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Reflective Observer
Reflective Observer

22 Followers

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Sep 7

How LX.TV killed LX News

Television network you have never heard of — LX News has shut down. You may be wondering, “LX News, what is that, and why should I care?” LX News was a news brand, one could even call it a news network. It was launched in 2019 on YouTube and on its own website, and was…

News

8 min read

How LX.TV killed LX News
How LX.TV killed LX News
News

8 min read


Jul 6

The format war that Beta has won

In 1975 the “fantastically lightweight” Ikegami HL-35 camera weighed 12 pounds — this was the camera head only. The backpack with the camera control unit was another 22 pounds.

Beta

16 min read

The format war that Beta has won
The format war that Beta has won
Beta

16 min read


Apr 25

San Francisco in VHS

Recently I went to San Francisco, and I took a camcorder with me. But not an HD camcorder, which I used when I went to “Baghdad by the Bay” more than a decade ago, but a thirty-year old VHS camcorder. I thought it would be fun. I went for three…

Vhs

5 min read

San Francisco in VHS
San Francisco in VHS
Vhs

5 min read


Mar 20

How to transfer video from a MiniDV camcorder to a computer via USB

DV video, launched in 1995, democratized digital video recording and editing. It came bundled with a transfer protocol that allowed to copy one tape to another or to upload it on a computer without loss. This communication protocol is officially called IEEE-1394, but is better known as Firewire or i.Link…

USB

4 min read

How to transfer video from a MiniDV camcorder to a computer via USB
How to transfer video from a MiniDV camcorder to a computer via USB
USB

4 min read


Jan 25

What is a time base corrector?

The world of television and broadcast-quality video changed forever in 1973 with the introduction of the digital time-base corrector (TBC). Two American companies — Consolidated Video Systems and Television Microtime — announced similar products almost simultaneously. With the digital wide-windowed time base corrector one “could take…

Vi̇deo

5 min read

What is a time base corrector?
What is a time base corrector?
Vi̇deo

5 min read


Dec 29, 2022

Rock Video Monthly: a short history

Rock Video Monthly was a subscription service, inaugurated by Warner Music Enterprises in October 1992. For $3/mo you would receive a videocassette with ten new releases in a chosen genre every month. For perspective, MTV, which Warner sold to Viacom in 1985, did not originally pay…

Vhs

5 min read

Rock Video Monthly: a short history
Rock Video Monthly: a short history
Vhs

5 min read


Dec 26, 2022

Mitsubishi HS-MD3000 medical VCR

This VCR has all the features of a high end consumer-grade machine like Super-VHS capability with Expansion Technology, Hi-Fi audio, jog dial for accurate playback and editing, flying erase head, digital Y/C separation, digital noise reduction. It also has an RS-232 connector and a USB port. For someone who wants…

Vhs

5 min read

Mitsubishi HS-MD3000 medical VCR
Mitsubishi HS-MD3000 medical VCR
Vhs

5 min read


Dec 14, 2022

Diamond Multimedia VC500 analog-to-digital AV converter

For quite a while I was considering testing the current generation of Pinnacle Dazzle analog to digital converter. I have a 2006 Pinnacle Dazzle DVC100, and I have been interested in how current product is different from the one Pinnacle released 16 years ago. Last year it was on sale…

Vhs

4 min read

Diamond Multimedia VC500 analog-to-digital AV converter
Diamond Multimedia VC500 analog-to-digital AV converter
Vhs

4 min read


Nov 27, 2022

How to set bias on a cassette deck

Here is a question to fellow tapeheads: do you know what is a bias adjust knob? Do you use it? Do you think it helps? Let’s find out! First, what is bias? It is high-frequency current that shakes up the particles of…

Cassette

6 min read

How to set bias on a cassette deck
How to set bias on a cassette deck
Cassette

6 min read


Oct 28, 2022

Shooting movies at 24p HD in the 1970s

In 2002 George Lucas made history, shooting the first major Hollywood blockbuster on video. It is less known that thirty years earlier, the Hollywood was already making feature movies using 24p HD. In 1971, Image…

Filmmaking

5 min read

Shooting movies at 24p HD in the 1970s
Shooting movies at 24p HD in the 1970s
Filmmaking

5 min read

Reflective Observer

Reflective Observer

22 Followers

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