I have been very pleased with MPEG-4 format. MPEG-4 compresses the files small enough to pack a lot of minutes onto a disc but still looks crystal clear (depending on the quality of source file) on a large HD flat screen.

RD4444 ,

I suggect you used what the pros in the industry now use : AVCHD.

It gives you good compression with no visible loss in quality and is more versatile in more applications. It also converts nicely to other formats. Win 10, i7

thanks for the input. Looks like I'll be mostly using AVCHD but for old VHS tapes that have lower quality and I'm just storing them wiht little or no editing I think I'll just use MP4.

thanks

just a suggestion, but i personally never destroy the original source (and never throw awy the old camcorders as they often have best match to tape on play back.)

you never know what combination of old tapes will make a good project. external usb drive are cheap, so i away digitize the tapes in highest resolution and quality (i use uncompressed avi for raw) I re-process the vhs/8mm/Hi-8 tapes, stabilize (what a lousy cameraman i was in my youth), color correct (vhs particularly needs a lot of post processing to make playable on modern flat screens.

As the software gets better, i find myself reprocessing these "raw" files, always trying the impossible task of making 320x120 data look like 1960x1024 HD.

its much of the fun for me.

just some thought from another (wish i could be) retiree. RTX 2060 SUPER 8GB GDDR6
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You want these to be playable on a standard DVD player, so try to capture the tapes in MPEG 2 HQ (480i). I assume the AVCHD is already a video file and does not need to be captured. I would try to save these in the original format, if possible, for future use, but either way, use these videos to create your DVD. The MPEG 2 videos are ready to use and the AVCHD will be converted to 480. A standard DVD cannot use AVCHD, so starting with that you will have to convert back to MPEG 2 anyways. __________________________________
CORNBLOSSOM

If you want to be able to play on a PC, portable devices as well as standalone HW Players then you will need to use AVC/264 and/or MPEG-2. If you don't need compatiblility with DVD Players or Drives (eg you have BD players) then go AVC/264. In fact I converted all my DV-AVI material to AVC/264 files that we playback on the HTPC and when/if I need to "burn" a disk for others I just ask what format they whant it in (eg DVD, BD etc) then burn a copy using the AVC/264 as the source clips. PD 64 Bit-Win10 64 Bit-32GB RAM-80TB HDD
Sony FX6 - 500Mbps 4k/50p AVC-I HLG
Canon XF400 - 150Mbps 4k/50p AVC
GoPro Hero6 Black
Pana HS700-28Mbps 1080/50p AVC (High@L4.2)
Canon HV20-HDV 25Mbps 16:9 1440x1080/25p MPEG

thanks again for even more clarification and helpful opinions - several more of my questions were answered such as should I keep the old VHS tapes that I'm digitizing...sounds like it may be prudent to do so as well as saving the old VHS player and old video cameras. Some of you may be old enough to recognize the value in part of this project: Digitizing the old feature films in which my father co-starred. Any guesses as to who that may be? Hint: his star on Hollywood blvd. was for his co-starring role as "Mr. B" in the 60s TV Show, "Hazel."

RD4444 ,

I've helped several folks convert old 35mm film and 8mm tape clips to digital formats. The only warning I can offer you about archiving media (such as Don's shows) is that too frequently the players for the old formats tend to do more harm than good to the originals. In the case of tape cartridges, the internal mechanisms tend to jam easily. So the sooner you convert to digital the better. Win 10, i7

Good advice. I do have a number of 16MM and some 35MM film of my Dad mostly with sound. What is best method for digitizing. I remember researching that many years ago only to find that the best way is very expensive. Perhaps newer, less expensive ways have been developed?

Ron

Ron,

I use local firms that offer analog to digital conversion for the film footage. This is the safest way with old film media. It is expensive as you've found out but it's safer. Cheap projector/converters no longer exist.

Win 10, i7

I found a place in Sydney that scanned each individual frame of my old Super 8 film, some silent some with sound. It was not all that expensive.

One thing, for some of my 40 year old film I waited too long and the quality was not the greatest. My advice would be not to wait too long before you get them digitized


http://www.dvdinfinity.com.au/
http://www.dvdinfinity.com.au/film_to_dvd.htm My youtube channel====> http://www.youtube.com/user/relate2?feature=mhsn

MP4 for best quality. MKV for best file size/quality compromise.

Really depends on what is your playback equipment.

On computers, MP4.

Via external players, best to stick with MKV or AVC H.264 as they tend to be picky about which MP4 files to playback. Some MKV files encoded with FLACC audio may also face issue.

I don't know about DVD players since I don't playback on them. Intel i7 3770 CPU
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