Vhs to dvd or vhs to pc for archiving

[braveheart3158]

Over the years I have used 2 different formats to capture my videos. VHS, DV tapes. I do have some footage from a digital camera but not a lot.

In order to archive VHS family video to use in future edit projects.
1-Would it be better to record from VHS to PC using a capturing device or.. 2-record VHS to DVD's using a stand alone unit that goes direct VHS to DVD?

Many years ago I had used a stand alone VHS to DVD recorder to archive the VHS. I would consider recapturing some of the VHS tapes to the PC, IF it would make a big difference. Before coming to my senses I did throw some of the VHS tapes away.

A few years ago I did copy the DVD's back to the PC. So I then had a lot of those VOB DVD files. I was able to use a program to render SOME of the DVD' files into AVI files. I have used different software over the years to accomplish this. I think ULead Studio was one of them. I think handbrake was another.

I recently purchased Sony Movie Studio 13. I recently found out that AVI files are not really being used much anymore. Instead this software uses AVCHD for archiving to the PC.. I am in the process of learning this program. I try and save any rendered projects as AVCHD files and then use that file for any future renders such as MP4 etc.. Storage is not an issue, BUT organization is (ADHD) lol. I am hoping to work this out and get everything organized. End of rant.

Any thoughts would be great. Thanks

[johnmeyer]

The VHS to DVD all-in-one units were a wonderful way for people to get through the huge project of digitizing dozens and dozens of tapes. While the quality was a little less than what you would get by going to the PC, and you did lose some editing features, the huge advantage is that ordinary people without computer and editing skills could get through the project. I can't tell you how many people I tried to help, 15-20 years ago, who would try to do it the "professional way" (to the PC) but got bogged down and never finished the project.

The quality you got doing it this way will be just fine, and you don't need to go back to do it again.

There is also no point in re-encoding those VOB files from your DVD. You won't make anything look better. However, if you want to copy them to your PC because you don't think you'll have a viable DVD player in the future, that's OK. I would advise, however, if you do this, use a "DVD ripper" that can take all those VOB files and combine them into a single VOB file. You can get slight hesitations and gaps between each VOB file if you try to play them or edit them with most software.

So, my advice is to just keep what you have; do NOT re-encode; but if you want to move everything to the PC from your DVDs, use a ripping program (DVD Fab, DVD Decrypter, etc.).

[braveheart3158]

thanks John. Appreciate that feed back. Gonna get the ripper you suggested.

[braveheart3158]

DVD Decrypter is no longer available. The DVD Fab is $50 after 30 days, is it worth it?. Any alternatives? Something not too complicated and wont hesitate or have gaps.

[johns0]

Makemkv.

[johnmeyer]

DVD Decrypter is not available? Isn't downloadable right here in this forum?

https://www.videohelp.com/software/DVD-Decrypter

It is no longer being developed, but that doesn't matter. I use it all the time and it works great. And, since you are ripping your own DVDs, any changes that might have happened since development ceased don't matter one iota because your own DVDs aren't encrypted.

[lordsmurf]

While the quality was a little less

Little?
Depending on the recorder (brand/model), and setting used, it could be drastically less. Unviewable, even.

[johnmeyer]

While the quality was a little less

Little?
Depending on the record, and setting used, it could be drastically less. Unviewable, even.

It seems as though you think that without a no-longer obtainable set of only about three VCRs that you blessed as being the only ones that can do transfers (most of which can no longer be made to run), and without an operational TBC, none of which, according to your own posts, can be made to work anymore, no one is going to get good results.

The real truth is that most VHS recordings, many of which were done in the 6-hour mode, were never that great to begin with, no matter what equipment is used for playback.

The even more important truth, which I alluded to in my post, is that most casual users, who don't do this for a living, have an extremely difficult time getting through their project. I had one woman who called me many, many times during the months after her husband died. He ran a video transfer business and had the whole thing set up in a way that even you would have approved of. However, even though it was all set up and working, trying to talk her through the capture process; the editing process; the DVD authoring process; and then the burn process, all of which were properly set up using totally different software from different companies, was a nightmare. The poor woman had absolutely no background to prepare her for what she was trying to do, but she had to figure it out because it was the only income she had, and he was now gone.

