Is DVD the final transfer solution for my VHS, SVHS Transfers? No!

The crazy aspect of transferring VHS and SVHS videotapes to DVD is that it is probably the most efficient method for being able to review all of your VHS and SVHS videotapes, yet the DVD format is not necessarily the ideal format to do a final VHS to Digital Transfer.

There is no conclusive proof that DVD's actually will last for several decades. And the other aspect of DVD's to consider is they have an unattractive compression scheme which allows for the DVD to reproduce a nice picture of the VHS to DVD transfer, but the compression used to make a DVD could compromise further editing of the DVD footage.

On the other hand, VHS and SVHS transfer to DVD are probably the most cost effective forms of transfer when can either do themselves or hire a Transfer facility to do the transfers.

Just like a regular photo scrapbook, one should look at their VHS, SVHS transfer to DVD as a work in progress. Review your DVD's to make sure they all play ok and make at least one back up DVD copy.  Then mull over the possibility of re-transferring your favorite VHS tapes in a high quality, studio setting, one in which you can actually supervise your new VHS to Digital File transfer session.

Study the DVD copy of your VHS or SVHS videotape so you don't put additional wear and tear on the original videotape. If you have already made copies of the DVD original, use the DVD copy and take notes as to what you would want done during a supervised transfer of your favorite VHS videotapes. 

Many want to believe that the difference in quality between VHS players is negligible, this is simply not true. There is a dramatic difference in playback quality between different VHS playback machines just as there is a dramatic difference in price amongst VHS playback machines. VHS machines can cost as little as 49 dollars and can run up to 7,500 dollars. 

It is the digital realm where it may be possible to play back a digital videotape at the same quality whether the digital playback machine is a 300 dollar, or a 3,000 dollar. The one basic difference may be that a more expensive machine may playback a tape that perhaps does not play back in lower cost digital playback machine. But any machine that plays back a digital videotape will probably play it back at virtually identical quality.

Contact Alessandro Machi at vhs at AlessandroMachi.com if you want to book a session in his amazing Analog to Digital Studio. Alessandro's Studio Credits include over 25 IMDB credits and a Los Angeles Emmy. He is also currently ranked top 25 out of 20,000 Lifetime Tongal Ideationists. Mr. Machi also won the prestigious Academy of Television Arts and Sciences Internship Scholarship Award in the Commercials Category many moons ago.