UPDATE!! The converter I used has a new Firmware update and it fixes the corruption issues I had so It's Awesome! I did also try two other models from Digitnow and they both gave me tons of reliability and Audio Sync issues so I would say this is the one to get. - geni.us/Qgv4U
Appreciate this comment update here, thank you. I actually made a video short on housing regeneration using a mini DV camcorder two years ago. Found the process super insightful. th-cam.com/video/4Y8hI-aQKkc/w-d-xo.html
Ayee, by chance have you have it to someone? I have some when I was a child during Christmas and birthdays and this has been something Iv always wanted to do but it can get expensive or I just don’t wanna mess them up but this looks like the best way!
You're talking about "digitizing" those tapes, but miniDV format is actually already digital. Yeah, it's stored on a tape, but not in the same way, like VHS for example (which is analogue format indeed). To transfer your video from miniDV to hard drive your should connect your camera through FireWire (IEEE 1394) interface and use any video editing software to capture video. In this way transfer will be going through byte by byte data copy and it's produce video the same quality as source. An you used analogue to digital conversion which is lossy.
Yup doing it now. Need to adapters to get this to work nowadays....and best If you have a Thunderbolt equipped Mac. FireWire to Thunderbolt 2 cable, Tbolt 2 to 3, FireWire 400 to 800. Fun times!
Would love to use this. My dad dies when I was 2 years old, I'm 35 now and recently found a bag of tapes that belonged to him. Would be amazing to see what he was like besides just the stories. I will pass along when I am done as well! Thank you!
It’s so special to find footage like this, especially since it’s often long forgotten. I recently digitised my parents’ home video tapes, from 1990 all the way up until 2009. So roughly 15 hours or so of VHS-C tapes. It was so interesting to see my parents’ life before I was born, their excitement of purchasing our home, then seeing how happy my grandparents were when I came along in 2001. It’s a special feeling seeing history like that. So many things have changed, but often, a lot has stayed the same.
Yes, the same here. The hospital where I was born was taken down about 2 years after my birth and it's so weird to see how old fashioned it looked in 1987 while it probably wasn't anything out of the ordinary compared to other hospitals. My dad fortunately already edited all the footage he shot (he was working at a company with a professional AV-department) so we only have about 7 hours or so with the best bits. it's different though how it changes: a friend of mine gave birth to a son somewhat years ago and at some point I went to visit her place and had my modern videocamera with me. It's so weird (and almost unpleasant) to see such pristine, razorsharp images compared to the old images I'm used to, that have some noise in them (rolling bars and such) and slightly bad sound at times.
I recently found a box load of old camcorder tapes. In defence of old technology, it’s great how long the analogue tapes last for. They don’t seem to deteriorate as much as you think. It’s important to digitise but that doesn’t guarantee it’s longevity if you don’t back up your files periodically. So always keep the tapes! I’ve also noticed how much I filmed and how many videos I made back in the day compared to nowadays even tho it’s so easy to make video these days.
The cheaper software-based converters that plug into your PC are so much better and you wont experience the corruption problems, you can also pick what format you want to record it in!
are you saying that one of the cable converters to usb works better? hmmm, what about the wait time? can you stop the record/download or do you have to let it play out the full time? sometimes some tapes get stuck hence you have to monitor them I am assuming because of age but if you can stop the recording from the unit its going to manually, you don't have to go back to the top of the tape. just curious
Gene... I am literally in the process of converting over 100 tapes right now from my family. Your timeline is so so good on this. I was sticking one of these in my cart to do more homework on and then maybe buy. I have an old pinnacle transfer unit but it is showing its age. The process is so time-consuming but is complicated for me because there is no monitor on what i am using so i have had to build out a transfer station with a monitor, etc... to do what i'm doing. To have a second unit without needing a monitor?! yes please. I am transferring VHS, Hi-8, and mini-DV tapes. As well as some audio but I am doing that through an interface into ableton. Regardless, enjoy the process and the memories, we are walking a similar path in that regard right now.
@@PotatoJet My grandfather recently passed away and he left behind a ton of tapes from his travels, art galleries (he was an artist), family gatherings, etc and it would be amazing to digitize all that
I simply must throw a comment into the ocean of other comments, since this is a topic near and dear to me over the past few years. Some notes on convenience and quality... This doohickey looks amazing for CONVENIENCE. It's definitely better to get an archiving project done and have fun with it rather than never do it. Don't let perfect be the enemy of good, right? BUT... along with the audio sync and corruption issues Gene mentions, there are a few other things to note if you also want to maximize quality. And I don't just mean tweak the last .01% of the picture, I mean dramatically improve things. Old analog tapes are all NTSC 480i (480 scan lines that contain picture information, although technically it's 486 but really only for pro stuff, but nevermind that nonsense, LOL!). Interlaced video has one FIELD every 60th of a second, but note that each field is a separate image taken at a separate moment in time! So, if a device or a process converts it to 30fps, you are either smushing two images together and creating blurry motion, or you're throwing away every other field and getting a chunky image with have the resolution. Analog NTSC video should, whenever possible, be captured as interlaced, and each field converted to a frame for a 60fps video. It looks WAY better. I get convenience, and the simpler devices don't do this, but I mention it because it's worth doing. This video is 24fps, so I don't know if Gene captured at 60i, 60p, or 30p. Blackmagic Design makes a good doohickey I know can do interlaced, and my old Matrox MXO2 mini can as well. Dropping a NTSC 480i video into a 60fps timeline in Premiere works well. Premiere doubles each line in each field and you get the proper look. Since TH-cam doesn't do 60fps at 480p, I do everything at 1080p60 and leave black bars on the side (unless I have a letterboxed image or anamorphic). Also, s-video is worth using if available. The detail, and especially color, are noticeably better. Hi8 and Super-VHS will obviously benefit the most, but standard VHS and 8mm can look a bit better via s-video as well. Playing back on the very camcorder that recorded something is generally a safe bet, but a working S-VHS VCR or Hi8 camcorder is a step up. DV is digital and you get what you get via the Firewire cable, where you're actually copying digital data instead of sampling an analog picture. Don't use a capture doohickey like this with DV. Get a Firewire card or find an old PC with a Firewire connection. Ideally you'd capture to an avi file with 4:2:2 color subsampling, but now we're getting closer to that .01% stuff. :-) There, I threw some ideas into the ether. I'd share a link or two to some home videos I'm proud of, but the algorithm might do weird things.
Good comment. So are you positive that this device deinterlaces, or is it just a question? If it deinterlaces by default, it's no good in my book. Also does anyone know if it does only NTSC, or can it do PAL/SECAM as well? In my experience products from far eastern countries tend to do both, but this is US product so it might be NTSC only which means it is no good for us in Europe.
I can confirm video8 and hi8 both show a similar improvement using s-video compared to composite. Even on a tape that was recorded on a video8 camera lacking s-video out.
If you can on a svhs (compact or not) and/or Hi 8 with Svideo output use something like a retrotink to bob de-interlace the video into a 480p signal over HDMI and then use a capture of some way to save the video. Works great for retro gaming s video or if your old console can do it RGB. Composite isnt too bad but doesnt look as good
@@Rotary_Lover_89 As long as your device that converts to HDMI is able to properly convert each interlaced field to a full frame and create a 60fps signal, you'll probably get decent results. Do note, however, that such devices crop the image on all sides to simulate the overscanning done on an old CRT television, which reduces detail somewhat. You'll also be relying on that device to get the color and luminance levels correct (a lot of those HDMI devices blow out bright areas to pure white). So do compare your digitized results to how it looks going straight into a good TV.
