Please help me decide the best method to save my VHS tapes

[wickeddvine]

Hello all!
I want to save a bunch of old VHS tapes to my computer, and I'm not sure which is the best method. I'm just looking for some advice.

I have a bunch of VHS tapes of performances and interviews of a band. The recordings are multiple generation, and the tapes have degraded some, so they're not great quality to begin with. I want to try and save them to my computer in the best quality I can.

With the equipment I have, I have two basic options. I have a Hauppauge WinTV-HVR USB stick that can save to my computer in MPG2 quality.

I also have a VHS/DVD player and recorder that can dub from VHS to DVD.

Which do you think would produce better quality?

Once I have the files on my computer, I'll need to split them up. Say, I have a 6 hour VHS tape of different performances. Once I get the file on my computer, I'll want to split it up into a different file for each performance or interview.

I can use the WinTV stick to save the whole tape to my computer in MPG2 format, and then use a program to split it out into individual files without re-encoding (what is the best program for that?).

Or I can use the DVD recorder, and then put the DVD into my computer, and use some program to split it up, and save as MPG2, and hopefully not have to re-encode it.

The volume on some of the performances is really low, and I'd like to be able to increase it for some.

Which do you think is the better option of the two? And, for both instances, what are the best programs to use? I always tend to make quick decisions, and put a couple hours into the method that I've decided upon, and then realize that I don't like the results, and I'm not being efficient, and maybe if I did something differently the videos would turn out better, etc......, and it's back to the drawing board.... I hope with some advise I can decide upon the best method to do this, so I can quit messing around, and get it done LOL! Any help or advice would be greatly appreciated.
Thank you,
Heather

Edit-Also, I'm a fan of Divx. Should I save the files as Divx instead of MPG2? Would converting from MPG2 to Divx reduce the quality any?

[PuzZLeR]

I want to save a bunch of old VHS tapes to my computer, and I'm not sure which is the best method. I'm just looking for some advice.

Hi Heather, I'm sure several can give some great advice here, but maybe I can start you thinking.

Tape -> VCR -> Time Base Corrector -> Capture Hardware/Software -> Editor

The capture process begins with the VCR - get a good one. No matter how good the rest of the software/hardware is, the result will be only be as good as the VCR, and if it's a bad unit, the result will suffer.

Here's a great thread on the subject from Smurfy:
https://forum.videohelp.com/threads/286055-VCR-buying-guide-%28S-VHS-D-VHS-Professional%29

Secondly, you should look into a Time Base Corrector (TBC). What this does is handle some of the jitter associated with analog tape, otherwise it will create havoc on your results, especially on the more stubborn tapes.

Two good models suggested on this forum are the AV Toolbox AVT-8710 and the DataVideo TBC-1000. They are both full-frame, not full-field or line TBCs. Careful of this when shopping for a stand-alone TBC or reading about internal specs in equipment (such as in VCRs, DVRs, capture cards, etc).

I have a bunch of VHS tapes of performances and interviews of a band. The recordings are multiple generation, and the tapes have degraded some, so they're not great quality to begin with. I want to try and save them to my computer in the best quality I can.

Beaten up tapes are best handled, IMO, with the Panasonic AG-1980. I use my JVC for the better tapes. Again, keep in mind, no unit will produce a miracle on them.

With the equipment I have, I have two basic options. I have a Hauppauge WinTV-HVR USB stick that can save to my computer in MPG2 quality.

I also have a VHS/DVD player and recorder that can dub from VHS to DVD.

Which do you think would produce better quality?

A good capture card will improve your results. Hauppauge is well known and reliable. The 250/350 models are respected here. I have the USB 1950 USB external - good unit which doesn't hog my PC while it works and should be similar to yours in quality.

ATI is also very good if you want to venture - look into the 600. Avoid the 750, which has totally different hardware and third party software. I couldn't stand it myself.

The Canopus ADVC 110 is also very good. However, it's limited only to DV and somewhat overpriced IMO.