I have another story of a local guy who I helped set up his transfer system. Every six months I'd get a call from him, and he was trying, once again, to get through his project which consisted of 20-30 tapes, so only about 80 hours (mix of different speeds) of material. He could never master all the steps and kept having to start over from scratch.

I finally suggested he use a "one-piece" VHS to DVD recorder and he breezed through the project.

You can make cruel comments about how these people should have not attempted doing something for which they were not qualified, but in one case the person had to do in order to eat and in order to fulfill obligations left behind by her late husband, and in the other, he was trying to save money by not engaging an expensive service.

Your snarky comments are simply not helpful and I wish you would simply not post them.

How did you help the OP get his work done?

[braveheart3158]

@ Lordsmurf.. As John said that comment was not much help. But I did take the time to look thru some of your comments on other threads and did find some useful info. As an example the idea of lossless. I did ask u about that in the other thread today.

I did not want to get into personal stuff, since i did not think it was relevant but, maybe I should have mentioned that I transferred the VHS to PC, probably around 12-15 yrs ago. I initially started by buying a set up to go directly to the PC. Not sure how many I was able to do at the time. Not sure why I stopped or what format is was transferred in. It may have been AVI but wont swear by it. I think I was using something called "All in Wonder" and or ULead studio. Not sure at what point or why I stopped using it, but I do recall lending the setup to a relative who then passed away. I never got it back. I think at that point the price of the standalone came down, so i went in that direction. It was pretty convenient which is what I needed at the time since we were raising two boys and bought a house that needed a lot of attention. I was thinking at the time, that my VHS tapes that were 2 hr recordings would not lose much since the VHS was going almost directly to the DVD with not much in between??

I would consider doing the tapes again directly to the PC, as I said, but only if it would make a big difference. I am only doing these family tapes for myself and relatives to edit into movies in the future. I have always wondered if transferring VHS in a better format like AVI really made any difference because in my mind a chain is only as strong as its weakest link. In this case the VHS. True or false?

@ johnmeyer
Looking a little further into my files I found that I had transferred some DVD's with a program from Sony called Playmemories. That program transfers as one mpg file. I also used Moviestudio Platinum 13 and they were a combination of .mpg and .mpg.sfk. Each DVD is in its own folder. I also have the VOB files with .mpg but not sure what program I used for that. I see that I have handbrake in my puter. I think i had used that to change some of the VOB files into something but dont recall what it was.

As you can see i am all over the place. Reason is I would start on doing it and then step away for a few years each time so would do something else. Either because there were other things on the market to use or i had forgotten what I did last time. I am now retired and at the moment quarantined so I hope to get a lot more done.

I have gone thru each of my folder and some seem to be a mush mosh so I may need to transfer some of the DVD's again. Do I still need that program DVD encrypter or can i use what I have like the Sony PlayMemories or MovieStudio or Handbrake?

To my surprise I had joined this group many years ago. I am going to back and read what my questions were then.

Good thing about having a bad memory is I get to meet new people and do new things everyday. lol

Thanks again.

[braveheart3158]

Going thru my past questions i see what programs I was using back then. Coral Video Studio, CyberLink Power Director, VOB2MPG, Sony Vegas, mpeg2cutter.

[johnmeyer]

Braveheart,

Your story is very, very typical. Don't feel bad about what you have done because there are so many choices out there that it is very confusing to know what to do.

My most important bit of advice is to make sure you get EVERYTHING transferred. What I mean by this is that if you still have tapes which haven't been transferred at all, do those first before you go back and try to make a better copy of something you already transferred.

The second bit of advice is to not do anything with your existing transfers, unless you have specific problems you want to fix, or unless you want to edit them. Typical problems for VHS tapes which contain camcorder footage are camera shakiness, VHS grain and chroma problems, and garbage at the borders. There are other things, but I'll leave it up to you to tell us what problems you might want to correct.

Do NOT waste time trying to change existing transfers into other formats. You gain absolutely nothing: it won't look better and in fact will look worse because every time you re-encode, it looks worse.

As for your ATI All-in-Wonder, I had one of those (actually still have it). It was capable of doing good transfers, but I found that getting it to work reliably, without dropping frames or having other problems was an absolutely nightmare. I finally gave up.