@@theleeoverstreet oh the retro game community is stickers for that. Mike chi and his retro tink products are top notch. If you wanna spend more go open source scan converter or even more with the XRGB mini Frame meister. Just look up Retro RGB or My Life In Gaming covering those devices
I found a old Multinorm VHS Recorder, a old Sony "Portable" CRT Monitor and a bunch of old tapes that were lying around my house from my dad's old job. From my birth to different trips that happened when I was a kid, it has been quite the experience to see all of those videos again. I've been digitizing non-stop with this nice setup for two weeks and now this video shows up! Some close friends have also enjoyed the idea to explore more about old analog and digital tapes, which has been really fun to rediscover. Thanks for the video! It has been quite emotional to hear the same things I felt when I saw my old tapes from you!
I did this same exact thing during the quarantine for my old mini DV tapes. My panasonic camcorder actually came with a firewire out, so it connected into my mac with a dongle. The best part of doing it that way is the import directly into Final Cut, the software would automatically control the camera and the tape playback so you don't have to sit by it and hit the stop record button.
All MiniDV and Digital8 camcorders have a firewire out. And everyone should use it to transfer the videos because MiniDV and Digital8 are digital so you get a exact copy of the data from the tape. Using something like a Composite capture device will degrade the quality a lot. Composite capture devices are fine for Video8 and VHS etc. but for Hi8 I'd recommend using a S-Video capture device because Hi8 has higher quality than what Composite can do.
I used to have a sony camcorder. It stored data into a CD and I shot my first short film in that camera. Didn't know how to edit, so we shot it by pausing the footage and shooting the next scene. So NO RETAKES. Good times lol.
Weirdly enough I'm visiting my grandparents and happened to find what is essentially the entire history of my family on tape. I've been looking at this on Amazon for a few days and it's just a little expensive at the moment, but I know I need to do something with all these tapes. I never knew some of these moments existed like this. I watched my dad's first birthday party last night and I can't say how badly I needed to see some of these memories. I'd love to get myself into the chain of digital conversion with you guys, whoever you choose. I want to make something special for my family while they're still here because filmmaking has been the only way I've ever been able to express myself to them. I feel like it would really bring my journey into this career, with all its ups and downs, full circle back to where it all began. Perfect timing to see a video like this, so thank you for that at the very least.
You've brought a lot of memories back to me. I have a few suggestions : 1st I've noticed bad sound , use a better quality cable, cheap cable may give a lot of artifacts (weird colors on video and sound clicks and glitches). I had this experience with VHS VCR and camcorder. 2nd I'll try to connect the camcorder to my TV via scart adapter or RCA inputs and try to record to an USB hard-drive connected to TV, and hit record from TV's remote. This should give the best quality of recording, of course using quality cables. You can use any analog around $30, like the ones used in Hi-Fi to connect CD player to amp. In this scenario I'll check if the recorded files can be played on PC, other TV sets or they work only with TV that was used for recording, it different for each brand. Back in the day, I've always copied my 8mm ( Hi8) tapes to VHS, because there was no way to share my recorded video to others, there were few camcorders on our market and different standards, so that your friend may not had an 8mm camera. VHS on the other hand was very common. Also this was a kind of back-up, if you had accidentally erased the 8mm tape, which usually was recorded many times because these were harder to find in the stores and more expensive. Around 2002, I digitized many tapes using my desktop computer and a PCI internal tuner (which actually was pretty bad), DivX encoding was top back then. My dream camera in the 90's, was a VHS Panasonic, pretty massive, huge lens compared to Hi8, a lot of buttons, a real microphone, a larger monitor ( which was actually a small CRT inside the viewfinder), no flip screen, shooting from the shoulder like a real reporter :) . That was great, better image quality and you didn't have to copy anything, just put the cassette in the player and watch. It looked like this br.pinterest.com/pin/821766263232967179/ Great videos, your passion for everything that you do, in front of the camera, when editing and commenting is inspiring, a strong positive energy.
Kari and Gene, stuff like this reminds me why I feel like I love you guys as much as possible for not actually knowing you, if that makes sense. I'm glad you guys are in the world. I'm actually surprised this is on the main channel. Best regards to you and your families. Please stay healthy so you can keep making videos that one day will be as heartwarming as the ones you dug up.
I’m currently in the process of trying to convince my relatives to let me preserve my family history, so I really appreciate this video. While my mom actually digitized all of our tapes already, I know my grandma has a ton of slides that I want to digitize.
I've been hiding from a huge box with literally hundreds of hours of skateboarding footage from 1992 through to 2000, a mix of 4 hour VHS tapes, dozens of VHS-C tapes and Mini DV tapes. My old Sony video camera I bought in 2001 used to be able to do 'pass-through' capture, so you could run the signal in from a VCR and it would come out of the camera in to editing software without having to record it to DV tape which was amazing but sadly it has stopped working. Plus...it isn't so easy to connect up via FireWire these days. I need some motivation and a way to capture that means I don't need to double record in real time possibly weeks of footage, so if you want to send the capture box to the UK it would be much appreciated! Funny thing with skate footage is that now it isn't so much about the tricks we landed but the things in-between. As you talked about, it is the people no longer around, the interactions, the places and people captured at that moment in time. Despite these tapes intimidating me with the amount of time I'll need to spend on capturing them and editing them...they are a treasure and a blessing. - Paul
The capture device isnt that special. For video8/hi8, you should connect a s-video cable. For digital8 or minidv, you should use a firewire cable. If you have a lot of tapes but feel unable to convert them, you could look into a service like legacy box or whatever.
So....the emotions you had seeing your parents at your age.. I went through the same thing except, my stuff was on “8MM”. We are talking 1970s. No audio. But, your enthusiasm is contagious....
This is so special! My great grandmother passed away 10 years ago today so I'm particularly reflective today! I'm now going to do the same, get all the old family tapes and photos and digitise the lot! I know theres my christening video somewhere with the family rockinging the 80s hair and fashion! Thanks for sharing this Gene!
I'm just going to be honest, I am so glad you've opted for an "off center" shooting style in the new place. Validates my own choices and also feels less "TH-camR" and more "PRO FILMMAKER", not that I need to ever explain that stuff to you, you've been a cinematographer for like 5 years longer than I have.
Sweet! I have a 70s SUPER8 film camera and a Bell&Howell projector that I film and project as a hobby. I showed my grandpa my film and he was so happy he started to break down and told me so many family stories. “This, mr.spencer is beautiful. I love it”
That's because most of them used CCD sensors with global shutter, not the crappy CMOS sensors with rolling shutter. You can always tell a CCD camera from how rock solid the footage looks.} Footage that comes from a CMOS sensor always has this very slight wobbliness on it. There are some CMOS sensors with global shutters, but those cost a lot more than a similar CMOS camera, and are mostly used for scientific purposes.
I have been importing my family's VHS tapes from my childhood and even some super 8 footage from my dad's childhood. It's been a huge blast from the past! For mother's day I made a short compilation for my mom of old videos of her being a mom to me, she said it was one of the best gifts she ever got! I am using a Blackmagic Intensity Shuttle and a VCR/DVD player, and my computer. The Intensity shuttle has multiple inputs similar to your device and then sends to video to my computer via USB. When I'm done with the VHS tapes I plan to start importing my own personal Mini DV tapes from my first camera and hopefully make a video about my progression as a videographer/editor.
Crazy timing! So cool to see your excitement over seeing your mom at your age and your grandma at the age of your mom now. My now-29 daughter showed me her favorite movie last night, Coco, all about retaining memories of our past family. We've got some old 8mm, MiniDV, and VHS tapes that I found and I decided to move them to digital before the old gear died. Porblem is that the old VHS players we have are all dead, as in the tape doesn't move properly and the player just eats the tape. The Pinnacle Dazzle I have is still good once I can find a player, and the 8mm and MiniDV cameras are still good so my kids will have something to now show their kids. Fortunately, my dad's movies from the 1930s-1970s, from his childhood through mine, are still good old film that can be digitized.
Thanks Gene, your content is great and I have tons of old tapes & vhs to convert , I should probably get on that soon before it’s too late I’ll probably order that lil converter too. Blessings 🙏🏽🎥💯
My father did something similar with my grandpa's Super 8 tapes and it was super nice, half of my family crying in christmas because they had literally never seen the footage from 50 years ago, not projected or anything like that. Quite an experience to see.
