Author Topic: Transferring to DVD (Read 4497 times)

Ian Wallis · « **on:** June 26, 2007, 05:53:33 PM »

I know this has been brought up once or twice before, but I'd like to get a current take on it.

In transferring a couple of episodes from a VHS tape I got in a trade several years ago, my machine is not letting my copy them because it thinks they're copyrighted. Why it's doing this I don't know, because these are episodes recorded off TV - they're not from copyrighted tapes.

I've transferred about 900 episodes from my collection so far and haven't really run into this problem. There were a couple of times where it almost occurred, but when I cued the tape a couple of seconds earlier before dubbing to DVD, it worked. Whatever I do to these particular episodes I just can't get them to record.

I thought if I daisy-chained two VCRs together and play it through the first one it might work, but it didn't.

Would it work if I were to dub said episodes to another tape and try again - or would I just be wasting my time?

If anyone else has had this problem recently please let me know if there's a work-around; or point me to a link with some more info. I tried doing a search for the other threads on the topic but I'm probably using the wrong keywords because I couldn't turn them up.

I'd also like to know why this occurs!

Thanks in advance for any help

Match Game Nut · « **Reply #1 on:** June 26, 2007, 06:10:41 PM »

I've had problems with this before and I was told that it has something to do with the age of the tape. I don't know how true it is, as I've transferred tapes from 1996 just fine but had problems with tapes from 2000. One thing I have noticed in transferring to DVD, at least with my machines, is that if the picture is jumpy or fuzzy, it seems to happen more often.

As for how to fix it, I have tried dubbing the original to a blank and used the blank to copy to DVD and it has worked. Another device that was suggested to me, but hadn't worked(for me anyway) are Digital Video Stabilizers

Not sure why the latter didn't work but I don't care as much as the former did work ok for me. Of course I don't claim to be an expert, these are just obs from my experiences, YMMV.

Queen of Nerdocrombesia · « **Reply #2 on:** June 26, 2007, 06:21:00 PM »

If the quality of the tape picture is poor, the DVD recorder may trigger Macrovision protection and stop recording. This can happen even if it is something you recorded yourself that does not have it. There are ways to look online to see if your DVD recorder is able to turn off Macrovision protection, not really legally, so dubber beware. That being said, sometimes when I try to dub the same thing again on a new disc, it's like nothing happened. Each pass varies.

Matt Ottinger · « **Reply #3 on:** June 26, 2007, 07:25:30 PM »

[quote name=\'Queen of Nerdocrombesia\' post=\'156109\' date=\'Jun 26 2007, 06:21 PM\']
If the quality of the tape picture is poor, the DVD recorder may trigger Macrovision protection and stop recording. This can happen even if it is something you recorded yourself that does not have it. There are ways to look online to see if your DVD recorder is able to turn off Macrovision protection, not really legally, so dubber beware. That being said, sometimes when I try to dub the same thing again on a new disc, it's like nothing happened. Each pass varies.[/quote]
This is the correct answer, worded very well, which is why I quoted it. If I was a less scrupulous moderator, I'd delete Queenie's post and paste her response to make it look like it came from me, that's how good it is. It's not the age of the tape, it's the quality of the tape. (Age is naturally a factor.)

Another big thing is whether your VHS tape was recorded at the slower SLP speed as opposed to the faster, better-quality SP mode. Transferring your tape to another newer tape, ideally in the SP mode, is probably the simplest and cheapest solution, though the transfer costs you that much more in picture quality (a different creature than signal quality).

The signal stabilizer route is probably a better way to go than hacking your DVD recorder, which I really don't recommend unless you know what you're doing. Your problem there is that the good ones are pricey, and you won't know whether a cheaper one will do the trick until you try.

Justin Dyer · « **Reply #4 on:** June 26, 2007, 08:47:55 PM »

Thanks for the info, guys. I've run into this problem too. I've dubbed 120 of my 170 game shows tapes. (I have another approximately 150 non game show tapes to do after this.) It sounds like the best bet is to dub the tape to another tape in SP mode and then try it. (Unfortunately, this will make the picture quality even worse.)

What I've done so far is to circle the name of the show on the label, set the tape aside, and keep going. I was going to post something like this when I was done, but Ian posted it for me.

For what it's worth, I started this process at the beginning of February. I've dubbed 120 tapes in just under five months.

Justin

tvwxman · « **Reply #5 on:** June 26, 2007, 09:02:10 PM »

I purchased a Pinnacle 700 to injest my VCR into my computer to dump shows into my harddrive, or onto my DVD burner..... this may be a way to get around the macrovision issue, no?

dzinkin · « **Reply #6 on:** June 26, 2007, 09:34:03 PM »

[quote name=\'tvwxman\' post=\'156137\' date=\'Jun 26 2007, 09:02 PM\']
I purchased a Pinnacle 700 to injest my VCR into my computer to dump shows into my harddrive, or onto my DVD burner..... this may be a way to get around the macrovision issue, no?
[/quote]
The key word is "may." Some of those analog-to-digital converters recognize the Macrovision signal themselves and, like the DVD recorders, will shut down in response. Others ignore it entirely, and still others can be set to ignore it via an undocumented switch or button sequence. The Canopus ADVC-100 that I use is in the third category; I'm not sure where the Pinnacle falls.

