video freezes

I am using Blackmagic capture cards to capture video tapes and Betacam tapes via SDI or S-Video in Media Express. However, during capture, the video freezes, breaks, and then resumes repeatedly, and eventually, the audio stops and recording fails. I am looking for a solution to this issue.

I am using two DeckLink Studio 4K cards and two DeckLink Mini Recorder 4k cards, and the same issue occurs with all of them. I have tried using Desktop Video drivers 12.8.1 and 12.7.

This issue occurs on all five computers being used. I am running Windows 11, with CPUs: Intel i5-13600k, i5-12400 and GPUs: RTX 4060ti, GTX1660super. The output is set to be saved on an external hard drive or HDD, and the same symptoms appear.

First of all, do these tapes still play back without issues on an analog monitor?
If so, you'll need a TBC (time base corrector).
Without that, these analog inputs only work from stable sources, like a camera. Analog tape is inherently unstable, and a TBC is fixing that. These used to be expensive devices for professional use, but these days you can find them relatively cheap on the second-hand market.

I am using Blackmagic capture cards to capture video tapes and Betacam tapes via SDI or S-Video in Media Express. However, during capture, the video freezes, breaks, and then resumes repeatedly, and eventually, the audio stops and recording fails. I am looking for a solution to this issue.

Betacam (and BetaSP) should have an internal TBC, so the output should be fairly stable... unless you got a super-cheap industrial player which may not have the TBC. I agree with Uli that there's an art to getting old videotapes to play, and without a TBC, you're going to struggle.

With VHS, we usually tell people to get a JVC BR-S822, which was the best machine they ever made (about $10,000 back in 1992). I bought one for $250 on eBay, used it for about 10 years, and gave it away some time ago after we digitized a bunch of tapes. That assumes the VHS tapes are SP; for EP or SLP, you'll have to find one of the industrial Panasonic decks, some of which had a rudimentary TBC.

Maybe the OP is referring to Betamax. Betacam(SP) is the most stable analog tape format. I’ve never used a Betacam deck that didn’t have a frame sync and proc amp so maybe it’s the consumer Betamax format in question.

Good Luck