I think that happens in a lot of families. The person in charge of filming either forgets about the footage or the hobby starts to grow over their heads because they don't take the time to do something with the footage into account. Throw in the fact that most people really take homevideos (as in: first birthday of x ... 10 minutes of footage of the birthday-baby crawling around the floor, all shot by and adult from face-height, instead of crouching down and changing angles and such) Don't get me wrong, it's not all that bad and not everyone is into that hobby as much as other people, but it can be a factor why someone who likes to shoot video is eventually put off the hobby as reviewing all the boring material quickly takes too much time. A friend of my mom contacted me as I still had a Hi8 camera around and she still had her familytapes (20 in total or so), but no working device anymore for playback. So she could borrow mine. About a week later, she already replied: 'Damn... it is sooo boring... Marie's birthday at the horse-farm... one round of horseriding... another round of horse-riding... and another one... and that for 15 minutes straight... I'll be editing that down to something like 2 minutes or so...'
I made a complete documentary film on an old Canon HV30. I still use it! Amazing cinematic look! New tech isn't always the best tech. I have both and still go back to the old stuff quite often.
There’s so many tapes at home that are just sitting there with no way to digitize them/view them. This method is such a cool one, I’d love to try this out!
I had a couple of tapes from 1993. I didn't or barely remember the filming and had them converted. It was a treat to see my younger self running around town.
It would be amazing to see a camera comparison with an external atmos recorder on those old cameras, although digtisation should be done with FM RF capture and VHS-Decode.
I had a Digital 8 Sony camcorder in 2000-2001 and in 2001 when my daughter was born i took a lot of footage of her as a baby then i lost my camcorder and i kept a box of tapes for all these years until recently i bought another Sony Digital 8 camcorder and started watching videos of my daughter,me and my wife and wow it's a strange but beautiful feeling,definately worth saving old memories from tapes.
For MiniDV and Digital8 capture you should use FireWire because they are digital you can get an exact copy of the data. Using something like an analog Composite capture device would degrade the quality a lot. For analog Hi8 tapes it's best to use S-Video capture device because they have higher quality than what Composite can do. Composite is fine for the older formats like Video8, VHS etc.
I have years of musical theater recordings of my girlfriend and her sister and brother. All three were huge performers so the old footage means a lot to them and I'd love to give them the gift of their past!
The sisterhood of the traveling digitizer. I have a video of an interview I did with my dad's best friend before he died. It would be amazing to be able to save that video for him. I don't have to be the first person to get this pass around digitizer, but it would be great to not be the last. Love your work! You've inspired me to start following my passion. Thank you for that!
I strongly recommend using Topaz Video Enhance AI on such recordings. The upscaling works miracles on old footage. Another thing is DAIN algorithm that interpolates frames and makes those old recordings look so alive.
Cassette tapes actually age better than people think. 8 tracks, VHS tapes, etc wear down with constant use. As long as they are in a dry, normal climate, they are fine.
Always enjoy your stories. Thanks! Last winter I fired up (had to keep it plugged in, the battery would only hold a few minutes of charge) a Sony DCR-DVD108 which I had used a lot around 15 years ago or so. Small though it was, it actually burned files onto a tiny DVD disc that you would load inside so transferring files was quick and simple - just put the little DVD disc into the PC and copy the VOB files. Much faster than having to play each one. I found that I could use rewritable discs which kept the cost down considerably and even though it was NTSC it had a 16 x 9 aspect ratio mode. It had this nifty infrared mode that was great for shooting late night outdoor gatherings although candles and cigarettes would bloom out and people sometimes looked like zombies. Sometimes that was good! Unfortunately the IR mode did play some nasty tricks with color rendition the rest of the time. I did have a lot of VHS (and even some Beta) tapes to convert sitting around and about 10 years ago acquired a Haupage PVR box which captured to 1080 or 720 ( I know it did Interlaced, not sure if it handled progressive scan) and had Component Video inputs for HD sources as well as NTSC and SVideo for my older tape decks and whatever. I spent many weeks playing and feeding those old tapes and cleaning tape heads and not being able to use my computer for anything else. Your little box would have been nice, but that was a long time ago and nothing like that existed yet. It's a mixed bag - watching those old recordings over again brings back memories and draws you in but then you get antsy and wish you could get done with the job. Since then I've had an archive on my digital library which Kodi can bring up at a moments notice - great when family visits or you need to settle an argument. Well worth the time spent! Best wishes! Ivars Vilums
Pure Nostalgia! I started back in 2004 w/a Panasonic Pro AG-DVC80 & a Panasonic PV-GS320! My how technology has changed! DSLR/Action Cam/Mirrorless/Smart Phone/Drone/etc..... is the standard now, no one uses camcorders anymore! Those MiniDV tapes bring back so many memories lol! 😁 🎥
I have so much footage from my family and my wife’s family and I’m sure I could dig up even more if I had this kind of opportunity. I also love the idea of passing it along to a viewer as well like in that chain you mentioned.
Gene: "Hey Steve, give us a history lesson on tapes" Steve: *begins to tell him the history of home videotapes* Gene: "WHOA WHOA! I just want a history lesson" Steve: "Uh..."
I have many tapes of passed relatives within my family in a variety of places, I tried to convert my old tapes with an Elgato but it didn't work, I'd be very appreciative to get to have one of these
My great-grandpa just passed away and he was definitely nostalgic. He had a bunch of Kodak Ektachrome slides he would play on a carousel from the 50's. He did all home movies on a Panasonic VHS recorder. I've definitely have had fun digitizing his lifetime of memories.
Hey Gene! And before the video cassette era we had 8mm tapes on a reel. My family has ancient (1950s-60s) video footage from before color came into the world and everything was monochrome. Somebody still has the old reels and I still have the old camera and a battery powered 8mm viewer! Ah, the good old old old days. 👍🏻😁 Some of the 8mm are actually in color, too. Now that would be a comparison video for the ages. What was before 8mm? I think pencil drawings on paper that you have to flip through for the image to ”move”. 😂
so nice to see videos of your family when they were younger than you are now. I love watching it. I have a lot of VHS movies and watch them sometimes. Your videos looked very good from 1985.
Gene, help me! I have recently inherited 2 generations of stock piled 30mm, 36mm, slides, tapes and casets from my dad and my grandfather. Both have worked in various rolls film and television productions over the last 70 years, including producing Australia's first "Woodstock" to sailing through Indonesia to film undiscovered waves. They have passed this epic legacy onto me, but.. i just have no way of exploring the vast archives they have dumped on me hahahha I would love the opportunity to explore the files, but also just to ensure that i can savour this pretty crazy legacy that i've stepped into. Love your work, Gene, keep it up buddy!
Imagine Gene's kids down the road talking to their friends and their friends are like "my parents just use a camcorder or their cellphone to record us, what do your parents use?" "Oh, just a RED or an ARRI Alexa, nothing special". 😂
Remove the camcorder, those things are more or less dead these days. Cellphones all the way, outside of enthusiasts with compact /bridge/action or system cameras.
I have a lot of SVHS and VHS tapes. I had a Sony converter but when I downsized to a senior living facility (i was suffering from cancer) it disappeared. I did not do the move because of my illness so I don’t know what happened to the machine. I know my JVC8000. SVHS VCR was stolen from my garage during the selling process of my house. All of my cassette players were stolen. It had to be done by real estate agents who had the key to the box so they could show the hose to prospective buyers. This all occurred in 2016. It hurt a lot because as a disabled senior citizen I can’t afford to replace that equipment. This video stirred up my memory of the tapes of my 34 year old children that I cannot play. They were less than two years old when the recordings were made.
I loved this video, especially the parts with your family and girlfriend looking back at the past, e.g. your grandma jumping down from the camper, and around the X-mas trees. The actual camera stuff was cool too, but the family stuff made this so interesting. Great job.
