information about converting VHS to DVD

[yblood]

Hi, first of all i'm not english but i understand very well, so maybe my english gonna be a little bit weird.

I'm a beginner in conversion vhs to dvd and i would like to know if someone can help me to start my little business. I would like to convert VHS to DVD for people in my town.

What kind of material do i need for starting my home business?.

I want to be able to edit menu. I want to learn how to do well.

For material i'm ready to invest 1000$ dollars for beginning.

Thank you very much


yblood

[Bob W]

I would do the conversion with a DVD recorder (much better quality than any capture), then transfer the DVD files to your hard drive for any menu or editing.

[vwcrusher]

Bob,

What do you mean by "DVD recorder?"
Is this a piece of hardware?

My PC has analog video and audio in, where it can be 'captured' or 'recorded' on my hard drive. I am looking for maximum quality.

Thanks,
Allen

[macleod]

DVD recorder is as set top recorder (like a VCR, only it records onto DVD).

Based on what you have written (I am guessing you dont want to learn the ins and outs of video converstion), the previous recommendation would be best.

1. Buy a standalone dvd recorder (ex panasonic e-20) $300 US
2. Buy a computer $400 US
3. Buy a multiformat burner (+/- R) $200 US
4. Buy an editing software (ex movie factory 2) $99.20 US
5. By media (including RW media) $.80 disk

All for $1000

[vwcrusher]

Thanks for the reply and advice. Let me supply a little more information that may change your recommendations.

The PC I have already has a burner in it (Sony Vaio Desktop). Also, I do want to edit the content a bit before I burn it on DVDs.

I have been looking thru this website for advice or trends (not to mention definitions) of what package(s) to try out.

If you don't mind, given my goals, could you comment or suggest others?
- for everything: Sonic Foundry Vegas Video + DVD
- Authoring: TMPGenc DVD Author
- Encoding: TMPGenc
- Burning: ???

Thanks again,
Allen

[macleod]

with a settop recorder you wont need to convert. Others may disagree, but the best capture from a consumer product will be using a settop dvd recorder. This will do the capture, it has a built in TBC, and you can apply some generic filters.

This is also best, if you dont want a lot of learning time (i.e. learning and using filters).

This is also best if you dont want to tie your computer up while it is encoding and converting.

There will be people that say that their captures are great as compared to a standalone unit. Personally, I would disagree. I could be wrong and not do the things that those other folks do (hope you see where I am going here).

Movie Facotry 2 will import the video and you can then create simple menus and whatnot and then burn. I don't have a lot of experience with a lot of other authoring packages as I am a function or form guy. I'll do a motion menu here and there, but it is mostly generic stuff.

There are a number of other users out there that can give you a lot of information (probably best served doing some research on this and other sites instead of asking "how do I make motion menus") on how to pretty up your menus.

Look on the left under dvd writers for the e-20 and read some of the reviews.

[vwcrusher]

I apologize for being thick here, but are you saying that a stand alone DVD recorder is better than the writer I have in my PC?

Why did I buy a PC with all these capabilities?!

Back to the freeware on the bottom of your message:
Are these apps I would need to accomplish the same without the desk top recorder? the reason I am asking is that instead of spending lost of money on applications, I can save some money on those apps that the desktop functionality will provide?

If that is the case, which apps would I need to get to the high quality, edited finished DVD?

[pixel]

You can't use the tools suggested in the above sig. The first three are for putting a DVD onto a DVD-r, and the last is for taking files from an unreadable CD.

You want the easiest way to do this, and the methods suggested are the best and cheapest.

Buy buying a standalone DVD recorder (£350), and an all-in-one DVD creation software (probably about £100), this will give brilliant quality and ease of use.

If you wanted a PC based conversion you would need a good capture card (£150-£200), a good sound card (£50), software (£100), fast CPU like a 2.8GHz P4 (£250), not to mention a dedicated capture hard drive (£80)

Se what a price difference that is and the cheaper one will produce better quality.

Not to mention the fact you will have to mess around with settings on your PC all the time with the PC based conversion. (I have had my graphics card for over a year and still mess around with settings.)

@macleod. Yes you are right, I like to think I can produce good quality captures, but a standalone recorder can produce great quality without a doubt.
Part of the fact is home PC's have processors for general tasks, but the recorders will have dedicated processors, plus they will only be doing one task during recording, unlike a PC where all the system tasks are going on in the background.

[vwcrusher]

Pixel,

I definately hear what you are saying. That being said, it seems that I would still need software to edit the video that has been recorded on the DVD and transfered in some way to the PC, yes?

Also, the PC you described is much like the one I just purchased: integrated capture card, 2.66 GHz P4, 120GB drive, decent sound card.

I do agree (especially as I read more of what is on this website) that there is an overwhelming amount of 'stuff' to know about to do this properly.

So, I guess the bottom line is: what else would I need to buy in addition to the desktop writer in order to import analog tapes, edit them and produce acceptable quality DVDs?

[pixel]

With a standalone recorder, you would need DVD Decrypter (to take files from the recorded DVD's. Thats free), DVD2AVI (to take MPEG2s out of the VOBs, also free) and an authoring software which will let you cut the MPEG2's and create menus etc. (You will have to pay for one, something like TMPGEnc DVD Author, or Ulead DVD Workshop).

