AVer MediaCenter User Manual
DISCLAIMER All the screen shots in this documentation are only example images. The images may vary depending on the product and software version. Information presented in this documentation has been carefully checked for reliability; however, no responsibility is assumed for inaccuracies. The information contained in this documentation is subject to change without notice. COPYRIGHT © 2010 by AVerMedia TECHNOLOGIES, Inc. All rights reserved.
201007 Table of Contents Chapter 1 Introduction ............................................................... 1 1.1 System Requirements .....................................................................................2 1.2 Activating AVer MediaCenter ..........................................................................2 1.3 Overview of AVer MediaCenter........................................................................3 The Main Screen ...................................................
.2 TV Settings .....................................................................................................25 Configure Analog TV Configure Recording ............................................................. 25 Configure HD Input Source Configure Recording .................................................... 28 Configure HD Input Source Configure Timeshift ................................................... 30 More TV Options ...............................................
Chapter 1 Introduction Thanks for purchasing AVerTV Express HD DVR. This high quality capture card is especially designed for professional players with high standards towards image/ video quality. AVerTV Express HD DVR also comes with a powerful application AVer MediaCenter, allowing you to capture high resolution images, record HD video clips, create your own slideshows with both the captured and images of other sources, and even create your own music library for both audio and video luxury.
1.1 System Requirements System requirements are described in detail below. Before using AVer MediaCenter, verify that your PC meets the requirements below. For SD Video Capturing: Intel® Pentium® Mobile 2.0GHz or AMD equivalent For HD Video Real-time Capturing (MPEG-2 Format) Intel® Core™2 Duo 2.4GHz or AMD equivalent For HD Video Real-time Capturing (H.264 Format) Intel® Core™ i7 920XM 2.0GHz or AMD equivalent VGA card support with support for DirectX 9.
1.3 Overview of AVer MediaCenter After running the software, the main screen of AVer MediaCenter appears which includes “TV”, “Video”, “Music”, “Pictures” and “Settings”. This section briefly introduces main menu, sub menus and setting items. For more details, please refer to Chapter 2.
The Main Control Buttons Description Go back the main menu Go back one level Open user manual Minimize the application Restore the previous size Exit the application Description / Switch from real-time TV to TimeShift mode. / Freeze the playback temporarily. Stop the playback, recording, TimeShift, etc. Play the selected file Record the current program. Play the previous/next file in the playlist. Move backward or skip forward in intervals. Capture a single image or a sequence of images.
Navigation Tree Note: The items may vary depending on the product you use and the area you live.
1.4 Running AVer MediaCenter for the First Time When you run the AVer MediaCenter for the first time, a set up wizard will automatically appear and take you through all the necessary settings step by step. 1. When a dialog box appears, click Yes. 2. Choose the primary device or tuner and then select Next (as shown on the right). Then choose Next again to continue. 3. Choose the country where you located. 4. Choose the type of video signal. 5.
Chapter 2 Getting Started This Chapter will start with the basic usage of AVer MediaCenter, including playing music, recording a video program, and so on. Before using the application, it is necessary to understand all the basic operations in this chapter. TV ....................................................... 8 Video ................................................ 11 Music................................................ 12 Pictures............................................
2.1 TV Watching External Video After you connect the device with external video sources (camcorder, video games, VCR/VCD/DVD players), you can enjoy watching them on your PC. 1. Go to the TV page and you can see a preview window in the right-hand section of the screen. 2. To switch the preview mode to the full-screen mode, select Live. 3. If you want to go back the preview mode, select in the top-left corner of the screen.
Adjusting Volume To increase or decrease volume when watching TV, click To disable the sound of the program, click on the control panel. on the control panel. Press the same button again to turn on the sound. Capturing Images While you watch recorded video from your PC monitor, you can use the application to capture images for your document, presentation or web page. 1. 2. 3. Select “TV”. Select on the control panel to capture a still image. To capture another image, press that button again.
Recording a Video Source Directly To record a program now: When watching video, select to record a program immediately. To stop recording, select . Note: When recording from Component input, copyrighted content cannot be recorded. Playing A Recorded Video 1. 2. 3. Select “TV” “Recorded Files”. All the recorded files are listed here. You can view those file by date, title or status. 4. 5. Choose the desired file. If you want to delete all recorded files, click the Remove All buttonYes. 6. 7.
2.2 Video With this function, you can view recorded programs or other video files. Playing Video Files 1. 2. Select “Video”. You may see some recorded video files are listed on the right hand section of the screen. Or you can select More Videos to choose other folders on your computer. 3. 4. 5. Select the file you want. Select to start playback. Select on the control panel to stop the playback and return to live program. To Pause the playback, select on the control panel.
