vhs speed quality??

[DerekPowers]

does anyone know if there's a big difference between slp, sp, and lp on vhs tapes?? i personally tape everything on slp (which is the slowest that can tape up to 6 hours, but i think its called something different on most other vcrs), cause i cant afford to buy a blank tape every 4 eps. but does anyone know if there is a big difference between speeds, cause i cant the difference. like over time, does sp remain the best or something? anyone know? thanks.

[James Harvey]

The quality of an SLP taping will degrade very quickly within months if ya watch it a bit. An SP taping is just like a VHS tape. It'll stay high quality for a long time to come. I also taped SLP becuase I reeally didn't care as long as I got my show on tape. There may be some edge enhancement and grain. but if I can see my show I'm happy.

[Calhoun07]

For shows I want to keep and store for a long period of time, I record at SP mode. The picture quality is much crisper and sharp, like DG said, more like a store bought VHS tape. At SLP, you get a blurrier and grainer picture quality.

I find if I take the commercials out, I can get six half an hour shows on tape. Sometimes five episodes if it's longer. For some reason, I could never get six Oblongs on one tape. It was frustrating because I didn't get the last episode they aired for this reason, my tape ran out in the last two minutes.

It won't be too much longer before recordable DVD is an affordable reality, so hang in there. Look for good deals on VHS tapes til then.

[Leaping Larry Jojo]

Most definitely. I picked up a subbed Kiki's Delivery Service VHS for $3.99 the other day. I still plan to get some VHS tapes when they are getting dumped into bargain bins in the future.

[Calhoun07]

I meant good deal on blank VHS tapes.

[Leaping Larry Jojo]

There are always good deals on blank VHS. But I'm talking about VHS in general, which is dying. I love picking up once-expensive titles for five dollar prices.

I probably should have did a spinoff thread, but ah...

For shows I set my timer on, I go with SLP. For shows I want to look at longer, SP. But I rarely use SP since most of the shows I like are available on DVD in some form.

[James Harvey]

Be warned. Some companies will think quantity over quality and put the tapes on LP, like WARNER BROS. did with alot of their animated Batman VHSs.

[Leaping Larry Jojo]

Yes, that is true. I sometimes try to "feel" the weight of a VHS before buying, but sometimes it's tough to know what a LP tape feels like. When I'm not sure, I try to compare it to a tape of equal length and see which is heavier.

[Calhoun07]

I own some VHS tapes that are SLP. Martian Chronicles and UHF are both recorded in SLP. UHF is coming to DVD, tho, so that's good news.

Do you own a DVD player, Leap Larry?

[Leaping Larry Jojo]

Originally posted by calhoun07
I own some VHS tapes that are SLP. Martian Chronicles and UHF are both recorded in SLP. UHF is coming to DVD, tho, so that's good news.

Do you own a DVD player, Leap Larry?

Only recently. That's why I don't have much to discuss on DVD threads, since I have like, two or three titles for now. Hopefully, it will increase now that I work full time.

[Calhoun07]

Then why buy these VHS tapes you're talking about? You will more than likely want them on DVD in the future.

I have a real simple way of looking at things...If it isn't out on DVD, the title isn't available at all.

[Leaping Larry Jojo]

Originally posted by calhoun07
Then why buy these VHS tapes you're talking about? You will more than likely want them on DVD in the future.

I have a real simple way of looking at things...If it isn't out on DVD, the title isn't available at all.

Because if I don't have it, $3.99 is like a long rental for me, and heck, I pay more for rentals!

I have rented movies and bought them later on. For titles like Kiki, I can buy the title for the same price as a rental, which will tide me over until a DVD is released.

[Calhoun07]

That's good logic. I don't rent too often. I prefer buying over renting anyway, but I can understand buying VHS tapes at a low price over renting them.

[Leaping Larry Jojo]

If possible, I like to check a show or movie out before buying. That's what I did with Rear Window, which I first rented several years ago, which I bought the DVD for as soon as I got the player. Right now I'd probably purchase anything by Alfred Hitchcock, but at the time, I was in an "educating" period, just seeing what the big deal was with this Hitchcock guy.

