VHS to DVD recorders/captures

[harjo02]

Does anyone have experience with both the Panasonic DMR-E75VS and the ADVC-300?

I have a ton of VHS to capture and I'm debating whether to do it with a standalone machine, external device, or just with the capture cards I've got. I've had mixed success with capture cards.

Are there any other good, affordable VHS to DVD recorders? I've looked at the Panasonic and one or two other brands. What's the best, fastest way to get VHS to DVD? What do video production studios use?

Thanks in advance for any insight on the E75VS vs ADVC-300 or any other options.

j

[gshelley61]

Many of us now are using standalone DVD recorders to capture straight to MPEG2 on re-writeable discs, then trimming and authoring final DVD's on the computer. The new JVC DR-M10SL is a very good performer and includes pre-encoding video noise reduction that works very well. I'm getting better results using this method than I have been able to do with computer capturing - and it is much, much faster.

Continue reading the various DVD recorder threads to find out more...

[barneystorm]

I'd forget what video production studios use, because it won't be anything like what is available to us!!!

I've been capturing from VHS to my hard drive for 4 or 5 years now, and while there is nothing difficult about it per-se, you've got the problems of making sure your source is close enough to be attacked to your capture card, then it ties your PC up while capturing and converting to mpeg. I've now gone completely over to using my standalone DVD recorder to transfer analogue footage across to my PC for editing and burning.

You really don't need anything 'fancy' as far as a standalone is concerned. You are going to see not only a huge prce drop on DVD recorders in the next 12-18 months, but a sharp rise in the number of features too. You could go out and spend over £500 on a really nice DVD recorder with an inbuilt hard drive, but that same spec will be on sub £250 machines in the not too distant future...

There are a lot of machines in the sub £250 category now that will do all you could want and more. The Lite-On 5005 is getting good things said about it, and that writes to either + or - format and can even turn out VCD and CD's. -r decks tend to have better on board editing, but you probably wouldn't use those, and they are only really useful if you have your discs formatted to DVD-VR mode, My DVD recorder is an LG DR 4810 which writes to the -r system-I have the option to format re-writables to DVD-VR or DVD-Video-I've given up on DVD-VR as I find I have problems with sound sync problems when I send it to my hard drive for editing.

The Panasonic you mention writes to DVD RAM discs, not -RW's, and this uses the same DVD-VR system. Remember you are going to need your PC's DVD drive to be able to recognise whatever type and format of disc you are going to use, and many will not read DVD-RAM discs-bear that in mind before jumping into a DVD-RAM machine

In short..any recorder connected to your VHS recorder will do the job for you-Sainsbury's had 'refurbished' Mico R311's for £85 a couple of weeks ago-and that a really decent machine too-simple, but functional.

[harjo02]

It seems like there are a few ways to do it. I'd ideally like to do it with as few moving parts and seperate pieces of equipment and cable involved.

I can't believe that nobody out there has manuf'd a single box that is explicitly for VHS to DVD transfer for the consumer market. The Panasonic and one or two other ones (the names escape me) are the only ones I've seen.

I guess I'll keep looking.......Hey, Barneystorm---good catch on the DVD-RAM. I hadn't considered that.

As it stands, it looks like the ADVC-300 is the best way to go because its got a little more flexibility. I hate the idea of tying up a computer for capture, though.

Thanks, again!

[gshelley61]

I can't believe that nobody out there has manuf'd a single box that is explicitly for VHS to DVD transfer for the consumer market. The Panasonic and one or two other ones (the names escape me) are the only ones I've seen.

VHS/DVD Recorder combo units do exist, but they are basically compromises and the build quality is fair at best. Particularly, the VCR in them is usually junk. You are better off buying a new or used high-quality S-VHS VCR with built in TBC and DNR (like the new JVC HR-S9911U, or the JVC HR-S9600U or HR-S7600U for a pre-owned unit). You need the highest quality, most stable playback of tapes that is possible for a good transfer.

Note that if you intend to record commercial VHS movies to DVD or capture them with your computer, you will still need to invest in a standalone TBC or other device (clarifier, enhancer, etc.) that defeats copy protection signals like Macrovision.

[wheezer210]

I am looking into getting a JVC DR-M10SL and a SR-V10U to do VHS to DVD conversions should I also consider a seperate TBC or will the one in built in TBC's in the VCR and DVD recorder be enough?

[gshelley61]

You will probably need a standalone TBC (or other device) to defeat copy protection if you intend to record commercial VHS tapes to DVD.

[wheezer210]

actually I was thinking more like home movies.

[gshelley61]

Then you should be OK with the VCR and the DVD recorder by themselves.

[lordsmurf]

Two fine pieces of equipment you're planning to get.

[harjo02]

Let me run this buy you. I've got one decent PC for editing. I have two scenarios I'm considering:

Scenario 1:
ADVC-300 for capture to PC
JVC SVHS for playback

Scenario 2:
Pioneer DVDR985
JVC SVHS for playback

The reason I've got the debate is I don't want to consume PC resources simply for capturing and transfering.

