Standalone DVD recorder as converter

I'm tired of looping through my camera every time I want to output something to tape. I'd like to have a capture stream and a playout stream set up all of the time to minimize setup time. Is anyone out there using a standalone DVD recorder as a converter / recorder? My Sony RDR-GX315 is not recognized by Final Cut.
pb g4 Mac OS X (10.4.8)

Not exactly sure what the poster wants to do with the DVD recorder but here is my experience:
At home I have a fairly new BenQ DVD recorder. The only way I have successfully recorded to it from the puter was by first passing thru my Canopus ADVC 110. FW from the puter to the Canopus, S-VHS from the Canopus to the BenQ. For best results, I first export the sequence to a Quicktime movie then play that back from the Viewer. Works quite well. The one time I tried to pass thru the BenQ to one of my NTSC monitors I got kind of sketchy playback results; freezes and jitters
At the studio, I have an older Panasonic DVD Recorder. I go FW out of the G4s to the deck directly and can monitor and record with very little probs. Again, I find if I export to QT movie first and play that into the Panny, it works very well. Also works great for passing thru to the NTSC monitors.
The other day, due to some gear being in the field, I tried passing a VHS deck thru the Panasonic to the puter ... that did not work so well.

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Recording fios tv to DVD recorder with tivo/fios cablecard

ok this post is for my dad....and if ur thinking why the hack does he want a dvd recorder when they already have a tivo...don't ask my dad is kinda weird he still "tapes" shows on VHS tapes using vcr, and tapes radio shows on cassettes....then again he also still pyas his bills with a pen, a check and the us postal service.....
anyway, I didn't know much about the world of dvd recorders before a couple days ago, so I have a few questions before and if I actually decide to get him one.
Question 1: we currently have an HD TV with an HD tivo connected and a multistream verizon fios cablecard. My question is regarding copyright limitations....what prevents you from just recording any tv program onto dvd, as you still can onto a VHS? and what percentage of the channels/shows have this protection? like would he only be able to record from the original 12 or so broadcast channels? this is my main concern....he watched a lot of the sports channels like espn espn2 golf channel nbatv etc....
Question 2: also, when doing my research I thought of another benefit a dvd recorder may have. I have been putting all the family home videos which are on vhs onto dvd, but it's a bit of a process. I use an external usb capture device made by Hauppage hooked up to the VCR then the computer captures it realtime and generates an mpeg video file on my hard drive, THEN I have to spend the 1 or 2 hours it takes to convert to DVD format and burn with Nero so it can be played on a regular DVD player......so....question being....
can a standalone DVD recorder hook up to a VCR to transfer video direct to a DVD, or do you have to buy a DVD recorder with a built in VHS deck?
Question 3: oh and someone once told me that you can only play the recorded DVD's on the recorder, and not other regular DVD players...I couldn't believe this was actually true...but was he right?
TIA!

Answers:
Question 1: if the DVD recorder is connected to the TIVO there shouldn't be anything prohibiting him from recording. The signal sent out from the TIVO is an unencrypted feed that can be processed by anything (TV, VCR, DVD recorder, ETC). As long as theres no restrictions within the DVD recorder itself, you should be fine to record anything. This also means you have to record realtime (press play on TIVO and record on the DVD recorder and wait the amount of time for the event to end before pressing stop)
Question 2: You would need to talk to the tech support for your DVD recorder. Its going to depend on what types of video streams and formats it will accept as a source
Question 3nce again this is a question for the DVD recorder tech support, not Verizon. It depends on the file format that the recorder saevs the file as. Not only that, but different players also can read different formats. So you have to take a look at the recorder and the dvd play back device
Anthony_VZ
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What standalone DVD player will play meg-4 files/movies? I.e. I want to burn a few of my converted movies onto a DVD disc

Is there a standalone DVD player that will play mpeg-4 files? I convert movies etc so I can put them into iTunes to watch on my iPad, apple tv etc......but want to get a DVD player that will also play those files..... But can't seem to find one.
Does one exist?
I bought a player from Maplins which said on the front of the player mpeg-4 but doesn't even see the files.....it plays avi movies fine.
Can anybody help!
Thanks,

Why does it need to be a DVD Player? Would one of these not be better?
http://www.ebuyer.com/274064-cyclone-micro-2-mkv-player-cyclone-micro-2-player
Or one of its competitors. Plays almost any video format you can throw at it, straight from a USB stick or Memory Card (so no burning of disks just to watch a movie once).

