Using Roxio Easy VHS to DVD to Transfer All Types of Videos

If you are like me, you have a lot of family videos on VHS tapes, 8mm tapes, and MiniDV tapes. You may also have some old 8mm reel to reel movies. But, if you are like me, you have no way to play them or share them with others. I had been searching for a way to digitize all these videos because I wanted to preserve these memories for my family. We I finally found the solution! I have been digitizing VHS, 8mm, MiniDV, and 8mm reel to reel. We will talk about transferring the reel to reel tapes in another post, because we use different equipment than we do for the other formats.

First of all, you need to have a way to play the videos – a VCR and/or an old video camera in the format you need. You can sometimes find old camcorders on eBay if yours no longer works. You cannot digitize your movies if you can’t play them in their original format.

Next, you will need video transfer software and cables. After doing research, I decided that the Roxio Easy VHS to DVD Plus was the best   option. Not only does it have capture software, but it also has the cable you need to connect it to your playback device. NOTE: You will still need RCA cables (the one with yellow/red/white connectors). You can also use a S-video cable, but you will still need the red/white RCA cables to capture the sound.

The package comes with a DVD to install the software, but you can also go to the Roxio website and download it. This is the better option because then your software is the most up to date version. Install the software, following the prompts on your screen. You are now ready to digitize!

Connect your playback device to the RCA cables, then attach the other end to the capture cable that comes with your software. Plug this device into a USB port on your computer. Turn on your playback device. I have found that is it better to plug in a camcorder rather than rely on the battery power. This process records the video in real time, so you don’t want your camcorder to die halfway through.

Before you start, you may want to think about how you want to organize your videos. Do you want to record an entire tape or individual events? I found that if I record individual events it is easier to find what you are looking for and to share with family. You don’t need to give someone video of your sons soccer game, when all they wanted was video from a birthday party. It is not hard to record segments. You can either record snippets as you go, or record the entire video then cut it into smaller segments. If you don’t have time to sit and watch the video as you are recording, it is easier to record the whole video. Then when you open it in the Roxio software, you can quickly forward to the part you want, make some cuts and there you go! Your original recording is still intact so you can edit it again and again.

I am going to attach some screen shots to show you the process of editing a video that you have already captured. This is the same process you will use when you record from your VCR or camcorder.

But instead of importing a video, it will just appear on your screen when you start playback on your device – so be ready to hit the record button!

When you start the software, this is the page you will see. In addition to video, you can also capture audio. But right now we are going to focus just on video. Click on the video button and select ‘start a new project’. This will bring you to the capture screen.    

NOTE: Make sure you adjust the aspect ratio for the type of video you are recording. For the most part, older videos (before wide screen tv’s) are recorded in a 4:3 aspect, wide screen in 16:9. If you record a 4:3 video in 16:9 aspect, everything will look squatty.

This is where you will either start capturing from your device or import a video to edit. If you choose to import a video, click the ‘import video’ button on the lower right of the screen. You will then select a video from your computer. It will open in the black portion and you can begin editing.

Below the video, there is a progress bar. The top of the bar has a white slider with a ball on top. Move this to find the spot you want in the video. At either end of the bar, on the bottom, are some gray markers. When you select the portion of the video you want to cut, you will slide these gray markers to the white slider.

This will indicate a cut point. You can cut the video from both ends to get the exact segment you want.

When you have the part you want to save, click on the ‘next button’. This will take you to the processing screen. You will choose what format you want to save your video to – file or DVD. I like to save my videos as MP4 files. They are easy to share on a flash drive or via Google Drive.

Because this software doesn’t save the videos in the MP4 format as a default, I will show you how to do it.

Click on the file icon to choose that format. You will then click on ‘advanced’. Here you will choose ‘extension’ from the top drop down box, and then MP4 from the second drop down. You are now ready to export your video. Processing takes some time, so if you are exporting a large video, go for a walk or read a book. It depends on the video, but I processed a 45 minute video and it took 35 minutes. Converting your videos is not fast by any means.

There are companies that will digitize your movies for you. But I wanted to do it my self so I could organize them, plus I worried about sending my only copies to some unknown place. This process is time consuming, especially if you have a lot of videos. But it is so worth it!  Seeing my family laugh as they watch movies from decades ago is worth the time invested.