Hauppauge HD PVR 2 Gaming Edition Plus. MP4 or M2TS formats, whilst Hauppauge Capture software will only capture in.TS. Whatever the file format it can be converted to another later so it doesn’t matter a great deal, and for this reason we chose the Hauppauge Capture software for both footage capture and streaming. (ref: 'I use the HD. First off, using the HD PVR 2 in OBS as a video capture device will only allow for a max resolution of 720x480 either because of a driver issue from Hauppauge or a software issue on OBS. The footage will also be choppy. If you stream this way, make sure to have the FPS at 59.94 as it seems to ease the choppiness a little. HD PVR 2 Manufacturer: Hauppauge Price: $149.99-$159.99 Platform: PC/Mac with 3 rd party software An HD PVR2 was supplied to us for impressions. The HD PVR 2 is a robust capture device which is great for locally recording, editing and uploading of video from game consoles, while offering basic options for live streaming to the internet. I created a video on how to setup the Hauppauge HD PVR 2 a while back ago and it still gets a lot of views from people wanting to use this device to livestream. Unfortunately, the old method is no.
- Hauppauge Hd Pvr 2 Download
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- Hauppauge Hd Pvr Capture Software
- Hauppauge Hd Pvr Software Download
- Hauppauge Hd Pvr 2 Software
- Hd Pvr 2 Download Software
Pros
- Easy to use
- Records footage from retro consoles
Cons
- Doesn't support 60fps
- Bulky design
- Expensive
- Requires its own power supply
Key Specifications
- Review Price: £165.00
What is the Hauppauge HD PVR 2 Gaming Edition?
The Hauppauge HD PVR 2 Gaming Edition has been the go-to capture device for many gamers looking to dive into the world of YouTube. But with next-gen now in full swing and everything leaning towards the golden digits of 1080p, 60fps, just how well does it stand out in the overcrowded market of capture devices?
Hauppauge HD PVR 2 Gaming Edition – Design
Hauppauge Hd Pvr 2 Download
The HD PVR 2 is a bulky box that somehow manages to look fairly sleek. That’s partly down to its rounded edges and hourglass indentation. Within this indent sits a strip of LEDs that will flash brightly to let you know when you’re live. A triangular button adorns one corner of the top plate, making recording as simple as pressing a button. Size-wise, it’s easily the biggest of all its competitors – even pushing Roxio out of the picture – yet it’s one of the lightest at an impressive 34g.
Round the back of the HD PVR 2 you’ll find the power socket, a mini-USB port, a component video port and an HDMI in and out.
This marks a significant upgrade to the original PVR, which looked similar to a jewellery box with some wires, buttons and sockets thrown in.
SEE ALSO: Best Gaming Headset 2015
Round the back of the HD PVR 2 you’ll find the power socket, a mini-USB port, a component video port and an HDMI in and out.
This marks a significant upgrade to the original PVR, which looked similar to a jewellery box with some wires, buttons and sockets thrown in.
SEE ALSO: Best Gaming Headset 2015
Hauppauge HD PVR 2 Gaming Edition – Features
When it comes to setup, the PVR 2 makes things easy with its slew of connectors. These include HDMI in and out – allowing for pass through to a TV – as well as an S-Video socket and a bunch of cables should you wish to connect your PlayStation 3 and older consoles.
This is a big plus for the HD PVR 2 since there are few capture cards on the market with the ability to capture footage from the consoles of your childhood such as the Super Nintendo, Mega Drive, PS1 and more. Especially since a push for 60fps led many manufacturers to redesign devices, leaving out component ports and more.
Videophiles should be aware that HDMI pass through for older devices is a little bit hit and miss, however. If you’re looking to go retro often, a video-splitter cable may be a worthwhile investment.
SEE ALSO: PS4 vs Xbox One
It’s not all good news in the cable department. While the PVR 2 offers more connections than most, it’s also the most cumbersome to set up. This is because it requires its own power supply, unlike rivals such as the Elgato Game Capture HD 60. This makes the PVR 2 a more awkward proposition for those looking to use a capture card on the go.
While it’s possible to capture Full HD 1080p footage, the HD PVR 2 unfortunately won’t reach the lofty heights of 60fps – instead, it achieves roughly 30fps (forgiving the occasional frame rate drop). This isn’t a complete deal-breaker, but it’s worth bearing in mind should you be hoping to future-proof your setup.
Like many such devices currently available, capture isn’t lag-free, so you won’t be able to play simply through your computer monitor. I didn’t find this a huge issue: I prefer to play games through my 32in LED TV, safe in the knowledge that my computer is doing the legwork as I play. However, it’s worth noting if you’re looking for a way to use your iMac as a monitor for your brand-new PS4.
SEE ALSO: PS4 vs PS3
This is a big plus for the HD PVR 2 since there are few capture cards on the market with the ability to capture footage from the consoles of your childhood such as the Super Nintendo, Mega Drive, PS1 and more. Especially since a push for 60fps led many manufacturers to redesign devices, leaving out component ports and more.