2.3 Music You can create your music library and enjoy music with our AVer MediaCenter. Adding Music to your Playlist Add your favorite music to AVer MediaCenter music playlist and then you can playback music from the playlist next time. 1. Select “Music” “Add Music” and then select the desired folder. 2. Choose the tracks you wish to play. Press Space button on your keyboard to confirm the selected file or folder. 3. Select OK to go back one level. 4.
Playing Music To playback music: 1. 2. Select “Music”. Enable Sequential to play tracks in order or Random to shuffle the order. 3. To continue playing all the tracks, select Loop check box. 4. Use to determine the order of the tracks in your playlist. 5. Then select to start to listen to the music. 6. Use the following buttons to control your playback. Advance the playback. Rewind the playback. Play the next track. Play the previous track Freeze the playback.
2.4 Pictures In this section, we introduce methods to view your pictures and play a slide show. Viewing the Captured Images 1. 2. Select “Pictures”. The captured thumbnails are displayed in the right-hand section. 3. By clicking on the thumbnails, you can view images in a full-screen window. 4. Select More Pictures to find the folder that contains the desired pictures if your images are not saved in the default folder. Note: You can view thumbnails and enjoy video or music at the same time.
Chapter 3 Advanced Operations Beyond basic usage, what else you can do with AVer MediaCenter? In this chapter, we take you to the next level and explain the advanced features of this application. TV ..................................................... 16 Video ................................................
3.1 TV Using TimeShift The TimeShift function performs background recording of a program, and lets you return to any part of the recorded program. At the same time, the live program continues to be recorded and played back so you won’t miss any part of the show. You can also advance forward or rewind to replay scenes again. 1. 2. Select “TV”. On this page, you can select TimeShift. Select 3. on the control panel.
Multi-Channel Display (Only Available for Multi-Card/Dual Tuner Series Users) When you install two or more TV tuner cards or devices in the computer, this function allows you to watch many video sources at the same time. 1. 2. Select “TV”. On this page, use on the control panel. You can see TV icons on the bottom-right corner of the screen. In this example, two TV icons appearing indicate two devices are installed in this computer. 3.
7. (PBP Mode) Under PIP mode, you can change size of the PIP screen with your mouse.
3.2 Video Picture-In-Picture(PIP) / Picture-By-Picture(PBP) Display With the PIP/PBP feature, you are able to playback recorded video files, and at the same time, watch live TV. 1. 2. Select “Video”. On this page, choose the desired file. Or select More Videos to find other video files. 3. When playing the video file, use on the control panel to enable the PIP function. 4. Select Mode) (Full Screen repeatedly to switch between Full screen mode, PIP mode and PBP mode (as shown on the right).
Chapter 4 More Settings Before scanning channels, recording programs, or capturing images, check the settings page to see if they meet your needs. With our explanation in this chapter, you can easily customize all the settings of AVer MediaCenter. General Settings.............................. 21 TV Settings ...................................... 25 Video Settings ................................. 32 Picture Settings ............................... 33 About ...............................................
4.1 General Settings Here you can select the destination folder for saving recorded files, determine recording time and file size, assign the number of image you want to capture, setting the Windows power options, etc. Configure Storage 1. Select “Settings” “General” “Configure Storage” 2. Use the default folder for saving the recorded 3. Or select 4. files to look for your desired folder.
Configure Snapshot 1. 2. 3. Select “Settings” “General” “Configure Snapshot”. In the Number of Pictures box, assign the number of images that you want to capture. In the Interval Time box, specify the interval between captures. For instance, if you specify 10 seconds, an image will be captured every 10 seconds. 4. 5. 6. 7. Choose the format you want for saving the captured images. Use the default folder for saving images. Or select to look for your desired folder.
Video Device (Only Available for Multi-Card / Dual Tuner Series Users) If you install two or more AVerMedia devices in your computer, you need to determine which device you want to use for watching TV and other multimedia functions. 1. Select “Settings” “General” “Video Device”. 2. Choose the primary device from the 3. To use Multi-Channel Display function, drop-down list. you need to select the secondary devices.
More Options This page allows you to set the power mode. Then you can put your computer in Stand By, Hibernate or other modes while you are away from the computer. 1. Select “Settings” “General” “More Options”. 2. You can select the UI language you want 3. Select Display AVerMedia Logo check box from the Language drop-down list. to show AVerMedia Logo on the upper left corner of the screen. 4.
4.2 TV Settings All TV setting tips are included within this section. Configure Analog TV Configure Recording Under “Configure Analog TV” section, you can select a file format for recording from S-Video and Composite input sources. 1. Select “Settings” “TV” “Configure Analog TV” “Configure Recording”. 2. Choose the default file format from the Record Format drop-down list (MPEG-2, AVI, DVD, WAV, WMA, WMV, , H.264, iPod). 3.