As for DVR vs PC capture, this is highly subjective. I like some results out of my Pioneer 520, and others from my Hauppauge. I can't honestly pinpoint one as "the one". It also depends on what eases my workflow too.

But I can say this: most all-in-one VCR/DvD combos that do conversions to DvD produce average results at best, such as I suspect yours may as well. These units are built for speed and convenience, not for quality, and are targeted for the average consumer who doesn't want to mess around with a major technical nightmare. If you want the best quality, I would avoid this option.

Once I have the files on my computer, I'll need to split them up. Say, I have a 6 hour VHS tape of different performances. Once I get the file on my computer, I'll want to split it up into a different file for each performance or interview.

I can use the WinTV stick to save the whole tape to my computer in MPG2 format, and then use a program to split it out into individual files without re-encoding (what is the best program for that?).

Or I can use the DVD recorder, and then put the DVD into my computer, and use some program to split it up, and save as MPG2, and hopefully not have to re-encode it.

If you have MPEG-2 streams, you should use a dedicated MPEG editor, which can make cuts, joins, etc without re-encoding (except for the few frames near the cuts and joins).

Three excellent choices (but not free) are Womble, TMPGEnc MPEG Editor and VideoReDo. They will save you time and quality.

The volume on some of the performances is really low, and I'd like to be able to increase it for some.

Almost any audio editor can do this easily. As well, I know that two video editors I've mentioned, Womble and TMPGEnc, can as well.

I always tend to make quick decisions, and put a couple hours into the method that I've decided upon, and then realize that I don't like the results, and I'm not being efficient, and maybe if I did something differently the videos would turn out better, etc......, and it's back to the drawing board.... I hope with some advise I can decide upon the best method to do this, so I can quit messing around, and get it done LOL! Any help or advice would be greatly appreciated.

Even some experts here are redoing their tapes. The best thing for this demanding, and time-consuming, project is to get it right the first time. If you invest a little bit in proper hardware/software now, and do some testing first, you likely will never have to ever redo this project again. You may even feel confident in chucking your tapes afterwards.

I know we all hear about these "happy people" that even show up on the box of retail consumer equipment. They did little research, only bought a quickie inexpensive product and boast about finishing all their tapes that night/week/etc quickly and effortlessly - oh, they just couldn't wait. And then they sport one big victorious smile for the ads.

I would bet big money that their results are crap. Either they settle for these results which costs them big quality, or realize that they have to redo their project again when sense hits them (that is, if they still have the tapes), which ends up costing them more money and time.

Another thing I can suggest. If you do indeed dispose of the tape after every capture, do your least important ones first. As you build experience your results should improve, and this way you save the best for last.

Also, I'm a fan of Divx. Should I save the files as Divx instead of MPG2?

I am a fan too, but although you can capture directly to DivX, it would be more difficult to edit. Then again, VirtualDub would be your best option for this capture, and you would need to enable "smart render" to do accurate cuts after.

To choose between MPEG-2 or DivX is also up to the individual. Compliant MPEG-2 plays on every DvD player, and DivX is smaller in file size, but needs a certified unit (although there are many and are inexpensive). Both are great options, but I can't tell you which to "save" to.

Would converting from MPG2 to Divx reduce the quality any?

Absolutely. DivX is a lossy format like MPEG-2, and no matter what bitrate you use, you will lose quality.

If you want the end-result to be DivX, then you would be much better capturing in DivX to begin with or capture to a lossless format (such as HuffYUV) or less compressed format (like DV) and encode to DivX after. MPEG-2 wouldn't be a good start for this.

However, I don't think Hauppauge can do formats other than MPEG-2 (or H.264 with the HD model). I've heard of hacks for the 250/350, and maybe there might be a solution for yours, but I'm not knowledgeable on this myself.

If you must capture to MPEG-2 first and then encode to DivX, capture to the highest quality/bitrate setting, then use a quality based encoding with DivX, such as Q=3, so the final results won't suffer too much.

[wickeddvine]

Wow, thank you so much! This is very helpful! Thank you, thank you!