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How To Transfer VHS to DVD

VHS video is inconvenient in today's digital world, and there are a lot of people who want to convert their older video recordings to DVD. You can certainly find a service that will make this conversion for you, but these transfers can get expensive if you have several VHS tapes to convert. This article will describe two ways to transfer that VHS tape of your graduation, wedding or birthday party to DVD so that you can have a more permanent digital copy to share with family and friends.

If you're looking for a way to transfer old VHS but the recordings are popular movies or TV shows - or even unpopular, obscure ones - don't buy costly hardware and spend lots of time with your VHS! You're far better off going to a website where you can download these movies and TV shows onto your computer - I recommend you check out TheMovieDownloads.com.

Recording with a DVD Recorder: A DVD recorder is a video device specifically designed for consumers to record to DVD, even if they don't own a computer.

Advantages: DVD recorders will normally record from analog sources like VHS players, older video cameras or even cable TV. They will also record from digital sources like camcorders or DVD players. As mentioned, with a DVD recorder you don't need a computer to make recordings of DVDs.

Disadvantages: What DVD recorders will not do is record copy protected VHS tapes or DVDs. They are often difficult to integrate into a home audio-video entertainment system due to the lack of inputs and outputs on cable boxes and VCRs. They also have very limited editing capability. And one of the biggest drawbacks of all is price. They are not cheap, with the least expensive models starting at about $200 at the time of this writing. They can also be complex and confusing. If you have trouble with a conventional VCR, then a DVD recorder can be a real challenge to hook up and use.

But if you decide to buy or borrow a DVD recorder, it is not too difficult to transfer a VHS recording to DVD - at least not once you get the darn equipment set-up.

  1. Connect the DVD recorder to the video source. This could be a VHS camcorder or a VHS player. Use the higher quality S-video cable if you can; otherwise, use standard RCA dubbing cables for both video and audio. Connect from the VHS player output to the DVD recorder input. Connecting to a digital source is different. Consult your recorder's manual. This is one of the easiest ways out there for converting VHS into DVD.
  2. Select your recording media. Most DVD recorders burn onto DVD-R, DVD-RW, DVD+R and DVD+RW. The -R and -RW formats are normally more compatible with other DVD players, especially older players, but you should record and test to be sure of compatibility. If you are going to record to a DVD-RW or +RW disk that has previously been recorded, you will have to erase it before you can transfer VHS to it. Your equipment manual will tell you exactly how to do that.
  3. Set your DVD recorder up to preview the input signal. Normally you will press record and pause.
  4. Position the VHS tape source to the beginning and check the recorder's input. This is a critical step. If you don't get it right, you will waste a blank DVD or will get an inferior recording.
  5. Begin the recording and start playing the VHS source. Don't cut off the beginning by playing before starting to record the DVD.
  6. Watch the recording or plan to stop the process at the end. You don't want to continue recording static at the end of the tape.
  7. If desired, add another tape or passage to the recording. One nice thing about converting VHS to DVD: you are not limited to just one tape source per disk. If you have a number of short recordings that would go well together, you can change tapes, and add these to your DVD recording.
  8. Finalize the process. Unlike a VHS recorder, a DVD recorder requires a couple extra steps before you are done. The DVD cannot be played on a standard player until it is finalized. First, decide if you want to add chapter stops to the recording. I highly recommend that you do. Follow your recorder's manual. Defining DVD chapters is normally as easy as finding the right spots and pressing a button on your remote to define a chapter. Multiple recordings will show up on the DVD player menu as different titles. You will be able to label these titles for playback. When you have finished managing the content of the DVD, you finalize the DVD, the recorder will create the chapter stops and menu on the disk, and you are done.


This post first appeared on Ihacko, please read the originial post: here

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How To Transfer VHS to DVD

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