VHS to DVD

bertreb said:

I just bought a new RCA dual vhs to dvd machine which works fine for my own tapes from tv. My problem is when copying movie vhs (about 30 of them) which won't copy (pops up with "video is copy protected".
Any way of getting around this? Some of these tapes are 10-12 years old and i'm afraid they may get outdated and break the tapes.
Thanks in advance for any help.

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I don't think people are allowed to give u help on something that is technically illegal on this forum. Not 100% on that rule.

Mac'nCheese said:

I don't think people are allowed to give u help on something that is technically illegal on this forum. Not 100% on that rule.

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He legally purchased the VHS tapes though, they are his, I don't think a court would rule against him.

OP, you're better off returning that device you just bought and get a VCR and DVD recorder separately. Connect the VCR to the video in port on the DVD recorder and you're good to go. Also, once you have it on DVD you can easily rip it to your computer as well and enjoy it on all your devices.

likemyorbs said:

He legally purchased the VHS tapes though, they are his, I don't think a court would rule against him.

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YOu're probably right. I don't think anyone concerned with piracy thinks about VHS to DVD ripping a whole bunch. Just wanted the op to know why he might not get a lot of answers.

You may not be 'all good to go' by returning the unit and hooking up to separate units.

There is a copy protected code in the video signal to prevent, well, making copies. That signal stays intact no matter what you do, unless you route the video signal through so many devices it falls off.

In my video facility we have a copy breaker unit built into our A/V rack system to help get around these protections, but it is just for internal use (meetings, reviews, etc)

we dont need to use it much anymore because we moved away from tape and DVD duplication, but every once in a while it is needed.

I would suggest buying the movies on DVD.. yes we all know it will cost some cash but the quality will be so much better then laying a VHS to DVD.. because in the end you will only have a VHS quality DVD in your hand.

Chad3eleven said:

You may not be 'all good to go' by returning the unit and hooking up to separate units.

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Works for me. In my case it's enough to break the protection, it's the same as hooking the vcr to the tv and then hook the tv to the dvd recorder and have it record whatever is on the screen.

The quality will suck either way, 10 year old VHS tape will look like crap digitized on a highly compressed DVD.

My solution

I used to own years ago an LG VHS to DVD recorder and also had trouble with Macromedia protection. I also believe that, if you own the tapes, you must have the right to backup them. You paid for the right to use the contents, not the plastic.
You won't believe the solution I found: You only have to insert your blank DVD and your original VHS. When a notice appears saying it's copy protected you eject the VHS and insert it back! For me it worked, hope it works for you too

I would not be happy if i made a film and it was on VHS tape and somebody made a copy of my work unto DVD. Why not buy a DVD version.
Copyright means as it says regardless what format it is in.

daybreak said:

I would not be happy if i made a film and it was on VHS tape and somebody made a copy of my work unto DVD. Why not buy a DVD version.
Copyright means as it says regardless what format it is in.

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What about the versions that never came out on DVD? Does one have to accept the fact that if the tape gets damaged it's gone forever?

I'm a musician and I understand about copyrights but sometimes it gets silly. For example, I bought "2001: A Space Odissey" on VHS in the 90's, then on DVD in the 2000's and last year on Blu ray. The other day my girlfriend wanted to watch it. My 6 months-old Blu ray player is broken so I decided to watch the DVD version. Guess what, it just didn't play! Does that mean I must go and buy a new DVD? A new Blu ray player? Just because they didn't have enough quality to last? And believe me I care a lot about my equipment and audio/video collections.