As you go forward and set up some sort of new capture system, you always want to capture in a format that is as lossless as possible, do your editing, and then at the end of your editing, encode the result with a reasonably high bitrate, using a modern codec. There are other people in this forum who can provide better advice on that than I can, but if it were me, after editing, I'd encode to h.264 in an MP4 container.

[lordsmurf]

maybe I should have mentioned that I transferred the VHS to PC, probably around 12-15 yrs ago. I initially started by buying a set up to go directly to the PC. Not sure how many I was able to do at the time. Not sure why I stopped or what format is was transferred in. It may have been AVI but wont swear by it. I think I was using something called "All in Wonder" and or ULead studio. Not sure at what point or why I stopped using it, but I do recall lending the setup to a relative who then passed away. I never got it back. I think at that point the price of the standalone came down, so i went in that direction. It was pretty convenient which is what I needed at the time since we were raising two boys and bought a house that needed a lot of attention. I was thinking at the time, that my VHS tapes that were 2 hr recordings would not lose much since the VHS was going almost directly to the DVD with not much in between??
I would consider doing the tapes again directly to the PC, as I said, but only if it would make a big difference. I am only doing these family tapes for myself and relatives to edit into movies in the future. I have always wondered if transferring VHS in a better format like AVI really made any difference because in my mind a chain is only as strong as its weakest link. In this case the VHS. True or false?

True.
AVI is just a container. You want lossless. At worst, filtered and/or high-bitrate MPEG. Keep it interlaced, preferable 4:2:2.

As you can see i am all over the place.

You need to start over.
- What exactly is your source?
- End goals?
- What has been done so far.

A big problem I see is randomly discussing software that is either not needed or not desirable.

While the quality was a little less

Little?
Depending on the record, and setting used, it could be drastically less. Unviewable, even.

It seems as though you think that without a no-longer obtainable set of only about three VCRs that you blessed as being the only ones that can do transfers (most of which can no longer be made to run), and without an operational TBC, none of which, according to your own posts, can be made to work anymore, no one is going to get good results.

WTF?
- The VCRs are still available. Maybe not at Walmart or Best Buy for $99, but then again those were never sold at those places for those prices.
- The DVD recorders are still available as well.

Maybe not shiny brand new at B&H anymore, but I've made many available, and then others have found the quality hardware at other places. (Even eBay, but noting that many "tested" and "working" items are often neither, so be careful.)

And again, settings matter.
- XP (1 hour) almost always fine,
- sometimes SP (not always, especially not Panasonic recorders),
- some recorders have 3/4-hour modes that look decent (some JVCs, some Toshibas),
- and everything is terrible at 6/8/whatever.

Lousy recordings are mix of user error and craptastic hardware.

The even more important truth, which I alluded to in my post, is that most casual users, who don't do this for a living, have an extremely difficult time getting through their project.

Some people are just stupid. And I say this with all the harshness that such a statement entails. They don't read, they don't try, they just give up and cry. I can empathize with somebody that tries and fails, or researches and decides the learning curve or time required is too great. But I'd do stupid and lazy.

The poor woman had absolutely no background to prepare her for what she was trying to do

While it is terrible that a woman lost her husband, she should absolutely not be learning video on customer for-pay work. Those projects should be returned, any monies paid refunded. The end.

You can make cruel comments about how these people should have not attempted doing something for which they were not qualified

Yes. People that do stuff for money, and are not qualified, should be scorned. You don't see me holding a bottle of Advil, pretending to be a doctor. Or holding a hammer, pretending that I can build a house from scratch. What is it about the equally-difficult (learning curve required, knowledge required!) realm of video and photo that makes any idiot (literally, idiot, due to no knowledge or planning) think they can open up a video/photo shop?

Your snarky comments are simply not helpful and I wish you would simply not post them.

Tough. I refuse to enable others to do non-quality work, especially for pay.
- Quality work for pay? I'm all for it!
- Quality work for yourself? I'm all for it!
- Non-quality work for pay? Hell no.
- Non-quality work for yourself? It's dumb, but others are not harmed by it.

The OP wants to do a personal/family project. Great! My posts should both (a) explain what to do, and (b) what NOT to do. Some posts don't cover both aspects, some do. My brief post above was a warning that not all hardware/settings will yield quality results.

How did you help the OP get his work done?

@ Lordsmurf.. As John said that comment was not much help.

