Convert VHS tapes to DVD, High quality

[lakkantha]

I use Diamond VC500 to convert my old VHS to DVD, it captures very low-quality videos.
(I used PowerDirector to capture the videos in DVD HQ format)
is there any device, which gives high-quality videos...or any other method

[davexnet]

What is the problem with your captures? Perhaps you can post a sample

Search the forum for vc500 and you'll see recommendations for Amarectv instead of the PD software
and the usage of lossless compression codecs such as Huffyuv and Lagarith

[LMotlow]

I use Diamond VC500 to convert my old VHS to DVD, it captures very low-quality videos.

No, it desn't. It's been popular for years and tested as a good quality product. It's not the VC500, it's the way you're mis-using it.
Don't expect high quality when recording nasty dirty crummy ugly VHS directly to MPEG with a cheap VCR.

(I used PowerDirector to capture the videos in DVD HQ format).

PowerDirector is another mistake. Do yourself a favor. Get rid of it. You won't get "HQ" with PowerDirector. You can get better capture and encoding software for free.

is there any device, which gives high-quality videos...or any other method

You mean you missed more than 15 years of posts here and in other forums about how to get high quality vhs into digital formats?

Let's go back to about 2004 for the basics: http://www.digitalfaq.com/guides/video.htm. But keep your VC500 -- It's a decent capture card. What VCR did you play the tapes with? What tbc are you using?

[lakkantha]

What is the problem with your captures? Perhaps you can post a sample

Search the forum for vc500 and you'll see recommendations for Amarectv instead of the PD software
and the usage of lossless compression codecs such as Huffyuv and Lagarith

This is the sample of capture frame with Amarectv


[Attachment 46134 - Click to enlarge]

[lakkantha]

No, it doesn't. It's been popular for years and tested as a good quality product. It's not the VC500, it's the way you're mis-using it.
Don't expect high quality when recording nasty dirty crummy ugly VHS directly to MPEG with a cheap VCR.

This is the sample frame I converted from a studio, I have no idea about their technology,


[Attachment 46135 - Click to enlarge]

I post a sample frame of converted video using VC500 in the above reply, and my VCR is HITACHI M70EM, when I connect it to TV, It gives above quality, so it is impossible to think my VCR or VHS tape is the problem.. I may misuse VC500, but how?

[manono]

I may misuse VC500, but how?

Adjust the brightness and contrast before capturing, so it matches that for the 'good' picture. Don't ever just use the default settings and hope to get something decent.

And for more informed advice, post an untouched sample from your source, ten seconds or so, as already requested. A VIDEO sample, not a picture.

[jagabo]

VHS is about the lowest quality source. Even in the best of circumstances it has only half the resolution of broadcast TV or DVD. But start by adjusting the capture driver's video proc amp to get your brightness and contrast right (your sample has badly blown out brights and the black level is too high). Capture to AVI with a lossless codec like huffyuv and no audio compression.

For best captures you need an SVHS deck with a line TBC and maybe a full frame TBC (if your tapes are in bad condition). In lieu of that you can use a good VHS deck and an external line TBC like an old Panasonic ES10 or ES15 DVD recorder (don't record to DVD, just pass the signal through the recorder). If your VHS deck has a sharpness setting turn it down or off. Once you have a decent capture you can start thinking about filtering it, and finally encoding it.

There are literally hundreds of thread here about this. They all say the same thing.

And post video samples (not reencoded), not still images.

[lakkantha]

I may misuse VC500, but how?

Adjust the brightness and contrast before capturing, so it matches that for the 'good' picture. Don't ever just use the default settings and hope to get something decent.

And for more informed advice, post an untouched sample from your source, ten seconds or so, as already requested. A VIDEO sample, not a picture.

here is the best quality sample that I get from vc500,
https://youtu.be/viBCw-cjtQI

when I play the same tape on the same VHS player directly on TV it gives very high quality

[hech54]

The camera was confused by the bright, white walls in that room.....but it still did a good job at getting facial details.
You will NEVER get "DVD quality" out of a VHS tape unless you want to spend weeks learning Avisynth.

And you can keep posting sample all you want, but if you do not give capturing details, nobody is going to help you.

[lakkantha]

https://youtu.be/3Brb0Jy8TLY

captured from VirtualDub-1.10.4-AMD64, uncompressed, converted to MP4 to reduce the size, (no Quality lost during conversion)

in original tape, those faces are very clear and in the captured video faces are seems to blur

[lakkantha]

Is this the maximum quality I can get from Diamond VC500? Anyone has this device please post a sample of captured video from VHS player...

I hardly that it has nothing to do with capture software or codes, in my case all software gives the same quality and captured uncompressed video,..

I also read that convert analog to digital is not that easy and some use a camcorder to passthrough video signal and captured from firewire..

can anybody suggest a better way to convert those tapes?

[jagabo]

Do not post samples to youtube. It resizes and reencodes everything obscuring what the real video looks like. Post your original caps here. Do not reencode them. This site accepts up to 500 MB files.

The blown out walls may be from the original recording or from a bad capture. In any case, the problem isn't your capture device it's everything else. The original recording, maybe the playback VCR, the lack of time base correction, bad capture settings, etc.

[lakkantha]

I captured videos from my DVD player and those are in very good quality, so the problem is my VCR player and lack of TBC, but my TV can manage it...

Can you suggest TBC or anything to improve the signals and not very expensive?

I do not need very high quality, average quality is ok....

[jagabo]

I captured videos from my DVD player and those are in very good quality, so the problem is my VCR player and lack of TBC, but my TV can manage it...

TVs are designed to handle minor time base errors. Capture devices are not.

Can you suggest TBC or anything to improve the signals and not very expensive?

Already addressed.

[lakkantha]

Already addressed.

thank you for your suggestion, I look forward to Panasonic ES10, hence it is very difficult to find, are there any other devices for minor TBC?

[jagabo]

Some DV camcorders have analog inputs with a line TBC and passthrough to the firewire port. But you'll need a computer with a firewire port to capture from that.

[dellsam34]

Already addressed.

thank you for your suggestion, I look forward to Panasonic ES10, hence it is very difficult to find, are there any other devices for minor TBC?

JVC has a series of S-VHS models look for the ones that have TBC button:

https://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_from=R40&_trksid=p2380057.m570.l1313.TR12.TRC2.A0.H0....s-vhs&_sacat=0