Converting VHS to DVD

A direct conversion of a VHS videotape to a DVD disc involves using the DVD recorder deck in the DML.

The advantage to doing a direct conversion of a VHS videotape to DVD is that it is very easy and relatively fast. The downside is that you cannot edit the video - you cannot put in outside video, add titles, sound, etc. You can delete portions of the video, rearrange the clips, and add chapters in the DVD. If you are looking for a quick and easy way to put a videotape onto a DVD, this is the way to do it.

You will need to bring your VHS tape and a blank DVD to the Digital Media Lab. Expect the process to take the same amount of time as the video plays.

Here are the basic steps:

 

  1. Place your VHS tape in the VHS side of the recording deck.
  2. Place your blank DVD in the other side. 
  3. Press the DVD button and then REC SPEED on the remote to set the length of your video: XP is an hour or less, SP is two ours or less, LP is three hours or less, and SLP is six hours or less.  The less time your video is, the higher the quality.
  4. Press the VCR button to switch input over to the tape. 
  5. Press the DUBBING button on the remote
  6. Press ENTER to confirm that you want to dub from VHS to DVD. 
  7. Wait until your video is finished. 
  8. Once it’s done playing, hit STOP
  9. Then press SETUP. 
  10. Go to Disc setup, and select FINALIZE DISC. 
  11. Press ENTER to confirm that you want to finalize the disc. 
  12. Wait for a few minutes while it finalizes, this allows the disc to play on normal DVD players.

Please see the help documentation in the Digital Media Lab for more specific instructions on this process.


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