THIS WAS AN ANSWER I POSTED IN ANOTHER TOPIC ON HERE (you didn't say what version you were using):
I had some problems with PD6 and importing analog VHS tapes, too. I had to do a "workaround" by importing it from my VHS player through a Pinnacle Movie Box, saving it as an .avi file and then importing it into PD6. I have since ugraded to PD7 and just tested all my "importing" devices - digital camera, DVD drive and VHS player. I am still using the VHS/Movie Box to get the analog file onto my hard drive, but happily PD7 at least recognizes it now, so I don't have to do that extra step in Pinnacle. I can't remember the details of what PD6 did, but I did figure out that for me in order to import analog VHS tapes, you have to select MPEG-1 in the profile section to get both sound and video. I initially selected MPEG-2 (didn't work), then selected AVI (video was fine, but sound was delayed). Any reason you need to import your file in AVI format instead of MPEG-1?
Hope that helps!
Cindy