Because the recommendation was apparently for just any random unit. That's bunk. There are both terrible and excellent units. These have been discussed in the forum for 15+ years now, and you (johnmeyer) should already know this.

- hardware matters
- settings matter

If neither of you can understand this, then I'm talking to a pair of brick walls.

My most important bit of advice is to make sure you get EVERYTHING transferred. What I mean by this is that if you still have tapes which haven't been transferred at all, do those first before you go back and try to make a better copy of something you already transferred.

I don't necessarily agree on this. Any transfer in any quality doesn't help matters.

The second bit of advice is to not do anything with your existing transfers, unless you have specific problems you want to fix, or unless you want to edit them. Typical problems for VHS tapes which contain camcorder footage are camera shakiness, VHS grain and chroma problems, and garbage at the borders. There are other things, but I'll leave it up to you to tell us what problems you might want to correct.

But I do agree with this.

Do NOT waste time trying to change existing transfers into other formats. You gain absolutely nothing: it won't look better and in fact will look worse because every time you re-encode, it looks worse.

That's not true. It can, and often does. But it depends on what is being done. I can restore video in multiple passes, and the end result will be superior to the source.

As for your ATI All-in-Wonder, I had one of those (actually still have it). It was capable of doing good transfers, but I found that getting it to work reliably, without dropping frames or having other problems was an absolutely nightmare. I finally gave up.

You probably needed a TBC.
If TBC already in workflow, then it was probably a simple computer issue, where capturing to non-OS drive is common fix.

As you go forward and set up some sort of new capture system, you always want to capture in a format that is as lossless as possible, do your editing, and then at the end of your editing, encode the result with a reasonably high bitrate, using a modern codec. There are other people in this forum who can provide better advice on that than I can, but if it were me, after editing, I'd encode to h.264 in an MP4 container.

MPEG is modern.
H.264 doesn't handle SD interlace playback well.

[johnmeyer]

Some people are just stupid. And I say this with all the harshness that such a statement entails. They don't read, they don't try, they just give up and cry. I can empathize with somebody that tries and fails, or researches and decides the learning curve or time required is too great. But I'd do stupid and lazy.

So much anger, so little help.

[braveheart3158]

Braveheart,

My most important bit of advice is to make sure you get EVERYTHING transferred. What I mean by this is that if you still have tapes which haven't been transferred at all, do those first before you go back and try to make a better copy of something you already transferred.

The second bit of advice is to not do anything with your existing transfers,

Do NOT waste time trying to change existing transfers into other formats.

As you go forward and set up some sort of new capture system, you always want to capture in a format that is as lossless as possible, do your editing, and then at the end of your editing, encode the result with a reasonably high bitrate, using a modern codec. There are other people in this forum who can provide better advice on that than I can, but if it were me, after editing, I'd encode to h.264 in an MP4 container.

Thank You John for understanding and your patience. This advice is spot on. I do not have any tapes that have not been transferred too DVD I hope.

Not doing anything to existing transfers from DVD to PC . I needed that advice. So any movies I make in the future with Movie studio should be made with the files that were transferred ( VOB etc)?

i think the only future capture will be any vids i take with my iphone. I think that will be a whole other story.

Thanks For Keeping It Real!!

[braveheart3158]

@ Lordsmurf. I say this with the utmost sincerity. ..
Apparently you are very knowledgeable in this area. Unfortunately I don't think the Novice area is someplace where you should be posting, for your sanity and the sake of the Novices. Talking down to people and insulting is not a good trait for teaching or sharing your knowledge. I'm not a shrink but it appears that you may have some anger issues you may want to take care of. I hope its only behind a keyboard and does not affect your personal life. Be well and be safe.
TM

[johnmeyer]

Not doing anything to existing transfers from DVD to PC . I needed that advice. So any movies I make in the future with Movie studio should be made with the files that were transferred ( VOB etc)?

Let me clarify that advice. If you can create a better VHS to computer capture system without spending a fortune, or if you think your current technique in using your existing equipment has improved, then it would certainly make sense to attempt to re-do some of your captures. The obvious thing to do would be to re-capture just 5-10 minutes of one tape and compare it to what you did before you learned a little about the art of digitizing VHS tapes.

However, if you don't have better equipment, and don't think your technique has improved, then just use the captures you have and create your edited versions with Movie Studio.

