Recommended Chain for Hardware processors

[mbself]

I am not a novice to video transfers, but neither am I a professional.

I am about to really take it to a WNL (Whole 'Nother Level), though.

I have two different tasks before me and both are daunting. One is to convert and enhance about 80 hours of concert footage (recorded at SLP on a consumer HiFi vcr). The other is an ungodly amount of High School Football footage which was obviously recorded by rank amateurs on sub par equipment under less than ideal conditions. Some of these video tapes date back to 1980.

I just want the best possible output with the least post-capture work. The "customers" are not as interested in the restoration aspect as I am. Almost any final result will satisfy them, but I think this would be a great opportunity to learn.

I have budget enough (i think.....about $1000) to buy the Panasonic AG-1980P, Datavideo TBC-1000, Sign Video PA-100 Proc Amp, and possibly an image enhancer of some type. I doubt that I will use any software features on this project so I will capture as mpeg and burn to disk. My Capture Device is currently the Winfast HDTV Cinema.....captures directly to mpeg-2.

My question isn't so much about the products to buy as it is about the "effects Chain".

My assumption woud be:
VCR>TBC>PROC AMP>IMAGE ENHANCER>CAPTURE

Any chain advice or anything I am missing.

I also own a Samsung DVD VR-375.....any sense in just recording direct to disk with this machine given the above information?

Thanks,
Matt

[filmboss80]

If you have a TBC, you won't really need a proc amp in that chain. I believe the Panasonic AG-1980P has a built-in TBC (though I could be wrong), so it's questionable whether you need the Datavideo device. (There is such a thing as TOO MUCH processing.) Also, if you are not going to edit the footage, you really have no need to capture to PC. Just transfer to a standalone, set-top DVD recorder. A good image enhancer for analog sources would be the Elite Video BVP 4 Plus processor, if you can find one.

[mbself]

Thanks, and i understand about the possibility to overprocess....but many have suggested that a standalone TBC works better and corrects some errors that vcr built-in's can't. Also, the ProcAmp is for correcting Chroma/Luminance and other non time base errors.

Am I wrong?

[filmboss80]

Most TBCs also correct chroma and luminance levels. The only time I've ever used a proc amp was in the absence of a TBC.

[2Bdecided]

Most TBCs also correct chroma and luminance levels.

If they were wrong going on to the tape, they'll still be wrong coming off! I don't see how a TBC (with no controls on it!) can perform the same chosen manual correction that a proc-amp (with controls on it!) can do.

Most important is whether the capture device is happy with the signals it receives. There's no guarantee of this, even with decent VCR and TBC - those things make it far more likely you'll be OK, but you might need a "junk" VCR as standby for the odd "strange" tape.

Cheers,
David.

[filmboss80]

Sorry, 2Bdecided, I have worked in the pro field and have only worked with TBCs that had manual controls on them -- MANY knobs for each aspect of the video signal! (I believe Prime Image still makes them.) I was not even aware of a TBC that didn't have such knobs -- but I guess many prosumer units don't allow that kind of control (never seen the mentioned Datavideo device.) In fact, at production companies where I worked in the analog days, a proc amp was considered a cheap alternative when time based correction was not needed. Otherwise, the proc amp's controls were redundant in the presence of a good, pro TBC. I suppose things have changed a bit.

[mbself]

Ok...now that that's settled....how about my effects chain order? Is VCR>TBC>PROC AMP>ENHANCER>CAPTURE correct order?