DVD recorder has copyright protection on VHS tape, how to fix?

[mariolover]

I gave up on trying to copy my VHS tapes to DVD using a capture card because it always drops frames and I've tried to fix them and I don't have the money for a TBC. I've decided to instead to use a Toshiba DVR620 DVD recorder, but one of my VHS tapes gives me a copy protection error when I try to record it. How do I fix this?

[lordsmurf]

TBC is usually the only way to fix it. However...

Some capture cards do ignore anti-copy/Macrovision, but are still susceptible to other video errors. Remember, the anti-copy errors are just artificial video errors. (Also meaning that homemade VHS tapes can have false "copy protection" , because the recorder is just seeing non-artificial video errors.)

If you simply had to buy something, what would be the budget for it? (PM me that number.)
I have some ideas.

[mariolover]

Whenever I try recording with a capture card, it drops frames. I would have to use a DVD recorder because my system is older and it can't handle capture card recordings and I don't want to buy a whole new system. Are there cheapter TBCs made specifically for copy protection that might work?

My Elgato capture card has the ability to bypass macrovision but like I said, it doesn't work because it drops frames. So I'd like to find a way to get my DVD recorder to work.

I tried using Grex Video Stabilizer but the DVD recorder didn't recognize that.

[lordsmurf]

Grex isn't a TBC, but a POS with broken promises. It rarely works well, or at all.

Elgato does not ignore anti-copy that I can recall. Realize that "Elgato" is a brand, not a card. Model matters.

Dropped frames can be troubleshot. How old is the system? What are the exact specs?

TBCs are not intended for copy protection removal. That's not the function. TBCs exist to correct signal errors. It just so happens that anti-copy is an artificial error. All errors are removed, fake or not, and replaced with a new clean signal.

If I knew a budget, I could try to think of other options. But I don't, so I can't.

[mariolover]

Do you know if this would work or not? If you don't know, could you test it? http://www.xdimax.com/dvd/dvdredpro.html

My VCR/DVD combo recorder is Toshiba DVR620, so I want to know if it would work with that.

[lordsmurf]

No, that thing is just a Grex by another name. It's a toy that does not work. It's newbie fodder, sold to people who don't yet understand the complexities of video, and why copy protection is thwarting them at every turn. I've outlined quite well what causes it, and how to bypass it. Aside from TBC, nothing. Maybe sometimes a capture card that ignore it, but of course it still lets legit errors pass that give you grief.

I wish this wasn't the case. But it's the technology we had. That's VHS for you.

Also, please don't post multiple replies on a row. Edit your previous post, for up to 60 minutes. Only make new replies after the 1-hour window has closed.

[mariolover]

60 minutes has passed. So I'm gonna post again. Can Macrovision cause dropped frames in VHS tapes? I'm trying to capture from commercial tapes. I've noticed other people can post from their commercial VHS tapes no problem onto YouTube, so why can't I? If you look at all of the VHS openings on YouTube, most of them are perfectly captured with no dropped frames.

[sanlyn]

Quote:

Originally Posted by mariolover

Can Macrovision cause dropped frames in VHS tapes?

Copy protection causes signal timing errors and other disturbances, so yes it can result in dropped frames. You can also have unstable timing without Macrovision tapes, and that will cause dropped frames as well.

Quote:

Originally Posted by mariolover

I've noticed other people can post from their commercial VHS tapes no problem onto YouTube, so why can't I? If you look at all of the VHS openings on YouTube, most of them are perfectly captured with no dropped frames.

Those users obviously captured the way they were supposed to -- using a frame-level tbc of some kind.

I was never envious of anything posted on YouTube. Those videos almost always look like garbage. If you're looking for something that's a guide to video quality, YouTube is the wrong place. Most of the stuff that appears on YouTube is a crying shame, and the video tape captures are the absolute worst. You can usually tell when someone has used something cheap like a Grex -- it has its recognizable signature of a really twisted color response curve, a badly softened image with low acutance, low contrast, and a high gamma response with no strong blacks.

Unfortunately VHS is analog. It's not digital. Analog doesn't behave like digital video. If you use hardware and software that no knowledgeable user would ever recommend, you can't expect good results. There are good reasons why certain products and methods are recommended for capture and others are not.