digitalFAQ.com Forum

digitalFAQ.com Forum (https://www.digitalfaq.com/forum/)
-   Capture, Record, Transfer (https://www.digitalfaq.com/forum/video-capture/)
-   -   Does this MP4 recorder work? (https://www.digitalfaq.com/forum/video-capture/15750-mp4-recorder-work.html)

bluebutterfly5050 05-10-2026 11:12 AM

Does this MP4 recorder work?
 
I have a lot of VHS tapes that I want to copy to digital. I have researched this for many years and rejected most of the ideas, including using a "capture card" or involving my computer to use such things as OBS, etc. None have worked so far. I came across someone on another forum who said that they record direct to USB using MP4 recorder. I had never heard of an MP4 recorder so I looked it up online and saw one that is being sold on Ebay for $52. It uses RCA cables out of the VCR, goes into the MP4 box (recorder) and directly converts the signal into MP4 onto a USB. The user chooses whatever type of USB they want (I presume, some type of high volume that will hold a lot of recording). No third party software needed (apparently), just a direct to USB type of copying. This looks more like what I want but the big question is: would this device work? I can't find any specific reviews of this device. It is NOT a ClearClick. ClearClick apparently uses the computer and relies on software decoding to work. This device I am seeing does not do that, it's straight to USB. I can't find a brand name on the unit. The Ebay listings show it as RCA AV Capture Device To MP4 HD Recorder With USB Save & HD Monitor Out. I couldn't find a jpg of the image that wasn't on a web page so couldn't save it to attach here but you can easily find it on ebay using the listing description. I have three VCR's that I kept over the years and all of them still work and play my tapes so I don't anticipate any issues with quality from the VCR nor do I quibble with lack of perfection on the final product. Just want to save for memories and basic viewing going into the future vs. throwing out all these VHS tapes (most were movies or shows taped from television, etc.)

Opinions on this MP4 direct to USB recorder? Is it a good way to do VHS copying that works? I really don't want to deal with copying to DVD's, plus that format is going away and I'd rather save on USB stick. Thanks!

latreche34 05-10-2026 11:12 PM

Any recorder that has the word mp4 in it is junk, Capturing analog tapes in good quality is a process not one recording step.

bluebutterfly5050 05-10-2026 11:24 PM

1 Attachment(s)
I added a jpg of the device in case anyone else would like to add their opinion on it, as to whether it would work or not. thanks!

Aya_Rei 05-11-2026 01:03 AM

Yeah totally reeks of those cheap converters that do a piss poor job.

It works but it produces shit so hey, it does it's job correctly.. at producing poor results.

bluebutterfly5050 05-11-2026 01:14 AM

Yeah, I was just curious as to how or if it would work. It seems a bit different than other capture devices I've seen which usually involve a computer and some third party software like OBS to convert the analog to digital. This device seems to eliminate the need for a computer, i.e. if you hook your VCR up with RCA cables to the box and then have a USB stick in the box to receive the recording as an MP4, then it's supposedly a direct record from VCR direct to USB via whatever the box is doing to convert the signal. IF it would work, such a device would be better than dealing with computer conversion via software which often fails using such things as EZCap or other similar capture cards or devices.

vwestlife 05-11-2026 08:24 AM

That's a cheap A/V to HDMI converter combined with a cheap HDMI capture device. Expect to get video with exaggerated contrast (crushed blacks, blown out highlights) that is stretched-out to widescreen. And it looks like it uses a rather low bitrate, as it claims "9.3MB/Minute or 0.56GB/Hour".

bluebutterfly5050 05-11-2026 09:34 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by vwestlife (Post 107560)
That's a cheap A/V to HDMI converter combined with a cheap HDMI capture device. Expect to get video with exaggerated contrast (crushed blacks, blown out highlights) that is stretched-out to widescreen. And it looks like it uses a rather low bitrate, as it claims "9.3MB/Minute or 0.56GB/Hour".

Okay, thanks for the info. I was just wondering as I hadn't seen a device exactly like this one around. I might or might not try it as I'm not super picky about what the output looks like, just want a backup copy just in case. The price on these particular devices seems to run around $50-70 so they're not super cheap so that would make me hesitate also.

lordsmurf 05-11-2026 11:39 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bluebutterfly5050 (Post 107562)
Okay, thanks for the info. I was just wondering as I hadn't seen a device exactly like this one around. I might or might not try it as I'm not super picky about what the output looks like, just want a backup copy just in case. The price on these particular devices seems to run around $50-70 so they're not super cheap so that would make me hesitate also.

"not super picky" would be to get 2% milk instead of whole milk.
This device is sour milk.


All times are GMT -5. The time now is 01:29 AM

Site design, images and content © 2002-2026 The Digital FAQ, www.digitalFAQ.com
Forum Software by vBulletin · Copyright © 2026 Jelsoft Enterprises Ltd.