I AM LOVING HOW YOU REACT TO SEEING LIFE GOING ON BEFORE YOU WERE BORN.. that's the best sell ever!!! my children has been begging me to digitize all the tapes we have.. oh man and there is LOADS... i would love to see everyone's reaction - I KNOW they are going to be like yours. SOLD!!
I started my career using mini dv cameras. The canon XL1 was THE camera to have and even hollywood started using them. It's so bizarre watching someone so young nerding out over it, but a lot of fun.
I got here within the first 10 seconds but it's more like luck since I saw it through the recommendation not notification (even though I hit the all bell)
I’m actually in the market for one of these! Would love to be part of the “digitizing train” and send this along to someone else who needs it afterwards! HMU!
Holy crap! I need this. Parents have boxes of VHS tapes from 80's of our childhood. Love to use then pass along so others can save these family treasures before it's too late.
I’d love to my mum and dad have loads of tapes from when they used to travel but they are starting to degrade and we are slowly but surely loosing valuable footage and I would of course love to pass it on to some other subscriber
thats the scary part.. do you sit around for hours watching? aww man multi tasking heavy lol. I already have a tough time committing in a relationship... lol
We have old tapes we haven't touched in years! I would love to go back and see what's on them and save them so we can have them long term to show my kids in the future!
Its so funny, I came across this channel about 3 years ago right before I decided I wanted to begin filming motocross, and now here I am, a motocross videographer and I'm actually looking for some old camcorders to add a different style to my edits, and on top of that, there's motocross featured on one of the tapes!
I am too old for video tapes from kids. Only my wife has some 8mm video stuff. This is so amazing. The most awesome thing about nowadays is that we have all those smartphones where we can take all those family videos. Fantastic.
I'd definitely use it and pass it along. I was at my moms on Thanksgiving Day and she was watching old VHS tapes and she mentioned getting them converted.
I would love to digitize my old family videos. We used to take a family trip every year and haven't seen the videos from before I was born on my pops old camcorder. That would be a trip in itself! Thank you for this video!
I remember doing all this stuff many many years ago. I just used a FireWire card for my computer which you can get way cheaper these days and then just use a program (I used Sony Vegas back in the days) to record the camera footage 😅 I remember when I even digitized my grandpas super 8 recordings from the 70s where everything was without sound even😂 This was so much fun to watch and gave me tears in my eyes seeing my grandma in her best ages 🥹
It’s interesting you posted this. I just got done digitizing 200+ vhs-c, 8mm, hi8, mini-dv and hdv tapes. All of it was upscaled using vhs/dvd player with upscale conversion. I considered using that gadget to digitize but after doing some testing there was some significant data and sharpness loss, compared to an ilink cable. I was using my atomos shogun to record the footage directly into prores lt. Probably the most expensive way to do it, but I don’t regret it. The last 20 yrs of my life and my wife’s life has been preserved. If anyone needs help or tips let me know.
My daughter's growing up was captured on VHS, Hi-8 and Digital-8. All tapes were converted to DVD for security. Several of my 1980's travel VHS videos made their way to TH-cam and the nostalgia factor gives them some of my highest views. I wonder it the grand kids of the Civil War reenactors that I recorded in '82 are using their grandfather's muskets today.
Mind blow is crazy. Im going to get my dads vcr tapes on Sunday. Can’t wait to see myself as a baby, with my dad as the father, holding my son who will be the same age. 💥
I have that exact Samsung camcorder. The wife and I were just talking about how to convert the tapes to digital. I would love to give it a go and pass it on. Thanks for sharing
this is amazing and i'm happy you got these tapes, i had some VHS home videos of me as a baby back in 1990 with my dad and they got destroyed in a flood :( so for anyone watching pleaseee please convert your tapes to digital. i waited too long and now don't have the footage.
Love that you subscribe to the pay it forward sect within our society. I do a whole bunch of archival film preservation, from as far back as 8mm movie film, and not certain if what you using will provide only a final step to the whole digitization of those films, but something worth looking into. Your lady is awful cool to stay settled with you using her own video content for examples. Lucky fella that. Very best wishes my friend. Happy Holidays.
UPDATE!! The converter I used has a new Firmware update and it fixes the corruption issues I had so It's Awesome! I did also try two other models from Digitnow and they both gave me tons of reliability and Audio Sync issues so I would say this is the one to get. - geni.us/Qgv4U
Appreciate this comment update here, thank you.
I actually made a video short on housing regeneration using a mini DV camcorder two years ago. Found the process super insightful. th-cam.com/video/4Y8hI-aQKkc/w-d-xo.html
Ayee, by chance have you have it to someone? I have some when I was a child during Christmas and birthdays and this has been something Iv always wanted to do but it can get expensive or I just don’t wanna mess them up but this looks like the best way!
I still have my Sony DCR-TRV130EPAL .
Since 2001 and it looks and works like brand new 🙂
For video8 and Hi8, you absolutely should use a s-video connection instead of the yellow composite cable.
You still sharing the converter?
You're talking about "digitizing" those tapes, but miniDV format is actually already digital. Yeah, it's stored on a tape, but not in the same way, like VHS for example (which is analogue format indeed).
To transfer your video from miniDV to hard drive your should connect your camera through FireWire (IEEE 1394) interface and use any video editing software to capture video. In this way transfer will be going through byte by byte data copy and it's produce video the same quality as source. An you used analogue to digital conversion which is lossy.
This needs more likes
Yup doing it now. Need to adapters to get this to work nowadays....and best If you have a Thunderbolt equipped Mac. FireWire to Thunderbolt 2 cable, Tbolt 2 to 3, FireWire 400
to 800. Fun times!
@@twothbeave or an imac from 2011 ;)
It appears that Windows 10 does not support Firewire so I used an old Vista laptop for the transfer.
@@kirbystiening5510 Is that actually true? I used a firewire card a few years ago to grab some old tapes just fine.
Would love to use this. My dad dies when I was 2 years old, I'm 35 now and recently found a bag of tapes that belonged to him. Would be amazing to see what he was like besides just the stories. I will pass along when I am done as well! Thank you!
I know its been a year but did you look at the tapes?
Did you look at them man?
@@mijaumiaumiao I'm wondering the same lol
Sorry for your loss my brother dies at 2 months old I was 13
he still dyin'?
It’s so special to find footage like this, especially since it’s often long forgotten. I recently digitised my parents’ home video tapes, from 1990 all the way up until 2009. So roughly 15 hours or so of VHS-C tapes. It was so interesting to see my parents’ life before I was born, their excitement of purchasing our home, then seeing how happy my grandparents were when I came along in 2001. It’s a special feeling seeing history like that. So many things have changed, but often, a lot has stayed the same.
Yes, the same here. The hospital where I was born was taken down about 2 years after my birth and it's so weird to see how old fashioned it looked in 1987 while it probably wasn't anything out of the ordinary compared to other hospitals.
My dad fortunately already edited all the footage he shot (he was working at a company with a professional AV-department) so we only have about 7 hours or so with the best bits.
it's different though how it changes: a friend of mine gave birth to a son somewhat years ago and at some point I went to visit her place and had my modern videocamera with me. It's so weird (and almost unpleasant) to see such pristine, razorsharp images compared to the old images I'm used to, that have some noise in them (rolling bars and such) and slightly bad sound at times.
He looks like the grown up version of Russell in UP movie.
LMFAOOOO
Bro 💀
Talks like him too lol
Bruh
Lmao that’s so racist
I recently found a box load of old camcorder tapes. In defence of old technology, it’s great how long the analogue tapes last for. They don’t seem to deteriorate as much as you think. It’s important to digitise but that doesn’t guarantee it’s longevity if you don’t back up your files periodically. So always keep the tapes! I’ve also noticed how much I filmed and how many videos I made back in the day compared to nowadays even tho it’s so easy to make video these days.
