Combo vcr/dvd decks for dubbing

[Tom81]

Can anyone comment on the quality of DVD dubs from vhs coming from the Panasonic 30vs / 40vx units on any other vcr/dvd recorder combos?

[FulciLives]

COMBO units are generally thought of as being LOWER in quality than using separate components.

If you got the money the suggestion around these parts is to buy a high quality S-VHS VCR such as those made by JVC (the JVC HR-S9911U is a popular choice). It is also suggested to buy a Full Frame TBC such as the DataVideo TBC 1000 or the AVT-8710.

Then connect that to a stand alone DVD recorder using S-Video although sometimes composite video is better depending on the quality of the source (soemtimes a bad source works best with composite video). For a stand alone DVD recorder the most popular seems to be the JVC models (like the DR-M100S) or the Pioneer HDD models (such as the DVR-531H-s as well as the 533 and 633 models).

Most if not all of this equipment can be bought at: B&H PHOTO & VIDEO

All of this will probably add up to about $1,000 or so US Dollars.

Of course this type of equipment and set-up would be considered "optimal" ... you can get away cheaper than this but using a COMBO unit is still not advised.

One way to cut the cost of this is with the VCR ... next to the higher end JVC units I am very found of the old Toshiba 6-head Hi-Fi Stereo VHS VCR units that use the V3 technology. These are great but are no longer made yet they do turn up time to time on eBay. Also it is possible to get by without a Full Frame TBC but it usually helps (i.e., improves the conversion from analog to digital) if you have one.

- John "FulciLives" Coleman