Service to convert DVD to miniDV?

[adrien23]

Hello,

I'm looking for a service that can convert my DVDs to miniDV format. I unfortunately don't have access to the original miniDV tapes or the computer files.

There is one DVD which I'm not sure was filmed with miniDV or a similar format. It was filmed by a film coach who used a higher end camera than my proconsumer camera (though it could have been labeled proconsumer as well, I'm not sure).

Anyway, I remember she mentioned that she was filming using 24 frames per second so the tape would have more of the "film-look." I don't know if this influences the conversion process. This DVD was done in full screen, not widescreen.

The other DVDs were done with miniDV and standard NTSC format and in full-screen, not widescreen format.

I would rather not do this myself and welcome recommendations of a reputable company who can provide good quality transfers.

I do have one question which is: will there be quality loss when converting from a DVD to a miniDV?

My ultimate goal is to take the miniDV and convert it to different formats: eg. another DVD (I know DVD duplication is another option), but also I want to upload to online sites (I have permission, this is not copy protected), etc. I'm actually not sure all of what I might do. But I want to take the first step and convert it to miniDV or some format which would give me the most choice and give me a version of the media with the least quality loss.

Thanks for any suggestions. Oh! This is all media that is not copy protected: I have the right to use it; so that is not an issue. There is no sort of protection on the DVDs and there would be no problem with converting the DVDs and copyright.

These DVDs were made a few years ago when widescreen was just starting to gain in popularity and high definition was not yet the standard. So, all the DVDs are Standard Definition and Full Screen.

Also, they are all NTSC.

Thank you!

Please let me know if you would like more details.

[yoda313]

convert it to different formats: eg. another DVD (I know DVD duplication is another option), but also I want to upload to online sites

You can actually do this yourself quite easily and freely.

Plus you do not need to convert to minidv to do this.

Yes you would be better off working from the original minidv sources but since you don't have them the finished dvds will be just fine. You'll need a few free programs and some time to learn them if you've never used them before.

First off if you only want to use a part of a dvd use dvd shrink in reauthor mode. There are plenty of guides on this website on how to do so. If you want to use the whole dvd you would do a whole disc backup.

You'll get .vob files and some other files inside of a video_ts folder.

You can use any number of files to convert for uploading to websites. Many popular programs here include super, format factory, and xvid4psp. Every website has their own special requirements for uploading. You'll have to follow their guidelines for that particular website. Once you do get that information you would take the video you copied from the dvd and load it into the conversion program of your choice. Than you choose the output format that meets the criteria of the website - each of these three should be able to do it depending on the specifics of that website. If not there are countless other free video converter programs. Than once you are set start the conversion. You will get a video file that you will be able to upload to the website.

If you simply want to copy the dvd to another dvd use dvd shrink to copy the whole disc to the harddrive and then use imgburn to copy that folder to a new dvd.

If there is more you want to do please let us know. This is a bit simplified here but this is a general description of the processes you have asked for help on.

Like you said the original minidv tapes would be best to work with but if you don't have them you can certainly work with the dvds you have on hand.

Edit - you mentioned dvd duplication - if this is meant for sale than you might want to look into dvd duplication services for that. A pressed disc from a factory is always better than a home made disc (though home made discs can be perfectly ok they are just not perfect). Though I've read on this website you really need to have a high minimum production run to make it worthwhile - 500 or more I think - every production company would be different.

edit 2 - I did see you mentioned you would not rather do this yourself. However you might want to at least learn some basics if you want to get into home video yourself in the future. I would not be able to offer suggestions on companies but I'm sure google searches are a start - I'd check with ones with BBB (better business bureau) ratings also.

Edit 3 - one other thing - you did not mention quantity. If this is only a handful of discs and not many hours you can certainly accomplish the web uploading portion yourself over several weekends of learning if you are not on a time constraint.

However if you have a time constraint than I can understand wanting a third party help. Also if you have dozens to hundreds of hours of footage to cut through I can understand that also. But like I said you might want to just copy a disc for yourself and putts with it yourself after you find a company for your main project. That might just get you interested enough in it to do more on your own later.

Good luck.

[adrien23]

Thanks for the information, but I'd love a referral to a trustworthy company.

Thanks!

[aedipuss]

it's not so much a transfer process as a format conversion. you need to import the mpeg-2(vobs) and encode them to DVavi. then write the resulting file back to tape.

if any of the dvds are over 60 minutes the video will have to be split into 1 hour segments to fit on tapes. the 24p dvd will most likely need to be written to tape as 29.97i using 3:2 pulldown.

yes there will slight loss of quality but it shouldn't be too bad. Dvavi bitrate is 25mbps and it should retain decent quality.


pm me for a business name. adverts for companies isn't done much here.