I have a video in .avi format, what format do I need to convert to, to play on my DVD recorder, please can anyone help?

I have a video in .avi format, but what format do I need to convert to, to play on my DVD recorder, please can anyone help?

tylerfrombalantine's post had zero grammar in it, so it's not clear what he's saying. I bought a DVD recorder and the instruction manual lists all the disc formats it can play. Check your DVD recorder manual to see what works with it, then burn a DVD that matches. It should be fine to burn just a standard DVD, since of course any DVD player can play that.
Depending on the program you use, you may not have to convert anything manually. The program might convert your current video format to DVD on fly as it burns the disc.

Converting Files from DVD Recorder disc to FCP?

I am trying to get the video and audio file off an older dvd recorder disk that I made and I'm not able to do it. I tried MPEG Streamclip and the dvd won't transfer over for some reason. I also tried to copy and paste the folder on the dvdr to the desktop and it copies up to about 60% and then stalls. Does anyone know of another method to get the files off of the dvdr? I want to change the beginning on a FC timeline and then go to DVDSP and loop for encoded file for an installation where they need the dvd to be playing continuously.

Unfortunately, these suggestions won't solve the problem. The disc was finalized and I always do otherwise you can't screen on anything else, and when I tried to copy the video and audio files onto my hd it copies only up to a certain point and then I get an error message telling me I can't go further. I don't remember the exact message, but the dvd drive slows down and stops and I can't copy further.

VHS - DVD Recorder - PC - Premiere Pro CS6: Workflow Questions

Hello,
I hope I have this posted in the correct place. I am seeking advice and suggestions for VHS tape to digital transfers. Here is my current workflow:
VHS tape is played back on a Panasonic PV-D4744S VCR and is recorded directly (via composite A/V cable) to a Panasonic DMR-ES40V DVD recorder and onto a DVD-R, -RW, or +RW.
The disc is then copied into a Windows 7 folder with all of the contents of its VIDEO_TS folder intact; this folder is saved on several external hard drives for safe keeping.
I then open and import a copy of the .vob files into Premiere Pro CS6, where I minimally scale the video to eliminate the distortions (“VHS tearing”) on the sides and bottom of the VHS source video. The result is a very clear video which fits perfectly in a 4:3 project window on my 16:9 HD computer screen with minimal pillarboxing.
It is at the stage of export where I am stuck.
The final DVDs are going to be viewed on a 16:9 widescreen TV, as well as on an iMac computer. I’ve read all much about interlaced scanning (VHS, Laserdisc, TV) and progressive scanning (computer, LCD TVs), but I’m still not sure if I can make a DVD which will look proper on both TVs and computers. In addition to the scaling, I am using Premiere to add chapter makers and poster frames to the video, which I wish to then export to either Encore CS6 or NeroVision – I love Nero’s animated 2D and 3D menu selections. What export settings should I use in Premiere which are closest to the original, imported .vob files? I’ve exported some test videos in MPEG2-DVD format to folders, but they are huge compared to the original DVDs made on the standalone recorder, i.e., 12.8GB on Premiere export compared to the 4.7GB import.
Are there settings to make the Premiere export as close to the original DVD import of 4.7GB without sacrificing quality? Should I simply import the sequence into Encore as a timeline and let it perform the heavy lifting of automatically compressing the files to fit on a 4.7GB DVD? NeroVision seems to not accept the MPEG2-DVD files; it “sees” only the .m2v video files and not the .wav audio files.
In a nutshell:
I want to take a raw DVD-R (or -RW, +RW) recorded on a standalone and copy to hard drive, add chapter markers and minimal scaling in Premiere Pro CS6, then export and burn a DVD that will look good on both a 16:9 TV and computer screen.
I'm trying to get this project finished for a soon upcoming family get together. Any suggestions, tips, and general advice would be greatly appreciated.
Eric

