Fastest way to transfer VHS tapes to PC?
Hello guys, I'm obviously new to the forum :laugh: ..
So I've seen a 2016 video from "The Oldskool PC" which I'm sure u all watched. I'm planning to transfer family and friends VHS tapes to PC and then save them in Google Drive, that means i will have tons of tapes to transfer and I want to find the fastest way to transfer them without sacrificing quality too much. 60 fps isn't that important to me because I guess it the size of the videos will be doubled (right?), and I don't want the videos to be sized too much GB I will be happy to hear advice and suggestion on specific products and software that will allow me to make this process fast as possible. I dont have a limit budget so if there's a device that making this procces fast, or easy to automatically do some stuff but its expensive, im willing to pay the price. Right now im thinking of buying the Elgato Video Capture but im not sure if there's other options like the video from "The Oldskool PC" which can be better for me.. Thanks! |
"The Oldskool PC" is using a POS capture card, no TBC, and it shows. His conversion job is hideous. In his tiny test capture alone, he's dropping/inserting tons of frames. He's not doing HD or 60fps, that's all nonsense. About the only thing he has correct is to use VirtualDub, but everything else is wrong. Terrible VirtualDub settings are selected.
Basic conversion is this: VCR > TBC > capture device Not just any hardware, but specific ones recommended for consumer sources, such as VHS, and of quality. The easiest capture device is a DVD recorder. So: VCR > TBC > DVD recorder. But quality is (can be) reduced compared to modern viewing and quality standards. It depends on the target output/delivery. The cheapest you can do is - a non-TBC suggested VCR (again, not any POS VCR, not even a VCR you "think" is good), - an ES10/15 for minimalist TBC(ish), and cross your fingers / pray you don have issues, as it's not a real TBC, just TBC(ish) in function - a quality capture card (because those are cheap, under $150); don't be a sucker and buy cheapo Chinese cards, nor HD cards that do SD poorly Elgato is Elcrapo. Easycrap is Easycrap. Both are deserved nicknames. ATI 600 USB or clones are great, certain Pinnacle USB. This is why I make capture cards available in the marketplace, to help you skip the research/searching, use a known-good device. A god rule is this: if you see th card sold "brand new", it's not what you want. The best hardware is no logner made, but is available in excellent condition on 2nd-hand markets like the forum's marketplace subforum and (to a lesser degree) eBay. |
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i did not quite understand everything you said because im not familiar with certain terms.. the quality of the digital videos from Elgato or "The Oldskool PC" looks pretty fine to my eyes. But im looking for the fastest way to do it. Is there such a product that can run the tape very fast, so as the sampling rate will be faster, and just saved the file in my PC in a couple seconds? i dont like the idea that i need to wait for the whole 6 hours tape to play in order to record it. im not looking for the cheapest option, as i mentioned, i actually prefer a better product and i dont really care about the price right now.. whats good about ati 600? I couldn't find even a single video explanation on how to use this device so i dont see a reason to use this instead Elgato for example.. :( im not a professional video guy, i dont see the differences between the quality.. all i want is the fastest and easiest way to make the transfer |
All video is realtime. What you want does not exist.
When it comes to capture cards, the chipset is the primary difference. You don't need guides to use it -- it is the card. Elgato is a crap chipset, terrible drivers, etc. The exception is this one: https://www.amazon.com/Elgato-100204...language=en_US Maybe. It can be an ATI 600 USB semi-clone (same video chip, different audio). Or not. Blame production changes for messing with cards. So it's not always safe to declare certain cards/models "safe" to use. There is no such thing as "professional quality" and "home quality", There is only good or bad. Both good and bad can be achieved, at home or a studio, with the same equipment. The main obstacles to video are putting forth initial costs for the hardware required, reading/learning, and time required. Most people are cheap and lazy, so their projects will usually fail early on. |
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about the devices i guess i will stick with the new Elgato devices... i don't really see a reason to use the old ATI 600 because if i will have a problem with it no one can help me.. i prefer the normal device everyone using.. Many thanks for ur help |
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You're in a forum of users that know about this device. What problems? If anything, Elgato will give you problems. |
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this whole project is first for my self, so i will have my family tapes on my google drive any where any time. and second, for business - meaning i want to take people tapes, and do the work of transformation so they could enjoy having their physical tape on their digital pcs and phones. if i really want to do this for people, it means i want to have 10 PCs, with 10 VCRs with 10 ATI 600 cards, so i can capture 10 tapes at a time and make the process faster. but! i don't understand whats wrong with buying 80$ Elgato device and do this process with a simple VCR i will found online for like 20$, instead of buying 10 specific VCR which cost each around 200-300$, and 10 ATI readers.. is there a difference is the digital movie size? when u say quality difference, u mean colors are more nice? or resolution? what exactly is the different? are there video noise and stutters? what exactly the problem with Elgato devices or even cheaper one? |
I'll just chime in with this since lordsmurf is usually too modest to.
lordsmurf Decades of work with video equipment and capturing, much of it professionally. Used and tested dozens, if not hundreds of different types of video equipment. Thousands of hours of video capture experience. A true willingness to help others achieve the best possible captures (admittedly sometimes a bit extreme), especially for irreplaceable, one chance only (tapes and equipment can self destruct at any time) family moment. YouTuber Hey, I can get views off this and make money! Also, I can completely ignore comments or state "Well, it's good enough" to anyone who questions my techniques. |
If you saw it, the differences would be stark and obvious. Eventually, I'd like to show this in videos. But right now, I don't have time. Busy.
