Having read the many posts on digitalfaq (seriously, the depth of knowledge in this website is astounding) I feel somewhat confident in starting my journey in digitising my family's old PAL VHS and VHS-C tapes. With that said, hello to all
Here is my workflow for the experts to scrutinize:
Equipment- 1996 SONY SLV-X817 (VCR)
- 2005 SONY RDR-GX210 (DVDR as Pass-through)
- ATI AIW 7500 PCI (Capture Card)
- SoundBlaster Live! 5.1 (Sound Card)
- XP SP2 Setup with HuffYUV and VDUB 1.9.11 (OS+SW)
vcr_dvd.png
Questions/Comments
VCR has
composite-out 
, into
composite-in on the DVD Recorder, and
S-Video-out into the AIW Capture card.
From what I have read, using some DVD players as pseudo-TBCs is an acceptable workaround, but there is no literature on whether this is applicable to my model. Regardless, the circuitry is doing
something, as without it (i.e. VCR straight into the AIW), I get worse picture quality - chroma bleed, more prominent fringing, and dropped frames
I do appreciate the streamlined UI of MMC, but I'm capturing in VDUB due to the capture resolution constraints (704 in MMC vs 720 in VDUB). Is that sensible? I think capturing with 720 makes masking and generally editing easier.
I am capturing with the Sony VCR's Adaptive Picture Control (APC) set to ON. APC is described as "
..tests each tape and adjusts recording and playback parameters for best performance". Sounds like a good feature to leave on, but I was wondering if it alters the image beyond that, e.g. questionable NR, and in that case, maybe it should be left OFF.
To that end, am I correct in assuming that APC acts as a dynamic/automatic proc amp?
Before discussing upgrades, what is a realistic expectation for the quality of captures using my current setup? Perhaps some members can chime in with model-specific information.
Worth noting that all tapes are in excellent condition, and are originals (no re-recordings).
Upgrades
I've set my eyes on an upgrade, the JVC HR-8600EU, but based on lordsmurf's experience, they eat VHS-C tapes for breakfast. In that case, what's a 2023 recommendation for a single VCR that would satisfy a conversion of ~30 VHS + ~30 VHS-C?
For Europe, I have found that only vcrshop.com seems reputable enough to warrant a safe purchase, but they don't stock the often recommended Panasonic 1980s.
I've budgeted an additional 500EUR over what I've already spent for the equipment listed above.
Thanks for reading, looking forward to your feedback!
