Sima CT-1 & CT-2 "Copy This"

[zeszut]

I'm not sure if this is an appropriate post to this site. If it is not, then I apologize.

My stand-alone DVD player died a few weeks ago and I purchased a Lite-On DVD player/recorder as a replacement (it has RCA A/V inputs). I have had great experience with their computer burners so had no qualms about buying a stand-alone burner from them.

I bought it with the thought of transfering my small collection of VHS tapes to video. This collection includes some home videos (which themselves are transfers from old 1950s-1960s 8mm), taped TV programs and a variety of tapes from the 1980s. The 80s tapes are commercially released tapes of the lectures of Joseph Campbell (who some of you may know was a friend of and influenced George Lucas in his original Star Wars conceptions).

Anyway, I've been waiting for these to be re-released on DVD but it appears that they won't be. So, I'd like to back them up to DVDs - after all, they are going on 20 years old.

I was at MicroCenter today and purchased an item by SIMA called "Copy This" (#CT-1) which purportes to be a "video stabilizer" for such a transfer. It also is supposed to remove the copy protection problem with such a transfer. I haven't opened it yet because I see on the web that there are actually 2 devices by SIMA for this purpose - CT-1 and CT-2. Unfortunately, the articles on them don't compare them and I'm afraid I may have bought the wrong item for my purposes.

Has anyone had experience with either of these? If so, what's the difference between the two?

Thanks in advance,

Terry

[jggimi]

A search for CT-2 found this (http://forum.doom9.org/showthread.php?s=&threadid=76292&highlight=ct2).

[zeszut]

Thanks for the link.

But has anyone used the CT-1? Can anyone explain the difference between the CT-1 and the CT-2?

[jggimi]

Have you looked to www.simacorp.com for assistance? Their home web page describes the main differences, and there are links to product information and technical support, should you want it.

[zeszut]

Thanks.

Yes I have. I originally thought the CT-1 would only go VCR>DVD whereas the CT-2 would go VCR>DVD and DVD>DVD (which I don't need).

However, both manuals indicate that the input can be VHS, DVD or camcorder and the output can be VCR or DVD. I'm just confused.

This is why I'm looking form someone who has used either or both of these items.

[Sergei_Esenin]

The only difference seems to be that the more expensive model has a brightness/contrast adjustment. This should be done on a PC anyway, not a cheap device mucking with the signal. Neither is a true full-frame TBC, they're just macrovision strippers.

[zeszut]

Thanks.

Unfortunately, I did buy a Dazzle 150 Video Converter with Pinnacle Studio 9. I had it for 3 weeks and was driven crazy by the inconsistent results. 90% of the time the resulting mpeg2 file was out-of-sync. I checked out Pinnacle's website and their user forum. It seems this o-o-s problem has been going on for over a year.

I thought this Sima device might solve my problem. I guess it can't. I'm at a loss as how to transfer these old tapes to dvd.

Any (inexpensive) suggestions?

[Backwoods]

The CT-2 will get rid of your Macrovision problem. I've used one, so I personally know it will work.

[zeszut]

Well, I opened and connected the CT-1.

It works find and by-passes the copy restriction but I do get about 10 "lines" at the top of the screen where the picture flutters to the right and left erratically.

I don't know if this is a problem the more expensive item CT-2 would address or if it is a general problem.

Is there is a way to get rid of this?

Should I return the CT-1 and get the more expensive CT-2 instead?

Thanks.

[Sergei_Esenin]

As I said, there appears to be *no difference* between the two devices except the brightness/contrast adjustment on the more expensive one. Neither is a true full-frame Time Base Corrector (TBC), which as I mentioned in your other thread is the only device that *might* fix your tape problem, short of uprading to an S-VHS VCR with a built-in TBC.

Alternatively you can crop the wavy lines out in Virtualdub/Avisynth.

[Arachnotron]

Even a S-VHS with TBC will not fix head-switching noise completely, though it does clean it up a bit. :(

[Backwoods]

Originally posted by Sergei_Esenin
As I said, there appears to be *no difference* between the two devices except the brightness/contrast adjustment on the more expensive one. Neither is a true full-frame Time Base Corrector (TBC), which as I mentioned in your other thread is the only device that *might* fix your tape problem, short of uprading to an S-VHS VCR with a built-in TBC.

Alternatively you can crop the wavy lines out in Virtualdub/Avisynth.

The CT2 will remove Macrovision better than CT1. The brightness/contrast knobs are an excuse for the item. Where the CT1 fails, the CT2 worked. Be it older/newer VHS tapes or DVDs, it works better than the CT1.

http://www.pricegrabber.com/search_getprod.php?masterid=2406624&search=sima+CT2

[Sergei_Esenin]

Originally posted by Backwoods
The CT2 will remove Macrovision better than CT1. The brightness/contrast knobs are an excuse for the item. Where the CT1 fails, the CT2 worked. Be it older/newer VHS tapes or DVDs, it works better than the CT1.

http://www.pricegrabber.com/search_getprod.php?masterid=2406624&search=sima+CT2

Again, Macrovision is no longer his problem, VHS headswitching distortion is and the CT2 will give him *no* improvement. None. A true full-frame TBC or an S-VHS VCR with a full-field TBC will most likely give some improvement, but how much depends on how much of the distortion is caused by playback of the source, and how much was actually a part of the source when recorded.

[zeszut]

Thanks for all your responses.

I dug up a few VHS movies until I found one with copy protection. The CT-1 bypassed this with no problem and the flutter does not always appear. It seems to depend on the tape.

So I guess some tapes will never be able to be copies.

Thanks again,

Terry