Videophiles should be aware that HDMI pass through for older devices is a little bit hit and miss, however. If you’re looking to go retro often, a video-splitter cable may be a worthwhile investment.
SEE ALSO: PS4 vs Xbox One
It’s not all good news in the cable department. While the PVR 2 offers more connections than most, it’s also the most cumbersome to set up. This is because it requires its own power supply, unlike rivals such as the Elgato Game Capture HD 60. This makes the PVR 2 a more awkward proposition for those looking to use a capture card on the go.
While it’s possible to capture Full HD 1080p footage, the HD PVR 2 unfortunately won’t reach the lofty heights of 60fps – instead, it achieves roughly 30fps (forgiving the occasional frame rate drop). This isn’t a complete deal-breaker, but it’s worth bearing in mind should you be hoping to future-proof your setup.
Like many such devices currently available, capture isn’t lag-free, so you won’t be able to play simply through your computer monitor. I didn’t find this a huge issue: I prefer to play games through my 32in LED TV, safe in the knowledge that my computer is doing the legwork as I play. However, it’s worth noting if you’re looking for a way to use your iMac as a monitor for your brand-new PS4.
SEE ALSO: PS4 vs PS3
Hd Pvr 2 Drivers
Hauppauge HD PVR 2 Gaming Edition – Game Capture
The HD PVR 2 comes with its own recording software, ArcSoft ShowBiz. As is true of most of the software supplied with capture devices, it doesn’t offer much beyond the basics. This is no bad thing, though. It allows you to capture gameplay with only a few settings to tweak video format and other features, making it great for beginners.
Recording gameplay with the HD PVR 2 was relatively painless, with quality sitting at a steady 1080p 30fps, and only the occasional drop in frame rate. Occasionally, capture from a PS3 dips in quality simply due to the HDCP forcing you to utilise a component cable – but this is an issue that lies with the PS3 as a console rather than the PVR 2.
SEE ALSO: AVerMedia ExtremeCap U3
Recording gameplay with the HD PVR 2 was relatively painless, with quality sitting at a steady 1080p 30fps, and only the occasional drop in frame rate. Occasionally, capture from a PS3 dips in quality simply due to the HDCP forcing you to utilise a component cable – but this is an issue that lies with the PS3 as a console rather than the PVR 2.
SEE ALSO: AVerMedia ExtremeCap U3
Hauppauge Hd Pvr Capture Software
Verdict
Overall, you could do much worse than using the Hauppauge HD PVR 2, especially since it offers the ability to record footage from retro consoles. However, considering it costs £165, its failure to offer 60fps is a huge disappointment. Also, its bulky design alongside the fact that it needs its own power supply means we’d go for the Elgato instead.
Trusted Score
Hauppauge Hd Pvr Software Download
Hauppauge Hd Pvr 2 Software
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Hd Pvr 2 Download Software
I have been in IT for a long time and have even done some beta testing and this software definitely needs beta testing. When I received my Hauppauge HDPVR2 the first the problems, in the edit feature there are many design flaws such as the default location of your videos being in the public folder. The delete function not using the recycle bin, which means if you accidently delete a video you’re screwed. The video position counter in the edit tab frequently losing its place when you stop or go back. The video position slider in the edit tab frequently not displaying the video preview properly; necessitating having to stop and play bits of the video to see where you are in the video when you are looking for a place to cut the video. The play/pause buttons being inverted from time to time. The trim feature that can only trim at one second intervals, which may not be a big deal to gamers but makes the trim feature useless for anything other than game capture. The trim feature also can only make one change at a time which means you can’t mark the beginning and ending and process the video, you must mark the beginning cut, process the video and then mark the end cut and process the video again. Of course you can do all this in video editing software but then it’s going to take hours to process and for all of its faults; the HDPVR2 is blazing fast at processing its own video.Then there is the constant freezing and crashing. I figured out some of the reasons it crashes and freezes but since the folks at Hauppauge stopped all correspondence when I inquired about the crashes I could not give them what I have learned about the crashing and freezing. For instance, if your source video changes resolution the software will freeze or crash. Had they properly beta tested the equipment for uses other than gaming they most likely could have fixed the issues anyway. The thing that makes all of this most frustrating is that this thing really shows promise. There is a slider that lets you choose the file size/quality that you want. However If you want reasonable files sizes for your videos (800 to 1500 megs per one and a half video) you will have to capture at the highest quality and reprocess to a more efficient codec. A one and a half hour movie at the highest quality setting is going to be between 10 and 15 gigs at 1080. The native .ts codec is great for authoring Blu-ray but it’s a little fat for storage. There is a built in MP4 conversion tool that is also very fast. If you lower the capture quality you will start to see minor digital artifacts at about 5 or 6 gigs at 1080 on a one and a half hour video. Even though it can’t do 60FPS the base technology has great results when it doesn’t malfunction and the video scalability is awesome.
I sincerely hope that Hauppauge continues to refine their software. Hardware encoding is the way to go and would be a shame to see this technology go to waste for lack of a little refinement and it is for that reason I gave 3 stars instead of 1.