The cheaper software-based converters that plug into your PC are so much better and you wont experience the corruption problems, you can also pick what format you want to record it in!
*_AYO MA BOI KON ON THE POTATO JET CHANNEL_*
Yeah I'd prefer to use that. I could even have use it as an old webcam
are you saying that one of the cable converters to usb works better? hmmm, what about the wait time? can you stop the record/download or do you have to let it play out the full time? sometimes some tapes get stuck hence you have to monitor them I am assuming because of age but if you can stop the recording from the unit its going to manually, you don't have to go back to the top of the tape. just curious
Which are you referring to? I'd like to know
Can you elaborate? I have old 8mm tapes im looking to convert to edit. Do I need an old camcorder to convert these into digital files?
Gene... I am literally in the process of converting over 100 tapes right now from my family. Your timeline is so so good on this. I was sticking one of these in my cart to do more homework on and then maybe buy. I have an old pinnacle transfer unit but it is showing its age. The process is so time-consuming but is complicated for me because there is no monitor on what i am using so i have had to build out a transfer station with a monitor, etc... to do what i'm doing. To have a second unit without needing a monitor?! yes please. I am transferring VHS, Hi-8, and mini-DV tapes. As well as some audio but I am doing that through an interface into ableton. Regardless, enjoy the process and the memories, we are walking a similar path in that regard right now.
I'm Going to ship this over to ya! Keep an eye out for an e-mail from me.
Also, who wants it after???
@@PotatoJet Loving this plan, and thanks man! I'll happily document some of the process and pass it on after!
@@PotatoJet I can do a spanish review of the unit :)
@@PotatoJet I totally want it. My dad is REALLY old and he has a bunch of family home videos that we have no way of watching. Please.
@@PotatoJet My grandfather recently passed away and he left behind a ton of tapes from his travels, art galleries (he was an artist), family gatherings, etc and it would be amazing to digitize all that
My mom has been begging me to digitize our family movies for years...this would be dope.
Quarantine is a perfect time for you to do it then.
Umur kami amat sangat panjang,
@@ratuadilFF apaan si?
Bad bad boy. Listen to your mother boy😂😂 lol
It’s hella easy
I simply must throw a comment into the ocean of other comments, since this is a topic near and dear to me over the past few years. Some notes on convenience and quality...
This doohickey looks amazing for CONVENIENCE. It's definitely better to get an archiving project done and have fun with it rather than never do it. Don't let perfect be the enemy of good, right? BUT... along with the audio sync and corruption issues Gene mentions, there are a few other things to note if you also want to maximize quality. And I don't just mean tweak the last .01% of the picture, I mean dramatically improve things.
Old analog tapes are all NTSC 480i (480 scan lines that contain picture information, although technically it's 486 but really only for pro stuff, but nevermind that nonsense, LOL!). Interlaced video has one FIELD every 60th of a second, but note that each field is a separate image taken at a separate moment in time! So, if a device or a process converts it to 30fps, you are either smushing two images together and creating blurry motion, or you're throwing away every other field and getting a chunky image with have the resolution. Analog NTSC video should, whenever possible, be captured as interlaced, and each field converted to a frame for a 60fps video. It looks WAY better. I get convenience, and the simpler devices don't do this, but I mention it because it's worth doing. This video is 24fps, so I don't know if Gene captured at 60i, 60p, or 30p. Blackmagic Design makes a good doohickey I know can do interlaced, and my old Matrox MXO2 mini can as well. Dropping a NTSC 480i video into a 60fps timeline in Premiere works well. Premiere doubles each line in each field and you get the proper look. Since TH-cam doesn't do 60fps at 480p, I do everything at 1080p60 and leave black bars on the side (unless I have a letterboxed image or anamorphic).
Also, s-video is worth using if available. The detail, and especially color, are noticeably better. Hi8 and Super-VHS will obviously benefit the most, but standard VHS and 8mm can look a bit better via s-video as well. Playing back on the very camcorder that recorded something is generally a safe bet, but a working S-VHS VCR or Hi8 camcorder is a step up.
DV is digital and you get what you get via the Firewire cable, where you're actually copying digital data instead of sampling an analog picture. Don't use a capture doohickey like this with DV. Get a Firewire card or find an old PC with a Firewire connection.
Ideally you'd capture to an avi file with 4:2:2 color subsampling, but now we're getting closer to that .01% stuff. :-)
There, I threw some ideas into the ether. I'd share a link or two to some home videos I'm proud of, but the algorithm might do weird things.
Good comment. So are you positive that this device deinterlaces, or is it just a question? If it deinterlaces by default, it's no good in my book. Also does anyone know if it does only NTSC, or can it do PAL/SECAM as well? In my experience products from far eastern countries tend to do both, but this is US product so it might be NTSC only which means it is no good for us in Europe.
I can confirm video8 and hi8 both show a similar improvement using s-video compared to composite. Even on a tape that was recorded on a video8 camera lacking s-video out.
If you can on a svhs (compact or not) and/or Hi 8 with Svideo output use something like a retrotink to bob de-interlace the video into a 480p signal over HDMI and then use a capture of some way to save the video. Works great for retro gaming s video or if your old console can do it RGB. Composite isnt too bad but doesnt look as good
@@Rotary_Lover_89 As long as your device that converts to HDMI is able to properly convert each interlaced field to a full frame and create a 60fps signal, you'll probably get decent results. Do note, however, that such devices crop the image on all sides to simulate the overscanning done on an old CRT television, which reduces detail somewhat. You'll also be relying on that device to get the color and luminance levels correct (a lot of those HDMI devices blow out bright areas to pure white). So do compare your digitized results to how it looks going straight into a good TV.
@@theleeoverstreet oh the retro game community is stickers for that. Mike chi and his retro tink products are top notch. If you wanna spend more go open source scan converter or even more with the XRGB mini Frame meister. Just look up Retro RGB or My Life In Gaming covering those devices
I found a old Multinorm VHS Recorder, a old Sony "Portable" CRT Monitor and a bunch of old tapes that were lying around my house from my dad's old job. From my birth to different trips that happened when I was a kid, it has been quite the experience to see all of those videos again. I've been digitizing non-stop with this nice setup for two weeks and now this video shows up! Some close friends have also enjoyed the idea to explore more about old analog and digital tapes, which has been really fun to rediscover. Thanks for the video! It has been quite emotional to hear the same things I felt when I saw my old tapes from you!
I did this same exact thing during the quarantine for my old mini DV tapes. My panasonic camcorder actually came with a firewire out, so it connected into my mac with a dongle. The best part of doing it that way is the import directly into Final Cut, the software would automatically control the camera and the tape playback so you don't have to sit by it and hit the stop record button.
haha lucky you. I have a camera with firewire out, but nothing that would accept it!
All MiniDV and Digital8 camcorders have a firewire out. And everyone should use it to transfer the videos because MiniDV and Digital8 are digital so you get a exact copy of the data from the tape. Using something like a Composite capture device will degrade the quality a lot.
Composite capture devices are fine for Video8 and VHS etc. but for Hi8 I'd recommend using a S-Video capture device because Hi8 has higher quality than what Composite can do.
@@Pasi123 This comment needs to be pinned.
@@JIYkp absolutely
“High 8 cameras Vs Ari Alexa”
Yes please
maybe an ARRI Alexa or if not a cinema camera at that time vs a regular camcorder from the same time!
Old cinema camera vs 2020 camcorder that would be mad
@@Provolt yes!
@@Provolt 2020 camcorders are just a phone camera sized sensor with an optical zoom lens. Pretty much any digital camcorder.
@@THEMATT222 The guys from Corridor did this with a RED
I used to have a sony camcorder. It stored data into a CD and I shot my first short film in that camera. Didn't know how to edit, so we shot it by pausing the footage and shooting the next scene. So NO RETAKES. Good times lol.
F
imagine shooting to the last scene and realised their was a mistake in the beginning. rip.
