Converting old BetaMovie tapes to DV at DVinfo.net

Kent Jakusz · June 24th, 2008, 03:02 AM

I have some 20+ year old BetaMovie tapes shot with a Sony BMC-550. This was a consumer beta recorder. How can I convert them to DVD?

Boyd Ostroff · June 24th, 2008, 04:06 AM

Hi Kent and welcome to DVinfo!

Well obviously you will need a camera or tape deck which can play the tapes. If you have that, then it should be pretty simple. But your post is ambiguous; the title says you want to convert them to "DV" but in the post itself you say you want to convert to "DVD".

For DVD's, just use a standalone DVD recorder. They are cheap these days and should produce good results. Just run analog cables for the video and audio between the beta deck and DVD recorder.

Basically the same thing would work for conversion to DV. You could use any DV camera with analog A/V inputs and cable it to your beta deck/camera. Of if you want to capture on your computer you could use a DV camera with pass-through capability and connect it to your computer via firewire. If you don't have a camera that will do this, you could buy a box like this which will convert the analog video to firewire for the computer: http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/produc...rectional.html

Kent Jakusz · June 24th, 2008, 07:52 AM

Thanks for the prompt response and great info.
I should have explained myself better. I have a Canon XHA1. I edit on Final Cut Express. My wish is to download selected clips for editing on FCE and then copying to DVD for distribution. What would you suggest as the best way to reach my objective?
Thanks a bunch.
Kent

Boyd Ostroff · June 24th, 2008, 08:04 AM

I'm not all that familiar with the XH-A1 unfortunately. Does it have some kind of A/V inputs? Can it transcode from them to firewire (usually called "passthrough)? If so then all you would need to do is connect your A1 to the old camera and capture in FCE as the original tape plays.

I'm sure there are places which would convert the footage for you if you do a little Googling. Might be expensive though...

Ervin Farkas · June 24th, 2008, 08:07 AM

Still not clear: do you have a machine to PLAY those tapes?

If you do, then, as suggested above, connect the analog output from that camera or deck to your Canon and connect the Canon via firewire to your computer. Capture the desired clips, edit them, and author your DVD.

Kent Jakusz · June 24th, 2008, 12:57 PM

Yes I do have a machine to play the tapes. Sounds to simple. Thanks so much for all of the prompt advise.

Jeff Turkali · June 26th, 2008, 10:05 PM

Camera pass-through to get a DV file from analog video is pretty straight forward. However, sound sync issues can arise. You must keep the DV captured files short. The longer the duration, the more likely out of sync sound. So breaks in the video file as often as scenes breaks is what is normally done.

The Canopus ADVC 100 or 110 (approx. $280) is a very highly rated A to D video converter. I have used it as well as the higher end ADVC 500 with stunning results. Both of these units have locked sound sync and do not have above mentioned issues when set to "locked" mode.

But since you are doing movies, the standalone DVD recorder seems least cumbersome.

June 24th, 2008, 03:02 AM	#1
Kent Jakusz Regular Crew Join Date: Aug 2004 Location: Stevens Point, Wi Posts: 156	Converting old BetaMovie tapes to DV I have some 20+ year old BetaMovie tapes shot with a Sony BMC-550. This was a consumer beta recorder. How can I convert them to DVD?

June 24th, 2008, 08:07 AM	#5
Ervin Farkas Inner Circle Join Date: Aug 2005 Location: Atlanta/USA Posts: 2,515	Still not clear: do you have a machine to PLAY those tapes? If you do, then, as suggested above, connect the analog output from that camera or deck to your Canon and connect the Canon via firewire to your computer. Capture the desired clips, edit them, and author your DVD. __________________ Ervin Farkas www.AtlantaLegalVideo.com

June 26th, 2008, 10:05 PM	#7
Jeff Turkali Regular Crew Join Date: Jun 2008 Location: Los Angeles, California Posts: 57	Camera pass-through to get a DV file from analog video is pretty straight forward. However, sound sync issues can arise. You must keep the DV captured files short. The longer the duration, the more likely out of sync sound. So breaks in the video file as often as scenes breaks is what is normally done. The Canopus ADVC 100 or 110 (approx. $280) is a very highly rated A to D video converter. I have used it as well as the higher end ADVC 500 with stunning results. Both of these units have locked sound sync and do not have above mentioned issues when set to "locked" mode. But since you are doing movies, the standalone DVD recorder seems least cumbersome. Last edited by Jeff Turkali; June 27th, 2008 at 03:07 AM.

June 24th, 2008, 04:06 AM	#2
Boyd Ostroff Wrangler Join Date: Dec 2002 Location: Mays Landing, NJ Posts: 11,802	Hi Kent and welcome to DVinfo! Well obviously you will need a camera or tape deck which can play the tapes. If you have that, then it should be pretty simple. But your post is ambiguous; the title says you want to convert them to "DV" but in the post itself you say you want to convert to "DVD". For DVD's, just use a standalone DVD recorder. They are cheap these days and should produce good results. Just run analog cables for the video and audio between the beta deck and DVD recorder. Basically the same thing would work for conversion to DV. You could use any DV camera with analog A/V inputs and cable it to your beta deck/camera. Of if you want to capture on your computer you could use a DV camera with pass-through capability and connect it to your computer via firewire. If you don't have a camera that will do this, you could buy a box like this which will convert the analog video to firewire for the computer: http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/produc...rectional.html

June 24th, 2008, 07:52 AM	#3
Kent Jakusz Regular Crew Join Date: Aug 2004 Location: Stevens Point, Wi Posts: 156	Thanks for the prompt response and great info. I should have explained myself better. I have a Canon XHA1. I edit on Final Cut Express. My wish is to download selected clips for editing on FCE and then copying to DVD for distribution. What would you suggest as the best way to reach my objective? Thanks a bunch. Kent

June 24th, 2008, 08:04 AM	#4
Boyd Ostroff Wrangler Join Date: Dec 2002 Location: Mays Landing, NJ Posts: 11,802	I'm not all that familiar with the XH-A1 unfortunately. Does it have some kind of A/V inputs? Can it transcode from them to firewire (usually called "passthrough)? If so then all you would need to do is connect your A1 to the old camera and capture in FCE as the original tape plays. I'm sure there are places which would convert the footage for you if you do a little Googling. Might be expensive though...

June 24th, 2008, 12:57 PM	#6
Kent Jakusz Regular Crew Join Date: Aug 2004 Location: Stevens Point, Wi Posts: 156	Yes I do have a machine to play the tapes. Sounds to simple. Thanks so much for all of the prompt advise.