If you choose to use your PC (it would be fast enough for real-time MPEG2, not brilliant, but good quality), you can either capture straight to MPEG 2 and use an authoring program (as stated above) to make a DVD, or use Virtualdub (free) to capture.AVI, then get an all-in-one DVD authoring program to create the menu's etc and encode to MPEG2.

I would suggest you start with the PC method, and download the free trial of TMPGEnc DVD Author, and mess about with that for a while and see how the videos you produce look.

If you are unhappy with them, get the standalone.

[macleod]

I definately hear what you are saying. That being said, it seems that I would still need software to edit the video that has been recorded on the DVD and transfered in some way to the PC, yes?

YES!

1. You will use one DVD-R to capture the analog tape from the vhs player to a settop dvd recorder (buy s-video cable and dont do composite).
2. You will take that DVD out of the dvd recorder (thats why I suggested you buy RW) and put it into your PC dvd player/burner.
3. Use an application like dvddecrypter to rip the movie down to your hard drive.
4. Use an application like moviefactory 2 (tweeked for AC3) to import the movie in the application so you can edit it and make menues.
5. Then use an application like movie factory2 to burn the finished product to a DVD-/+R

[vwcrusher]

Pixel, Macleod,

It sounds like the desktop dvd recorder is simpler, but more expensive, yes?

From a quality point of view does it matter?
Which will be more of a pleasurable experience?

Many thanks,
Allen

Its tough when you don't know what you don't know......

[housepig]

vwcrusher -

I'm not going to get in the middle of the debate on how you get the material into your computer.

I would say that if you can afford it, Vegas Video is a great video editing / titling / compositing solution.

Vegas DVD Architect, I have not played around with enough, I would say if you get it bundled with Vegas for less than $100 or so, grab it. Otherwise, check out DVD Lab for your authoring software - very flexable, pretty easy to use, but with a deep feature set, and it's only $80.

[vwcrusher]

Housepig,

So, if I understand you correctly...you are suggesting either Vegas Video; do you mean just Vegas Video or the Vegas video+DVD bundle, or some other package?

Also, this is used no matter how I get the material into my PC (either component video or via recorded DVD).....yes?

What is your opinion of TMPGenc DVD author? (if this even does the same function)

[pixel]

Yes the desktop DVD recorder is simpler but more expensive.
That is really the option for newbies who want quality DVDs with minimal effort.

PC captures can produce great quality, as good as a standalone (but only if you know what you're doing), plus they can be edited and have things like transiitions inserted more easily than the standalone method.
The PC method will be a more pleasurable experience, plus you will be able to do a lot more and learn something that not a lot of people know how to do (virtually anyone can do the standalone method).

I have no idea on Vegas Video, so I'll let housepig give you the answer to that.

I have currently just started trying out TMPGEnc DVD Author and within the first 30mins of trying it I had created a motion menu and a test DVD. It is set out easily for newbies too.

[vwcrusher]

Pixel,

I tend to agree with you. Though the easier method is enticing, I do want to learn how to do this.....perhaps not be an expert, but good enough when I play the DVD for someone to be able to say that I imported, edited, authored and created it.

So, that being said....it sounds like I need some software tools.....any suggestions? Again, I am looking for quality, but not necessarily tools that have too much freedom (at least for the time being).

[pixel]

Good for you .

If you are wanting to do real-time DVD MPEG2 captures, you should get an all-in-one software like Ulead DVD Workshop, or something along the lines of that.

If you want to capture AVIs then re-encode (this method will produce better quality results) capture with Virtualdub (its free). Reencode with TMPGEnc Plus (Trialware). Author with TMPGEnc DVD Author (Trialware).

All the programs mentioned are in the tools section, and there are guides for all of them in the guides section.

[housepig]

Housepig,

So, if I understand you correctly...you are suggesting either Vegas Video; do you mean just Vegas Video or the Vegas video+DVD bundle, or some other package?

What is your opinion of TMPGenc DVD author? (if this even does the same function)

It depends on how much editing you want to do.

if you just need simple cut & paste editing, I would suggest Virtualdub. If you need more complex video editing, compositing, titling, etc, I would recommend Vegas Video.

I would only recommend the Vegas + DVD Architect version if you can get it inexpensively... if Vegas was $250 and Vegas + DVD was $300, I might go for it. But if Vegas + DVD is $400 or more, I would just get Vegas Video and use DVD Lab for my authoring software.

I really don't have an opinion on TMPG Author, as when it first came out it looked more limited than DVD Lab, so I've stuck with DVD Lab and not played around with TMPG Author.

But again - if you are just doing capture & cut/paste editing, you don't need Vegas - you can do quite well with Virtualdub.

[cplevel42]

I have some options for you, but 1st I need to know your systems specs.

Here are mine.

P4 2.8 Ghz
120 gig HD
1 gig RAM / DDR pc-2700
400 FSB, 8x AGP
ATI AIW 9700 Pro

What do you have vwcrusher? Do you have firewire ieee-1394 and a camcorder with digital passthrough?

