Transfering my VCR movies to CD/DVD

[cplcarlman]

Originally Posted by cryptodan

What anticopying? You just have to put a piece of tape over the tab: VHS Tape write protect bottom tape on the left.

What they are talking about is when you used to try to dub a VHS tape to another VHS tape. The video image would have all these video anomalies displayed on your TV.

[AlecJ32]

Originally Posted by n0t4u2kn0w

On top of all the technical details of getting the audio and video from tapes to discs, you also have to deal with the anti-copying DRM that's on most prerecorded tapes.

Could you explain in detail how an analog recording can contain DRM?

[cryptodan]

Originally Posted by cplcarlman

What they are talking about is when you used to try to dub a VHS tape to another VHS tape. The video image would have all these video anomalies displayed on your TV.

In my 28 years of existance and dubbing VHS Tapes I have never experienced any copy protection other then the tab on the tape itself.

[Zeppelid]

Originally Posted by cryptodan

In my 28 years of existance and dubbing VHS Tapes I have never experienced any copy protection other then the tab on the tape itself.

Macrovision?!

[n0t4u2kn0w]

Originally Posted by AlecJ32

Could you explain in detail how an analog recording can contain DRM?

Originally Posted by cryptodan

Also VHS = Analog nothing digital about it.

I should ignore these obvious lackings of intelligence, but in pity for both you I won't. No an analog tape can't have DRM but it can have some form of content protection which is what DRM is in the digital world. I couldn't think of the proper term for the analog version of DRM so I used DRM thinking you'd be intelligent enough to grasp the meaning. Apparently I was wrong.

Originally Posted by cryptodan

In my 28 years of existance and dubbing VHS Tapes I have never experienced any copy protection other then the tab on the tape itself.

The either you have never attempted to copy prerecorded movies in which most but not all were protected or your set up had a video stabilizer between the tape player and tape recorder.

Originally Posted by cryptodan

What anticopying? You just have to put a piece of tape over the tab: VHS Tape write protect bottom tape on the left.

LOL! That's so funny because it's so wrong. Putting tape over that hole only allows you to record on that tape that had been write protected by removing the tab. Just the same as audio cassettes.

Video cassettes used a system called Marcovision that slightly altered the format of the video signal enough that other VCRs or DVD recorders would record them with distored colors, but could play normally through more forging TV electronics with no noticable effects.

The same technique is used on DVDs to prevent them from being copied to video cassettes.

There are devices commonly called video stabilizers that can clean up the signal to where it can be recorded but you often pay the price in image quality. Newer digital versions may not degrade the image as badly as the analog ones did, but I've never seen the results from a digital one so I can't really say whether they do or don't.

[AlecJ32]

Originally Posted by n0t4u2kn0w

I should ignore these obvious lackings of intelligence, but in pity for both you I won't. No an analog tape can't have DRM but it can have some form of content protection which is what DRM is in the digital world. I couldn't think of the proper term for the analog version of DRM so I used DRM thinking you'd be intelligent enough to grasp the meaning. Apparently I was wrong.

Or perhaps it's not that we lack intelligence, it's that we know the difference between analog copy protection methods (In this case, VBI modulation) and 'digital rights management'. Which ever way you look at it, your own error doesn't warrant such personal attacks.

[cryptodan]

Originally Posted by n0t4u2kn0w

The either you have never attempted to copy prerecorded movies in which most but not all were protected or your set up had a video stabilizer between the tape player and tape recorder.

Ive copied a lot of pre-recorded movies from VHS to another VHS tape and guess what the signal quality on both the master and the copy were great. There was no degradation of picture or audio quality in all cases and instances.

[n0t4u2kn0w]

Originally Posted by AlecJ32

Or perhaps it's not that we lack intelligence, it's that we know the difference between analog copy protection methods (In this case, VBI modulation) and 'digital rights management'. Which ever way you look at it, your own error doesn't warrant such personal attacks.

On the contrary, most people could read my statement and understand what I was saying despite my use of the wrong term. But apparently you could not make that leap of thought or you felt it necessary to split hairs.

And for the record, I also know the difference between analog copy protection and DRM even if I couldn't think of the right term to use for analog copy protection. I'm not the "know-it-all" you appear to be or think you are.

Originally Posted by cryptodan

Ive copied a lot of pre-recorded movies from VHS to another VHS tape and guess what the signal quality on both the master and the copy were great. There was no degradation of picture or audio quality in all cases and instances.

Then I'd say you either had a video enhancer/stabilizer between the player and recorder or it was built-in. Also usually the first generation copy looks and sounds as good the original, it's when you get down to the third or fourth generation that the copies start to suffer.

[MADDOGGE]

Thanks a lot guys, This is one of the reasons I put the question out. I'm getting the feeling I'm just making a lot of extra work for myself with no guarantee that the results or money spent will be worth it. I had just hoped there was a fast,clean and cheap way to do the transfer that would save me the cost of replacement and looked and sounded at least as good as the VHS tape. I honestly didn't care if it was DVD quality . I didn't expect that anyway. You won't get digital out of analog at least not any way I have ever heard of.

I've pretty much decided to take my list and ditch the tapes as I replace them. After hearing all your thoughts on the subject, it's seems way more trouble than it's worth. I appreciate all your input guys.

[n0t4u2kn0w]

If you wanted to keep all of them and still save the cost of replacing them. You could do it fairly easily with a VCR/DVD recorder combo unit, especially one that has a video stabilizer/enhancer in it.

Then I'd go through the movies, the ones that have special meaning to me I'd just buy the DVD if its available to have the best quality. Then the rest I dub from tape to DVD using the combo unit as time permits (no hurry here).

The only time you'd need to go through a computer is if for some reason, copying from beginning to end doesn't work out and the movie isn't available on DVD. Then you'd need to use the computer to do some video or audio editing or processing before burning it to a DVD and I think having to do all of that would be rather rare.

[AlecJ32]

Originally Posted by n0t4u2kn0w

Then I'd say you either had a video enhancer/stabilizer between the player and recorder or it was built-in. Also usually the first generation copy looks and sounds as good the original, it's when you get down to the third or fourth generation that the copies start to suffer.

If all you're doing is making a backup copy, or transferring it to CD/DVD, you wouldn't need to make more than one copy anyways. There's no good reason to be making 4 copies of a tape.

[MADDOGGE]

Originally Posted by AlecJ32

If all you're doing is making a backup copy, or transferring it to CD/DVD, you wouldn't need to make more than one copy anyways. There's no good reason to be making 4 copies of a tape.

I was only planning on making one copy and then chunking the tape afterword. I could see it now: HEADLINES Man goes to fed prison for pirating 15 year old VHS tapes!

Nah I'll keep the ones I can't replace and replace the ones I can.

[meppers]

if you can afford it, send the tapes to Walgreens and let them do it for you.

[cryptodan]

Originally Posted by n0t4u2kn0w

Then I'd say you either had a video enhancer/stabilizer between the player and recorder or it was built-in. Also usually the first generation copy looks and sounds as good the original, it's when you get down to the third or fourth generation that the copies start to suffer.

For the record, all I had was RCA cables between the VCR's.