Hi Eric,
The issue I would have with the workflow is that DVD is heavily compressed for delivery - not meant for re-compressing again. You're re-compressing a file that's already been compressed as small as can be. Most DVD recorders have different quality settings, like 1 hour, 2 hours, 4 hours. Use the 1 hour mode on the DVD recorder to get the "best" quality source if you must re-edit the stuff. The typical workflow would be to have some sort of capture device on the computer that records a larger, less compressed file to begin with.
As for export from Adobe using Media Encoder, choose "MPEG-2 DVD" of course, and select "NTSC DV" for the preset. Under the VIDEO tab, you'll need to adjust the encoding bitrate according to the video length. A good rule of thumb is to use 560/minutes=bitrate, and I will round down a touch for safety margin. This assumes Dolby Digital audio on the DVD (AME exports .wav audio and Encore converts to Dolby). Note that most folks don't go over 7 or 8, for best compatibility (the max limit is a bit higher, but quality of VHS source is not going to get any better anyway at higher rates, GIGO).
Regarding audio for the DVD, could be that Nero expects ONE file with audio and video. In AME, look under MULTIPLEXING and change from NONE to DVD, this will combine them. Then under AUDIO, choose DOLBY or maybe MPEG will work for you. Use a 192k bitrate for audio if going that route.
Note sure what you meant about the 16:9 screen - would recommend against putting the 4:3 source material into a 16:9 sequence in Premiere in you are, this will do more harm than good. Stay with 4:3 throughout, including the DVD creation - the DVD player and TV ought to know what to do with it. You're actually REDUCING the resolution if you use a 16:9 workflow. Note that if you encode a 16:9 DVD using 4:3 material in the 16:9 frame, and then play that DVD on a 4:3 TV, bad news - it gets letterboxed AND pillarboxed and you end up with a small video surround by black on all sides. Not cool.
I'd stick with interlaced - if you deinterlace the footage at any point, you are essentially throwing away HALF the resolution, which is weak to start with for SD. Most software players will have Preferences settings to let you tweak the playback/deinterlacing at that point, and TVs will handle it fine.
PS - if you use Encore, then just export the .m2v and .wav files using Media Encoder, import both to Encore, and Encore then does NOT recompress the video any further (as long as it fits), only the audio gets the Dolby conversion. Do NOT use Multiplexed files in Encore.
Hope this is all helpful
Jeff Pulera
Safe Harbor Computers

Please recommend an external VHS - DVD recorder solution

I've been reading the discussions on converting old VHS movies to DVD. I have around 300 of these, many of which I would like to convert & save.
The message I seem to be getting on this list is not to beat up the MAC on this project but rather put the wear and tear on an external recorder. The message is also saying that commercial VHS tapes are not high resolution so recording over to a DVD-R will capture what quality is there. IS THIS CORRECT?
And if so, would those of you who have 'been there' 'done that' please advise an external recorder solution or relate some wisdom on how to proceed (in other words: what to look for in an external machine so that perhaps I can feed a burned disk into the MAC if I need to clean it up??).
Thanks in advance to the list for any advice,
Sam
G5 Dual 2.3ghz 4gb RAM April 2005 version Mac OS X (10.4.10)

Let's start with this:
"what to look for in an external machine so that perhaps I can feed a burned disk into the MAC if I need to clean it up??)."
That's the wrong way to go about it. Once you record a DVD, your video is now in MPEG2 format, something that FC cannot edit natively. So you would have to take that DVD and rip it to DV/HD, edit it, then re-encode it to DVD ... guess what happens to quality.
If you think you need to edit material, use an analog converter like the Canopus or some kind of pass thru solution (VHS to DV cam to puter) to bring it into FC to work on it first. Then output that to DVD
If you just want to do staright transfers from VHS to DVD, a lot of standalone DVD recorders will allow you to use VHS/S-VHS cables to go directly from your VHS player to the recorder. You were right in assuming that, as a rule, the DVD your get is going to be the same quality as the VHS tape but you will have something that lasts longer. So, if your analog footage is decentl, a good recorder (I like Panasonic myself) will give you a good result.
If you really want to give your VHS material the best chance it has, maybe go thru one of the Canopus converters that has a built in TBC; this can help give your footage maximum impact
Bringing the footage into FC as described earlier will give you some options to correct saturation, adjust the blacks, maybe do a little color correction, maybe even clean up the audio but it is not a magic bullet. If you go that route (would be a long process if you had to do all of your footage that way) you could still go out to DVD converter from the puter.

Free DVD and Video Converter for 2nd gen. Ipod Touch?