I would also say that if you don't have s-video in for capture on your vid card, you will need to upgrade to a better cap card.

[FOO]

I have a question
How the hell do the standalone recorders get away with
skipping Macrovision ? They claim the TBC is for cleaning signals instead
of circumventing protection ?

[vwcrusher]

CPlevel42,

I have a Sony Vaio desktop.
Including 2.66 GHz P4, 1GB DDR 2700, 120GB HDD, Geforce4 MX440 AGP video card.

The PC came with both firewire 1394, s-video and component video and audio inputs. I do not own a digital camcorder.

Does that help?

[yblood]

If you are wanting to do real-time DVD MPEG2 captures, you should get an all-in-one software like Ulead DVD Workshop, or something along the lines of that.

If you want to capture AVIs then re-encode (this method will produce better quality results) capture with Virtualdub (its free). Reencode with TMPGEnc Plus (Trialware). Author with TMPGEnc DVD Author (Trialware).



Thank's for all. But what's the difference between real-time and not?

[pixel]

Real-time is capturing straight to MPEG2. It uses more processor power and usually produces lower quality results.

Not doing it in real-time involves the steps I said above. It means capturing an AVI then converting to MPEG2. It takes longer but produces better results.

[vwcrusher]

Pixel,

So with my particular PC, it seems to make the most sense to import the video via S-video (will that file be a .AVI?).

And then edit and convert to MPEG2 and finally burn on DVD?

[pixel]

Pixel,

So with my particular PC, it seems to make the most sense to import the video via S-video (will that file be a .AVI?).

And then edit and convert to MPEG2 and finally burn on DVD?

Yes.

You can of course try capturing straight to MPEG2 because your PC should be fast enough, but it will not produce results as good as capturing in .AVI then editing and and converting to MPEG2 and burning on DVD.

These are the best tools for newbies: Virtualdub (for capturing to >AVI and editing),
PicVideo MJPEG Codec (for compression, doesn't use a lot of disk space) or HUFFYUV (for compression, uses a lot of disc space but gives better quality),
TMPGEnc Plus (for converting to MPEG2),
and TMPGEnc DVD Author for creating the DVD and burning.

These tools are the best for newbies, but you're not limited by the functions in them.

Here are the guides you should need: Capturing with Virtualdub using PicVideo MJPEG Codec or HUFFYUV,
Explanations of TMPGEnc settings (don't worry, just follow the wizard and you'll do fine),
Authoring a DVD with TMPGEnc DVD Author

Hope this helps you .

[vwcrusher]

Pixel,

Thank you very, very much.
Of most of the answers to my questions, you have provided clear direction that will give me the best chance of accomplishing this, and maybe, just maybe have some fun doing it.

I really do appreciate the time you have taken,
Allen

[pixel]

Pixel,

Thank you very, very much.
Of most of the answers to my questions, you have provided clear direction that will give me the best chance of accomplishing this, and maybe, just maybe have some fun doing it.

I really do appreciate the time you have taken,
Allen

No problem, we all had to start out somehow.

At least once you get the hang of it you can also pass on knowledge.

Happy capturing!

[yblood]

Thank you very much ! I appreciate your help. If i understand i have to convert my vhs with a dvd recorder, after i take my dvd and i put it on my computer in a avi file. After that i made menu and all the stuff i want a do and i burn my new dvd in mpeg.

I hope you understand me. HAHAHA!

Is it ok? Do you think i can start business like this?


Thank's again

yblood

[lordsmurf]

A few questions/suggestions...

1. Business? What are you wanting to do? Details. Convert video? Shoot weddings? Compile home videos? What? I convert videos on the side myself to generate money. I also have restoration services for restoring videos that are in bad condition.

2. Capturing can be high quality using either a good capture card (ATI All In Wonder are my favorites) or DVD recorder. If you already have a capture card, try to use it. A DVD recorder isn't the end-all of quality. Good, yes, but so are capture cards. I use the software that came with my card, of course it's also really good software.

3. Editing? Well, for audio I suggest SoundForge 6. For video, I like Adobe Premiere, and am just learning Adobe After Effects myself at the moment. I hear Vegas 4 is nice too.

4. Authoring/burning? Well, I like Nero for just burning. As far as authoring, I've used DVDit! PE for quite some time, and have just gotten Adobe Encore. Encore is more powerful, though it is proving difficult to learn and still has some drawbacks. ReelDVD also has demos and is known to be a good authoring package. DVDit! PE does AC3 and has many options for excellent discs.

[cplevel42]

Sorry for a late reply vwcrusher. What pixel is telling you is correct and with your extremely powerful laptop, using the s-video option with v-dub and encoding to mpeg2 with TMPGEnc or CCE makes the most sense.

Don't rule out using Ulead DVD workshop for capturing straight to mpeg2 for vid projects that you need done ASAP and can sacrifice a small (very small) amount of quality. Caping straight to mpeg2 can shave many hours off of a project. You can accurately edit mpeg2 with ulead video studio. I don't know if any other program that can do this, as mpeg2 was never meant to be edited.