@@THEMATT222 Or you change the storyline...
I'm thinking I want to see this video...
I actually still have it. It's a horror short film that we took two days to shoot. Then we messed up the last shot and the we couldn't change it 😂
Weirdly enough I'm visiting my grandparents and happened to find what is essentially the entire history of my family on tape. I've been looking at this on Amazon for a few days and it's just a little expensive at the moment, but I know I need to do something with all these tapes. I never knew some of these moments existed like this. I watched my dad's first birthday party last night and I can't say how badly I needed to see some of these memories. I'd love to get myself into the chain of digital conversion with you guys, whoever you choose. I want to make something special for my family while they're still here because filmmaking has been the only way I've ever been able to express myself to them. I feel like it would really bring my journey into this career, with all its ups and downs, full circle back to where it all began. Perfect timing to see a video like this, so thank you for that at the very least.
You've brought a lot of memories back to me.
I have a few suggestions :
1st I've noticed bad sound , use a better quality cable, cheap cable may give a lot of artifacts (weird colors on video and sound clicks and glitches). I had this experience with VHS VCR and camcorder.
2nd I'll try to connect the camcorder to my TV via scart adapter or RCA inputs and try to record to an USB hard-drive connected to TV, and hit record from TV's remote. This should give the best quality of recording, of course using quality cables. You can use any analog around $30, like the ones used in Hi-Fi to connect CD player to amp. In this scenario I'll check if the recorded files can be played on PC, other TV sets or they work only with TV that was used for recording, it different for each brand.
Back in the day, I've always copied my 8mm ( Hi8) tapes to VHS, because there was no way to share my recorded video to others, there were few camcorders on our market and different standards, so that your friend may not had an 8mm camera. VHS on the other hand was very common. Also this was a kind of back-up, if you had accidentally erased the 8mm tape, which usually was recorded many times because these were harder to find in the stores and more expensive.
Around 2002, I digitized many tapes using my desktop computer and a PCI internal tuner (which actually was pretty bad), DivX encoding was top back then.
My dream camera in the 90's, was a VHS Panasonic, pretty massive, huge lens compared to Hi8, a lot of buttons, a real microphone, a larger monitor ( which was actually a small CRT inside the viewfinder), no flip screen, shooting from the shoulder like a real reporter :) . That was great, better image quality and you didn't have to copy anything, just put the cassette in the player and watch. It looked like this br.pinterest.com/pin/821766263232967179/
Great videos, your passion for everything that you do, in front of the camera, when editing and commenting is inspiring, a strong positive energy.
Kari and Gene, stuff like this reminds me why I feel like I love you guys as much as possible for not actually knowing you, if that makes sense. I'm glad you guys are in the world. I'm actually surprised this is on the main channel. Best regards to you and your families. Please stay healthy so you can keep making videos that one day will be as heartwarming as the ones you dug up.
I’m currently in the process of trying to convince my relatives to let me preserve my family history, so I really appreciate this video. While my mom actually digitized all of our tapes already, I know my grandma has a ton of slides that I want to digitize.
I've been hiding from a huge box with literally hundreds of hours of skateboarding footage from 1992 through to 2000, a mix of 4 hour VHS tapes, dozens of VHS-C tapes and Mini DV tapes. My old Sony video camera I bought in 2001 used to be able to do 'pass-through' capture, so you could run the signal in from a VCR and it would come out of the camera in to editing software without having to record it to DV tape which was amazing but sadly it has stopped working. Plus...it isn't so easy to connect up via FireWire these days. I need some motivation and a way to capture that means I don't need to double record in real time possibly weeks of footage, so if you want to send the capture box to the UK it would be much appreciated! Funny thing with skate footage is that now it isn't so much about the tricks we landed but the things in-between. As you talked about, it is the people no longer around, the interactions, the places and people captured at that moment in time. Despite these tapes intimidating me with the amount of time I'll need to spend on capturing them and editing them...they are a treasure and a blessing. - Paul
I'm in the exact same position as you with the same tapes and everything.
The capture device isnt that special. For video8/hi8, you should connect a s-video cable. For digital8 or minidv, you should use a firewire cable.
If you have a lot of tapes but feel unable to convert them, you could look into a service like legacy box or whatever.
So....the emotions you had seeing your parents at your age.. I went through the same thing except, my stuff was on “8MM”. We are talking 1970s. No audio. But, your enthusiasm is contagious....
This is so special! My great grandmother passed away 10 years ago today so I'm particularly reflective today! I'm now going to do the same, get all the old family tapes and photos and digitise the lot!
I know theres my christening video somewhere with the family rockinging the 80s hair and fashion!
Thanks for sharing this Gene!
I'm just going to be honest, I am so glad you've opted for an "off center" shooting style in the new place. Validates my own choices and also feels less "TH-camR" and more "PRO FILMMAKER", not that I need to ever explain that stuff to you, you've been a cinematographer for like 5 years longer than I have.
the idea of sending the capture device around is so beautiful good potato jet always think about other 💕💕
Yes! Used cameras FTW!
I saw your Sony video today as well :)
David Eastham same
Sweet! I have a 70s SUPER8 film camera and a Bell&Howell projector that I film and project as a hobby. I showed my grandpa my film and he was so happy he started to break down and told me so many family stories. “This, mr.spencer is beautiful. I love it”
Man I loved the old digital camera footage quality. Feels like taking a fresh breath of air when I look at the quality
That's because most of them used CCD sensors with global shutter, not the crappy CMOS sensors with rolling shutter.
You can always tell a CCD camera from how rock solid the footage looks.}
Footage that comes from a CMOS sensor always has this very slight wobbliness on it.
There are some CMOS sensors with global shutters, but those cost a lot more than a similar CMOS camera, and are mostly used for scientific purposes.
It would be great to see a video on old school professional camera's like the Sony DVW 790WS and how they compare to modern camera's today.
Absolutely no one:
Potato Jet: Old school camcorders vs Red
Pee Kay S.A. Can you tell which is which though? Pretty tough
Digital 'pixels' or dropped frames.
I have been importing my family's VHS tapes from my childhood and even some super 8 footage from my dad's childhood. It's been a huge blast from the past! For mother's day I made a short compilation for my mom of old videos of her being a mom to me, she said it was one of the best gifts she ever got!
I am using a Blackmagic Intensity Shuttle and a VCR/DVD player, and my computer. The Intensity shuttle has multiple inputs similar to your device and then sends to video to my computer via USB.
When I'm done with the VHS tapes I plan to start importing my own personal Mini DV tapes from my first camera and hopefully make a video about my progression as a videographer/editor.
I’ve just recently digitised my dads old 8mm cine film from the 70s. No one had seen them for 20yrs. Was amazing to watch.
Crazy timing! So cool to see your excitement over seeing your mom at your age and your grandma at the age of your mom now. My now-29 daughter showed me her favorite movie last night, Coco, all about retaining memories of our past family.
We've got some old 8mm, MiniDV, and VHS tapes that I found and I decided to move them to digital before the old gear died. Porblem is that the old VHS players we have are all dead, as in the tape doesn't move properly and the player just eats the tape. The Pinnacle Dazzle I have is still good once I can find a player, and the 8mm and MiniDV cameras are still good so my kids will have something to now show their kids. Fortunately, my dad's movies from the 1930s-1970s, from his childhood through mine, are still good old film that can be digitized.
Thanks Gene, your content is great and I have tons of old tapes & vhs to convert , I should probably get on that soon before it’s too late I’ll probably order that lil converter too. Blessings 🙏🏽🎥💯
Wow the real MC MAGIC..what up boy..cool to see u on here.
My father did something similar with my grandpa's Super 8 tapes and it was super nice, half of my family crying in christmas because they had literally never seen the footage from 50 years ago, not projected or anything like that. Quite an experience to see.
