myers@hpfcdj.HP.COM (Bob Myers) (01/29/91)
>How difficult would it be to modify an old VCR to play and record tapes in the >PAL format? Damned near impossible. It would be the electronic equivalent of jacking up the radiator cap and sliding a new car underneath. You'd be better off just getting a PAL (or multi-mode) VCR and TV. (Note that the line rate, etc., aren't compatible with U.S. TVs, either, so just a PAL VCR isn't going to make you any better off than you are now. Bob Myers KC0EW HP Graphics Tech. Div.| Opinions expressed here are not Ft. Collins, Colorado | those of my employer or any other myers@fc.hp.com | sentient life-form on this planet.
ccsmcs@ufhx1.ufh.ac.za (Mark Stobbs) (01/31/91)
ceaves@pps2-po.phyp.uiowa.edu (Cory A Eaves) writes: >How difficult would it be to modify an old VCR to play and record tapes in the >PAL format? >I get tapes from New Zealand which cost $20/hour to translate. It wouldn't take >a lot of these to pay for a machine of my own. >Thanks in advance. >-- >ceaves@pps2-po.phyp.uiowa.edu (Just call me Cory) I would be interested in doing the opposite (NTSC to Pal). Any suggestions? -- | Mark Stobbs | | Computer Centre | | University of Fort Hare, South Africa | | ccsmcs@ufhx1.ufh.ac.za |
rambler@pnet51.orb.mn.org (Dan Meyer) (02/01/91)
myers@hpfcdj.HP.COM (Bob Myers) writes: >>How difficult would it be to modify an old VCR to play and record tapes in the >>PAL format? > >Damned near impossible. It would be the electronic equivalent of jacking up >the radiator cap and sliding a new car underneath. > >You'd be better off just getting a PAL (or multi-mode) VCR and TV. (Note >that the line rate, etc., aren't compatible with U.S. TVs, either, so just >a PAL VCR isn't going to make you any better off than you are now. > > > >Bob Myers KC0EW HP Graphics Tech. Div.| Opinions expressed here are not > Ft. Collins, Colorado | those of my employer or any other >myers@fc.hp.com | sentient life-form on this planet. O Really? I was under the impression that a standard US tv could pick up european transmissions under the proper "skip" conditions. Of course, the aspect ratio would be wrong, and there would be no color, but the picture _would_ be viewable. Am I incorrect? -- Dan Meyer N0KFB Remember: " Buffalo never Oink " Seen on a South Dakota travel brocure. Advertisment: Try the Railway Post Office , a railfan BBS ! (612) 377-2197. UUCP: {crash tcnet}!orbit!pnet51!rambler ARPA: crash!orbit!pnet51!rambler@nosc.mil INET: rambler@pnet51.orb.mn.org
squishy@casbah.acns.nwu.edu (Shishin Yamada) (02/02/91)
A few years ago while in Japan, there was a new VCR from Hitachi which could do format transfers. I believe it was menat for semi-professional work and work send/receive and record in NTSC-J,M (Japan & US), SECAM, and PAL. It also had a built in autoranging voltage power supply (independent of line frequency too). It sounded amazing to me at the time (I was just looking for a converter for American NTSC-M to Japanese NTSC-J. Just their channel frequencies are off. Japan makes their channel 6 and 7 contiguous and moves their FM band elsewhere. The US has it's FM radio band inbetween TV channel 6 and 7 frequencies for some odd reason. Evectually, I just ran direct audio/video into a new NTSC-J RF modulator to make life easy). Anyways, I think this VCR sold for the $900 price range for VHS videotapes. I remember seeing two similar models (one may have been a rack mount version, or there may have been a separate PAL/SECAM version. They both would support NTSC). I would contact a Hitachi Sales Repesentative for more details. Sorry, but I don't remember the model numbers. -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Shishin "Squish" Yamada Northwestern Unviersity squishy@casbah.acns.nwu.edu Electrical Engineering Class of 1991!!!! --------------------------------------------------------------------------
dam@cs.glasgow.ac.uk (David Morning) (02/04/91)
In article <3956@orbit.cts.com> rambler@pnet51.orb.mn.org (Dan Meyer) writes: ]myers@hpfcdj.HP.COM (Bob Myers) writes: ]>>How difficult would it be to modify an old VCR to play and record tapes in the ]>>PAL format? ]> ]>Damned near impossible. It would be the electronic equivalent of jacking up ]>the radiator cap and sliding a new car underneath. ]> ]>You'd be better off just getting a PAL (or multi-mode) VCR and TV. (Note ]>that the line rate, etc., aren't compatible with U.S. TVs, either, so just ]>a PAL VCR isn't going to make you any better off than you are now. ]> ] ]O Really? I was under the impression that a standard US tv could pick up ]european transmissions under the proper "skip" conditions. Of course, the ]aspect ratio would be wrong, and there would be no color, but the picture ]_would_ be viewable. Am I incorrect? ] I would seriously doubt this given that the European verticle sync is 50 Hz interlaced against NTSCs 60Hz. I'm not absolutely certain how the innards of a video work but would strongly suspect that the V. sync lock on a 60Hz machine just wouldn't have the range to lock to 50Hz. The line scan frequency would probably be different too since European is 625 lines against 500 and something for NTSC. Then there's the problem with colour. I think you would end up with a very messy picture indeed. Dave
myers@hpfcdj.HP.COM (Bob Myers) (02/05/91)
>>You'd be better off just getting a PAL (or multi-mode) VCR and TV. (Note >>that the line rate, etc., aren't compatible with U.S. TVs, either, so just >>a PAL VCR isn't going to make you any better off than you are now. >O Really? I was under the impression that a standard US tv could pick up >european transmissions under the proper "skip" conditions. Of course, the >aspect ratio would be wrong, and there would be no color, but the picture >_would_ be viewable. Am I incorrect? Yes, you're incorrect. Actually, YOU may be quite correct, but your idea as presented above generally isn't! :-) The horizontal sweep frequency used in PAL or SECAM transmissions is fairly close to the NTSC standard of 15734 Hz, but the vertical is only 50 Hz as opposed to our 60 Hz (actually, since the advent of color, 59.94 Hz). Most sets won't lock onto something that far off their intended frequency. If they do, then you should get about what you said - a funny-shaped picture with no color. (I'm not certain what effect the PAL color encoding would have on an NTSC receiver, but it sure wouldn't be the RIGHT color in any event! Since the whole intent of the original poster was to record or playback PAL broadcasts, presumably in color, the recommendation for a PAL compatible set still stands. Bob Myers KC0EW HP Graphics Tech. Div.| Opinions expressed here are not Ft. Collins, Colorado | those of my employer or any other myers@fc.hp.com | sentient life-form on this planet.
freed@adobe.com (Alex Freed) (02/07/91)
I used to design some PAL circuits ( color decoders etc.) so I want to add a few comments: 1. Most TV's will lock on 50 HZ. 2. PAL signal will not activate color circuits in an NTSC TV because the color carrier ( and reference burst) are at 4.43 MHz rather than 3.58 MHz. 3. There is a company in Florida called Instant Replay that make VCR's capable of playing back PAL tapes ( and SECAM too) on an NTSC TV. Still if you want a new TV, it will be cheaper to get a multisystem one and the quality will be much better too.