What is the best VCR model?

[Caius]

Is there any? Specially to convert Vhs / Super Vhs tapes?

Which one would be first on the list? And the second and third?

[johns0]

Just look in this forum,you will see lots of results.

[lingyi]

Start with this buying guide from lordsmurf:

https://www.digitalfaq.com/forum/video-restore/1567-vcr-buying-guide.html

[lingyi]

Also required reading:

https://www.digitalfaq.com/forum/news/13016-warning-buy-tbcs.html

https://www.google.com/url?client=internal-element-cse&cx=partner-pub-4514618784715630...CTsLH4fliaWrmz

Before someone chimes in with "He's just trying to sell his own stuff!", understand that lordsmurf is possibly THE video capture guru, striving for the best quality possible with decades of experience and backing up his equipment claims with solid evidence, nut just "It works and looks fine to me!"

Also understand that a great VCR is only one link in a proper video capture chain with quality hampered by the weakest link.

Edit: https://www.digitalfaq.com/forum/news/12985-warning-buy-parts.html

[lollo]

Before someone chimes in with "He's just trying to sell his own stuff! ..."

And you are his best sponsor/fan

For PAL VCRs, in addition to digitalfaq resource for VCRs, mainly experienced with NTSC, also look to posts form knowledgeable users like oln, Bogilein, brad and others, in this forum and in digitalfaq forums.

[lingyi]

Before someone chimes in with "He's just trying to sell his own stuff! ..."

And you are his best sponsor/fan

Yep...gotta keep those smurfbucks coming in!

[jwillis84]

The best one is the one you have, to start.

The next best one, is the one you got for free.

Then comes the one you found at Goodwill.

Followed by the one someone told you was the Cat's Meow.

And then the one you found for a steal on eBay.

And finally the one someone pawned off on you and looks like it came from Doc Browns lab.


Realistically;

it starts with the country your from; PAL or NTSC

then SL, LP or EP (or all of them)

then is it working, or do you know someone who can fix it and possibly maintain it while you complete your project

If your budget allows, then you probably want at least two;

1. a Panasonic - for tracking slow speed, unstable tracking tapes (EP tapes mostly)
2. a JVC - for tracking high speed, good quality tapes with high definition (SP tapes mostly)

Specific recommendations of the past, when you had a wider choice were;

a. something with a built in time base corrector (that is not a studio grade SDI out or Beta level VTR)

b. something that allows 'switching OFF' - DNR (digital noise reduction) and/or Filters (old caps and stuff render them useless, 'softeners')

(Specifically for North America "only");

Panasonic AG-1980 (has TBC)

JVC HR-S9911 (has TBC, "no" dynamic drum to break)


More practically;

Its becoming less "possible" to get or maintain a working VCR of any type, and one of the better Service providers that have those can capture for you and upload it to the Cloud for you to retrieve

We're approaching the Super8 days or why keep a Reel-to-Reel video projector in the garage "just in case" you might need to transfer some old films.

Due to aging electronics, capturing the audio video signal and getting it out of the VCR as quickly and pristinely or unprocessed as possible and into your own external clean up boxes before capture.. is becoming the issue.

External time base correctors are now nearing their second or third 'Cat' lives and are degrading as well, you need a buddy or service that curates and reclaims and maintains those as well... but many are being left on the roadside of history or carted off to local landfills.

Some people.. are stooping as low as to use DVD recorders to pass-thru and clean up their booty extricated from VCR Tape.. before feeding it into a video capture contraption.. with variable results.

Its a rickety business these days pursuing this hobby, not unlike model rocketry in allure and complexity .. the "winners" are probably those who see it as a never ending pursuit, and claim victory first (once) and then plan but never go back and do it all over again with newer technology.

The key lesson, best advice is.. if you see yourself as a museum director or curator, don't plan on trashing the tapes when your done.. if that is your primary goal, its probably best to consign the tapes to a Service to transfer them for you.. and let the pain of the cost, dictate how much effort you put into choosing what to keep and what to throw out.

[themaster1]

The guy owns a d-vhs vcr and still ask the question ....ok

[Eric-jan]

(Finding a vcr is only a part of the problem….(there's always a better one…) …. most is already said here, it should not cost a fortune..(there are some crazy prices, both high or low) only simple repairs are possible, belts, caps, cleaning, lubricating, mode switch cleaning.
avoid capture devices for a computer setup, most of them are crap,(or only work on old versions of a operating system) with exeption of the (recent) pro ones, better convert first to HDMI/SDI and use a DVR, pro or gamer type, the gamer types go directly to h.264 (not always wanted) the pro ones record to different grades of ProRes422 (lowest grade is good enough for vhs) or also h.264/265, workflow is also much better this way.