[braveheart3158]

Not doing anything to existing transfers from DVD to PC . I needed that advice. So any movies I make in the future with Movie studio should be made with the files that were transferred ( VOB etc)?

Let me clarify that advice. If you can create a better VHS to computer capture system without spending a fortune, or if you think your current technique in using your existing equipment has improved, then it would certainly make sense to attempt to re-do some of your captures. The obvious thing to do would be to re-capture just 5-10 minutes of one tape and compare it to what you did before you learned a little about the art of digitizing VHS tapes.

However, if you don't have better equipment, and don't think your technique has improved, then just use the captures you have and create your edited versions with Movie Studio.

Computer is definitely better. High end gaming machine w graphics card. Just built last year. I'm sure there is also better lossless capture equipment out there as well. Not sure I want to spend that kind of time. The DVD's I have and the ones I had rendered are good enough for me.


TM

[johnmeyer]

Another question. You had mentioned to use DVD encrypter because it will import in one file as opposed to several VOB files? The question I had asked above about using Movie Studio.mpg and sfk files. , Sony play Memories imports as an .mpg) DVD encrypted imports as? You said one file? What type?

I'm afraid I don't understand what you're asking.

Also I recall actually transferring VOB files from the DVD by actually transferring the files themselves by cut and past. I wonder if that would be the best?

You are always better using a DVD ripper like DVD Fab or DVD Decrypter. The reason is that they allow you to combine all the VOB files into a single file, thus avoiding gaps in the video and audio when you try to play a group of VOB files. These tools can also strip out all the VOB overhead and, if used correctly, give you an MPEG-2 file which is much easier to play and edit.

[lordsmurf]

@ Lordsmurf. I say this with the utmost sincerity. ..
Apparently you are very knowledgeable in this area. Unfortunately I don't think the Novice area is someplace where you should be posting, for your sanity and the sake of the Novices. Talking down to people and insulting is not a good trait for teaching or sharing your knowledge. I'm not a shrink but it appears that you may have some anger issues you may want to take care of. I hope its only behind a keyboard and does not affect your personal life. Be well and be safe.
TM

I deal with novices all the time, and quite well. The problem happens where I encounter obstinance, lack of reading, and lack of answering questions (Q&A portion of a 2-way discussion). You're mostly guilty of that last one.

So, again:
- What exactly is your source?
- What quality problems were seen on 1st capture (DVD recorder) attempts?
- Can I get some samples?
- What brand/model recorder was used?
- What mode/settings were used?
- What are your end goals?

So far, you've stated that you captured these once long ago, asked about re-capturing, made some wrong statements about AVI/AVC/DVDs, and then asked about editing software. You're all over the place, and I still have no idea what you're trying to do, nor exactly what you've done. It's sort of like if I mentioned that I used to own a van in the 2000s, stated that a Toyota Camry seems overrated, then asked about towing packages. It's a head scratcher.

I've gotten along with johnmeyer for at least 15 years, but I think he's being an ass in this thread, starting from his first reply to me. And I refuse to agree to some of that BS that he's stating. It's not true, or not accurate, and some statements gives outright horrible advice. He's brilliant at film sources and Avisynth, but his VHS knowledge falls off a cliff. I'm not that one who started to argue, he is.

[braveheart3158]

Another question. You had mentioned to use DVD encrypter because it will import in one file as opposed to several VOB files? The question I had asked above about using Movie Studio.mpg and sfk files. , Sony play Memories imports as an .mpg) DVD encrypted imports as? You said one file? What type?

I'm afraid I don't understand what you're asking.

Also I recall actually transferring VOB files from the DVD by actually transferring the files themselves by cut and past. I wonder if that would be the best?

You are always better using a DVD ripper like DVD Fab or DVD Decrypter. The reason is that they allow you to combine all the VOB files into a single file, thus avoiding gaps in the video and audio when you try to play a group of VOB files. These tools can also strip out all the VOB overhead and, if used correctly, give you an MPEG-2 file which is much easier to play and edit.

Not sure I understood either. lol. I need to delve into my video files further before asking anymore questions. I edited out what I wrote.