As an analogy, you're suggesting everything wet tastes the same. Water, milk, beer, piss, etc. Elgato is somewhere between beer and piss. The only way you'd like it is if you have zero tastes buds (or messed up buds). Going back to the video, not seeing a difference is being blind. Colors are not "more nice". Better cards show colors more accurate. Bad cards show the colors washed out, tint shifted, etc. But it goes beyond that. Cheap cards don't know how to interpret the signal, and all sorts of visual hell breaks loose. Everything from dropped frames and audio sync errors (even with TBC), to ghastly video values of luma and chroma. We're not talking something minor, but obvious issues that any random person can see (though it must be pointed out to some people that are obtuse or flighty). Making more sense yet? :) |
You're lucky he's on your thread, especially before some other members who are just above the YouTuber you saw in the video in experience. Question less, read and digest more of what lordsmurf is writing. Especially this article: http://www.digitalfaq.com/editorials...g-workflow.htm
Too long and didn't read? More tapes, the more likely you'll run into problems that can only be solved with the proper hardware, software and knowledge. There's 100% certainty that the Youtuber(s) that post these kind of videos cherry picked the best video capture to show. As with most things in life, you'll gain far more by learning and asking knowledgeable questions, than just asking about things you don't agree with. Edit: BTW, before you think I'm just brown nosing. I've at been at videohelp even longer than I've been here, even before my join date there and I didn't and sometimes still always agree with him. But like any adult, the more I learn and understand what he's saying, I've come to realize he's correct far more often than completely wrong. :salute: Quote:
Please use it again the next time a certain poster with two first names posts here or at videohelp!! |
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if i have a 100$ budget, buying 20$ used vcr and 80$ Elgato is the best option (from options under 100$), if not.. what is the best 100$ budget for buying vcr and capture card? i know its crap but still.. this is the budget right now.. |
6 hours video tape captured in two seconds? Where have you been living
I’m an engineer too Since money is not an object pay someone to do it for you |
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if its not possible and its so obvious please share with me the reason.. |
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$100 budget barely covers a decent USB capture card. Not VCR. Not TBC. Read this: http://www.digitalFAQ.com/editorials...g-workflow.htm Note difference in home vs. pro workflows. Pro is just expanded home setup. |
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For the rest of us that means VHS (and related tape formats) have to be copied in real time - it takes an hour to capture an hour of tape; to that add setup time. I sounds like you want fast, and you want "just good enough" as opposed to "as near perfect as is feasible." Most folks who participate here have a very high standard for "good enough" and recommendations are geared to that later standard. Since budget is not a consideration, but speed is I suggest: - buy several of the recommended high quality S-VHS VCRs that have been refurbished by a reputable technician - buy an equal number of the recommended DVD recorders. - buy an equal number of TBCs. - buy an equal number of proc amps (if not included in the TBC's you buy) - capture to DVD-R at the 1 or 2-hour record rate. The DVD-R can be viewed directly, copied, or ripped for basic editing and uploading. The quality will for the most part be close to the same as the VCR playback, except for really video that has a lot of noise in it because lossy video compression has difficulty with noise. The file thus produced is in a highly compressed lossy format so it will not survive significant restoration or color correction. |
By the time he buys all that gear his budget will be in the $5000 range, I can do it for him for half of that, I’m pretty sure Lordsmurf is more generous than me and he can probably do it for a lot less.
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I read adarc8's post #7 to imply he eventually wants to do this as a business, not just as a hobby effort for family and friends.
Given the historical rise, fall, and performance of such services, and the availability of low cost DIY gear, perhaps it is time for him to document a business case to aid his decision process. |
In the analog world, speed kills...quality.
Even back in the days of audio cassettes and before that, reel to reel, audiophiles could tell the difference between a high speed copy and a realtime one. The high speed copy lacked in the high and low end, and had more wow and flutter due to the increased transport speed. There's a company, The Tape Project that' producing what YouTuber Techmoan calls "The most expensive music format (in the world)" because a single tape, equivalent to a single LP costs $450 and requires modification of high end reel to reel machines. They understand the necessity of realtime mastering to retain quality: "Q: Are you saying this is better than any other format? A: We find the sound of 15ips half track analog tape to be distinct from the sound of any other format. Mike Spitz of ATR Services always said, “Nothing sounds like tape.” Q: How are the tapes made? A: Our duplication process begins with the actual analog master tape. From that we make analog running masters on one inch two-track format. The one inch tape format transfer results in a extremely low loss of information, which we consider more like 1/2 generation than one full generation. These running masters are copied in real time to a bank of finely tweaked Ampex ATR-100 decks, yielding a “1-1/2 generation” copy. You just aren’t going to get any closer to the original master, short of buying a record label or two." Now imagine how much more difficult and lossy it would be to speed up a videotape! :eek: Edit: If you've ever used a high speed copying cassette boombox that was popular in the '80's and made a copy of your cassette, you'd know how badly speed kills...quality. Granted the transports in these were terrible, but even a realtime copy was noticeably better than the highspeed one. |
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