(NA)VCR to CD

What computer do you have?
 
The easiest way is to get a "dazzle" converter.
Your VCR plugs into it and then it plugs into your computer.
You can get the audio, video or both. Initially it does take quite a bit of memory to do the conversion, but once you are done and burn it, just delete the "project" that dazzle creates.
I have one and they are nice, especially for converting old VHS home movies etc.. to DVD.

Mark
 
Before you buy anything, check to see what kind of video card(s) does your computer has. A lot of machines marketed as "multimedia" PCs already have everything you need.

Hardware-wise, you need a capture device with the appropriate inputs (that is, inputs that match your VCR's outputs). At a minimum, even the cheapest VCR should have an analog RF output and NTSC composite A/V outputs. Others may also have RGB, S-Video, and possibly Firewire, VGA and/or HDMI on high-end machines. Many video cards have one or more of these interfaces built-in and can be used to capture the video, and sometimes the audio. (If it doesn't capture the audio, you would simply plug the audio into the AUX or LINE-IN input on the sound card).

If your computer has a TV tuner that recognizes analog signals, you can use that, as well. Just run a piece of coax from the VCR's RF output to the tuner card's RF input, and tune the card to the VCR's output channel (generally 3 or 4).

You then need capture software to convert the analog input to a digital file, save it, convert it to DVD format, and burn the DVD. Pretty much any video editing software can do this.

Of course, if all this sound like Greek to you, then just buy one of the dedicated adapters mentioned in previous posts, and save yourself the headaches.

Some caveats: No matter how you do this, it's going to take a lot of time, consume a lot of resources (memory and CPU), and require a lot of hard drive space. Depending on the options you choose, as much as 6-8 gig or more of hard drive space might be required to convert an analog VHS tape. (I've had some digital projects consume as much as 20 gig prior to conversion.) Yes, this exceeds the storage capacity of a DVD. But uncompressed video files are huge. Transcoding and compression are applied during the DVD conversion process.

Once you burn the DVD you can delete the project and get the hard drive space back, as someone else mentioned; but make sure you have it to begin with or else your projects will fail.

Finally, be aware that the finished DVD's will only be VHS quality.

-Rich
 
RF tuner in his computer?

Dave was probably 150 miles from the nearest TV signal - before the analog shutdown!

He only got electricity, like, 3 years ago.

His bathroom has a shovel, marked "flush." :D
 
its a one-time thing so I prob wont buy hardware.
No way to connect my toshiba to the vcr or TV I s'pose.
/dreaming
 
SCCutler said:
RF tuner in his computer?

Dave was probably 150 miles from the nearest TV signal - before the analog shutdown!

He only got electricity, like, 3 years ago.

His bathroom has a shovel, marked "flush." :D
Click to expand...

Yeah, but the PC manufacturer didn't know that when they built the thing. A lot of HP and Compaq models in particular that were built within the past few years were marketed as "Multimedia PCs" and came pre-equipped with tuners. In my experience, almost no one actually uses the capability, but it's there nonetheless.

Just last week, in fact, I installed a medium-end Gateway that included a TV card with analog and digital RF capabilities, as well as every other conceivable A/V input. It even included a universal remote. The client didn't know -- nor care -- about any of that functionality when she bought the machine. But she has it.

I'm one of the relative few who do use this functionality. I haven't owned a television in many years because I very rarely watch it. But I always install TV tuners in my own home-built computers so I can watch the occasional sporting event or other must-see program. Most recently, I'm using a Hauppauge USB dongle thingy that cost me fifty bucks and (amazingly) works as well as any TV or TV tuner card I've ever used.

So hey, you never know. It pays to at least check whether the machine already has the hardware before going out and buying it.

-Rich
 
Let'sgoflying! said:
its a one-time thing so I prob wont buy hardware.
No way to connect my toshiba to the vcr or TV I s'pose.
/dreaming
Click to expand...

You can mail me the tape if you want and I'll do the conversion. You also can check with local photo stores. Most of them will do it for a few bucks.

-Rich
 
RJM62 said:
You can mail me the tape if you want and I'll do the conversion. You also can check with local photo stores. Most of them will do it for a few bucks.

-Rich
Click to expand...

"Local photo store." Ha!

Dave's county is bigger than Delaware and has fewer residents than your local elementary school has yard-apes.
 
A kind offer but my b.i.l. is nearby and I shall impose upon him - thanks!
 
Let'sgoflying! said:
How do I harvest the audio from a VCR tape, put it on a CD?
Click to expand...

Audio only is easy. There's probably an RCA connector on the back of the VCR. You need a cable with an RCA connector on one and and a 1/8" jack on the other end. That goes into the line-in on your sound card.

You'll need some software to record from the line-in and something else to burn to an audio CD.

Windows Media Encoder (free) may do it. I'm just not sure.
 
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