Recording Format Estimated File Size (per hour) Option* (for advanced users) Video Size 1. MPEG-2 2.3G Video Quality Audio Sample Rate Audio Quality AVI 2. Video Encoder File size varies Video Size depending on the format you choose. Audio Encoder Audio Attribute Video Size DVD 3. 3.6G Video Quality Audio Sample Rate Audio Quality 4. 5. 6. Audio Encoder WAV 620MB WMA 60MB Windows Media Formation WMV 900MB Windows Media Formation Audio Attribute Profile Level Video Size 7. H.
Video Bitrate Video bitrate refers to the number of bits used per second. Higher bitrate means a bigger file size and generally better video quality. Entropy Mode CALVC or CABAC are two modes of entropy encoding, a data compression scheme, for H.264. CAVLC, supported in all H.264 profiles, is the lower-quality, easier-to-decode option. CABAC delivers higher-quality video and compresses data more efficiently than CAVLC but takes more processing to decompress.
Configure HD Input Source Configure Recording Under “Configure HD Input Source” section, you can configure a file format for recording from HDMI and Component input sources. 1. Select “Settings” “TV” “Configure HD Input Source” “Configure Recording”. 2. Choose the default file format (MPEG-2, H.264, iPod) from the Record Format drop-down list. 3. 4. Then you can select Edit to create your own file format (For advanced users).
Here is a list of supported recording formats in “Configure HD Input Source” (Recording from HDMI and Component input sources): Recording Format Estimated File Size (per hour) Option* (for advanced users) Video Size 1. MPEG-2 Video Quality 14G Audio Sample Rate Audio Quality Profile Level Video Size 2. H.264 6G Entropy Mode Video Bitrate Audio Sample Rate Audio Bitrate 3. 4. iPod 350MB None AVI 450G* None *The file size might reach 450G if the input source resolution is 1080i.
processing to decompress. CABAC is not supported in Baseline and Extended profiles. Profile The profile defines the configurations for encoding the files. Level The level specifies a limit for a variable such as the maximum resolutions and data rates. Windows Media Format Windows Media Format means the compression type developed by Microsoft. Audio Encoder A tool of audio compression. A better audio encoder produces higher audio resolutions with less audio distortion and smaller file size.
More TV Options 1. 2. Select “Settings” “TV” “More TV Options”. Make sure that your country or region is correct if you cannot get any channels after scanning. 3. If you connect to an external video device, you need to select the correct video standard. 4. If you connect to a HD device, you need to select the correct HD input source.
4.3 Video Settings 1. Select “Settings” “Video”. 2. Use the default folder for saving the recorded video file. 3. 4. Or select to look for your desired folder. On the next page, you can use to go up one level to find other folders or select Change Disk to choose other hard drives. 5. Then Choose OK to confirm your 6. Select Save to save the settings or selection. select Cancel to abort without saving. If you want to revert to factory settings, select Default.
4.4 Picture Settings Before you start playing slide show, first check its settings to see if they fit your needs. 1. 2. Select “Settings” “Picture”. From the Play Settings drop-down list, select Sequential to play a slide show in order or select Random to shuffle the order. 3. Type a value in the Interval Time text box to determine how long you want to display each picture. 4. Select the transition you want to use from the Transition Effect drop-down list. 5. Select 6.
4.5 About The AVerTV application provides a convenient tool, which allows users to ask questions via AVerMedia’s website easily. 1. 2. Select “Settings” “About”. Make sure you have accessed to the Internet and then click Product Information to access the product information webpage. Or you can click Technical Support to connect to our technical support webpage (Global page). 3. For North American users, select “North America (English)”from the Select a Country menu on the global webpage.
Appendix More tips and explanations are included in this chapter. Hot Keys ................................................ 36 Glossary ................................................
Hot Keys Hot Keys Description Up/Down/Left/Right arrow Move up, down, left or right to select the desired item. Tab Move to next item. Numeric keys Use NUMERIC KEYS to directly enter the TV/Radio channel number. Space Confirm the selected tracks or folders when under the main menu -Music. Page Up/Down Channel Up / Channel Down F1 Open the user manual. F8 Turn off / on the sound. F9 Volume Down F10 Volume Up Back Back to previous page Ctrl + A Choose between available audio modes.
Glossary AVI applications. AVI is the most common video file format for Hibernate playback on the computer. It can be saved in Hibernation is a state in which your computer shuts uncompressed form if you want high quality down to save power but first saves everything in video, or compressed using any of the available memory on your hard disk. codecs if you want to minimize the file size. Aspect Ratio iPod A video format base on H.
channels are visible. VCD Stand By When you choose this format, the recorded Stand By is a state in which your monitor and hard disks turn off, so that your computer uses less power. SVCD When you choose this format, the recorded video file will be saved in MPEG-2 format that is compliant with SVCD standards. Standard SVCD frame size and frame rate are 480 x 480 pixels at 29.97 fps for NTSC and 480 x 576 at 25 fps for video file will be saved in MPEG-1 format that is compliant with VCD standards.
