Need a card to convert my VHS to DVD

[sjaguar13]

I am sure this has been asked a bunch of times, but I couldn't find any posts related to the hardware and not software.

I have been playing around with video for a while, and I know a lot of the programs I will need, but my capture card sucks. It's an STB Pro which I got off eBay ages ago. It captures video all pixelated and stuff. I'm not a big movie watcher, but I do have quite a big collection of VHS tapes. My vcr just died and I am thinking it's time to convert to strictly DVD. The only problem is, I can't find most of the stuff I have on DVD. Even if I could, I don't want to re-buy them.

What kind of card would I need to convert from my VHS tape to a DVD without a considerable notice in the lose of quality? I am thinking an Asus 880 TV card, but I don't really know.

[andkiich]

I use an ATI All-In_wonder Radeon 7500. Works great for me and for others. Check out www.lordsmurf.com for other ATI and video tape capture godies.

[videofun]

Hi sjaguar13,
1. if you plan to replace your vga card as well, then you can go for an ATI card either an AIW or one with VIVO capabilities (for analog captures i use an asus 9600XT with vivo capabilities and don't have any problems). Bear in mind though that if you go analog you need fast hard drives.
2. if you want just a cheap card for analog capturres then you can buy a TV tuner which also allows you to capture from other sources (ie VCR). My opinion is to avoid cards based on BrookTree (BT) chipsets; one good card i could suggest is the Terratec Cinergy 600 or 400, which can capture in any resolution and with any codec.
3. If you are not on a tight budget and you want to avoid the usual analog problems then you can go for a Canopus ADVC100. In this case you will also need a (IEEE 1394) firewire card (a whatever cheap one).

[ofbarea]

You could consider using a DVD-Recorder. It’s very fast and simple to transfer to the PC for authoring.

[thecoalman]

I'm not a big movie watcher, but I do have quite a big collection of VHS tapes. My vcr just died and I am thinking it's time to convert to strictly DVD.

Be aware that most commercial tapes have macrovision copy protection, you will not be able to copy them with most capture cards without first passing the signal through a external device to remove the MV signal.

Some cards are will even give a false detection on home movies....

[SatStorm]

You are NTSC...
ATI is a good alternative. So a DVD Standalone recorder


Another root, more complicated and a bit more expensive, is a bt8xx card with the btwincap drivers, mainconcept 1.4.2 for capturing direct to mpeg 2, mpg2vcr for cut / editing your files and TMPGenc Author for authoring / burning (which I don't suggest, use Nero if you can). Gurante no macrovision that way, also much flexibity (you can capture all the systems, but I bet your VHS tapes are all NTSC...)
If you have the money you can buy a canopus 100 in place of the bt8xx card. You will also need a DV in card. Much more expensive alternative, but most people vote that this is the best known method for VHS to DVD transfers

[alchemistresearch]

I use a Plextor ConvertX PX-M402U. It's fully DivX compatable too, seeing as how that seems to be the way DVD players are going at the minute.

Failing that, you could always join a DVD hire club and rent out the films you want, assuming your films are available for rent.

[presto]

I love my ATI AIW Radeon 7500 but if you have older VHS tapes you may find you need to add a TBC. The ATI cards have a weakness in recording older tapes. (This is what Coalman is talking about when he refers to false macrovision detection.)

I also have a Dazzle 150 which is an external unit that plugs in to your USB. It has no problem capturing these "troublesome" older vhs tapes. The Pinnacle software it comes with seems to be reliable for capture and edit but not for authoring and burning DVDs. I author with Tmpgenc DVD Author and burn with Nero.

[oneref]

I have been doing the vhs to DVD with all of our family home movies (really not concerned about copyrights) and have used analog devises that capture avi then you have to convert to mpg1/2 ... we're talking hours per vhs. Stop!!! I got the Hauppauge 250 that does a great mpg1/2 very easily after I setup my preferences the way I want them. After that just author and burn in 1/4 the time. After trying both methods (unless you have tons of extra time) the one easiest on my computer and me is a card that does the codec on the capture.

Good luck and God bless all,
oneref

[TheFamilyMan]

If your vcr just died, you're going to need more than a capture card to convert your VHS tape collection to DVD. Checkout lord smurf's site www.digitalfaq.com for info on vcrs and the kind of problems that are associated with capturing from vcrs. Unfortunately you get what you pay for with a $40 vcr, especially when it comes to digital conversions.

[handyguy]

https://www.videohelp.com/capture