Jimmy Owen · « **Reply #7 on:** June 26, 2007, 09:40:57 PM »

I wonder if there is a way to "broadcast" a signal from one VCR in your home to a DVD burner? I have an XM radio with a transmitter that allows me to hear the signal on any radio in the house and record it on 88.1 FM if desired.

dzinkin · « **Reply #8 on:** June 26, 2007, 10:12:32 PM »

[quote name=\'Jimmy Owen\' post=\'156143\' date=\'Jun 26 2007, 09:40 PM\']
I wonder if there is a way to "broadcast" a signal from one VCR in your home to a DVD burner? I have an XM radio with a transmitter that allows me to hear the signal on any radio in the house and record it on 88.1 FM if desired.
[/quote]
This is more or less a video equivalent of the FM transmitter. Unfortunately, the resulting video quality (from this as well as from equivalent products from other companies) usually leaves a lot to be desired, so if the goal is to archive video, it's probably not the best bet.

JayDLewis · « **Reply #9 on:** June 26, 2007, 10:21:54 PM »

While it isn't a GS tape perse, but I wanted to dump my Johnny Carson: The Favorite Moments to DVD (4 VHS tapes to 2 DVDs) not only to free up room but to get it onto a longer-lasting media.

Macrovision did me in. I'm not even sure if the recent DVD collections are the same material as the tapes.

Side note: I don't know how folks can keep every tape in their collection. When I started transferring my stuff, I've been very brutal keeping...maybe 10-20%. I don't have the room (or $$) to buy/store 100s of DVDs.

Chelsea Thrasher · « **Reply #10 on:** June 26, 2007, 10:44:33 PM »

[quote name=\'JayDLewis\' post=\'156148\' date=\'Jun 26 2007, 09:21 PM\']
Side note: I don't know how folks can keep every tape in their collection. When I started transferring my stuff, I've been very brutal keeping...maybe 10-20%. I don't have the room (or $$) to buy/store 100s of DVDs. [/quote]

I can't speak for Canadian rates, but in the States you can purchase a spindle of 100 DVDs for, depending on the brand (or manufacturer in some cases), between USD$30-$40. As for storage, I don't know about other people, but I'm not so attached to my collection that I'm hyper-protective about storage, so I've been putting my DVDs in those 200/208-disc storage binders you can purchase at nearly any retailed. I've got a few special things I've got in hard cases, etc., but for most stuff I have no problems storing it in the aforementioned binders.

TheLastResort · « **Reply #11 on:** June 26, 2007, 11:43:56 PM »

[quote name=\'JayDLewis\' post=\'156148\' date=\'Jun 26 2007, 09:21 PM\']
While it isn't a GS tape perse, but I wanted to dump my Johnny Carson: The Favorite Moments to DVD (4 VHS tapes to 2 DVDs) not only to free up room but to get it onto a longer-lasting media.
[/quote]
Recordable DVDs may not be that long lasting. In fact, you may be better off holding on to your tapes until something better comes along. There is a phenomenon known as "disc fade," in which the organic dyes used in store-bought blank discs gradually deteriorate over time. (Commercially recorded discs don't have this problem, as they don't use dyes - the discs are physically "pressed" like an LP.) Certain manufacturers' discs are less prone to disc fade. I use Taiyo Yuden DVD-R's for anything new that I record, but I'm really hesitant to start dubbing over my 300+ tapes to optical discs...

For more info, check out the AVS Forum.

HYHYBT · « **Reply #12 on:** June 27, 2007, 03:16:05 AM »

The trouble is, you won't really know whether the "something better" really is better or not until it's been around as long as DVD's have been now. Not long ago at all they were claiming that burned CD's would be good for something like 100 years...

Matt Ottinger · « **Reply #13 on:** June 27, 2007, 02:55:56 PM »

[quote name=\'TheLastResort\' post=\'156154\' date=\'Jun 26 2007, 11:43 PM\']
For more info, check out the AVS Forum.[/quote]
The problem with using a message board like that to prove (or disprove) anything should be fairly obvious to anybody who's spent time on a message board. What you have are dozens of opinions, and while some are more informed than others, every single one of them is posted with that individual's absolute conviction of his own beliefs, whether informed or not. (Imagine somebody coming here and 'learning' something about game shows that was absolutely true because bandit-bobby said so.)

A few too many of those stories sounded like people who had a problem, and rather than considering the possibility of their own mistakes (cheap media, poor storage, bad handling, etc) immediately advanced to blaming the entire format. I'm not about to make Chicken Little jokes, because I truly don't know what the long-term answer is. But when you go to this site that says "Disc Fade is REAL," keep in mind that was originally written by someone who had a personal bad experience, and the seven pages (over the course of more than two years) that follows is a lively debate about just how 'real' the problem actually is.

tvmitch · « **Reply #14 on:** June 27, 2007, 03:56:41 PM »

[quote name=\'JayDLewis\' post=\'156148\' date=\'Jun 26 2007, 10:21 PM\']
Side note: I don't know how folks can keep every tape in their collection. When I started transferring my stuff, I've been very brutal keeping...maybe 10-20%. I don't have the room (or $$) to buy/store 100s of DVDs.
[/quote]
This is exactly what I've been facing, albeit for a different reason...a lot of the stuff I have is from when I didn't have GSN and would trade with folks for tapes of "just record GSN for me please kthx." Match Game and Card Sharks, mostly.

So now that I've really had my fill on those, simply because they've been on GSN for a period of years now, I am really hesitant to spend all that time dubbing those episodes over. The time has passed where I sit and will watch a tape of Match Game.

And I'm hesitant also due to the reasons mentioned earlier - do we really know that this consumer-grade DVD media, even the premium stuff, won't just up and die in 10 years? I haven't been letting go of the tapes I've dubbed just for that reason.

My tapes of old GSN stuff that isn't currently on, like some of the B&E from the Dark Period, definitely get moved to DVD because I have doubts we'll ever see those on GSN again.

Author Topic: Transferring to DVD (Read 4497 times)

dzinkin

dzinkin