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vcr repairs and servicing and macrovision removal
Hello,
I've got a couple of VHS tapes that are not available on DVD so I got my old VCR out of the wardrobe and tried to connect it to my Pioneer freeview dvd recorder. But the dvd recorder displayed a message saying it was copy protected and refused to record it. I'm guessing it is macrovision? I don't have a video card so I cannot copy to my pc at the moment. Please recommend one if you think that's the way to go. I was wondering if there was a little black box I could connect between the vcr and recorder to remove the macrovision. If so what product do you recommend? Do all dvd recorders have this "feature"? Is there a firmware upgrade or remote hack that makes Pioneers ignore macrovision? One last question: I am having trouble inserting and ejecting tapes. I think the vcr needs servicing. Where can I buy replacement belts from and are service manuals available anywhere (it is a Thomson vcr). Thanks, Stephen. |
vcr repairs and servicing and macrovision removal
On 28/05/2017 15:57, Stephen wrote:
Hello, I've got a couple of VHS tapes that are not available on DVD so I got my old VCR out of the wardrobe and tried to connect it to my Pioneer freeview dvd recorder. But the dvd recorder displayed a message saying it was copy protected and refused to record it. I'm guessing it is macrovision? I don't have a video card so I cannot copy to my pc at the moment. Please recommend one if you think that's the way to go. I was wondering if there was a little black box I could connect between the vcr and recorder to remove the macrovision. If so what product do you recommend? Do all dvd recorders have this "feature"? Is there a firmware upgrade or remote hack that makes Pioneers ignore macrovision? One last question: I am having trouble inserting and ejecting tapes. I think the vcr needs servicing. Where can I buy replacement belts from and are service manuals available anywhere (it is a Thomson vcr). Thanks, Stephen. I have successfully used something like this http://www.maplin.co.uk/p/honestech-...0-deluxe-a80qu Though mine is the Version 5 rather than the Version 7 advertised here. The Honestech software that comes with my one doesn't seem concerned about anti-piracy when used in Advanced mode, and I hope that Version 7 is the same or similar software. There are cheaper equivalent boxes around but some seem to come with PowerDirector which does concern itself about anti-piracy, so not all similar boxes behave the same. If you want a used one, this one is quite cheap. http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Honestech-...-/332239509928 Again it is Version 7. I couldn't find a Version 5 on offer. I have never looked inside a Thompson VCR, but the one I did take apart didn't have belts, it had gears, cams and position sensors. You might find a clean and lubricate will help. Jim |
vcr repairs and servicing and macrovision removal
On 28/05/2017 15:57, Stephen wrote:
Hello, I've got a couple of VHS tapes that are not available on DVD so I got my old VCR out of the wardrobe and tried to connect it to my Pioneer freeview dvd recorder. But the dvd recorder displayed a message saying it was copy protected and refused to record it. I'm guessing it is macrovision? I don't have a video card so I cannot copy to my pc at the moment. Please recommend one if you think that's the way to go. I was wondering if there was a little black box I could connect between the vcr and recorder to remove the macrovision. If so what product do you recommend? Do all dvd recorders have this "feature"? Is there a firmware upgrade or remote hack that makes Pioneers ignore macrovision? One last question: I am having trouble inserting and ejecting tapes. I think the vcr needs servicing. Where can I buy replacement belts from and are service manuals available anywhere (it is a Thomson vcr). Thanks, Stephen. wouldn't it be a whole lot cheaper to download the film? - in better quality than your tape. i know you say it's not available but i bet it is somewhere. |
vcr repairs and servicing and macrovision removal
"Wolfgang Schwanke" wrote in message
... I assume most current cards must respect Macrovision as well. I wouldn't recommend digitising through a PC anyway. It works, but is more hassle than a straight DVD recorder. I get best results from an old Win XP PC which I acquired and which has a video-digitising card. But it won't do Macrovision so it's only any use for home movies and off-air recordings. I bought a Hauppauge USB adaptor which is happy to digitise Macrovision pre-recorded tapes, but the results (for Macrovision and also for off-air recordings) are not as good: patches of crosshatch patterning on saturated colours (especially purple) and tearing on saturated colours. Although I have a DVD recorder, I don't think it can record from SCART/phono inputs, only from analogue RF, otherwise I'd have tried that, at least for non-Macrovision recordings, since it's less faff than getting out the XP PC, and a monitor and a keyboard and the SCART lead, and persuading the PC to take its sound input from line-in rather than reverting to mic-in, and tweaking the sound level so it is correct for the input (VCR sound level is slightly different to PVR or Sky box). The only problem with recording to DVD is that you need a DVD disc, and not all recorders can record to a rewritable one, so you make consume discs, even if the DVD is just a stepping stone to generating an MPG file that you can edit on the PC (top and tail, remove commercials etc). Conversion from DVD VOB to MPG is a pain: some software can do a whole DVD disc (multiple VOBs) where some like VideoReDo (which I use for editing out crap) can only do it one VOB at a time and then you need to join them together. |
