Certainly. Connect the VCR output to a RTV input. Press input on the RTV remote until you reach the correct input. Then, press the record button!
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Record from VCR to RTV 5504
Is it possible to play a VHS tape thru my VCR and have my ReplayTV 5504 record it without dropouts so I can then transfer it to my PC with DVArchive and burn it to DVD to preserve home made videos?
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I have tried this with my 4040 and it records for a minute, then says no video signal (blue screen) then it pops back on again and records as a seperate recording for a short time and then gets interrupted again. DOes the 5504 do this to?
VCRs in general do not have stable video output, especially when it comes to feeding that VCR output into a digital recording device.
Do a search on "time base corrector" or TBC. That's what you need between the VCR and digital recorder.
If I'm not mistaken, most, if not all digital recorders will have difficulty recording the output from a VCR without a time base corrector.
Do a search on "time base corrector" or TBC. That's what you need between the VCR and digital recorder.
If I'm not mistaken, most, if not all digital recorders will have difficulty recording the output from a VCR without a time base corrector.
Would someone please point me in the right direction as to which TBC at this point in time is the cheapest and works 100% with the replaytv 4040 or 5504?
I have done this a few times already. Here are my thoughts and experiences on the subject...
First, your Showstopper/ReplayTV hates Macrovision - the copy-protection they put on VHS tapes. Going directly to the RTV, you will most likely have problems like described previously with the record a bit, freak out, record a bit more.
A true TBC will essentially strip Macrovision from the signal and will stabilize an unprotected signal but they can be expensive (starting at ~$300 from what I saw). I use what is called a "digital video stabilizer." It is a little black box (like this one ) that goes into the video stream to stabilize the signal. They can be had for ~$30 (or built yourself) and usually do the trick.
That having been said, I originally had problems with some home videos I was trying to transfer even using the DVS. I ended up changing the VCR (we have 5) that was hooked to the RTV and it works like a charm.
As I understand it, it's not possible to record DVD output. It might be with a true TBC but, again, there's the expense thing. If you want to make backup copies of your DVDs, you should check out DVD Decrypter and DVD Shrink (both free).
First, your Showstopper/ReplayTV hates Macrovision - the copy-protection they put on VHS tapes. Going directly to the RTV, you will most likely have problems like described previously with the record a bit, freak out, record a bit more.
A true TBC will essentially strip Macrovision from the signal and will stabilize an unprotected signal but they can be expensive (starting at ~$300 from what I saw). I use what is called a "digital video stabilizer." It is a little black box (like this one ) that goes into the video stream to stabilize the signal. They can be had for ~$30 (or built yourself) and usually do the trick.
That having been said, I originally had problems with some home videos I was trying to transfer even using the DVS. I ended up changing the VCR (we have 5) that was hooked to the RTV and it works like a charm.
As I understand it, it's not possible to record DVD output. It might be with a true TBC but, again, there's the expense thing. If you want to make backup copies of your DVDs, you should check out DVD Decrypter and DVD Shrink (both free).
You Said:
"A true TBC will essentially strip Macrovision from the signal and will stabilize an unprotected signal but they can be expensive (starting at ~$300 from what I saw). I use what is called a "digital video stabilizer." It is a little black box (like this one) that goes into the video stream to stabilize the signal. They can be had for ~$30 (or built yourself) and usually do the trick."
My Reply:
This little black box, "VS-8000 Digital Video Stabilizer"... it actually works? I have a Phillips VCR about 3 years old and would like to record homemade vhs family movies that are 10-20 years old ontot he replay. From that point on to transfer to DVD I've got covered. Has the VS-8000 ever dropped video out when recording to the ReplayTV? How is the quality of the VS-8000? If this thing really works, I'm on it and buying it! Please give me a little more detail to make me determine my decicsion.
PS: Does it use video cable or S-Video?
Thank You!!!!
"A true TBC will essentially strip Macrovision from the signal and will stabilize an unprotected signal but they can be expensive (starting at ~$300 from what I saw). I use what is called a "digital video stabilizer." It is a little black box (like this one) that goes into the video stream to stabilize the signal. They can be had for ~$30 (or built yourself) and usually do the trick."
My Reply:
This little black box, "VS-8000 Digital Video Stabilizer"... it actually works? I have a Phillips VCR about 3 years old and would like to record homemade vhs family movies that are 10-20 years old ontot he replay. From that point on to transfer to DVD I've got covered. Has the VS-8000 ever dropped video out when recording to the ReplayTV? How is the quality of the VS-8000? If this thing really works, I'm on it and buying it! Please give me a little more detail to make me determine my decicsion.
PS: Does it use video cable or S-Video?
Thank You!!!!
I linked to that particular box as an example only. If you google "digital video stabilizer" you will find several - and even plans on how to build one yourself - but they're all basically the same.
Mind you, the little black box is not a TBC nor is it the video placebo they claim it to be. It's just a cheaper option to try first. As always, your recording will never be better than your source.
