How best to save VHS tapes to DVDs using a Mac ?

Frank Caggiano wrote:

Are you sure neither player has a digital output? FireWire would be the most likely connector on that type of equipment.

Both VHS & Hi-8 are analog tape formats so it is extremely unlikely that VHS players or Hi-8 camcorders would have built-in analog to digital converters. That's why you need a product that includes a hardware A-D converter like the three mentioned by the OP.

Roxio's Easy VHS to DVD 3 product is for Windows -- there is no software compatible with OS X included. The Easy VHS to DVD for Mac product does include OS X compatible software but it gets poor reviews at Amazon, has apparently not been updated in some time, & the support page for the product has some "page not found" links suggesting Roxio isn't currently supporting the product very well.

The KWorld DVD Maker comes with a software driver for its A-D converter, which apparently uses a Empia 28xx family chipset. According to this that driver will not work with recent OS X versions, but for $30 one can purchase the VideoGlide driver to solve that problem. The KWorld product does not include OS X compatible editing software; for that you use iMovie (& presumably Toast or iDVD or something else) to burn the movies to DVDs. That makes the price about the same as the Roxio solution but complicates support because hardware & software are coming from different companies.

The Elgato Video Capture product should be compatible with most OS X versions (but I could not find anything specifically about at beyond the typical "10.5 & above" kind of comment which may or may not mean it supports 10.8 or 10.9) but it captures to H.264/MPEG formats only, so like the KWorld you still need something to convert that to MPEG 2 to burn the captures to a standard DVD.

So basically, there is no easy "one step" method to transfer VHS (or any of the other analog video formats) to DVD's. Depending on the version of OS X in use, it should be fairly easy to convert the analog source material to a digital format that can be used with iTunes, iMovie, etc., but editing it & particularly burning that to a DVD that will play in a regular DVD player will take more work.

I have over 30 VHS tapes, eight Hi-8 tapes, and a player for both formats. Would like to make DVDs of these movies.

I have done lots of that.

To get your VHS video into iMovie, use the Grassvalley ADVC300. With the ADVC300 Audio and Video go in, FireWire comes out. It also comes with a nice Macintosh application that works flawlessly with iMovie 06 and iDVD 09/11 (I have used it a few times with iMovie 11).

The program that comes with the ADVC300 has some nice filters that can improve video and audio of the source material. The ADVC300 will take Audio and Video from any source (VCR, Tivo, Satellite Receiver) and convert it to FireWire (iMovie will treat it like a camera).

I would use iMovie 06 with iDVD 09/11, why?

iMovie 09/11 uses 'single field processing' meaning every other horizontal line of the video is thrown out, which reduces the sharpness of the footage. iMovie 06 uses ALL of the image to form the video.

If your primary workflow is editing DV clips and making DVDs, iMovie '06 is better suited. Your movie will arrive at iDVD in DV format, which is an ideal match for making a DVD: same resolution, same pixels aspect ratio, and original quality. If you share your movie from iMovie 09/11, it gets re-rendered at 640x480 or less, and then iDVD upscales it back to 720x480. The end result is obviously not as good.

iMovie 06 and iDVD 11 is a "lossless" combination.

That's why I love my ADVC-300

I has - TimeBase/TimeCode correction - resulting in

• mends the picture (as good as possibly)

• KEEP AUDIO IN SYNC - even when Drop out frames and over several hours of Video.

I rather would try to get a second handed one (IN WORKING ORDER) - as I

• Hate to baby-sit the Capture/Import process

• Manually trying to mend Audio walking slowely out of Sync.

Yours Bengt W

I used Elgato capture to copy from VHS deck using the RCA jacks. Takes time because you run the tapes at real-speed. Then iMovie converted into files compatible with iDVD in my SnowLeopard (you may or may not have iDVD as it is not currently easily installed in ML or Mavericks). But Roxio Toast is often recommended as DVD-producer (not just burn to a DVD but also add special features and backgrounds).

I found that the VHS tape quality is critical to the input signal, and the multiple settings of FPS (frames per second) converted form and to ... and other settings in the applications can be dizzting. You may need to experiment.

I cannot comment on Easy VHS to DVD3 but if price is only $60 compared to $100 for just Elgato without the DVD special-formatting/encoding software, Elgato + RoxioToast may give you more options.

