Hello Everybody,

Has any Terapin users out there discovered a way to successfully transfer older tapes (or tapes recorded in long play mode)without getting stuttering/frozen frames in the final product? There was some talk a while ago about putting a stabilizer/time base correcter in between the vcr and the terapin, but no updates. Are there any terapin users that have never encountered this problem archiving older vhs tapes? What kind of VCR do you use? I'd be grateful for any feedback!

-- Ray Reed (rbreed75@msn.com), March 20, 2003

Answers

Hi Ray,

I used to have the frozen-frame problem with my Terapin, despite using Verbatim Audio CD-R (i.e., CD-DA) of the "For Consumer" variety, which is expensive.

Note: the "For Consumer" variety of CD-R is recommended by the Terapin documentation.

Then, I tried using Terapin CD-R, also of the "For Consumer" variety. This seemed to work fine, but these Terapin CD-Rs are even more expensive than the Verbatim "For Consumer" CD-R, so I experimented further with other types of CD-Rs.

Finally, I tried the slower-speed CD-R (brand name does not seem to matter too much) and the frozen-frame problem, for about 99% of the time or thereabouts, went away!

I find that 16X speed to be okay, although I have tried also the 24X speed and 32X. If you can find 12X speed, they also work. But I recommend using 16X ... it appears to be "optimal", but I am not going to swear that in a court of law!

This means I now have no choice but to use the newer and higher- speed CD-R (and CD-RW) -- mostly, 32X and 40X -- for computer data only, while using the lower-speed (mostly, 16X) CD-R for VCD recording on the Terapin.

[ Also, for "temporary" VCD recording -- meaning I don't want to keep the VCD recording, after I have converted it to MPEG format on my PC -- I use CD-RW, which is of course erasable and can be reused for further VCD recordings via the Terapin. I don't seem to face any frozen-frame problem with CD-RW, no matter what brand or speed. ]

By the way, the video source (piped into the Terapin) seems to be irrelevant -- whether VCR tapes (recorded at whatever speed -- SP/normal, LP or EP), or the obsolete LDs, or digicams. The frozen- frame problem seems to arise only when I use higher-speed CD-R -- especially, any speed above 32X seems to result in the frozen-frame problem.

The good news about the whole situation are that the lower-speed CD- Rs need not be of the "For Consumer" (or even "For Audio") variety, and that these lower-speed CD-Rs are really cheap (at least, in Singapore) at less than US$0.50 per CD-R. (I would have wish to use a DVD recorder rather than the Terapin VCD recorder, but the medium - - i.e., blank DVDs -- are currently just too expensive at about US$4- US$5 per DVD. Sigh!)

Hope the above helps ... Cheers.

-- Paul Quek (http://queksiewkhoon.tripod.com) -- Posted on 3 April 2003, from Singapore

-- Paul Quek (quekpaul@hotmail.com), April 03, 2003.

Hi there. The problem isnīt produced by the type of cd-r media that you use. Is from the VCR. I donīt have that problem cause I use the VCR AG-4700 by Panasonic, which has a TBC on/off function. When you turn it on... problem solved. Iīll wait for your answer.

-- james (piantonidiego@hotmail.com), March 22, 2004.