What this black box will do is help to keep the video level constant. This improves your transfer and causes you to lose less signal quality than if you weren't using it. In this case, it should reduce the chance that a low signal level will cause the RTV to think it has no input.
Mind you, the little black box is not a TBC nor is it the video placebo they claim it to be. It's just a cheaper option to try first. As always, your recording will never be better than your source.
What this black box will do is help to keep the video level constant. This improves your transfer and causes you to lose less signal quality than if you weren't using it. In this case, it should reduce the chance that a low signal level will cause the RTV to think it has no input.
Quote:
You understand incorrectly. Any and all ReplayTVs* will record any macrovision protected content and place the macrovision back on the playback from the ReplayTV. (So recorded content with macrovison can be viewed on any TV, but cannot be recorded downstream to another device).
Macrovision is not the issue with recording from a VCR to a ReplayTV. The quality of the video sync coming from the VCR is the problem, and the TBC corrects that by replacing the VCR video sync signal with its own generated sync signal.
Edit for correction/clarification: *However, the very first line of ReplayTVs, the 20XX series, ignored macrovision entirely. The ReplayTV 20XX series was extremely expensive for the small amount of recording time they provided. The ReplayTV 20XX series should not be confused with the Panasonic ShowStopper line. ShowStoppers are the hardware equivalent of the ReplayTV 30XX series.)
| Originally posted by unclebubby As I understand it, it's not possible to record DVD output. |
Macrovision is not the issue with recording from a VCR to a ReplayTV. The quality of the video sync coming from the VCR is the problem, and the TBC corrects that by replacing the VCR video sync signal with its own generated sync signal.
Edit for correction/clarification: *However, the very first line of ReplayTVs, the 20XX series, ignored macrovision entirely. The ReplayTV 20XX series was extremely expensive for the small amount of recording time they provided. The ReplayTV 20XX series should not be confused with the Panasonic ShowStopper line. ShowStoppers are the hardware equivalent of the ReplayTV 30XX series.)
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Your comments reflect that it should work, however there is no guarantee. Has anyone actually used this before? I want a cheap way out as I cannot afford to spend hundreds of dollars on a TBC. The $39 option seems perfect, if it works. I am just wondering if anyone here has actually used it for recording from a vcr to replaytv with success. If so, then that would be great. If not, then I guess I will have to wait until I can save a few hundred dollars to buy this item to transfer my family's home videos.
| Originally posted by unclebubby What this black box will do is help to keep the video level constant. This improves your transfer and causes you to lose less signal quality than if you weren't using it. In this case, it should reduce the chance that a low signal level will cause the RTV to think it has no input. |
I have a sony and an RCA vcr, it works great with the RCA, but not so good on the Sony. The picture has to be almost perfect or it won't work very well. So buy a different VCR, if it doesn't work very well you can return it most places.
Gary, you're correct on all counts, except for one arcane little detail:
Quote:
Is not completely accurate. The original RTV-2000 series (RTV-2001, RTV-2002, RTV-2003 and RTV-2004) do not behave in this fashion. The RTV-2k's actually disregard/discard the macrovision signal/encoding at the input stage. The result of this is that while the rest of the signal gets recorded to disk, the macrovison component of the signal simply no longer exists since the RTV-2k is ****canning the macrovison PRIOR to the encoder, so it doesn't get recorded, therefore, on playback, the RTV-2k delivers to you a nice, spiffy, macrovision free signal on any/all outputs. Obviously, this also holds true for an MPEG extracted directly from the HDD (via extract_RTV, et. al.).
An important note for any users/readers that are unfamiliar with the original RTV-2k's: They AIN'T the Panasonic PVHS-2000 Showstoppers AFAIK, all the Showstoppers were built on the RTV-3k chassis - which did not inherit the 2k's bag of magic tricks.
Quote:
| Originally posted by l8er ... Any and all ReplayTVs will record any macrovision protected content and place the macrovision back on the playback from the ReplayTV. (So recorded content with macrovison can be viewed on any TV, but cannot be recorded downstream to another device). |
An important note for any users/readers that are unfamiliar with the original RTV-2k's: They AIN'T the Panasonic PVHS-2000 Showstoppers AFAIK, all the Showstoppers were built on the RTV-3k chassis - which did not inherit the 2k's bag of magic tricks.
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OK, you got me, although those weren't exactly mainstream models. And I remember reading the sound quality left something to be desired.
Here's early ReplayTV pricing from late 1998/early 1999 :
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| Originally posted by rm -rf *.* The original RTV-2000 series (RTV-2001, RTV-2002, RTV-2003 and RTV-2004) |
Here's early ReplayTV pricing from late 1998/early 1999 :
Quote:
| ReplayTV 2001 @ $995 (approx. 6 hours of storage) ReplayTV 2002 @ $1295(approx. 10 hours of storage) ReplayTV 2003 @ $1495(approx. 13 hours of storage) ReplayTV 2004 @ $1995 (approx. 26 hours of storage) |
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