Budget Friendly or Just Cheap? Is the Old Skool USB Capture Card Any Good?
42In this video, we unbox and test out the Old Skool USB HDMI Capture Card.
I think it is fair to say I have been somewhat critical of Old Skool products over the years. Their Classiq HD and Classiq 2 HD left quite a bit to be desired in my opinion. The included controllers weren't very good in view, I didn't care for the color pallets, and the audio quality was towards the bottom of the list. However, they have a very good PS4 controller I quite have liked, so things can be hit and miss with Old Skool.
It has always seemed that Old Skool's philosophies has been to provide a budget-friendly solution with their products. While commendable, sometimes spending a little more would yield vastly superior results. Sticking with this budget-friendly approach, Old Skool is entering the Capture Card arena with their own USB HDMI capture device.
The Capture Card, I actually prefer to call it a stick or dongle than a true card, is basic in both design and function. Simply connect your HDMI source into the input, and plug the USB dongle into any open USB 2.0 or 3.0 slot on your computer and you should be good to go. No software is included with this, however Old Skool wisely recommends OBS in the manual. There is not any sort of passthru of the video to share to a television, you can only watch on your computer or a secondary attached monitor. While this is disappointing at least it is good that the unit is powered completely from the USB it is connected to and you don't need a separate power supply of any kind.
I use both OBS and Streamlabs OBS, and it took me some time to get the audio to capture, or what looked like it captured. As you can tell in the footage, none of the audio recorded. I didn't try streaming but if this is the case the is quite disappointing. I was able to hear the audio on my end as I was capturing and I ensured that my setting were for both monitor and output, however it clearly did not work in either program.
I would not claim that my computer is a powerhouse, being 2 years old, however it is no slouch. It is an Intel Core i7-7500 2.90 Ghz, and i have 24GB of RAM. My computer also has an nVidia 960GTX video card, so all-in-all, it's a pretty decent machine. Connecting the capture card into my computer was easy, but getting the lag out of the system was not by any stretch of the imagination. I experienced massive lag and delays with this device, something I did not experience with either of my 2 regular capture cards. I also ran into significant audio glitchiness and video stuttering as I attempted to play. I know I may not always notice the lag and latency of some clone systems, but this was impossible to miss. The experience was truly unplayable for me, which is why I only showed 2 different games being played. It didn't matter if I went straight into the card or used my HDMI Switcher, using an mCable also didn't matter one way or the other. I frustratedly stopped my capture, and began working on editing my footage.
Why it RoX:
- Inexpensive
- Captured image quality is good
- Works with OBS and Streamlabs OBS
- Compact
- Does not require external power
What Could Be Improved?
- No HDMI passthrough option
- USB 2.0 instead of 3.0
- Introduces extreme lag
- Audio glitches
- Audio did not record for some reason
- Video buffered and stuttered
Should you buy one?
I cannot in good conscious recommend the Old Skool HDMI capture card at this time. It simply introduces so much lag and latency into the process that games are practically unplayable. Add into this the fact that you cannot pass the video signal through to your television unless your computer has an HDMI out and this has very little value. If you are just looking to record, capture, or stream your gaming footage there are better options out there which aren't much more than this device here. If they could add an HDMI passthru and eliminate the latency, this could be a compelling device. But as it is, you're best to avoid at this time.
#CaptureCard #OldSkool #VideoGames
The footage used in this review are used under the Fair Use laws, referenced below:
https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/17/107
Notwithstanding the provisions of sections 106 and 106A, the fair use of a copyrighted work, including such use by reproduction in copies or phonorecords or by any other means specified by that section, for purposes such as criticism, comment, news reporting, teaching (including multiple copies for classroom use), scholarship, or research, is not an infringement of copyright.
(Pub. L. 94–553, title I, § 101, Oct. 19, 1976, 90 Stat. 2546; Pub. L. 101–650, title VI, § 607, Dec. 1, 1990, 104 Stat. 5132; Pub. L. 102–492, Oct. 24, 1992, 106 Stat. 3145.)
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