Thanks for getting back. Be safe out there

[johnmeyer]

The OP has not been obstinate in the least. That is entirely your perception, in your own head. Yes, you say that he is "mostly guilty of that last one" (not answering questions), but you did include obstinate in your list of things you don't like to deal with and implied that he was at least partly guilty of that.

But why deal with him at all? I am reminded of the famous line in War Games: "The only winning move is not to play."

You do have the option to not post at all. Problem solved.

This person is a "newbie" and, as he himself pointed out, it is why he chose to post in the "Newbie" forum. Anyone can see that he obviously is just getting up to speed, and like any other person just starting out, doesn't yet know the terminology, doesn't know what he did wrong or right, etc.

That's why these people are called "newbies"!!!!

So, you've decided to call me names. I could care less. It's water off a duck's back. However, it is a darn shame that you have sunk to berating newbies. It is especially sad because your DigitalFAQ.com shows that you know what you're doing, and if you chose to, you could really help people.

Unfortunately, the "Lord" (arrogant, condescending) seems to have overtaken the "Smurf" (fun, gentle, friendly).

[lordsmurf]

. However, it is a darn shame that you have sunk to berating newbies.
the "Smurf" (fun, gentle, friendly).

I'm still quite friendly.

And I'm mostly berating you, not our newbie OP.
Nothing in my post#7 was out of line. Your post#8 reply was. And so this all began. You've been defensive and on the attack from the start. But I can still be entirely friendly towards you. This is just one thread. It's just that I vehemently disagree with much of what you have posted in this thread. We can return to friendliness whenever you want. In fact, let's start now. And go!

However, the OP has seemingly ignored every question asked thus far, nor acknowledged any advice given.
So perhaps I'm just wasting my time here?

if you chose to, you could really help people.

I do, almost every day, and for the past 20+ years.

[braveheart3158]

Glad we are getting along better. I feel a group hug coming on. Smurf, its all good. John, you are extremely perceptive.
Now Getting back to the post.

Smurf your initial questions I will try and answer. Keep in mind I started 15 yrs ago. I will keep it simple and recall as much as I can.

What exactly is your source? ......Now it is family DVD's I copied from VHS to PC using different methods. copy and paste image files directly and used programs that copied as MEG-2 and AVI. Then later I used a stand alone VHS-DVD copy machine. One unit. No idea of the brand

End goals?..................... My Movie Studio program does not see VOB files. Goal is to be able to create movies from the DVD's I had copied onto the PC. Another goal is to make sure I have good copies of the VHS tapes for archiving. Both on the DVD and on PC

What has been done so far.............. So right now I want to make sure I have decent files from the DVD's that I can use on Movie Studio or other edit/rendering programs to make home movies and maybe put on youtube etc.. In addition I may be missing some DVD files on the PC so I may need to transfer some more DVD's to PC.

So its been 6 yrs since I last worked on this so I was initially confused as to what I had done over the years. All I saw was multiple folders. Each with the name of a DVD but with all kinds of different formats. I guess I was trying to get a handle on what I had when I posted here.

Since last we spoke I have done some more research on my PC and on the internet about DVD transfers. I found the following that I think would be good for what I want to do. Simuler to DVD Fab but looks easier.

https://www.winxdvd.com/dvd-ripper/lossless-dvd-rip.htm

How to Rip DVD without Losing Quality?
The lossless DVD ripper you can rely on is WinX DVD Ripper Platinum. It offers four modes to rip DVDs in 100% original quality:

Four Modes to Rip DVD without Transcoding

DVD to ISO image

Create an exact 1:1 replica of a DVD on the hard drive. It contains all the menus, extras, and everything in a DVD, both data and format. You can play ISO file on VLC as if it was an actual DVD or burn ISO image to a new disc without further setting.

DVD to Video_TS folder

Video_TS folder is almost the same as ISO image, except that it holds all the DVD structure files and you have more flexibility to manipulate it, e.g., you can remove the unwanted trailers, extra menus, comments, or cutting it right down to the main film.

DVD full title to MPEG2

The video content in a DVD is divided into different titles and menus. This mode will rip all the titles to MPEG2, including all the lossless video, 5.1 Channel AC3/DTS Dolby audio, and subtitles.

DVD main title to MPEG2

It only extracts and rips selected audio/video tracks to MPEG2 losslessly without extra material, intros or similar. This mode can rip the main movie of a DVD in 5 minutes only.

