We aim to provide a quality service for each media format,
with the target playback devices being PCs, Home media servers or portable
media players. It is an increasing trend to do away with physical media and
just store / view the data completely digitally. To illustrate, would you
think about transferring your LPs to CD or to MP3? Actually we do both, but
MP3 is the most preferred option. Similarly for Video Tapes, will DVD or
MPEG2 be the long term format of choice?
By offering Digital files as the default option, we can
save time thus keep our prices down. The extra charge covers the time and
the costs of producing & writing the MPEG2 files to DVDs. Also consider
this, in a few years time you won't need to pay to get your Home DVDs
ripped to digital for your home Multimedia server as they are already on
your PCs hard drive.
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Why do you charge extra for VCD/DVD covers?
Rather than including this for "free" we have lower prices
to focus on delivering a quality Digital conversion service. Selecting an
appropriate image, editing titles and printing the optical disc cover all
takes time and this is what the extra charge is for.
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Is the quality as good as the original?
Yes, and sometimes better. By using video equipment feeding
analogue capture cards, through video cleaning hardware, we can control and
adjust the quality, brightness, colour, etc. as the video is converted to
digital. This extra flexibility gives us a distinct advantage over a Tape
player to a DVD recorder setup. If you would like to see the difference, send
us a tape and we’ll capture a few minutes so you can see the results. Please call 0191 6402095 / 01228 808195 or
email
sales@multimediaconvert.co.uk to make arrangements.
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Is there anything that cannot be converted?
Commercial VHS tapes sometimes contain a copy protection
scheme called Macrovision. This and UK law prevents copies being made of
copyrighted material compared to the USA where you can make
copies for personal purposes. We will not convert commercial material until
such a time that the law is updated to reflect the increasing trend of using
Digitized media for personal use. In addition to commercial tapes we will
not attempt to convert damaged tapes.
We currently try to cover the majority of popular
formats and constantly review / upgrade our hardware to meet customer
requirements. If the capability is not listed on the web site, please
call or drop us an email, perhaps it is in the planning and with
sufficient demand it will be developed.
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How long will the conversion take?
This depends on 2 factors, 1) Number of video hours to be
captured; and 2) the
options required. Each tape has to be individually played back and post
processed accordingly. As a guideline, 1 hour of video can take about 4
hours for a DVD production. Therefore plan on it taking about a week for
most typical orders (a few tapes). If you decide to go
ahead, we will provide you with a formal quotation and estimated delivery
date.
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Will the DVDs play in my DVD player?
DVDs can be produced on DVD-R or +R format discs. DVD-R is
the mostly widely accepted format (>95% compatibility) and hence is the
default format. If you want to be sure, we can send you your first
tape on DVD to try before committing the rest of the tapes. It is a simple matter to change to +R format before writing the
discs, but one for which we must charge if it is requested after
production.
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Can I try before I buy?
Absolutely, please do! Send us a tape and we’ll capture
a few minutes so you can see the results. At the end of the day we want you to
be happy, and hopefully you will then recommend us to your family and
friends. Please call 0191 6402095 / 01228 808195 or
email
sales@multimediaconvert.co.uk to make arrangements.
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If I decide to go ahead, what happens next?
Just call to arrange a collection time for your multimedia.
Meanwhile please label up the tapes so that we can name the files, DVDs etc.
to match. If requested, we can test run several minutes to provide you with
samples to help determine your preferred options for the order. Samples of
these Test runs will be sent to you, and after your review,
we will go ahead with the order. Once the order is complete, we will
contact you to make payment arrangements and for return delivery.
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