Is there a free online converter for DVD and video formats not compatible with Itunes. I have a dvd recorder and have transfered some of the movies to my computer and would now like to put them on the Touch. Same issue with video I have collected on the Internet. I would like to find a free program that will transfer these files to my touch! Any help would be appreciated. Thanks.

VintApps 3.1.3 for iPhone, iPod touch, and iPad on the iTunes App Store
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Best DVD to iPod Converter

I just got a New iPod video and I was looking for some advice for the best DVD to iPod Converter. The two programs that I have been looking at are
1.) Super DVD to iPod Converter and
2.) PQ DVD to iPod Video Converter
Both of them run around $30 and boast that they are the fastest. Anyone have any input?

Well, I'll disagree. I've used quite a few and to me, PQ DVD is by far the best. It records all DVD's, not just ones that aren't encrypted. All of them are slow, pretty much 1:1 when doing a movie. Meaning, if your video is a hour long, it's going to take an hour to do it. I just start it before I go to bed. I don't really know why support is needed- it is an extremely simple program to use. Personally, the how long have they been around thing doesn't mean a hill of beans to me. It works, it's simple, and affordable.

Capturing to DVD Recorder, etc...

I was wondering if this is a viable option for capturing my videos to my project. I have so much problem with dropped frames when capturing via FCP and so I would like to capture the footages straight to my DVD recorder (at the highest rec quality, of course) then I rip that into my computer (then convert Video_TS folder into DV, whereby I then import it into my project in FCP). Has anyone done that before? It's a little longer process and sacrificing some blank DVDs but 100% no dropped frames, for sure, with that route. However, I was wondering if I would also sacrifice the quality of the clips when it finally arrives at FCP?
Note: My External HD is probably my problem for "dropped frames"

Yes, they're 7200s but I think they need to be initialized. I've had them for a year and really took the mileage out of 'em. One of them is giving me problems - doesn't mount sometimes when computer boots on. Unfortunately, that's the one I'm using most of the time (LaCie 1T). Would initializing it with Disk Utility good enough or am I looking at another repairing software to do this?

Is DVD Player higher quality than standalone DVD player?ne

I tried finding an answer to this question with various searches and could not, but I apologize if this is a repeat question.
I'm a teacher and I'm showing DVDs (not Blu-Rays) to my class. I have a fairly new LG HDTV in my classroom. I don' have the model number but it's an LCD, and I think it's a 52 inch. I'm trying to decide whether the picture quality of DVDs will be higher by playing them on my MacBook Pro or on a standalone DVD player. My MacBook is the 6,2 version (15 inch), so I can hook it up to the TV through the minidisplay port with an HDMI converter. I'm just using the DVDplayer software that came with the MacBook Pro.
The standalone DVD player has just standard audio/video connections--no HDMI port, (which I'm assuming doesn't really matter since I'm just using standard DVDs).
Is there really going to be much difference, either visually or auditorially, between these two setups? It's about as easy to use either one, and from a quick visual comparison I can't see much difference, but I want the best quality I can get. So any advice would be appreciated.
Thanks.

No difference or worse from the MBP compared to a Real DVD player.
A Real DVD player is designed to do one thing. That is to send a signal from a DVD disc to a TV screen. This can be done over coax cable, composite connections or HDMI cable. A computer does many things one of them is to play movie DVDs. But first it must go through all the electronics of the computer and then out through only one port and then be changed to a style of port the TV can accept.
Also your MBP will get HOT when you are using it for this purpose. Just load up a DVD and watch how hot it gets displaying in on the internal screen.
So use the Real DVD player.

Viewing from a VHS/DVD recorder on VGA monitor

I purchased a VHS/DVD recorder to archive old fanmily videos. It is a Toshiba that has RCA ports, USB ports and HDMI ports. The monitor I have is a wide screen Viewsonic, but is old enough that it only has a VGA cord connection to the coomputer. I need to know what specific accessory I need to watch and edit the home movies. Do I need a VGA/USB sdapter or a VGA RCA video converter, or either, or neither???