vcr repairs and servicing and macrovision removal
wouldn't it be a whole lot cheaper to download the film? - in better quality than your tape. i know you say it's not available but i bet it is somewhere. You'd think so. How about "The Frog Prince" (1985, with Jane Snowden)? Ian. |
vcr repairs and servicing and macrovision removal
wrote:
wouldn't it be a whole lot cheaper to download the film? - in better quality than your tape. i know you say it's not available but i bet it is somewhere. You'd think so. How about "The Frog Prince" (1985, with Jane Snowden)? Ian. Suspect it won't work but available to download from Amazon.com... https://www.amazon.com/French-Lesson.../dp/B00R3LER12 Tim -- Please don't feed the trolls |
vcr repairs and servicing and macrovision removal
On Sun, 28 May 2017 15:57:34 +0100, Stephen wrote:
Hello, I've got a couple of VHS tapes that are not available on DVD so I got my old VCR out of the wardrobe and tried to connect it to my Pioneer freeview dvd recorder. But the dvd recorder displayed a message saying it was copy protected and refused to record it. I'm guessing it is macrovision? I don't have a video card so I cannot copy to my pc at the moment. Please recommend one if you think that's the way to go. I was wondering if there was a little black box I could connect between the vcr and recorder to remove the macrovision. If so what product do you recommend? Do all dvd recorders have this "feature"? Is there a firmware upgrade or remote hack that makes Pioneers ignore macrovision? One last question: I am having trouble inserting and ejecting tapes. I think the vcr needs servicing. Where can I buy replacement belts from and are service manuals available anywhere (it is a Thomson vcr). Thanks, Stephen. I've never used this company, I'm just giving you the first google hit for "vhs digitising service": http://www.mr-scan.co.uk/video.html Worth a thought? |
vcr repairs and servicing and macrovision removal
On 28/05/2017 15:57, Stephen wrote:
Hello, I've got a couple of VHS tapes that are not available on DVD so I got my old VCR out of the wardrobe and tried to connect it to my Pioneer freeview dvd recorder. But the dvd recorder displayed a message saying it was copy protected and refused to record it. I'm guessing it is macrovision? Yup, that's fairly likely. I don't have a video card so I cannot copy to my pc at the moment. Please recommend one if you think that's the way to go. I was wondering if there was a little black box I could connect between the vcr and recorder to remove the macrovision. If so what product do you recommend? There certainly used to be - typically marketed as video "stabilisers". Basically they just clamped the video to black during the vertical retrace, thus defeating the macrovision "white bars"[1]. Not sure if those are staill available on ebay. However you could look at a proper time base corrector, which will also do the job. [1] Macrovision typically inserted bright white bars into the video during the vertical retrace. Normally these unseen video lines would be black. However the high intensity tends to cause the automatic gain control in the copying recorder to wind down the gain. Thus causing it to desensitise the recording of the frame and line synch pulses and also mess up the black level clamping. The result being fluctuating picture brightness, and also picture rolling and loss of sync. Do all dvd recorders have this "feature"? Is there a firmware upgrade or remote hack that makes Pioneers ignore macrovision? Even if they don't detect it, you may find you still get problems due to the effects of the protection. One last question: I am having trouble inserting and ejecting tapes. I think the vcr needs servicing. Where can I buy replacement belts from and are service manuals available anywhere (it is a Thomson vcr). Searching the web with the model number may turn up a PDF of the manual. Places like CPC usually have a good range of spare belts. Other parts may be harder to get now though. -- Cheers, John. /================================================== ===============\ | Internode Ltd - http://www.internode.co.uk | |-----------------------------------------------------------------| | John Rumm - john(at)internode(dot)co(dot)uk | \================================================= ================/ |
vcr repairs and servicing and macrovision removal
On Sunday, 28 May 2017 20:47:24 UTC+1, Tim+ wrote:
vanyablue wrote: wouldn't it be a whole lot cheaper to download the film? - in better quality than your tape. i know you say it's not available but i bet it is somewhere. You'd think so. How about "The Frog Prince" (1985, with Jane Snowden)? Ian. Suspect it won't work but available to download from Amazon.com... https://www.amazon.com/French-Lesson.../dp/B00R3LER12 Tim Yes, thats the one, renamed for the American market. However It won't accept my payment without a USA address. Aren't they ridiculous. Ian. |
