Back to Old School - VCR, Hard Disc (DVD recorder) and NTSC

[El Hefe]

Hi all,

In the attempt of saving some of my old VHS tapes (NTSC format from USA), I managed to get a working Sony VCR from a friend. My plan was to transfer the VHS tapes onto the 250 GB hard disc in my Philips DVD recorder. I connected the VCR using the RCA composite cable into the Philips DVD recorder (similar method when I record movies from my Handycam or cable)

However, the recording (or transferring) did not come out right. The movies recorded onto the hard disc stutters and jitters, both visual and audio upon playback.

The VHS played normally on the VCR and on TV while recording it onto the hard disc.

Is it due to the NTSC format or its just impossible to transfer a VHS content onto a hard disc?

 

[Clare Newsome]

Assuming you're talking about copying pre-recorded VHS tapes (which is still - at this point in time - illegal, by the way), it could be the Macrovision copyright protection system kicking in to prevent you making a 'clean' copy.

 

[El Hefe]

Aaaaaahhhh that might be it Clare. Yes it is a pre recorded VHS, movies basically. But of course the intention is to preserve the movies before the tape itself is damaged from fungus attack or the VCR dies. And for personal use.

Never knew there was a way to protect copyrights onto VHS tapes. How do they embed that onto the tape?

Thanks for explanation though.

 

[Clare Newsome]

More info on Macrovision here

 

[El Hefe]

Thanks. Yup i think macrovision it is. Just rerun the copied version from the hard disc. After 5 minutes, the picture and audio not only stutter, it went completely blank. As if no signals were being fed into the hard disc recorder.

 

[chudleighpaul]

There used to be Macrovision killers, but with the demise of VHS I doubt if you would find one now.

 

[BenLaw]

I've done similar, albeit with a scart connection, to my panasonic dvr. When a commercial VHS was copy protected the panasonic displayed a message to that effect. Those vhs are now binned. It sounds to me more like an NTSC problem - you describe a similar effect to when I try to play NTSC DVDs in pal mode. I would try playing with your menu systems to go into NTSC mode before giving up.

 

[El Hefe]

Thanks BenLaw,

Yes I will try with the NTSC settings on the VCR and also maybe fiddle with the DVR settings as well.