[Fredslist] Solution: VHS to DVD copying for personal use

[Phil Courtney - Urban Bear Marketing]

Greetings Gotham,

 Solution to my posting a few days ago about copying my old VHS tapes to DVD
for personal use:

Background: my 12 year old VCR finally broke down. With nearly 200 VHS
tapes, some with tape quality that is deteriorating because of age,  I
decided that I¹d replace the VCR and get a DVD recorder to preserve the
video.

First thing  I did was purchase a VCR/DVD-recorder combo unit. DO NOT DO
THIS  IF YOU WANT TO COPY HOLLYWOOD/STUDIO TAPES FOR PERSONAL USE!  The
combo unit is incapable of copying Hollywood/studio tapes because of the
Macrovision copy protection on VHS tapes.

So, I did some research and discovered the solution was to purchase two
separate units and install in between them a small video splitter that
suppresses the Macrovision copy protection (the copy protect is performed on
the video signal from the tape and does not suppress the sound).

Solution: I purchased a new stand-alone VCR ($50), a new stand-alone
DVD-Recorder($125) and a video splitter (Sima GoDVD‹I saw them available
from CompUSA for about $50. Do a Google search on GoDVD. Big box stores such
as Best Buy and Circuit City sell them too for about $80).

Connections: While your connections and equipment may be different, here¹s
what worked for me (as per the instructions that came with my units). I
installed/connected each unit stand-alone and tested to make certain each
worked.

First, I set up the DVD-Recorder
DVD-Recorder: 
* For input, cable tv connection
* For output:
> * optical audio directly into stereo receiver (for Dolby Digital/DTS surround
> sound)
> * cable tv relay to television
> * S-Video connection to television
When complete, powered up, put in a DVD to watch, and all was fine.

Second, I set up the VCR
For VCR:
*    connected audio/video out from VCR to audio/video in on DVD-Recorder
When complete, powered up, put DVD-Recorder on channel 3 (just like you
would a television when watching a VCR), at was able to watch a VHS. Please
note: I did not connect any input from the cable TV to the VCR. While my old
VCR had this connection so that I can record from television, this is no
longer necessary with a DVD-Recorder. The DVD-Recorder now has the direct
connection from cable TV.

Third: Now that I was satisfied each unit worked independently, I installed
the video splitter
All that is needed to connect the video splitter is to install it between
the VCR and DVD-Recorder, connected the video out (yellow) from the VCR to
the video in on the splitter. Then connect the video out from the splitter
to the video in on the DVD-Recorder. (Instructions provided with the unit I
purchased were clear)

Finally! I can now record my old VHS tapes on DVD. I just insert the
appropriate recordable DVD in the DVD-Recorder, press PLAY on the VCR and
RECORD on the DVD-Recorder and it works. Just remember, this is merely a
copy of an analog signal. Whatever way your VHS tape plays will appear
exactly the same when played from the copied DVD. (Sort of like recording
LPs to cassette---the clicks and pops make it to the tape). But you¹ll have
a backup copy on DVD that does not degrade like VHS tapes.

Most important, follow the connection and usage instructions that come from
the manufacturers of your products. This is the solution that worked for me,
your solution may require a different configuration to achieve similar
results.

Hope this helps

Phil

-- 
Philip E.  Courtney
Urban Bear Marketing, Inc.
phone: (212) 786 9399 or (570) 588 5242
http://www.urbanbear.com
http://www.urbanbearmarketing.com

³We generate online sales and Internet sales leads²



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