VHS to DVD Convervsion - Picture Quality Question

[cormanman]

I am wanting to convert some VHS tapes to DVD. I have settled on using one of two methods.

1) purchasing a combination VCR/DVD Recorder

2) networking my VCR to my PC, capturing video, converting to MPEG-2, then burning DVD


My question is, which method will give me the best quality in the end (is there a significant difference)? My ONLY concern is final quality. Does one method lend itself to a better quality DVD than the other?

Are there any other factors or options I should consider? My priorities are doing the conversion as quickly and cheaply as possible...without sacrificing quality.

Thanks in advance.

[SingSing]

1) VCR/DVD recorders has more converting issues compare to : VCR to DVD recorder.

2) This a lot of work to preserve VHS quality video.

The answer is 3) Purchase a DVD recorder.

[TheFamilyMan]

My priorities are doing the conversion as quickly and cheaply as possible...without sacrificing quality.

If you already have a VCR, this statement points directly at getting a DVD recorder, as mentioned above. Don't expect miracles if your VHS material is not in excellect condition. Also beware that commerically produced movies are copy protected and may not be recordable by a DVD recorder. Good Luck!

P.S. If quality is your only concern, "quickly and cheaply" vanishes, and IMO there is no substitute for a good capure card/device with a PC loaded with the right software.

[yoda313]

Your two choices:

Quick and easy - get a settop dvd recorder.

More editing options equals a pc capture device and computer dvd burner.

[cormanman]

Thank you all very much for the advice. That's about what I thought I was dealing with.

I am transferring home movies, my skydiving trip, vacations, my kids, etc.

Can I expect reasonable quality with the DVD recorder/VCR method?

Very much appreciate your time and effort.

[ZippyP.]

Can I expect reasonable quality with the DVD recorder/VCR method?

Better than just reasonable depending on the hardware. Using a quality VCR and recorder and setting the recorder to the 2 hour mode should give good results, 1 hour mode even better (depending on the material).

[ktnwin]

Usually, the resulting DVD will look exactly if not better than the VHS tapes.
However, if the tape is protected with Macrovision, you won't be able to copy as the DVD recorder will refuse to copy (unless you have a firmware hack).
There are hardware boxes (sold at Circuit City) to allow you to copy these copy proected tapes.
Do a search for "macrovision" you will find tons of articles on this in this forum.

[cormanman]

Thanks again everyone. This is a great website.

[TheFamilyMan]

I am transferring home movies, my skydiving trip, vacations, my kids, etc.

Can I expect reasonable quality with the DVD recorder/VCR method?

Home movies require LOTS of bit rate due to the usual use of a hand held camcorder. If it's quality you are after, forget about stuffing lots of footage onto a single DVD. I get along just fine with only 60 minutes of family footage on my DVDs, even if I have to split a vacation across 2 DVDs. The quality is worth it.

[IraB]

I am using a standalone Panasonic DMR-ES30V. I've had it for almost a year and have had great success dubbing VHS tapes to DVD.

The DMR-ES30V has one button dubbing. After it finishes dubbing, you can decide whether to add more tapes ot the DVD, whether you want menuing, and more.

It is all pretty painless compared to using a computer. And it seems foolproof, which, for a fool like me, is a must.

About quality: I've tried doing the same using my computer and the resulting quality from VHS tapes was noticeably poorer. I believe the quality fro my Pansonic VHS-DVD recorder has been significantly better with significantly less effort.

I would recommend the Panasonic DMR-ES30V or similar standalone dubbing recorder to anyone who does not have extensive experience or understanding using a computer to move their videotapes to DVD.

IraB