I think that happens in a lot of families. The person in charge of filming either forgets about the footage or the hobby starts to grow over their heads because they don't take the time to do something with the footage into account. Throw in the fact that most people really take homevideos (as in: first birthday of x ... 10 minutes of footage of the birthday-baby crawling around the floor, all shot by and adult from face-height, instead of crouching down and changing angles and such)
Don't get me wrong, it's not all that bad and not everyone is into that hobby as much as other people, but it can be a factor why someone who likes to shoot video is eventually put off the hobby as reviewing all the boring material quickly takes too much time.
A friend of my mom contacted me as I still had a Hi8 camera around and she still had her familytapes (20 in total or so), but no working device anymore for playback.
So she could borrow mine. About a week later, she already replied: 'Damn... it is sooo boring... Marie's birthday at the horse-farm... one round of horseriding... another round of horse-riding... and another one... and that for 15 minutes straight... I'll be editing that down to something like 2 minutes or so...'
I made a complete documentary film on an old Canon HV30. I still use it! Amazing cinematic look! New tech isn't always the best tech. I have both and still go back to the old stuff quite often.
There’s so many tapes at home that are just sitting there with no way to digitize them/view them. This method is such a cool one, I’d love to try this out!
I had a couple of tapes from 1993. I didn't or barely remember the filming and had them converted. It was a treat to see my younger self running around town.
It would be amazing to see a camera comparison with an external atmos recorder on those old cameras, although digtisation should be done with FM RF capture and VHS-Decode.
I had a Digital 8 Sony camcorder in 2000-2001 and in 2001 when my daughter was born i took a lot of footage of her as a baby then i lost my camcorder and i kept a box of tapes for all these years until recently i bought another Sony Digital 8 camcorder and started watching videos of my daughter,me and my wife and wow it's a strange but beautiful feeling,definately worth saving old memories from tapes.
Does it record I ln that retro 90s 80s look?
@@MoejiiOsmanTV yes but i think for that look HI8 is the best choice.
For MiniDV and Digital8 capture you should use FireWire because they are digital you can get an exact copy of the data. Using something like an analog Composite capture device would degrade the quality a lot.
For analog Hi8 tapes it's best to use S-Video capture device because they have higher quality than what Composite can do. Composite is fine for the older formats like Video8, VHS etc.
Thanks man your a hero
Or you can get a professional video decks to get higher quality with capture card with components signal
I have years of musical theater recordings of my girlfriend and her sister and brother. All three were huge performers so the old footage means a lot to them and I'd love to give them the gift of their past!
The sisterhood of the traveling digitizer. I have a video of an interview I did with my dad's best friend before he died. It would be amazing to be able to save that video for him. I don't have to be the first person to get this pass around digitizer, but it would be great to not be the last. Love your work! You've inspired me to start following my passion. Thank you for that!
I strongly recommend using Topaz Video Enhance AI on such recordings. The upscaling works miracles on old footage. Another thing is DAIN algorithm that interpolates frames and makes those old recordings look so alive.
jet: lets digitize tapes
jet: holds miniDV tapes into the camera
yeah, you literally just needed to connect it to your computer and COPY the data
He's talking about Hi-8 tapes in the video which are analog. MiniDV look very similar and are digital.
He showed digital and Hi 8 tapes saying "look what i found,you might remember these".Chillout.Online folk are getting so snippy anymore.
Cassette tapes actually age better than people think. 8 tracks, VHS tapes, etc wear down with constant use. As long as they are in a dry, normal climate, they are fine.
there isn't going to be "normal climate" for 30-40+ years straight
Always enjoy your stories. Thanks! Last winter I fired up (had to keep it plugged in, the battery would only hold a few minutes of charge) a Sony DCR-DVD108 which I had used a lot around 15 years ago or so. Small though it was, it actually burned files onto a tiny DVD disc that you would load inside so transferring files was quick and simple - just put the little DVD disc into the PC and copy the VOB files. Much faster than having to play each one. I found that I could use rewritable discs which kept the cost down considerably and even though it was NTSC it had a 16 x 9 aspect ratio mode. It had this nifty infrared mode that was great for shooting late night outdoor gatherings although candles and cigarettes would bloom out and people sometimes looked like zombies. Sometimes that was good! Unfortunately the IR mode did play some nasty tricks with color rendition the rest of the time.
I did have a lot of VHS (and even some Beta) tapes to convert sitting around and about 10 years ago acquired a Haupage PVR box which captured to 1080 or 720 ( I know it did Interlaced, not sure if it handled progressive scan) and had Component Video inputs for HD sources as well as NTSC and SVideo for my older tape decks and whatever. I spent many weeks playing and feeding those old tapes and cleaning tape heads and not being able to use my computer for anything else. Your little box would have been nice, but that was a long time ago and nothing like that existed yet. It's a mixed bag - watching those old recordings over again brings back memories and draws you in but then you get antsy and wish you could get done with the job. Since then I've had an archive on my digital library which Kodi can bring up at a moments notice - great when family visits or you need to settle an argument. Well worth the time spent!
Best wishes!
Ivars Vilums
My family just gave me a lot of tapes to digitize, having this would for sure make my life a lot easier. Thanks for the great content
Oh man! I had so many old short film I did pre youtube. Should of taken better care of them.
I would love to get this converter. I have lots of tapes of my family laying around.
I would love to have this my grandpa was a film maker and recently just passed away and I have a bunch of his tapes.
Ari Saperstein his or her ?
Sorry for your loss
His
Wait, your grandma was a dude?
Sorry for your loss! Definitely try and get those tapes digitized. I'm sure you'll come across some beautiful things!
Pure Nostalgia! I started back in 2004 w/a Panasonic Pro AG-DVC80 & a Panasonic PV-GS320! My how technology has changed! DSLR/Action Cam/Mirrorless/Smart Phone/Drone/etc..... is the standard now, no one uses camcorders anymore! Those MiniDV tapes bring back so many memories lol! 😁 🎥
I have so much footage from my family and my wife’s family and I’m sure I could dig up even more if I had this kind of opportunity. I also love the idea of passing it along to a viewer as well like in that chain you mentioned.
Gene: "Hey Steve, give us a history lesson on tapes"
Steve: *begins to tell him the history of home videotapes*
Gene: "WHOA WHOA! I just want a history lesson"
Steve: "Uh..."
I have many tapes of passed relatives within my family in a variety of places, I tried to convert my old tapes with an Elgato but it didn't work, I'd be very appreciative to get to have one of these
I would like/appreciate it to digitize my parent's wedding tapes, thanks :)
My great-grandpa just passed away and he was definitely nostalgic. He had a bunch of Kodak Ektachrome slides he would play on a carousel from the 50's. He did all home movies on a Panasonic VHS recorder. I've definitely have had fun digitizing his lifetime of memories.
I love the look of these old cameras. I made a ton of rollerblading videos with cameras like that one!
Hey Gene! And before the video cassette era we had 8mm tapes on a reel. My family has ancient (1950s-60s) video footage from before color came into the world and everything was monochrome. Somebody still has the old reels and I still have the old camera and a battery powered 8mm viewer! Ah, the good old old old days. 👍🏻😁 Some of the 8mm are actually in color, too. Now that would be a comparison video for the ages. What was before 8mm? I think pencil drawings on paper that you have to flip through for the image to ”move”. 😂
Challenge: Film an entire vlog on one of those and convert it.
I feel sad I wasn’t born in the vhs and tape era... I so wanna feel nostalgic looking at these beautiful cameras..
so nice to see videos of your family when they were younger than you are now. I love watching it. I have a lot of VHS movies and watch them sometimes. Your videos looked very good from 1985.
Gene, help me! I have recently inherited 2 generations of stock piled 30mm, 36mm, slides, tapes and casets from my dad and my grandfather. Both have worked in various rolls film and television productions over the last 70 years, including producing Australia's first "Woodstock" to sailing through Indonesia to film undiscovered waves. They have passed this epic legacy onto me, but.. i just have no way of exploring the vast archives they have dumped on me hahahha
I would love the opportunity to explore the files, but also just to ensure that i can savour this pretty crazy legacy that i've stepped into.