vcr repairs and servicing and macrovision removal
On 28/05/2017 15:57, Stephen wrote:
Hello, I've got a couple of VHS tapes that are not available on DVD Are you sure they're not available anywhere else, peer to peer sharing for one? |
vcr repairs and servicing and macrovision removal
On 28/05/2017 20:07, wrote:
wouldn't it be a whole lot cheaper to download the film? - in better quality than your tape. i know you say it's not available but i bet it is somewhere. You'd think so. How about "The Frog Prince" (1985, with Jane Snowden)? Ian. http://www.buysellcommunity.com/sale/LEPKTHXD/ probably a bootleg but there you go. |
vcr repairs and servicing and macrovision removal
In message , Fredxxx
writes On 28/05/2017 15:57, Stephen wrote: Hello, I've got a couple of VHS tapes that are not available on DVD Are you sure they're not available anywhere else, peer to peer sharing for one? IIRC, when I've tried to copy Macrovisioned tapes from a VCR to a DVD recorder, video-to-video doesn't work. However, RF-to-RF DID work, albeit probably of a slightly poorer quality. If so, it will probably also work using an analogue PC tuner card or USB thingy. -- Ian |
vcr repairs and servicing and macrovision removal
"the dog from that film you saw" wrote in
message ... On 28/05/2017 20:07, wrote: wouldn't it be a whole lot cheaper to download the film? - in better quality than your tape. i know you say it's not available but i bet it is somewhere. You'd think so. How about "The Frog Prince" (1985, with Jane Snowden)? Ian. http://www.buysellcommunity.com/sale/LEPKTHXD/ probably a bootleg but there you go. Mmmmm, Jane Snowden... |
vcr repairs and servicing and macrovision removal
In article ,
Steve wrote: On Sun, 28 May 2017 15:57:34 +0100, Stephen wrote: Hello, I've got a couple of VHS tapes that are not available on DVD so I got my old VCR out of the wardrobe and tried to connect it to my Pioneer freeview dvd recorder. But the dvd recorder displayed a message saying it was copy protected and refused to record it. I'm guessing it is macrovision? I don't have a video card so I cannot copy to my pc at the moment. Please recommend one if you think that's the way to go. I was wondering if there was a little black box I could connect between the vcr and recorder to remove the macrovision. If so what product do you recommend? Do all dvd recorders have this "feature"? Is there a firmware upgrade or remote hack that makes Pioneers ignore macrovision? One last question: I am having trouble inserting and ejecting tapes. I think the vcr needs servicing. Where can I buy replacement belts from and are service manuals available anywhere (it is a Thomson vcr). Thanks, Stephen. I've never used this company, I'm just giving you the first google hit for "vhs digitising service": http://www.mr-scan.co.uk/video.html Worth a thought? A reputable company won't convert commercial tapes which these must be since they are macrovision protected - it is too easy for them to be "done" for copyright infringement. Alan -- Using an ARMX6 |
vcr repairs and servicing and macrovision removal
wrote:
On Sunday, 28 May 2017 20:47:24 UTC+1, Tim+ wrote: vanyablue wrote: wouldn't it be a whole lot cheaper to download the film? - in better quality than your tape. i know you say it's not available but i bet it is somewhere. You'd think so. How about "The Frog Prince" (1985, with Jane Snowden)? Ian. Suspect it won't work but available to download from Amazon.com... https://www.amazon.com/French-Lesson.../dp/B00R3LER12 Tim Yes, thats the one, renamed for the American market. However It won't accept my payment without a USA address. Aren't they ridiculous. Ian. A bit of googling suggests one way that might work is to buy yourself a $10 gift card from Amazon.com and send it to yourself (email delivery obviously). Then go back in to you account settings and give yourself a fictitious US address. Lastly make your purchase with your gift card. No idea whether this will work but in the past one could buy US dollar gift cards from overseas and then spend them (after giving yourself a US address) without the system twigging that something was being bought from overseas. At worst it's gonna cost you $10 to find out. ;-) Tim -- Please don't feed the trolls |
vcr repairs and servicing and macrovision removal
On 29/05/2017 10:02, wrote:
On Sunday, 28 May 2017 20:47:24 UTC+1, Tim+ wrote: vanyablue wrote: wouldn't it be a whole lot cheaper to download the film? - in better quality than your tape. i know you say it's not available but i bet it is somewhere. You'd think so. How about "The Frog Prince" (1985, with Jane Snowden)? Ian. Suspect it won't work but available to download from Amazon.com... https://www.amazon.com/French-Lesson.../dp/B00R3LER12 Tim Yes, thats the one, renamed for the American market. However It won't accept my payment without a USA address. Aren't they ridiculous. Ian. I could get that sorted for you, but then you probably know someone in the USA who could di it just as easily. But as it happens, I'm surethat Amazon wil send single Region 1 DVDs to a UK address. I've got two I bought like that, without any local intermediary. |
vcr repairs and servicing and macrovision removal
On 15/08/2017 00:02, JNugent wrote:
