billb@teklabs.UUCP (Bill Beran) (10/26/84)
About six months ago I bought a Beta Hi-Fi portable vcr primarily for making video tapes of Josh the baby. I decided on Beta because of the purported better picture quality and tape handling, as well as the fact that Beta was the only Hi-Fi system available then. As a side note, in support of that decision, I have been very pleased with the picture quality both in home made video tapes as well as rented movies. The Hi-Fi audio recording and playback capability in my opinion is nothing short of astounding! I have yet to record any of my friend Jimmy's CD stuff, but it is on the schedule. I try to rent Beta Hi-Fi movies whenever I can, because the sound is so fantastic. Subjectively, I guess I feel that the quality is not quite as good as CD, but I think it's the next best thing. Eventually we will do an A/B comparison. I recently wrote for a catalog from a company called *Direct-to- Tape Recording Company*. They sell a small listing of mostly classical recordings digitally mastered on Sony PCM equipment. They record your purchase to order, on the format of your choice. They offer PCM digital cassettes (Beta or VHS), reel to reel (2 track,4-track,etc. etc.), standard audio cassettes in a variety of tapes including metal shell, and last but not least, Beta Hi-Fi! (whew!). If I didn't want the recording capability and the portability, I think I would have chosen a CD player for best audio quality. The video capability also clouds the issue. In any event, I am very pleased so far with the audio quality of the Beta Hi-Fi. For reference, I am a serious hobbyist musician, a physicist by profession, and a Silverear (-: Bill Beran Imaging Research Lab Tektronix {decvax,ucbvax} !tektronix!teklabs!billb
sabol@reed.UUCP (Bryan Sabol) (10/30/84)
> I try to rent Beta Hi-Fi > movies whenever I can, because the sound is so fantastic. I was wondering if any of you had info on the differences between VHS and Beta tapes. Specifically, what are the benefits of each? This is what I have so far: -I own a VHS deck (RCA) and have enjoyed it immensely. I (and my family) spent many hours viewing movie rentals on it; but when we go to the shops to see the selection, Beta is almost non-existant. I know it's better quality, but when you're in the market to watch movies, the real bargain is VHS. -Is it possible that this large discrepency is only a local problem (I habit in Portland & Eugene, Or.)? Are Midwestern and Eastern cities a different story? From catalogues of corperate companies, it has seemed that VHS has Beta beat by a huge nuber of movie availability. -Local stores now more than not specialize in renting VHS movies. Only a miniscule amount of the total retailers even bother with the poor tape. Also, what is the structural difference between the two types of tapes that makes such a difference in quality of reporduction? Thanx for the time, Bryan (Reed College)