Pre-Purchase Questions

[MopyDream44]

Hello Everyone,

I have been interested in doing Nintendo handheld Lets Plays for some time now, and a few LP friends directed me to 3dscapture.com. I've heard that Loopy is the best, and from what I've researched, I have no doubt that this is true, but I do have a few questions before I jump into a fairly financially hefty hobby.

First, I was wondering about the approximate time-frame it takes to complete an order. I know this can vary depending on how busy Loopy is, but I am interested in having a system by the beginning of June, so is there currently a very long wait for orders?

Also, I know Loopy working on a board for the Nintendo 3DS XL and does not currently have a release date planned for that, but I was wondering if it might be out by this coming June. I read on another post that Loopy thought the cost would be cheaper, so will the cost of the original capture card go down once the XL capture card is released, and will the potential cost difference of the original capture card vs. the XL be significant?

I read that the audio and video are captured through USB, so is the audio and video captured simultaneously through the same USB slot? I also noticed a slight hiss on the video example in the gallery, but I have not heard this hiss on videos from LPers I believe to be using Loopy's card, so do many people experience an audio hiss while using the capture card?

I can't decide if I should purchase a new, used, or refurbished system. Does anyone have any recommendations for which option is best? Has anyone found that using a used system doesn't work as well as using a new system?

Finally, I read that it's recommend that users have a fairly updated system. I just want to make sure my system will be able to handle this. It would be a shame to spend the money only to find out my poor computer can't hack it. Below are my computer specs, any opinion on if my computer will work or not would be super helpful.

Windows 7 Home Premium
Processor: Intel Core 13-2100 CPU 3.10GHz 3.10 GHz
Installed memory (RAM): 4.00 GB (I believe I have two free slots for additional RAM)
System Type: 64-bit OS
Capacity: 931 GB (526 GB free space)

Sorry to throw so many questions out there, but I want to make sure I am making an informed choice. Thank you so much in advance for any help!

[Lucario-Player]

Wow... that is an old video... like... needs to be updated old xD (I'm pretty sure that wasn't a test with the audio via USB since that update just came out a few months ago and back then it was something he had planned to do but didn't have time... man July 2012)

Also, the audio through USB uses the same USB from the video playback, I got one of his original capture devices before this site was even created (back when he was taking orders on the SRL forums hahaha) so obviously I wouldn't be able to record with 2 different USB cables if I have an original xD

But yeah, there isn't a humming noise with the USB playback, that was only when you just connected a male to male jack to the headphone port of the 3DS without a ground loop isolator before the USB audio was made available (which happens because of the feedback of plugging the capture device into the computer, just like if you hooked up a male to male cable with like, an iPhone and hooked it into the computer it would make that same feedback noise)

I'll let loopy answer those other questions though whenever he gets on.

[MopyDream44]

Thank you so much Lucario for replying. The feedback thing makes a lot of sense. I didn't realize that the video was made before the audio USB addition. The LPs I see have pretty great sound, so I figured it was something else at work.

[loopy]

Installation takes a day or two.

On prices: I don't know, I haven't decided yet.

New vs used vs refurbished: It doesn't make any difference (for capture). A used system off of ebay might be scraped up, dirty, have sticky buttons, etc. A refurb system will have been cleaned up for you. Refurbs directly from Nintendo are excellent quality - except for the packaging, you can't tell the difference between their refurbs and a brand new system.

Your computer specs look fine to me.

[Echophond]

That's great to hear! Thanks!