Love your work, Gene, keep it up buddy!
Imagine Gene's kids down the road talking to their friends and their friends are like "my parents just use a camcorder or their cellphone to record us, what do your parents use?" "Oh, just a RED or an ARRI Alexa, nothing special". 😂
Remove the camcorder, those things are more or less dead these days. Cellphones all the way, outside of enthusiasts with compact /bridge/action or system cameras.
@@Traumglanz he doesn’t have to remove if he don’t want to
I laughed way too hard at the "A or B?!?!"
Also smiled real wide at your Dad's response
I have about 40 or 50 tapes going back 13 years to when I was 8 years old
I have a lot of SVHS and VHS tapes. I had a Sony converter but when I downsized to a senior living facility (i was suffering from cancer) it disappeared. I did not do the move because of my illness so I don’t know what happened to the machine. I know my JVC8000. SVHS VCR was stolen from my garage during the selling process of my house. All of my cassette players were stolen. It had to be done by real estate agents who had the key to the box so they could show the hose to prospective buyers. This all occurred in 2016. It hurt a lot because as a disabled senior citizen I can’t afford to replace that equipment. This video stirred up my memory of the tapes of my 34 year old children that I cannot play. They were less than two years old when the recordings were made.
I loved this video, especially the parts with your family and girlfriend looking back at the past, e.g. your grandma jumping down from the camper, and around the X-mas trees. The actual camera stuff was cool too, but the family stuff made this so interesting. Great job.
6:11 sound quality is more important than video quality
Ayy im early got ive got nothing to say
Jotato pet
I do. (that's it, the word "I do" was what I would like to say)
KERRY: "DIDN"T THEY DO LIKE MUSIC VIDEOS LIKE THIS AND STUFF?"
DIRECTOR: "Hmmmmmmmmm" *ADDS CAMCORDER MIRROR EFFECT TO MUSIC VIDEO TREATMENT*
I AM LOVING HOW YOU REACT TO SEEING LIFE GOING ON BEFORE YOU WERE BORN.. that's the best sell ever!!! my children has been begging me to digitize all the tapes we have.. oh man and there is LOADS... i would love to see everyone's reaction - I KNOW they are going to be like yours. SOLD!!
I started my career using mini dv cameras. The canon XL1 was THE camera to have and even hollywood started using them. It's so bizarre watching someone so young nerding out over it, but a lot of fun.
Today I'm pretty early 🤓🤓🤓🤓1min on post damn hope this is sponsored 😹😹😹
Enjoyed.. race you guys to the next upload 🤓😂😂
I got here within the first 10 seconds but it's more like luck since I saw it through the recommendation not notification (even though I hit the all bell)
@@THEMATT222 nice bruv my app always gives me notifications.. like 1 day later 😂😂😂today I was amazed to see 1 min🤣🤣🤣
@@yronnsothee Yeah, me too! There is always an delay which could be annoying when trying to get to something first.
@@THEMATT222 very much bruv
@@yronnsothee 👍
Gene, I'd love it if u could send me the tape. We have lots of old tapes shut away in a cupboard that my dads been wanting to see for ages
I’m actually in the market for one of these! Would love to be part of the “digitizing train” and send this along to someone else who needs it afterwards! HMU!
This very act of preserving those old footage is wholesome.
Holy crap! I need this. Parents have boxes of VHS tapes from 80's of our childhood. Love to use then pass along so others can save these family treasures before it's too late.
Definately don't deinterlace when you are archiving. This permanently destroys information.
I’d love to my mum and dad have loads of tapes from when they used to travel but they are starting to degrade and we are slowly but surely loosing valuable footage and I would of course love to pass it on to some other subscriber
The thumbnail made me feel nostalgic, my dad had cameras like that back in the day when I was growing up but we lost all our tapes :(
Gotta just love Kerry's perpetual smile. Its infectious ❤
Waiting for about an hour only to find out the file is corrupted? Sounds like Limewire. lol 😆
thats the scary part.. do you sit around for hours watching? aww man multi tasking heavy lol. I already have a tough time committing in a relationship... lol
ay i'm really early lmao
EDIT: Wait.. I'm First!
Congrats
@@THEMATT222 Thanks bro, I really appreciate it.
We have old tapes we haven't touched in years! I would love to go back and see what's on them and save them so we can have them long term to show my kids in the future!
Its so funny, I came across this channel about 3 years ago right before I decided I wanted to begin filming motocross, and now here I am, a motocross videographer and I'm actually looking for some old camcorders to add a different style to my edits, and on top of that, there's motocross featured on one of the tapes!
I am too old for video tapes from kids. Only my wife has some 8mm video stuff. This is so amazing. The most awesome thing about nowadays is that we have all those smartphones where we can take all those family videos. Fantastic.
I'd definitely use it and pass it along. I was at my moms on Thanksgiving Day and she was watching old VHS tapes and she mentioned getting them converted.
I found my parents wedding film the other day! I want to order one to digitize it Its do dope to find stuff like this! Great job Potatoes
I would love to digitize my old family videos. We used to take a family trip every year and haven't seen the videos from before I was born on my pops old camcorder. That would be a trip in itself! Thank you for this video!
I remember doing all this stuff many many years ago. I just used a FireWire card for my computer which you can get way cheaper these days and then just use a program (I used Sony Vegas back in the days) to record the camera footage 😅
I remember when I even digitized my grandpas super 8 recordings from the 70s where everything was without sound even😂
This was so much fun to watch and gave me tears in my eyes seeing my grandma in her best ages 🥹
It’s interesting you posted this. I just got done digitizing 200+ vhs-c, 8mm, hi8, mini-dv and hdv tapes. All of it was upscaled using vhs/dvd player with upscale conversion. I considered using that gadget to digitize but after doing some testing there was some significant data and sharpness loss, compared to an ilink cable. I was using my atomos shogun to record the footage directly into prores lt.
Probably the most expensive way to do it, but I don’t regret it. The last 20 yrs of my life and my wife’s life has been preserved.
If anyone needs help or tips let me know.
Good for you dude for digitizing those tapes for your family. All the best.
My daughter's growing up was captured on VHS, Hi-8 and Digital-8. All tapes were converted to DVD for security. Several of my 1980's travel VHS videos made their way to TH-cam and the nostalgia factor gives them some of my highest views. I wonder it the grand kids of the Civil War reenactors that I recorded in '82 are using their grandfather's muskets today.
Mind blow is crazy. Im going to get my dads vcr tapes on Sunday. Can’t wait to see myself as a baby, with my dad as the father, holding my son who will be the same age. 💥
Very nice of you to pass the converter on to another person. Thanks for reminding me about my tapes that need to get transferred.
I have that exact Samsung camcorder. The wife and I were just talking about how to convert the tapes to digital. I would love to give it a go and pass it on. Thanks for sharing
this is amazing and i'm happy you got these tapes, i had some VHS home videos of me as a baby back in 1990 with my dad and they got destroyed in a flood :( so for anyone watching pleaseee please convert your tapes to digital. i waited too long and now don't have the footage.
Love that you subscribe to the pay it forward sect within our society. I do a whole bunch of archival film preservation, from as far back as 8mm movie film, and not certain if what you using will provide only a final step to the whole digitization of those films, but something worth looking into. Your lady is awful cool to stay settled with you using her own video content for examples. Lucky fella that. Very best wishes my friend. Happy Holidays.
I could sure use that device to digitize my hi 8 tapes of family vacations from when I was young. Thanks for reviewing the converter.
Oh my goodness. I have one of these cameras and old tapes and thanks to you I can digitize the old stuff and record new stuff!! Thank you so much.
Dude! I been doing the exact same thing with my old camera! Been digitizing a bunch of old tapes from the 90's and 2000's. Keep it up bro!