VHS recording is coming out in black and white

[JLYSLStester]

I recently purchased a used Philips DVP3100V VCR recorder and I've ran into a problem:

I'm trying to record my laptop and capture it on a VHS tape so I can play it back- and I purchased an HDMI2AV adapter. I plugged my HDMI cable into the adapter, then using RCA cables i plugged them into the front of the VCR recorder: I then plugged some more RCA cables to the TV so i could see what I was doing. The VCR captured my laptop screen perfectly and in colour, but every time I record, the recording returns the video but in black and white. I've made sure that all the settings on the VCR are on PAL as I'm based in the UK, I tried using a SCART adapter as well and I checked with different tapes. I also tried capturing in MESECAM mode and the recording flickers between black and white, and colour. Apart from that I'm at a bit of a loss as to what to do next. I've made sure that the RCA cables are plugged into the right inputs as well.

[rrats]

Have you tried using different TVs? Can you send the setup here?

[DB83]

Check your settings(if any) on that HDMI2AV adapter.


If it is set to NTSC you would still get a colour picture on your tv (NTSC playback on PAL tv) but the vcr only sees NTSC. Hence the B&W.


Link to the adapter may also assist.


BTW Not the 'smartest' way to record your laptop screen these days. Perfectly adequate screen-capture (with audio) software available. Check the software section on this site.

[JLYSLStester]

Hey again!

I've returned with images of my setup: it's messy as I've been doing config all day, but the reason why I'm recording my screen in a vintage format is for aesthetic reasons as I do content creation and I'm exporting motion graphic designs in a retro style then putting them on tape! Attached is my setup: I'm also including the other set of RCA cables I used to plug into the HDMI2AV adapter which also returned the same results@


[Attachment 60365 - Click to enlarge]

This is the HDMI2AV I am using (had to take out the USB connection just for this image), it is set to PAL.


[Attachment 60366 - Click to enlarge]

Here are the cables I initially used.


[Attachment 60367 - Click to enlarge]

Here is the front of the VCR I am using as said in the original post


[Attachment 60368 - Click to enlarge]

Here is the rear: the RCA cables are the output to the TV, and the SCART cable has been switched to input.


[Attachment 60369 - Click to enlarge]

As you can see, the display looks fine and untampered with, it is in PAL mode: but when I press record and look through the playback, I get this:


[Attachment 60370 - Click to enlarge]

(the distortion is from my phone taking said image). I put my tape in another VCR and the tape is black and white too: these are completely blank new TDK tapes I got from Amazon.

I hope these images help

[dellsam34]

Get a PAL HDMI AV box, The one you have is obviously NTSC only or defective, You get what you paid for.

[DB83]

Check the screen refresh rate on the laptop.


I found the adapter and it only supports 60 hz.


Some installation notes on the Amazon page:


Note:
Video signal transfer only, can't improve the video quality, please import HD video.
Please connect this converter as following two steps:
1) Power up the unit and leave for 1 minute;
2) After unit is powered up then attach input and output cables.
FOR SOME DEVICES, CONNECTING THE HDMI CABLE BEFORE THE POWER CABLE MAY LEAD TO CONVERTER FAILING TO WORK.

[DB83]

Get a PAL HDMI AV box, The one you have is obviously NTSC only or defective, You get what you paid for.

You may well be right.


The Amazon page does state 480i outout


https://www.amazon.co.uk/GANA-Composite-Converter-Supporting-black-02/dp/B01N5KNFD1/re...9&sr=8-17&th=1


But also, confusingly, states both PAL and NTSC outputs.


So that could well be the quasi PAL60 fudge.

[JLYSLStester]

Get a PAL HDMI AV box, The one you have is obviously NTSC only or defective, You get what you paid for.

Yeah, I'm assuming this is defective, as I checked the device itself- changing the switch from PAL to NTSC and back again works as my TV/VCR clearly registers it as PAL (or NTSC) depending on what I switch it to, It's only that I don't know if that's the sole issue or it's my VCR being unable to record in colour.

[DB83]

Of course these converters are not designed for the purpose you ask of them.


But do check the output refresh rate from the laptop.


I thought that switch only configured the input. I am probably wrong with this as I do not have the benefit of the user manual.


Just a thought. Can you configure the vcr to record as ntsc ?

[rrats]

OP, you can use your DVD player if you have one. it will output nice pal signal (assuming you have written screen recoding in 720x576i25 / MPEG2)

[october262]

Get a PAL HDMI AV box, The one you have is obviously NTSC only or defective, You get what you paid for.

Yeah, I'm assuming this is defective, as I checked the device itself- changing the switch from PAL to NTSC and back again works as my TV/VCR clearly registers it as PAL (or NTSC) depending on what I switch it to, It's only that I don't know if that's the sole issue or it's my VCR being unable to record in colour.

have you tried unplugging the vcr and let it sit for a few minutes to return to
factory default settings ??

[JLYSLStester]

Get a PAL HDMI AV box, The one you have is obviously NTSC only or defective, You get what you paid for.

Yeah, I'm assuming this is defective, as I checked the device itself- changing the switch from PAL to NTSC and back again works as my TV/VCR clearly registers it as PAL (or NTSC) depending on what I switch it to, It's only that I don't know if that's the sole issue or it's my VCR being unable to record in colour.

have you tried unplugging the vcr and let it sit for a few minutes to return to
factory default settings ??

I'll try that- I've been Googling literally everywhere for any specifications that are exclusive to this VCR model but I haven't found anything out of the ordinary, so it is baffling that things aren't working that way!

[DB83]

By all means ignore my replies.


But then I can also not waste my time in replying.

[JLYSLStester]

By all means ignore my replies.


But then I can also not waste my time in replying.

My bad, I've been doing several things at once but to answer your questions:

there's no setting that allows me to record in NTSC- only PAL and MESECAM. Recording in MESECAM gave me colour for a bit but it was flickering in and out of colour. And my laptop refresh rate is set to 60Hz, I'm unable to set it to any other value.

[lordsmurf]

Of course these converters are not designed for the purpose you ask of them.

Nope. Those were made for video game consoles, DVD players, etc.

[DB83]

Need to determine what is defective or not up to the task.


Firstly, confirm that the vcr can actually record a pure PAL signal - this was suggested somewhat earlier but not terribly explained well. Connect the vcr to some known working video equipment that can output PAL over rca connectors and do a short test recording. Still B&W so now to look more closely at the vcr.


That the vcr supports MeSecam may well be a clue here. Was this purchase deliberate or was it the only one you could find ? MeSecam was not a broadcast standard. It was a method of recording Secam on to VHS etc. with the vcr then outputting PAL. So if PAL is only for output and not for actual recording whatever you try is not going to work.


Right now all we know is that the vcr is Phillips. So can you advise the model no we can confirm my theory about the recording capabilities. If it can record as PAL and you had B&W in the above test then the vcr is defective.


So come back with this info and then how you reply we can move on to the next part of the chain.