What tape format will create this dropout?

[AVCHDfreak]

Hi all,
attached is a frame capture from a television serial originating from Hong Kong that has severe dropout. The video file has been re-compressed from the international DVD version. I do not have the series' on DVD or other physical media currently but I can confirm that this same dropout appears at the same place on all international versions of the series (the domestic version is unaffected).

The international version is sourced from the domestic version master which is in an analog format itself using a composite video signal (dot crawl is apparent on all versions). Supposedly from discussions at other forums, the studio used DV to create masters for the international version for their series, but I'm not sure if this is the case for this particular dropout.

Can anyone identify what tape format is most likely to create such dropouts?
I also need clarification about if it's possible for Betacam/BetaSP with dropout compensation or other digital formats to have such severe dropouts that are visually similar to this one.

Thanks in advance.

[lordsmurf]

That's a digital artifact.
It may have happened in processing, and stored to a tape (VHS, etc).
Or it may be native to a digital tape format like DV.

FYI: "dropout" is a technical term that does NOT describe this error.

[smrpix]

Most likely that is an artifact of dropout compensation created by a TBC during mastering. The tape format is almost irrelevant since that is not where the artifact is likely to be occurring.

DV mastering is unusual unless this is a really low budget operation. If analog, 1", Betcam, or Betcam-SP are most probable.

[AVCHDfreak]

Thanks for correcting me about the use of terms. Would there be situations where the TBC could have incorrectly triggered dropout compensation when there was no dropout at all?

I noticed that on the aritfact (in the middle to bottom portion of the capture) that the luma of the last good line seems to be repeated while the chroma seems to be "corrupted" (i.e. chroma of last good line not repeated, appears to be chroma of previous frame), is it common for TBCs (particularly low-end ones) to corrupt either or both luma and chroma information when the dropout is being compensated?

[smrpix]

There's nothing to indicate the TBC's dropout compensation was incorrectly triggered. There probably was a dropout in the tape. The artifact looks like those I've seen from decent high-end pro TBCs -- It may have been a TBC built in to the deck -- but there are too many unknowns to say definitively.

[AVCHDfreak]

OK, thanks for the info.