Any thoughts on the two scenarios? Issues or concerns with either? Before I go out and drop $700, I'm trying to get as many insights as I can.

Thanks for anything anyone can offer!

[Hermit]

Get the JVC S-VHS VCR TBC/ Digipure and
JVC DR-M10S DVD Recorder

Just got today my DR-M10S
Picture and Sound Quality Superb!!!!! Excellent!!!! THE BEST in available recorders

lordsmurf and gshelley61 are absolutely right in prasing it so much
This is my experience too

THank you lordsmurf and gshelley61 and keep the good work

[gshelley61]

Let me run this buy you. I've got one decent PC for editing. I have two scenarios I'm considering:

Scenario 1:
ADVC-300 for capture to PC
JVC SVHS for playback

Scenario 2:
Pioneer DVDR985
JVC SVHS for playback

The reason I've got the debate is I don't want to consume PC resources simply for capturing and transfering.

Any thoughts on the two scenarios? Issues or concerns with either? Before I go out and drop $700, I'm trying to get as many insights as I can.

Thanks for anything anyone can offer!

Did you mean Philips DVDR985? There have been lots of reported reliability problems with their recorders.

But, yes I can fully endorse using a DVD recorder to capture instead of the computer (especially if most of your sources will be decent quality). I am actually getting far better results, much much faster using the JVC as my MPEG2 hardware capturing device than I ever did with the computer method. I can't stress enough how much time is saved doing it this way.

The JVC DR-M10SL has some built-in pre-encoding noise filtering and mild image enhancement circuits that do a really good job of helping to create clean, noise free MPEG2 recordings. I use DVD-RW's in standard DVD-Video mode then trim and author the final DVD-R with my computer.

The JVC is about $300... the Canopus device you mentioned is $500, and you will still have to spend time encoding from AVI to MPEG2.

I am currently testing several video processors/enhancers (like the Sima SCC Pro Color Corrector, for example) for use with the JVC recorder. The results so far are encouraging.

[handyguy]

Panasonics have special filters so vhs looks better than the original. Cleans up a lot of snow too.

There are a lot of dvd recorder/vhs topics on the board.

[benjiii]

gshelley61 -- you write that "I use DVD-RW's in standard DVD-Video mode then trim and author the final DVD-R with my computer." Could you please elaborate on that last computer-based step? Have you found a good mpeg editor? Do you have to do any rendering or conversions? I'm wondering if I'm just confused because I'm on a Mac, and, as far as I know, there are no mpeg trimmers/editors for the Mac.

By the way, I certainly agree with the general sentiment expressed here that dvd-recorder based conversions are infinitely easier and faster than computer grabbing, converting and compressing.

[bmwracer]

All I do is just borrow my brother's digital video camera and record the output of my VCR with it. Then I pass the data (via Firewire) to my PC, edit the video, and create a DVD. Easy!

[gshelley61]

I use Womble MPEG Video Wizard. It's a very good and fast MPEG2 editor that is frame accurate and only re-encodes at the edit point, so there is no quality loss. Unfortunately, it is not compatible with Macs.

In fact, I'm not sure what would be equivalent in MAC world...

Vegas and Ulead have MPEG2 editing (without re-encoding) capability... are there MAC versions of those available?

Have a look in the MAC video forum:
https://www.videohelp.com/forum/viewforum.php?f=9

I'm sure you will find some answers there...

Here's a possible alternative. ADS MPEG2 hardware encoder for MAC:
http://www.usb-ware.com/ads-usb-instant-dvd-for-mac.htm

[harjo02]

Giddyup, boys.

I just got a JVC DR-M10S DVD Recorder for $266-ish and a HR-S9911U for about $269-ish (factory refurb) both of them from eCost.com After weeks of deliberation and looking at different forums and threads, this seemed to be the best solution.

Thanks for all the input and the coaching on the thread!!!!

[Bort04]

I am also trying to transfer my home video VHS tapes to DVD. I've been using a Videoh! internal computer card and Mad Dog DVD recorder. I have a new television (with built-in VCR) to play the VHS tapes, and high-quality A/V cables. The problem is, the video quality on the finished DVD is rather blurry.

My computer is fast with a good video card. I've tried all the different record/burn settings. All I want is a DVD copy that is equal to (or better than) the original VHS recording. Is this possible when doing the transfer through the computer? Or am I better off with a stand-alone VHS to DVD recorder?

Thanks

[harjo02]

Bort04:

Take the plunge. I've been around and around these same questions for a year and I've tried various cap devices (internal and external) and have had mixed success---mostly bad. I haven't tried any of the Canopus devices which are so highly rated but everything else fell short for me. My decision came down to this:

1) Highest quality
2) Least taxing on my computer/time -- I want to be able to burn through a lot of VHS without consuming my time in front of a PC and I didn't want to dedicate a PC to capture/render video.

