Subject: Re: Deck as Frame Recorder
From: Andrew Hofman <[email-masked]>
To: [email-masked]
Date: Tue, 27 Feb 1996 08:45:11 -0800

>Does anyone know what would be a reasonable price to pay for a USED
>rs-422/rs-232 controlable S-VHS or BetaCam recording Deck? And furthermore
>which brands/models sould one look for. I'm thinking of putting together a
>frame by frame recording system for LW animations.
>
>dimitri
>[email-masked]
>

I'm telling you, avoid it if at all possible. I've been there, done that and
it really SUCKS, big time. I cannot emphasize this strongly enough. It
impacts not only getting a finished animation onto tape, but the creative
process itself when you try to see what your works-in-progress look like. Do
yourself a favor and get a used PAR, along with a used deck. Avoid at all
costs buying an SVHS deck for animation layoff. It will be a severe limiting
factor in trying to get larger clients. Get prices on a 3/4"SP machine or a
pre-SP Betacam machine. With pre-SP Betacam, you're still getting pretty
excellent quality in a machine that's built like a tank. And they sell for
far, far less than a used BetaSP deck. Possibly less than a new UVW deck. Or
you may indeed want to consider a UVW. Then again, if you at least have a
PAR or PVR, you can always rent a portable BetaSP deck for an hour or two. 

Andy Hofman
LumaQuest Productions           
Animation and Dual Raptor 3 Rendering  
[email-masked]
513-643-7333