Why Transfer Your VHS Tapes To DVD

by | Apr 30, 2013 | Media Preservation and Transfer

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If you are like many videophiles in the United States, you may wonder why you would want to perform the VHS to DVD conversion in Medford MA. There are several excellent reasons that convince many long-time VHS tape users to make the conversion.

One main reason is longevity. DVD discs last longer than VHS tapes. Initially, the VHS video signal is recorded magnetically onto a tape. This information is read back as part of the VHS playback process. Unfortunately, both the tape and the magnetic signature are less than robust. The signal can be affected by nearby magnets including the power supplies of the VHS player and the VHS playback head itself. In other words, simply playing the tape leads to long-term signal degradation. The tape itself is also very sensitive. It is susceptible to heat and dust. It can also be ruined by a dirty playing head grabbing and folding the tape. The net result is that a VHS tape, after ten years of moderate use, will probably have a degraded picture and some garbled sections.

On the other hand, DVD discs are much more robust. The video information is recorded optically, and is not affected by the playback mechanism at all. The disc medium is much more resilient to heat and other environmental factors. After ten years of moderate use, a DVD disc can play the same way as it did when it was new.

Picture quality is another consideration for VHS to DVD conversion in Medford MA. A VHS tape converted to DVD will not have the same quality as a movie recorded originally on the DVD. However, it will freeze the picture quality of the VHS tape at the conversion. If you perform the conversion after the VHS tape is a few years old, then the picture quality transferred to the DVD will be a bit degraded, the same as the VHS picture. However, from that point on, the DVD will preserve the state of that picture, while the VHS will continue to degrade.

Another reason to perform VHS to DVD conversion in Medford MA is storage space. The width of a DVD case can be about a third of that of a VHS tape. If a slim DVD case is used, then the width can shrink to less than a sixth. The height for the slim case is also about half that of the VHS. This means that the storage space required for your movie collection can be cut to at least a third.

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