Hello coffeyville1,
While there are available connectors out there that should accomodate your ability to make your current monitor work for you, I've always been taught to make connections from one unit to another with as little "conversion" as possible. As it's been pointed out here, you should be able to find an inexpensive monitor that will serve the purpose you require without setting you back too much.
One thing to remember is to keep the "quality" of video as high as possible. If your Toshiba has an HDMI port for video, I'd look for a monitor that support the same connection.
I hope you find this helpful.
Derald|Social Media Specialist | Best Buy® Corporate
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DVD recorded on Home DVD Players

Hi...Am new to mac. I have recorded DVD's on my home DVD recorder and want to transfer and make a movie. My discs are not being read at all, i know the discs are fine as i use them for data. Is there any progs that allow you to transfer from home dvd recorders to mac.

make sure, the disks are "finalized" => read your recorders manual...
want to import DVDs?
* DVDxDV (free trial, 25$)
* Apple mpeg2 plugin (20$) + Streamclip (free)
* Cinematize >60$
* Mpeg2Works >25$ + Apple plug-in
* Toast6/7 allows converting to dv/import dvd, hit apple-k
* connect your Camera to a DVD-player and copy to tape/use as converter
http://danslagle.com/mac/iMovie/tips_tricks/6010.shtml
http://danslagle.com/mac/iMovie/tips_tricks/6018.shtml

FCE or DVD recorder?

This may not exactly be a FCE only question but I get great help from you all in here and I am learning the ropes on FCE and transferring vhs to DVD.
My question is this.
If I want to make an exact replica of a vhs tape, am I better off just using a vhs/DVD recorder combo and just copying the vhs directly to DVD? Or is there a benefit to using FCE?
I have begun the process of transferring old VHS tapes to DVD and am starting to wonder if the lengthy process of using FCE to capture the video then use TOAST to burn the DVD is worth it. I also wonder if the video quality would be better/same or worse if I just used the DVD recorder?
I don't know enough about capturing and transferring analogue video into DV to know whether or not it loses any image quality in the process, that is why I'm wondering about using the DVD recorder option vs. FCE.
Again, I realize this isn't FCE specific so I hope I don't offend anyone by placing this question in here but I appreciate any help/advice you have to offer.
Thanks,
Ehren

OK, the quality going from the tape player to DVD was as good as could be expected. I doubt anyone could tell the difference viewing the DVD vs. the original footage.
BUT -
If you are thinking that at some time you are going to want to edit this material, *than do not, repeat, do not convert it to DVD first. You are opening up a giant bag of hurt to do so.* Continue on with the method you are currently using to ingest the footage to FCE, and save those ingested files on an external drive to edit later. Make a copy of your external drive so in case something happens to the first external, you have a backup copy.
Going to DVD and then attempting to reconvert the video from the DVD is a time consuming and video degrading process - if you intend to edit, I repeat, do not go to DVD first. When you go to DVD, you are converting the video to an MPEG format, and MPEG is for delivery, not editing. The fundamental structure of the video gets changed, and when you try to back the other way - from DVD to a format you can edit in FCE, you will see the effect of the conversion.
Your other option is to do both methods - dub the tapes to a DVD recorder to make quick DVD copies, then at your leisure ingest your tapes into FCE.
I did not rip the footage to make the duplicate DVDs, I just let Toast make a disc image and then make copies from the disc image to other DVDs. The DVD was never converted, it was just copied.
Hope this helps -
MtD

Sony DVD recorder

I am not sure if I am ******** or if this is a valid problem. I do not seem to be able to import the video files from my Sony DVD recorder (ie handycam) even though I have finalised the disks and have tried to import them as suggest under apple help. Is there a trick to this?

Hello Kittycat,
your DVD camcorder records in MPEG format, which is not supported by iMovie. In order to edit your footage with iMovie you'll have to convert.
Find some more info in Dan Slagle's Unofficial iMovie FAQ: Using Mpeg (DVD) footage
http://danslagle.com/mac/iMovie/tips_tricks/6010.shtml
and also Matti Haveri's website: How can I edit MPEG or convert DVD or MPEG to DV
http://www.sjoki.uta.fi/%7Eshmhav/SVCDon_a_Macintosh.html#edit_convertMPEG
Tools:
MPEG StreamClip:
http://www.apple.com/downloads/macosx/video/mpegstreamclip.html
Apple MPEG2 PlayBack:
http://www.apple.com/quicktime/mpeg2/
DVDxDV
http://www.dvdxdv.com/
hope this helps
mish

Standalone DVD recorder as converter

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