HDMI USB capture multiple devices?

MikeMynis

New Member
I'm looking for recommendations to have a multi camcorder setup with each cam having its own HDMI USB capture device.

I have 4 camcorders with each an HDMI output.

Any suggestions for HDMI USB capture devices that will work when I install 4 of them?
(i.e. not conflicting with each other)
 

FerretBomb

Active Member
More of a concern is that your USB bus will be unlikely to handle four video streams simultaneously, without a dedicated expansion card with independent channels/controllers for each port, like the one @Banyarola linked above. If you're trying to do this on a laptop though, you're entirely SOL/boned. Even two on a laptop will likely be a stretch.

As far as the USB devices themselves, Magewell makes extremely good (if extremely expensive) units, which are designed to co-exist in even a massively multiple capture environment. Elgato says their HD60S will, but I've seen issues from people here about actually making it work. Most others may/likely will run into problems, especially on the cheap end of the spectrum.
I'd actually recommend the Magewell 4-port Pro Capture HDMI if you have a PCIe slot available, rather than trying to do it through external dongle hell. You'll get much more reliable and stable capture, with a ton of extremely high-end features.
 

MikeMynis

New Member
Thanks guys. With the USB device I still need 4 hdmi -> usb converters. So I think I'll go with the Magewell 4-port Pro Capture HDMI. ;-)
 

Victor Dmitriev

New Member
Thanks guys. With the USB device I still need 4 hdmi -> usb converters.
Two weeks ago, with a friend, I assembled a system of 4 low-budget capture cards HDMI-USB 3.0 (less than USD 50 for each) and the i7 laptop with 4 USB 3.0 ports. So far, only trial recording and translation in Full HD 25 fps, but no obvious problems or shortcomings have been found. It's works!
 

Victor Dmitriev

New Member
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dmemphis

Member
I wonder if it makes sense to come out of the camera into usb converters with h.264 encoding- which would reduce the data on the bus
making likely to not need dedicated USB 3.0 inputs which many laptops probably don't have. Of course this puts decode burden on OBS to
work with the video, and a quality will take a hit as the final out will be re-compressed going to the stream.
Probably also necessitates a laptop with hardware encode/decode capability in the video system.

But it might make multi camera viable and additionally,
the cameras might be able to be combined into a hub and have one USB run back to the laptop- handy if the shoot is
distant from the position of the laptop operator.
 

dmemphis

Member
I assume that as usual, OBS will not be able to identify the multiple USB cameras from session to session so you have to re-assign them each time...
 
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