There are a few anime shows I bought sight unseen before, and have been disappointed with them, so I had to sell or trade them away, which I don't want to have to do.

I make sure I do a pretty thorough research before committing to an anime show, and as for movies, I usually only buy those I have seen first. I would have been disappointed to get Twister...good thing I rented it first.

[DerekPowers]

SLP will get bad after a few months, geez, i hope not, thats what i taped all my bb, btas, anime, everything one. hmm, i've had my bat tapes for a while, and watch them often, and they seem fine, but now i'm getting nervous. does anyone out there have a tape on SLP that they've had since, say, the 80s? hows it doing? is it in good shape? thanks.

[Calhoun07]

I have several old tapes from a while back, like old Jonny Quest tapes I recorded at SLP on TV, and I hate to break it to you, but my tapes just don't play all that well now. That's why I switched to SP

[optimal321]

Originally posted by DerekPowers
SLP will get bad after a few months, geez, i hope not, thats what i taped all my bb, btas, anime, everything one. hmm, i've had my bat tapes for a while, and watch them often, and they seem fine, but now i'm getting nervous. does anyone out there have a tape on SLP that they've had since, say, the 80s? hows it doing? is it in good shape? thanks.

I've been taping all my BB on SLP too. But honestly, i don't think we're gonna need these tapes 20 years from now. They're gonna make a BTAS DVD, so a BB might not be too far behind. I don't have a DVD player right now, but i'm sure i'll have one before my tapes wear out.

[Psycho Fox]

Well I have a collection of TTA,A! and others in SLP that is still good except for one 1 min spot where a tape got eaten. The picture is a tad grainy and the sound has degraded but it is still ok.

I have a SVHS recorder which I now use for recording since it beats the hell out of SP.

Oh yes and I got my collection burned onto DVD some time ago, there are people that can do it for you.

[cartoonboy]

For the most part I tape in Sp mode just for the fact that when I am watching that episode again, I don't want to see any of the degradation you experience with taping in slp mode.

For Beast Wars & Beast Machines, they got the extra treatment - taped in SP format on SVHS. Unfortunately, I was a rookie for the most part and the X-Men & Batman/Superman received slp format until I wised up and started taping in sp format.

[optimal321]

Originally posted by cartoonboy

For Beast Wars & Beast Machines, they got the extra treatment - taped in SP format on SVHS. Unfortunately, I was a rookie for the most part and the X-Men & Batman/Superman received slp format until I wised up and started taping in sp format.

Are you a BW fan too, cartoonboy? You can probably tell by my avatar that i am. Although, Batman still is number one in my book, BW is probably second.

[cartoonboy]

Transfan from the early days. I just recently ordered the Japanese Transformers series (Headmaster,Masterforce & Victory) off a guy in Cali. It is great to have the series but I would have loved it even more if was in SP format rather than SLP. The quality is average but there are times when the audio dips down.

Looking forward to car robots in the fall on fox kids.

[DerekPowers]

i think you guys are starting to convince me to start taping in SP, but then i'd have WAY too many vhs tapes lying around. It sucks cause i basically taped every cartoon i tape on slp, which includes btas, stas, and my bb collection, of which i'm only missing "once burned", "sentries of the last cosmos" and "unmasked". I have all my power puffs, outlaw star, sailor moon, tenchi, gundam wing, dexter's lab, everything on slp. Oh well, you live you learn. but i'm sure they will be fine for a while anyway, hopefully in like 20 years ill be rich and can afford to buy them all on dvd, cause i sure as hell cant afford to buy them on dvd now. peace!

[Psycho Fox]

Originally posted by DerekPowers
i think you guys are starting to convince me to start taping in SP, but then i'd have WAY too many vhs tapes lying around. It sucks cause i basically taped every cartoon i tape on slp, which includes btas, stas, and my bb collection, of which i'm only missing "once burned", "sentries of the last cosmos" and "unmasked". I have all my power puffs, outlaw star, sailor moon, tenchi, gundam wing, dexter's lab, everything on slp. Oh well, you live you learn. but i'm sure they will be fine for a while anyway, hopefully in like 20 years ill be rich and can afford to buy them all on dvd, cause i sure as hell cant afford to buy them on dvd now. peace! Well as I said you could pay someone to burn your collection onto DVD for you

[Calhoun07]

You know, in the not too distant future, you will be able to download TV programs and movies on demand over high speed Internet connections in MPEG4 format, and you will be able to burn them on your DVD-R drive and save your favorite shows that way. It will be here before you know it.

