You can get a USB video capture device for about $50. Plug your VCR into it, capture the content then burn to DVD. I converted a couple of dozen movies that way.
I run a dual deck vcr to a DVD recorder that has both the hard disc and a DVD tray to go direct to disc. It is an older unit and if it gets a bad disc, it crashes hard. All things to be bumped over go to the drive first.
I used all my VHS tapes for target practice. It gets really boring to shoot paper targets. I am now in the process of replacing my favorite DVD’s with the Blu-Ray versions. YMMV.
Anyone know anything about directly recording DirecTV to a DVD. I can record it on the DirecTV hard drive, but that gets filled up. I’d like a way to directly record the digital satellite signal to a DVD and bypass the D/A and another A/D to avoid all that additional distortion.
I got a Sony that converts VHS to DVD, through trial and error due to not reading directions carfully, I got it to work fine. If you want it to convert VHS to DVD that you can use on any DVD player you must use DVD+RW discs. The model number is RDR-VX535.
It does not have a tuner so you can not record shows from the TV but can play either venue from the player.
There are USB VHS players which will play and record tapes to your hard drive. Many computers come with a DVD recorder, and software that will allow you to record the video created by the USB VHS player onto the DVD. The only advantage I found to the USB VHS players is that it's a one touch record, you can walk away, and it will finish the recording for you. The problem with this method is that these VHS players are typically extremely cheap, and if they fail, the entire investment is lost.
External capture devices hooked up to a reasonable quality VHS player, record onto your computer's hard drive, and then later edit that file to remove what isn't needed for the recording. This is the most flexible method, gives you multiple types of formats to record into (DIVX being my most common), and I personally record directly to DIVX, then write the resulting compressed files onto a data DVD, which my DVD player has no problem playing (typically 8-12 hours of recordings on a single dvd with little visual loss.) If the VHS player you're using fails, you can buy another and not lose your entire investment.
Option 3 is to use a VHS player and a DVD recorder/player. I personally used this method quite a lot with a JVC DVR-DVD Recorder. And honestly, I LOVE this setup the most. I can record the VHS onto the DVR’s hard drive, use the built in editing software to edit the video, and then dump it onto DVDs in a few formats (mostly quality formats, 6, 4 or 2 hours per dvd.) No computer is required, and while it can take some time to get anything accomplished, the resulting discs are pretty polished, all things considered.
Problem is, few of these DVR-DVD writers are on the market anymore, mostly because they were only designed with analog tuners, and they were considered a lost cause before digital tuners became common. (Why compete against TIVO?) They are worth finding, however, IF you are willing to invest the time in the learning curve, and the time playing with the usually finicky remote.
Option 4: I hate this method, it has almost always resulted in frustration, lost time, and a waste of money. That of directly hooking up a VHS player to a DVD recorder. I have done this, most of the time the resulting recording looks worse than a VHS, and a good portion of the time, the DVD will end before the VHS does.
I've seen at some specialty shops direct VHS to DVD transfer machines, but ask to see the results, to test it even. MOST of these machines are designed for transferring security tapes to DVD - they are one push and walk away. And they are awful in results, least from the machines I've experimented with. And if the VHS player dies, you're out of business, once again.
If you've got a TIVO, you can also record VHS onto the TIVO, and use the various TIVO tools to transfer the files off the unit and onto a computer, where you can then burn them to DVD. There's whole communities that can describe this in detail, if you're interested.
Low-techie that I am, this did the trick....push VHS Play and DVD Record and walk away.
These work and can be purchased for anywhere from $20.00 up.
bfl
QUESTION: Any recommendation on how to transfer 8mm film to DVD?
Ping.
You just hook up a coaxial cable from the VHS player to the tuner card.
This WinTV PVR-150 Hauppauge PCI TV Tuner Card would work great.
I’ve used the Panasonic DMR EZ485V (VHS to DVD deck) for several years and have been quite satisfied. IIRC, it cost a little over $300. I bought it at Sam’s Club.
BUMP for later. I had a DVD-R/DVR system by Panasonic that I liked until it crashed. It had a good internal harddrive storage and excellent GUI interface. Unfortunately from what I understand, they abandoned the hardware and offer no repair service now.
Thank you Freepers! So much to think about. I’m going to take my time and study all your answers before deciding. I knew I could count on you to offer a variety of good options.