From: brown@vidiot.UUCP (Vidiot)
Newsgroups: rec.video
Subject: Re: * What kind of VCR will do single frame recording?
Date: 22 Jul 92 18:08:03 GMT
Reply-To: brown@vidiot.UUCP (Vidiot)
Distribution: usa
Organization: Vidiot's Hangout

In article <Brr3y0.L01@ux1.cso.uiuc.edu> gardner@ux1.cso.uiuc.edu (Mike Gardner) writes:
<brown@vidiot.UUCP (Vidiot) writes:
<
<>In article <1992Jul20.141045.1917@njitgw.njit.edu> meg5184@hertz.njit.edu (Starman) writes:
<><Howdy,
<><	I'm looking for a VCR (preferably S-VHS for now) which will do
<><single frame recording. Perhaps in the format of:
<><	Record a frame
<><	Preroll 7 seconds
<><	Play/record a frame
<><	....etc.
<><
<><Any suggestions? I'm not looking to spend $10,000 (AAAAhHHHH!)..more
<><like the $1000-$2000 price range. Thanx.
<
<>You gotta be kidding, right?  No machine with that kind of capability is
<>going to be that cheap.  Your first price was closer.  Maybe a little high,
<>but better than $2k.  I only know of pro-decks with that ability, and then
<>if you are looking for a particular frame, then you need SMPTE time code,
<>which adds about $1k to the price (if not included are part of the deck).
<
<NO we aren't kidding.  All a machine needs is VITC capability and a little
<more internal control software.  If it remembered the "number" of the last
<frame record, it could back up for preroll and record 1-n frames at the
<next position.  Certainly with consumer grade transport such a system would
<wear out from heavy use, but there are a LOT of us with the need to do
<a few hundred or even a few thousand frames per year.  Once this first
<deck wears out, I can afford to go buy a REAL transport, with SMPTE etc.
<This is much more a marketing decision than a capability decision, with
<the end result keeping a lot of people from bootstrapping themselves into
<animation markets.

Adding anything to the VCR to provide servo control from an external driver,
will add to the cost of the VCR.  Current consumer decks that have some kind
of shuttle transport are already near $1k.  Adding timecode capabilities
turns the VCR into a pro-deck, at least as far as manufacturers are concerned.
Pro decks cost much more, since they toughen up the transport a little bit
(at least I hope they do) and add the electronics for editing control (if it
is an editing deck).  I don't even know of a pro deck that can self edit,
even if it does have time code built in.  Normally the time code goes to an
outside editing controller, which in turn makes the deck do things.

Nope, I can see a deck like this costing around $4k, not $2k.  Apparently
the VCR manufacturers don't believe there is a market for the kind of deck you
want.  If you go talk to them now, they will point you to their pro-series
decks.  I've done single frame editing with my 3/4" Umatic-SP deck.  A very
slow process, considering the low-ball editing controller that I have.

Keep in mind that the electronics would have to be added to work with the 
VITC code.  You'd have to be able to enter a value.  All of that electronics
is going to cost $$$.


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