Is that enough?
TM
The following image is not from Winx. Just something I came accdross on my PC from years ago.

[johnmeyer]

There is a lot of information that isn't quite right. However, you should be able to proceed.

Any DVD ripper makes a lossless copy of what is on the DVD. Just to be clear, "lossless" in this context means that there is no re-encoding. Lossless copies take minutes whereas re-encoding takes hours, so if you're not sure what is being done, use that as your guide.

If you have a tool which will rip the DVD to your hard drive and give you a single MPEG-2 file rather than one or more VOB files, that is what you want. Vegas Movie Studio should be able to take an MPEG-2 file without any problems.

If you simply want to cut the MPEG-2 file without doing anything else, then you may need to use some other tool besides Movie Studio because I don't know if it can "smart render" (cut without re-encoding).

So, transfer from the DVD to MPEG-2; put that in Vegas; edit; and then come back here and I'll see if I can come up with a way to take that edit list and let you get a cut version of the MPEG-2 file without re-encoding.

[vkmast]

https://forum.videohelp.com/threads/354370-Undocumented-VOB-Support-in-Sony-Movie-Stud...y+james+method

Still works in the later VEGAS Pro / Movie Studio Platinum versions (from MAGIX).

[braveheart3158]

There is a lot of information that isn't quite right. However, you should be able to proceed.

Any DVD ripper makes a lossless copy of what is on the DVD. Just to be clear, "lossless" in this context means that there is no re-encoding. Lossless copies take minutes whereas re-encoding takes hours, so if you're not sure what is being done, use that as your guide.

If you have a tool which will rip the DVD to your hard drive and give you a single MPEG-2 file rather than one or more VOB files, that is what you want. Vegas Movie Studio should be able to take an MPEG-2 file without any problems.

If you simply want to cut the MPEG-2 file without doing anything else, then you may need to use some other tool besides Movie Studio because I don't know if it can "smart render" (cut without re-encoding).

So, transfer from the DVD to MPEG-2; put that in Vegas; edit; and then come back here and I'll see if I can come up with a way to take that edit list and let you get a cut version of the MPEG-2 file without re-encoding.

Thanks for the clarification on what is lossless. I was worried about the MPEG-2 files not being lossless. Now that I know that, it is a big relief because i have a lot of them.

[braveheart3158]

https://forum.videohelp.com/threads/354370-Undocumented-VOB-Support-in-Sony-Movie-Stud...y+james+method

Still works in the later VEGAS Pro / Movie Studio Platinum versions (from MAGIX).

Excellent thanks. I learned on that thread that VOB files can be dragged from Windows explore directly int Movie Studio Timeline. Gonna try that this morning.

THANK YOU everyone!!!!

[lordsmurf]

MPEG is not lossless. It is a lossy format.
You can further incur loss by converting that MPEG (inside VOB) to another format.

Vegas cannot smart render, but the Womble, and VideoReDo, and TMPGEnc Smart Renderer software can.

[DB83]

- post removed -


think I posted in the wrong topic

[babygdav]

A few years ago I did copy the DVD's back to the PC. So I then had a lot of those VOB DVD files. I was able to use a program to render SOME of the DVD' files into AVI files.

Mpg2cut2 will change and combine multiple .vob files on a dvd to 1 .mpg file without loss. Useful if you need to open the video in a program that doesn't directly support .vob, and convenient for archiving a dvd to the pc as one .mpg file.

You can use makemkv to rip the disc to mkv format, losslessly, but mpg has wider compatibility than mkv, especially for older media players.

The "content/bits" of the video held inside the vob, mkv, mpg file remain identical to the dvd - no loss.

...

As for vhs to dvd, simple is like you noted. A deck like a Panasonic dmr-ez48 that dubs vhs to dvd with one press of the copy button.

High quality?
Tons of threads debating and comparing the various pieces you'll need: e.g.
https://forum.videohelp.com/threads/376945-Conventional-analog-capture-workflow-vs-alt...e2#post2461554

I haven't come across a single comparison of tons of capture devices and workflows that compare and show us what's The Best A,B,C choices in the world, so you'll have to gain an idea from the posts and reviews which workflows, devices are better to start your own tests. Threads like the above give you an idea what the differences can be in capture quality as you swap out A for B in the limited set of devices tested in the thread.