converting old videos

droopsnoot

Good points there. A lot of stuff I'm converting is just stuff I recorded from the TV, and of course it starts out pretty poor quality due to standard VHS only recording 220 lines - I don't have a pile of home-shot films anywhere.

Funnily enough my VHS player is a JVS S-VHS, but most of the media is standard VHS tape and I reserved the "good" tapes for something I knew I'd really want to have the best quality on. Sadly, though, those are mostly films that I can now purchase, remastered on DVD, for about £3. It's the stuff I can't get, stuff like tapes of "The White Room" and the like, that I want to convert.

googler

droopsnoot wrote: »

If the OP doesn't want the hassle of sitting through hours and hours of the actual tape-to-DVD process, you could get a company to do it

I don't see why copying VHS entails 'sitting through hours and hours'... yes, you have to copy them in real time, but surely everyone starts one copying, then comes back to it after three hours .... (or two, or four, depending on the VHS tape length)?

googler

droopsnoot wrote: »

Funnily enough my VHS player is a JVC S-VHS, but most of the media is standard VHS tape and I reserved the "good" tapes for something I knew I'd really want to have the best quality on.

Get one of the Panasonic machines - either the VHS/HDD/DVD one to keep it all in one box, or, if you use the current VHS player, a HDD/DVD model will do (or my suggestion above, if either of these are too rich for your blood).

The Panas allow you to edit footage on the HDD before committing to DVD, and the inbuilt facilities are more than adequate for your purposes. You won't need to download any software, you won't need to move either the VHS to the PC, or the PC near to the VHS, and at the end of the day, you can also use the machine as a Freeview receiver and recorder.

anotheruser

almillar wrote: »

... do NOT rely on DVDs to store any precious memories. They'll last longer than VHS, but not forever (especially R/RW ones). Make your DVDs, then back them up, even just as an .ISO disk image, on your hard drive.

But a hard drive is just as susceptible to damage/fire/breaking, if not more so than an optical disk!

However both (if treated with respect, no fire damage or whatever) will last longer than the life of the person who cares to watch it.

I personally have used Magix VHS Converter (click for Amazon).



My version came with a Scart to USB, which worked easily out of the box, although I haven't ever created any full DVDs, I just save the video files.
The latest versions of the software may not have scart though.

~£35 for the kit.

droopsnoot

googler wrote: »

I don't see why copying VHS entails 'sitting through hours and hours'... yes, you have to copy them in real time, but surely everyone starts one copying, then comes back to it after three hours .... (or two, or four, depending on the VHS tape length)?

I guess it depends on what's on the tape, and the capability of the destination - I record on to the hard disk of a Sony HDD/DVD recorder, and while it can happily delete sections of a recording or add or delete chapter marks, I haven't found a way to split a recording into two separate titles. So if I have a 3-hour tape with 3x1-hour programmes on it, I need to keep a watch.

googler wrote: »

stuff about the Pana recorder

As above my Sony recorder will do a lot, but not split into separate programmes. For my specific needs, it's not worth buying another HDD recorder just to do this job. For the OP it might be, of course.

googler

droopsnoot wrote: »

I guess it depends on what's on the tape, and the capability of the destination - I record on to the hard disk of a Sony HDD/DVD recorder, and while it can happily delete sections of a recording or add or delete chapter marks, I haven't found a way to split a recording into two separate titles. So if I have a 3-hour tape with 3x1-hour programmes on it, I need to keep a watch.

The Pana has a 'divide title' edit feature, which allows one prog to be split into two, then into two again, and again..... It will also automatically create separate titles if the tape has Pana-compatible indexes for programme starts, i.e. typically those made by a Pana VHS machine - one title for each index mark.


As above my Sony recorder will do a lot, but not split into separate programmes. For my specific needs, it's not worth buying another HDD recorder just to do this job. For the OP it might be, of course.

The Pana allows divide title as described above, partial delete, giving title names individually, as well as a host of other features.

I think these machines are close to disappearing from the new market, though. The current catalogue doesn't appear to show any DVD recorders, only BR recorders, and I can't see the VHS/HDD/DVD combo machine there anymore.

They may be available as New Old Stock from retailers, though.

[Deleted User]

droopsnoot wrote: »

A lot of stuff I'm converting is just stuff I recorded from the TV

I cannot believe you actually want to preserve/convert old time-shifted recordings off the telly. Old family videos are worth the effort I think, but old broadcast stuff?

googler

Moneyineptitude wrote: »

I cannot believe you actually want to preserve/convert old time-shifted recordings off the telly. Old family videos are worth the effort I think, but old broadcast stuff?

Why not? Who are you to pronounce judgement on what the OP wants to watch?

There's oodles upon oodles of quality broadcasts from the past, much of which is totally unlikely to get a re-broadcast, even if the companies have preserved the videotape.

Classical concerts, documentaries, OGWT, etc.

Comedies which are no longer politically correct, and won't get shown.

etc

[Deleted User]

googler wrote: »

Why not? Who are you to pronounce judgement on what the OP wants to watch?

I believe I can state my opinion on anything (within site rules) on an open forum. In this case, it is my opinion that converting old broadcast VHS recording is usually not worth the effort involved. I made no "pronouncement" about what the OP wanted to watch, by the way.

I might just as easily ask who you are to pronounce judgement on my post!:p

googler wrote: »

There's oodles upon oodles of quality broadcasts from the past, much of which is totally unlikely to get a re-broadcast, even if the companies have preserved the videotape.

I don't deny it. I just wonder how many such recordings the OP actually has that meets your "quality" criteria yet will never be repeated or is not available on DVD or Blu-Ray.

googler

Moneyineptitude wrote: »

I just wonder how many such recordings the OP actually has that meets your "quality" criteria yet will never be repeated or is not available on DVD or Blu-Ray.

I've got hundreds, I can't speak for the OP.

Are we supposed to sit on our hands and wait for the offchance of a repeat or commercial release?