How to Capture With Dazzle Without Pinnacle Studios

Dazzle is a video signal adapter made by Pinnacle. The adapter allows the owner to connect a DVD player, video game console or similar video output device to a computer. This is the way many avid video game fans record their game play video footage. All dazzle models come with two pieces of software on the installation disc. One is a lite version of Pinnacle Studios and the other is a program called Instant DVD Recorder. You can capture with Dazzle without Pinnacle Studios installed.

Insert the Dazzle installation CD in your CD-ROM drive on the PC. Follow the on-screen instructions to install the Instant DVD Recorder software. Restart your computer if prompted to do so.

Download and install the Dazzle hardware drivers for your model and operating system. Visit the Pinnacle website and navigate to the "Hardware drivers for Pinnacle/Dazzle* Studio" Web page (see Resources). Click on the link for the hardware driver that corresponds to your Dazzle model and the Windows version your computer has installed. Select the desktop as the destination folder and click "OK" or "Download." Double-click on the downloaded file. Follow the on-screen prompt to install the drivers. Restart the computer if prompted to do so.

Plug the Dazzle into the PC. Plug one end of the included USB cable into the Dazzle's USB port. Plug the other end into one of the PC's USB ports.

Double-click on the Instant DVD Recorder desktop icon to launch the program.

Select your Dazzle model from the drop-down menu under the "Video Source" heading. Click the "Options" button and verify that the settings are correct. Verify that the video input is set to composite or S-video according to how your dazzle is connected to the video game console or similar device. U.S. users must have NTSC selected as the video type, while other countries must choose PAL. The audio input must be set to your Dazzle model for the sound to record properly. Click "Next" to continue.

Choose "Hard Disk Folder" from the drop-down menu options for where you want to save the captured video files. Click the "Browse" button, then click "Create a new folder." Choose the desktop as the location for the new folder and give the folder a name. Click "OK." Click "Next" to continue.

Click "No" when asked whether or not you want to include menus in the recording. Click "Next" to finish the setup process.

Click the "Start Recording" button to begin the video capture with the Dazzle. Start playing the video game or push the play button on the video output device to create the video content.