I haven't gotten my JVC boxes, yet, so the jury is still out on this setup's effectiveness, but I'm very optimistic. Unless you are capturing short snippets of video, don't care too much about the quality, and have the PC time to burn, then the capture card/device is the way to go. For my money and time, however, the standalone devices win hands down. Cost vs benefit.

Good luck!

[Moonstomp]

Bort04:

Take the plunge. I've been around and around these same questions for a year and I've tried various cap devices (internal and external) and have had mixed success---mostly bad.

Bort04,

Harjo02 is right. I also spent two years messing with capture cards / software / drivers etc with mixed results. Capturing with the PC can be a VERY time consuming and very frustrating experience.

Three weeks ago I bought a JVC DR-M10 DVD Recorder and I haven't looked back since. For transferring VHS to DVD it's an excellent performer. Then you can take your DVD-RW to your PC and do all your editing / menus etc. Check out Lord Smurf's guide:

http://www.digitalfaq.com/edit/recorderedit/recorderedit.htm

all the best,

Moonstomp.

[nathanaa]

This TBC device, is that what the Sima CT-2 Go-DVD Video Enhancer device is?

Or is that something completely different? I'm just starting to prepare to transfer my VHS tapes to DVD, and the few I've got that are commercial, I want to use the easiest method for it. Glad I found this thread!

[gshelley61]

The Sima products are not TBC's as far as I know. They use a different method of "restoring sync" than full frame time base correctors do. I have a Sima SCC and sometimes it actually introduces problems (like color flaring on the top edge of the VHS frame). Mine doesn't have a way to shut off the stabilizing feature either... I wish it did. I have mainly used it for color correction adjustments.

Datavideo TBC-1000 and the AVTools AVT-8710 are consumer level full frame TBC's.

[nathanaa]

Not to sound overly pedantic here or anything, but...

So, I get my VHS player, hook it to a TBC (like the Datavideo for example), hook the TBC to a DVD recorder, press play on the VHS player and record on the DVD recorder, and off it goes? Once the recording is done, I throw the DVD+R from the recorder into my computer's DVD player, reauthor it and edit it as necessary/wanted, then burn to a DVD-R for permanent archiving. I then can reuse the DVD+R for the next VHS tape.

Have I got all this correct? It sounds so simple once I've actually written it out, it seemed more complicated in my head (obviously a newbie here).

[fmctm1sw]

Lately there has been a lot of "pro-DVD recorder" posts. I've considered this option but a few things worry me. First, the limitations. Editing seems more difficult (and less accurate) then capturing an AVI file. I'd be out of luck if I wanted to do anything with avisynth like filtering or ivtc. Copy protection. I have had no trouble at all with my current rig in this regard. I need a TBC anyway but I get good results with my Toshiba SVHS VCR. What about VBR? I plan on going with 2 pass VBR once I buy cce. I must admit, it would be awful nice to pop in a tape and puch "record" and be done with it though. I would just hate to get something I had to change back into an avi file and reencode again.

[lordsmurf]

If you have perfect quality or near-perfect source, you cannot beat the ease of a DVD recorder. I never use a capture card unless I'm restoring something these days. With good machines like the JVC around, the quality is equal to any of those high-grade MPEG-2 capture cards, or even the AVI capture/re-encode methods.

[gshelley61]

Not to sound overly pedantic here or anything, but...

So, I get my VHS player, hook it to a TBC (like the Datavideo for example), hook the TBC to a DVD recorder, press play on the VHS player and record on the DVD recorder, and off it goes? Once the recording is done, I throw the DVD+R from the recorder into my computer's DVD player, reauthor it and edit it as necessary/wanted, then burn to a DVD-R for permanent archiving. I then can reuse the DVD+R for the next VHS tape.

Have I got all this correct? It sounds so simple once I've actually written it out, it seemed more complicated in my head (obviously a newbie here).

Yes, but I think you meant to type DVD+RW (or DVD-RW) when referring to the disc recorded with the DVD recorder. They can be re-used over and over again (supposedly up to 1,000 times or more).

[johndoe]

I am also interesteed in the vhs to dvd conversion. I checked out ecost. They have the jvc dr-mv1s for $370 and the jvc dr-m10s for $270. Is that all I would need? Besides the rewrites and a computer for editing? I am a noobie at this conversion.

[lordsmurf]

Grab yourself a used JVC HR-S9911 VCR and a JVC DR-M10S DVD recorder. No need for combo unit, MV1

[nathanaa]

Yes, but I think you meant to type DVD+RW (or DVD-RW) when referring to the disc recorded with the DVD recorder. They can be re-used over and over again (supposedly up to 1,000 times or more).

Ahh, yes, I did, thanks for the correction. I would hope they would work better than the CD-RW's I've experienced. I stopped using those and just stuck with CD-R's. After using the RW's a couple times and having them just stop working for me, I got annoyed. Don't know what was wrong with them, but the R's were already so cheap it didn't matter.

It sounds like DVD-RW is pretty stable/popular/reliable though. I could just buy a 5-pack and never have to buy anymore it would seem.[/i]