RQ: Help with VHS to DVD via Computer

[joeyanyc]

Hey gang,

I had a question that I hope I can get some suggestions and help with.
I have tons of VHS tapes from early 80's and on. I know a bunch of them,
if not most, have recorded 6 - 8 hours worth of footage on each tape.
(I was young, I didn't know better)

I have 2 main goals, aside from converting to DVD.
One is, I wanted to record the best way possible to get the most quality
that I can out of the VHS footage. Second, I don't NEED to fit all 8 hours onto 1 DVD, if that's even possible.

I will have to buy a brand new VHS player for the job. So model suggestions would be great. Something that has a good Tracking adjustment, I assume, etc. Now I don't mind getting a good DVD recorder. But my thought was, since I have a majority of tapes with 6 - 8 hours, would it be "best" transfer my VHS directly into my computer? My computer is brand new and fully loaded. So with my 1.5tb hard drive, I'll have the room. And I would think I'll be able
to break down the video footage into seperate DVDs without compromising the quality.

Okay, I know that was a lot, but I wanted to get all the info out that I think you'll need to help me out.

I greatly appreciate any help and suggestions.

Joey :)

[dawsongirl]

Do you want to be able to edit your videos? I mean like, taking out commercials or splitting material up. If it were me, I would be more inclined to put them on my computer. I have a setup like that and I also have a DVD recorder...I find the computer setup has more flexibility, fancier menus and extras, etc. I bought a Pinnacle something or other (I'll post a link) that I have hooked up between my VCR and my computer. Records easily as long as I disable as many running programs as possible and it's easy to edit out commercials (more precise too). Then I can take my material in any order and burn it to DVD. I don't see any quality reduction, but I don't see that it make SLP/EP stuff look better. But still, I think I would do that, but weigh both options.

[dawsongirl]

http://www.pinnaclesys.com/PublicSite/us/Products/Consumer+Products/Home+Video/Studio+Family/Studio+MovieBox+Plus+version+12.htm

That's what I have (though I didn't pay $99 for it).

[joeyanyc]

Thanks so much for your reply. I would think VCR to Computer would be ideal. I do have the video card on it. Never used it, but researched a bit on it today. Ideally, I think that each tape will be over 6 hours, I'll be able to easily edit them down into parts to put onto DVD.

I do have another question. Approximately, how much memory does one 2hour video tape take up when you capture it in your PC (at best quality)?
I know it will vary. Just an approx amount.

Thank you.

[dawsongirl]

I don't know offhand. The Pinnacle program tells me in hours and minutes how much space I have left. I think on my computer, if I have nothing on there, I have roughly 25 hours of space on a 360GB computer. Each half hour program I record is about 1.4 GB. Hopefully that helps a little anyway.

[MickeyMac]

I believe there is a DVD/VCR recorder/burner that transfers VHS to DVD. Is that so???


I do got lots of stuff on VHS that has never seen the light of day on DVD(in fact I got stuff on VHS that was never officially released on VHS).

[dawsongirl]

I believe there is a DVD/VCR recorder/burner that transfers VHS to DVD. Is that so???


I do got lots of stuff on VHS that has never seen the light of day on DVD(in fact I got stuff on VHS that was never officially released on VHS).
Sure, there are those as well. Never owned one of those, so I'm not 100% sure how they work.

[MickeyMac]

Sure, there are those as well. Never owned one of those, so I'm not 100% sure how they work.



What are they called anyways so I'll know what to look for?

[dawsongirl]

What are they called anyways so I'll know what to look for?
DVD/VHS Recorder or DVD Recorder with built-in VCR, something like that.

[Schmoopie]

I used to have a DVD/VCR that you could burn a DVD from VHS or vice versa. It was pretty cool, but then the DVD player broke and we had a heck of a time playing stuff on it. We kept using it as just a VHS player, but then got rid of it. However, when both were working, it was okay. I used it probably every day. I used to TiVo "One Life to Live", burn it onto a DVD, take the DVD upstairs and edit my favorite parts from the DVD on to VHS. It was kind of a pain, and then if I wanted it on a DVD, I had to do it from the VHS to DVD, but it worked.

I want to get my wedding videos (I have three) onto DVD because now I can't watch them at all. Costco does this but they say that they won't do it if there's copyright info on the VHS. Even if you own the video. I've been married for 13 years and I doubt I'd be able to find the person who did my wedding video after all this time.

Andrea