I will also ask that this be moved to the iMovie sub-forum to catch more eyes that have done this longer than I have.

I know you want to use a mac, but another way that may be easier would be to purchase a DVD player/recorder, hook the out of the VHS to the in of the DVD, play/record and make your DVD's.

I've done it both ways. Bringing the file into my computer and doing it with the DVD recorder. The DVD recorder version is faster since there's no rendering/transcoding time factored in.

This unit is pretty simple and works OK.

Will operate with anything with RCA outputs plus other stuff.

For simplicity and speed it's hard to beat.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RIbD2NDv_Sg

A Canopus unit will also get your analogue video into a Mac with little fuss and yu can then use iDVD which can create some nice menus, chapter markers and titles etc.

This method takes longer.

Also if the footage is unstable (as VHS can be) and A/D Converter with TBC (Time Base Correction) will work wonders. Canopus ADVC 300 is such a device.

Al

What 'software for the Mac'?

The ADVC300, and similar models (mine is the ADVC110), do not require any software, nor do they come with any. You simply connect to the analogue camera or VCR by RCA cables (or SCART), and to the Mac by firewire.

Hi

There are some special things with the ADVC-300

If You have lot's of VHS tapes - and do not like to baby-sit (restart now an then e.g. evert 10 minute)

It can play/convert a full four hours tape - even with frame drop outs

If there is drop outs (very likely) - the audio goes adrift = Sync problems - the ADVC-300 can handle that too.

Yours Bengt W

. I cannot answer for some anonymous reviewer on Amazon who may will have faulty equipment or simply not understand how to use it.

All I can say for sure is that I have never had any problems importing at least 50 Hi8 tapes from an analogue Sony video camera via firewire into iMovie using the ADVC110.

R C-R wrote:

Frank Caggiano wrote:

Are you sure neither player has a digital output? FireWire would be the most likely connector on that type of equipment.

Both VHS & Hi-8 are analog tape formats so it is extremely unlikely that VHS players or Hi-8 camcorders would have built-in analog to digital converters.

Analog, gee would have never realized that 😀

As for the possibility of a digital out, the OP only mentioned that he had a player for the tapes not the specific type. While digital out on the original equipment is unlikely, as you said, newer equipment could have it. I have a Sony deck plays both digital and analog tapes and has a FireWire out. It also has analog inputs and will convert an analog source to digital.

So checking to make sure there are no digital outputs on any of the OP's equipment seems like a simple easy to do step that, if it pans out, would save the OP a bunch of money and time,

hi , i dont know the technical terms to use, but i used my old vhs video recorder, out put via the yelow video and white and red audio , plugged into my oldish video camera , (i thik the term - they have a dac converter inside)

i then rn i move and chose import, started the video playing and it came up on the screen and captured perfectly ,

sorry i dont know any of the technical terms but in summary , if you have a viseo player and a camcorder you may already have the required equipment

anybody help out with more technical guidance please

brian

And what Klaus1 writes - is built on solid KNOWHOW as he worked with this for many Years.

What I refere to (just to hinder any misunderstandings) is to

• OLD VHS-tapes (with drop-outs)

• Recorded in LP-mode or even worse EP-mode

• With Captures of 2 up to 8 hours continual Imports (no Hi-8 tape is this long)

So depending on situation (material used) and how much time and stress one can take - decides what tools to use.

Most probably the ADVC-110 will do a superb job - except in some rare and rather provoking situations that might demand more.

Yours (and a great admirer of Klaus1 and Ziatron) - Bengt W

Are you sure neither player has a digital output? FireWire would be the most likely connector on that type of equipment.

I agree completely with Ziatron and use the same workflow with one small difference. Mine is the ADVC110.

🙂

I am suspicious of those due to experience. I used ont that my sister-in-law had puchased to make DVDs directly out of the VHS tapes, but you just have one long stream wil no automatic markers where one begins or ends. Also I tried one of these burned DVDs on my (less expensive, given) DVDs players at home and it was not recognized. Also is no recognized by any computer for the purposes of simple "bulk copy". Not sure why, but I suspect it uses a proprietary format that works sometimes ONLY in the device that copied it.

That is why I tried a method that turns VHS into true computer-format video files.