo is the optimum setting in terms of quality . 5. Click ‘OK’ to exit the sound menu and store your settings. AlchemyTV™ User Gui[...]

AlchemyTV™ User Guide Page 15 5. The destination tab enables you to select the output device for the captured audio. Internal: This option redirects the audio to your internal speaker (or external speakers if connected) External: This option redirects the audio to an external speaker connected to the audio OUT port on AlchemyTV . Internal and Ext[...]

S etting up A lchemyTV for analogue video captur e AlchemyTV™ User Guide Page 16 Composite IN S-VHS IN Audio IN[...]

I. Setting the video preferences This section explains how to setup AlchemyTV to capture from your analogue equipment, eg. DVD player , VCR, camcorder , etc... 1. Connect your analogue video source to the Composite or S-VHS connector of the AlchemyTV . If you have a VCR with a SCART (Euroconnector , Peritel) connector only , you can use a Scart-to-[...]

5. Once you have selected the input connection, click on the ‘Compression’ tab. AlchemyTV™ User Guide Page 18 The Codec list allows you to select the type of video compression you wish to apply[...]

Choosing the right video codec The recommended codecs for capture with the AlchemyTV are Motion-JPEG and MPEG-4. Motion JPEG: This codec has some fairly large space requirements, but has the advantage of requiring less processing power to encode (eg. record) and remains editable in some video applications. Y ou can for example open a MJPEG video in[...]

AlchemyTV™ User Guide Page 20 II. Setting the audio preferences 1. Open the ‘Sound...’ preferences menu located under AlchemyTV > Preferences The sound preferences allow you to choose the source, compression and sample rate. 2. Select the compression tab to get access to the various compression methods. If you intend to capture video in MJ[...]

AlchemyTV™ User Guide Page 21 3. The source tab allows you to select the type of connection used to capture audio. Select Audio- in, as you are capturing from an analogue video device like a VCR or DVD player . 4. The sample tab sets the bitrate, size and channels (mono or stereo). 32 KHz/16 bit/Stereo is the optimum setting in terms of quality .[...]

5. The destination tab enables you to select the output device for the captured audio. Internal: This option redirects the audio to your internal speaker (or external speakers if connected) External: This option redirects the audio to an external speaker connected to the audio OUT port on AlchemyTV . Internal and External: Redirects the audio to th[...]

U sing the on-scr een TV and FM r emote controls AlchemyTV™ User Guide Page 23[...]

I. The TV Remote Control The on-screen remote control includes all the common functions you will need on a regular basis to use the TV tuner or to record from your analogue video equipment. If the remote control is not displayed, you can use the apple + F key to bring it on screen. Alternatively , you can use the ‘View’ menu and select ‘Remot[...]

Remote Control buttons List: Displays a drop down menu with all stored channels. This is the quickest way to access a channel of your choice. Back: Reverts to the previously selected channel. Channel up/down: These two buttons allow you to switch channels, according to the order you selected in the T uner preferences. V olume up/down: Control the a[...]

The A lchemyTV menu bar AlchemyTV™ User Guide Page 26[...]

I. AlchemyTV menus 1. AlchemyTV Menu The AlchemyTV menu contains the various prefences sub-menus (Video, Sound, TV T uner , FM radio, Channel Assistant), essential to adjust the settings of the software. This menu also contains the Register and software update functions. 2. File menu The File menu allows you to save/load the channel list. Should yo[...]

4. Viewing Options: Fullscreen mode: This option will display window in full screen mode, similar to the ‘Present movie’ function in QuickT ime Pro. Optimal Full screen mode: This option is similar to the standard full screen mode, however , your monitor’ s resolution will be adjusted to the optimum setting (lower resolution in most cases). O[...]

L istening to FM R adio with A lchemyTV AlchemyTV™ User Guide Page 29 FM Radio[...]

I. Setting up AlchemyTV to receive FM radio T wo kind of connections are possible to enable AlchemyTV to receive FM radio. The antenna (similar to a wire) shipping with AlchemyTV can be connected directly to the card, or you can use a cable similar to the one you would use for a TV antenna. If you decide to use the wire antenna, you may need need t[...]

License Agreement This license contract is part of the purchase contract. The conditions for the use of the Alchemytv™- software are written down in the following license contract. With the use of the Alchemytv™-soft- ware you agree to the conditions of the license contract for the use of the Alchemytv™-software. A special note to Miglia tech[...]

5.3 Should the software be faulty , the original CD on which the software is memorized has to be properly packed and returned to the authorized trader . In every case the complaint about the soft- ware has to be made by including your name, address, telephone-number and a description of the defect and the system configuration. 5.4 Miglia reserves t[...]