Foreign Video / DVD Conversion
What is "Standards Conversion"?
Many people are unpleasantly surprised to come home
from a trip abroad and find that video tapes or DVD's
purchased or recorded by foreign friends will not play
in American VCRs and DVD players. Video signals can be
recorded in a large number of different standards even
though the basic tape shell (VHS, 8mm, VHS-C, Etc.) or
DVD is the same. The only thing that can be done in
this case (other than throw the tape out or send it
back) is to convert the tape or DVD to our video
standard. This process is called 'Standards Conversion'
and is a rather complicated process. The video signal
must be broken down into a digital form and
reconstructed into the other standard of play. This
requires highly specialized equipment and is expensive.
Quality/Affordability
The good news is that the quality is gradually getting
better and the price is coming down. Twenty years ago,
this service cost $100 to $200 per hour of video running
time. It is much more reasonable now. Unfortunately, the
finished product still often has a grainy look to it and
the color is sometimes weak.
Available Formats
We can convert back and forth between nearly any
standards. The American standard is called NTSC. Foreign
Video Formats are generally of the PAL or SECAM variety,
there being several sub-categories of each.
We can convert any NTSC format (VHS, VHS-C, 8mm, Hi8,
etc.) to PAL or SECAM in a VHS size. We can likewise
convert any PAL or SECAM in VHS size to NTSC in any
format. If a PAL or SECAM tape is in any other size than
VHS or needs to be converted to any other size than VHS,
additional charges will apply and additional time will
be needed.
When converting a tape to PAL or SECAM, it is imperative
that you tell us which country the tape will be sent to
as there are several variations that could apply.
| Pricing |
| Standard Conversion (2 hour max.) |
25.00 |
| Each additional hour |
5.00 |
| Sizes other than VHS |
call for quote |
| Additional copies of same video to PAL/Secam |
15.00 |
| Additional copies PAL/Secam to NTSC |
charged at regular
duplication prices |
If you have any questions or would like more
information, please call us at 828-258-3674 or
800-786-0154,
email us, or use our
online request form.
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