Is Mini DV the Best way to back up SVHS and VHS?

[neojapsz]

I have a number of SVHS and VHS tapes that have important footage on. Played some of them recently and the quality has really dropped, lines on the screen mainly. I’m new to video editing but my best guess is to get all the tapes onto mini DV. That is the best quality equipment I have, now will mini DV last better over the years?

Basically asking is mini DV a more long-term storage solution for important footage. In 10-20 years time I still want this footage to be playable.

My idea was to transfer it all to mini DV and also make DVD copies of the mini DV, and then throw away the VHS.

Am I on the right track with what im planning?

[SatStorm]

Anything on tape has issues. Digital on tape handles a bit more.
IMO, transfer your tapes to quality DVDs.

I would keep the original tapes too...

[JohnnyMalaria]

Personally, I would do the following:

Transfer to miniDV and store them away carefully - these will be your archives
Make DVD copies for everyday use
Keep the VHS - store them in a similar manner to the miniDV

Relying on DVD for archiving is, as you may note from the increasing number of posts on this subject, becoming rather questionable. You need to be very prudent - buy the best DVD blanks you can (do NOT skimp on this), burn them at lower speeds (e.g., x4) - try to avoid doing it all as fast as you can. After all, you obviously value these videos - pay the extra few $$ to minimize long term problems.

Many pros consider tape a far better archiving medium than DVD-R.

Remember, if you create DVDs for watching on standard players, you will be converting the video to MPEG2 - and, in the process, throwing away a lot of the original information. That's fine for distribution but, for archiving, is folly.

[ozymango]

What everybody already said, plus let me put this mildly:

Never discard your originals!!!

Shudder. Please, find some room somewhere safe and keep your master tapes. If they're important enough to copy, they're important enough to keep.

[thecoalman]

I transfer all my mini-DV to an external drive, tape goes to another location. Drive stays her, two copies and I'm still not happy. It's not cheap but at least I know I have two separate copies on fairly reliable mediums.

[neojapsz]

thanks for all replies so far, i will keep my original tapes

I have asked this elsewhere but are bog standard panasonic tapes good for archiving?

Or should i go for the master quality tapes at 4times the price, are they worth the extra for those important memories?