[James Harvey]

Originally posted by DerekPowers
i think you guys are starting to convince me to start taping in SP, but then i'd have WAY too many vhs tapes lying around. It sucks cause i basically taped every cartoon i tape on slp, which includes btas, stas, and my bb collection, of which i'm only missing "once burned", "sentries of the last cosmos" and "unmasked". I have all my power puffs, outlaw star, sailor moon, tenchi, gundam wing, dexter's lab, everything on slp. Oh well, you live you learn. but i'm sure they will be fine for a while anyway, hopefully in like 20 years ill be rich and can afford to buy them all on dvd, cause i sure as hell cant afford to buy them on dvd now. peace!

I have all my stuff taped in SLP, too. I belived in quantity, not quality. My tapes are still holding up., I watch them whenever I can, but not nearly alot as I used to. I got countless tapes. I must've taped about everything I was remotely interested in, even if I don't like it now (ie: Invasion America). I have a huge stack of them in my room in the corner. A huge stack.

[DerekPowers]

i hear ya man. when i came home from college for the summer, i had like two huge boxes of cartoons i taped (cause i didnt have time to catch them during school, plus i just wanted a huge collection) and pirated anime i got in china town. Now, had i taped on SP, good god, i dont even want to think about how many boxes of tapes i'd have. i think i'll start taping my favorites on SP, like btas, and tape the toons i'm just sort of like on SLP. peace.

[James Harvey]

As soon as I get those BATMAN DVDs I'll likely just pack up my BTAS tapes and put them in the attic or basement, or maybe pass them on (or pay it forward...heh). The tapes still hold up, too. Even one from 1992 isn't all that bad looking.

[Calhoun07]

So, uh, DG, interested in trading off any of those old tapes of yours? I don't know exactly what I could offer in trade, but I figured the worst you could tell me was no!

[Calhoun07]

Originally posted by DerekPowers
i hear ya man. when i came home from college for the summer, i had like two huge boxes of cartoons i taped (cause i didnt have time to catch them during school, plus i just wanted a huge collection) and pirated anime i got in china town. Now, had i taped on SP, good god, i dont even want to think about how many boxes of tapes i'd have. i think i'll start taping my favorites on SP, like btas, and tape the toons i'm just sort of like on SLP. peace.

Stuff I feel I will watch more than a few times, and in years to come, I will tape at SP. If it is just cuz I didn't get to see it and had to set the timer or something, and I don't plan on hanging on to it forever, SLP is fine, too. One thing I wish I had on my VCR was the ability to record at EP, the four hour speed. I'd do everything at EP if I could.

[James Harvey]

Originally posted by calhoun07
So, uh, DG, interested in trading off any of those old tapes of yours? I don't know exactly what I could offer in trade, but I figured the worst you could tell me was no!
Possibly. Next time ya see me on AIM bring it up and just take it from there. LP is pretty good,. It's not 100% great, but it does look nice fior along time. I may have accidently taped some BATMAN episodes on LP. Man, I got so many tapes it's ridiculous.

[Calhoun07]

Ok, sounds good.

[James Harvey]

No problem.

[Mr. Eye]

Yeah I have a lot of tapes too. Easily over 300. Almost all of them are extended play (6 hours). It would be too much if I could only tape 4 episodes onto one tape. Currently I tape Futurama, Family Guy, Simpsons and I'll get the Buffy repeats in the fall (I don't nornally tape live-action shows, but this I have to)

Mr. Eye

[Calhoun07]

I have ALOT of Star Trek episodes on VHS tape. Once they get those out on DVD, I will beable to free up quite a bit space on my shelves.

[Sveven Dvorking]

I record almost all my TV shows in SLP. I don't believe in this "quality lasting" stuff. Hey, I get three times as much tape for my money! (compared to someone who uses SP)