On 29/05/2017 10:02, wrote: On Sunday, 28 May 2017 20:47:24 UTC+1, Tim+ wrote: vanyablue wrote: wouldn't it be a whole lot cheaper to download the film? - in better quality than your tape. i know you say it's not available but i bet it is somewhere. You'd think so. How about "The Frog Prince" (1985, with Jane Snowden)? Suspect it won't work but available to download from Amazon.com... https://www.amazon.com/French-Lesson.../dp/B00R3LER12 Yes, thats the one, renamed for the American market. However It won't accept my payment without a USA address. Aren't they ridiculous. Ian. I could get that sorted for you, but then you probably know someone in the USA who could di it just as easily. But as it happens, I'm surethat Amazon wil send single Region 1 DVDs to a UK address. I've got two I bought like that, without any local intermediary. Not if you mean through LoveFilm by post: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/business/...vice-lovefilm/ |
vcr repairs and servicing and macrovision removal
On 15/08/2017 08:35, Norman Wells wrote:
On 15/08/2017 00:02, JNugent wrote: On 29/05/2017 10:02, wrote: On Sunday, 28 May 2017 20:47:24 UTC+1, Tim+ wrote: vanyablue wrote: wouldn't it be a whole lot cheaper to download the film? - in better quality than your tape. i know you say it's not available but i bet it is somewhere. You'd think so. How about "The Frog Prince" (1985, with Jane Snowden)? Suspect it won't work but available to download from Amazon.com... https://www.amazon.com/French-Lesson.../dp/B00R3LER12 Yes, thats the one, renamed for the American market. However It won't accept my payment without a USA address. Aren't they ridiculous. Ian. I could get that sorted for you, but then you probably know someone in the USA who could di it just as easily. But as it happens, I'm surethat Amazon wil send single Region 1 DVDs to a UK address. I've got two I bought like that, without any local intermediary. Not if you mean through LoveFilm by post: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/business/...vice-lovefilm/ No. I meant just plain old www.amazon.com, purveyor of Region 1 DVDs to keep forever. |
vcr repairs and servicing and macrovision removal
OK an old thread, but there is something about old video recorders that used
to please me. The way they worked and how well they worked considering the various compromises made by the different formats. I think I still have a broken betamax upstairs but somebody took the tapes and has enjoyed the trip down memory lane and also the philips n1700 as well. Needed new belts though. Brian -- ----- - This newsgroup posting comes to you directly from... The Sofa of Brian Gaff... Blind user, so no pictures please! "JNugent" wrote in message ... On 29/05/2017 10:02, wrote: On Sunday, 28 May 2017 20:47:24 UTC+1, Tim+ wrote: vanyablue wrote: wouldn't it be a whole lot cheaper to download the film? - in better quality than your tape. i know you say it's not available but i bet it is somewhere. You'd think so. How about "The Frog Prince" (1985, with Jane Snowden)? Ian. Suspect it won't work but available to download from Amazon.com... https://www.amazon.com/French-Lesson.../dp/B00R3LER12 Tim Yes, thats the one, renamed for the American market. However It won't accept my payment without a USA address. Aren't they ridiculous. Ian. I could get that sorted for you, but then you probably know someone in the USA who could di it just as easily. But as it happens, I'm surethat Amazon wil send single Region 1 DVDs to a UK address. I've got two I bought like that, without any local intermediary. |
vcr repairs and servicing and macrovision removal
I've also found that sometimes on the alexa app its wanting me to do a cap
char neither audio or vision is any good. Strangely if you go in from a normal uk amazon log in you avoid it. I seem to recall on cds and dvds they used to have a similar protal to the american site that allowed other people to buy the stuff from the american listings. Brian -- ----- - This newsgroup posting comes to you directly from... The Sofa of Brian Gaff... Blind user, so no pictures please! "JNugent" wrote in message ... On 15/08/2017 08:35, Norman Wells wrote: On 15/08/2017 00:02, JNugent wrote: On 29/05/2017 10:02, wrote: On Sunday, 28 May 2017 20:47:24 UTC+1, Tim+ wrote: vanyablue wrote: wouldn't it be a whole lot cheaper to download the film? - in better quality than your tape. i know you say it's not available but i bet it is somewhere. You'd think so. How about "The Frog Prince" (1985, with Jane Snowden)? Suspect it won't work but available to download from Amazon.com... https://www.amazon.com/French-Lesson.../dp/B00R3LER12 Yes, thats the one, renamed for the American market. However It won't accept my payment without a USA address. Aren't they ridiculous. Ian. I could get that sorted for you, but then you probably know someone in the USA who could di it just as easily. But as it happens, I'm surethat Amazon wil send single Region 1 DVDs to a UK address. I've got two I bought like that, without any local intermediary. Not if you mean through LoveFilm by post: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/business/...vice-lovefilm/ No. I meant just plain old www.amazon.com, purveyor of Region 1 DVDs to keep forever. |
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