VIDEO TAPE FORMATS

VIDEO TAPE FORMATS
By Stephen DaVega
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AMPEX (quadraplex format) is an acronym, created by
its founder, Alexander M. Pontiaff. It actually stands for (A)lexander (M).
(P)oniatoff (Ex)cellence. Poniatoff's company was established in San Carlos,
California in 1944 as the Ampex Electric and Manufacturing Company. Now
Ampex Corporation is the parent company of Ampex Data Systems which
manufactures digital archiving systems, principally for the broadcast industry.
Ampex became a leader in magnetic recording technology, in both sound and
video. Ampex was not a recording format, per se, but the company that invented
the quadruplex format that dominated the broadcast industry for decades.
The format was licensed to RCA (Radio Corporation of America) for use in their
"television tape recorders" and Ampex's invention revolutionized the television
industry by eliminating the kinescope process of archiving television programs on
motion picture film (at least in the U.S.; in Britain, the BBC and most of the ITV
companies continued to use kinescoping alongside videotape until the late
1960s; in most developing countries, many television broadcasters continued to
use kinescoping alongside videotape until the mid-1970s).
The Ampex broadcast video tape recorder also facilitated time-zone broadcast
delay so that networks could air programming at the same hour in various time
zones.
One of the key engineers in the development of the quadruplex video recorder
for Ampex was Ray Dolby, who went on to form Dolby Laboratories, a pioneer in
audio noise reduction systems.
The first magnetically-recorded time-delayed network television program using
the new Ampex Quadruplex recording system was CBS's "Douglas Edwards and
the News" on November 30, 1956. CBSs first color logo, which debuted in the fall
of 1965.
Since the early 1950s, Bing Crosby and others tried to record video on very fastmoving
magnetic tape. One semi-successful attempt was the BBC's VERA
format.
Only Ampex had the wisdom to rotate the heads at high speed and keep tape
movement slow. The "Quad" head assembly has 4 heads that rotate at 14,400

pm. They write the video vertically across the width of a tape that is 2 inches (5
cm) wide and runs at 15" (38cm) per second. This allows programs of one hour
to be recorded on one reel of tape. But in 1956 one reel of tape cost $300
(equivalent to $2000 in 2004). The machines themselves cost about $75-100,000
(about a half a million dollars today). So the only videotaped archives that exist
are network programs as the typical television station could not afford an Ampex
VTR.
Ampex had trademarked the name "Video Tape", so competitor RCA called the
medium "TV Tape" or "Television Tape". The terms eventually became
genericized, and "videotape" is commonly used today.
In 1948, ABC used an Ampex Model 200 audio recorder for the first-ever U.S.
tape delay radio broadcast of The Bing Crosby Show.
In 1950, Ampex introduced the first "dedicated" instrumentation recorder, Model
500, built for the U.S. Navy.
In 1967, ABC used the Ampex HS-100 disk recorder for playback of slow-motion
downhill skiing on World Series of Skiing in Vail, Colorado. Thus began the use
of slow motion instant replay in sporting events. Also, that year, Ampex
introduced the Ampex VR-3000 portable broadcast video recorder, which
revolutionized the recording of high-quality television in the field, without the need
for long cables and large support vehicles. Broadcast quality images could now
be shot anywhere, including out of airplanes, helicopters and boats.
In 1970, Ampex introduced the ACR-25, the first automated robotic library
system for the recording and playback of television commercials. Each
commercial was recorded on an individual cartridge. These cartridges were then
loaded into large rotating carousels. Using sophisticated mechanics and
compressed air, the "carts" were able to be loaded into and extracted from the
machine at extremely high speed. This allowed TV stations to re-sequence
commercial breaks at a moments notice, adding, deleting and rearranging
commercials at will. The TV newsroom also began to use the ACR-25 to run
news stories because of its random access capability. From the earliest days of
the medium, television has been used as a vehicle for advertising in some
countries. ...
The Ampex video system is now obsolete. Those machines which still survive
have been pressed into service to transfer recordings onto modern digital video
formats.
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8mm: 8mm (official name: Video8) is a type of video cassette recorder and
video tape format originally developed by EIAJ (Electronic Industries Association
of Japan) and others in 1983. 8mm camcorders often are similar to higher priced
HI-8 units, having compact size, image stabilization, and digital zooms. Regular

8mm tapes are the exact size and shape as their HI8 counterparts, but record
video at a lower resolution level, and therefore, are less expensive. 8mm has a
maximum tape length of 120 minutes in SP mode or 240 minutes in LP mode
and has a resolution of up to 270 lines. The video quality is somewhat better than
that of the VHS format. Kodak released its first 8mm camcorder in 1983/84 w/255
lines of resolution. The tapes generally are either 60 minutes or 120 minutes
long.
One of the major drawbacks of the format is that the tapes are incompatible with
VHS VCRs. 8MM (and Hi-8) tapes cannot be put into a standard VHS video
recorder, a common misconception. Because the tape size is different than a
standard VHS tape, it is not possible to make an adapter for the tapes that would
fit in a VHS VCR. There are no adapters to achieve this. They must be
transferred to VHS in order to be viewed on a regular VCR.
8mm is mainly used with video cameras and was until recently one of the
dominant formats for video cameras. 8mm cameras were popular because the
small tape size meant video cameras using this format could be much smaller
than cameras using the VHS format. The tapes are about the size of an audio
cassette, making the format popular for travel when space is at a premium.
There were attempts to move the format over to the home VCR market as a
replacement for VHS tapes. 8mm VCRs were manufactured, and even some
8mm tape versions of some movies were sold. However these attempts were
generally not successful, and until the price of DVDs fell to reasonable levels,
VHS remained the dominant format for home use.
The 8mm video format was standardized in 1984. Sony introduced the
Handycam, one of the first cameras to record on to 8mm video tapes. This type
of camera soon became more popular than the more bulky VHS camcorder.
8mm is still a fairly popular format for video cameras, however it has currently
been superseded by miniDV, also referred to as DV.
It is also worth noting that 8mm tapes (like all videotape) will eventually
deteriorate and lose their recorded contents over time. Tapes that are older than
10 years may start to degrade. Amongst other problems, they can become sticky
and jam playback units or become brittle and snap. It is recommended that
footage archived on the 8mm format, be transferred to miniDV (for future editing)
or DVD (for long term optical archiving).
Like all videotape, 8mm tapes should be stored vertically out of direct sunlight, in
a dry, cool dust free environment.
: HI- 8 originally developed by Sony in 1989, an analog video
recording and playback format for camcorders that uses enhanced 8mm

videocassettes (metal evaporated or metal particle tape). Hi-8 has an
optional second AFM track for stereo sound and a maximum tape length of 120
minutes in SP mode. HI-8 tapes can be bought in 30, 60, and 120-minute
lengths. HI-8 camcorders record their signal at at 415 lines of resolution, slightly
less than Mini DV, but substantially higher than 8mm or regular VHS formats.
Most often, HI-8 camcorders record sound in hi-fi stereo. Slight quality loss is
suffered when copying or editing from HI-8, but a better than average image is
maintained.
Tapes from HI-8 camcorders generally must be played using the camera as the
source, as Hi-8 tape players are rare. which means the user often must connect
cables to their television or VCR.
With 415 lines of horizontal resolution, Hi8 provides superior quality to the
original 270-line 8mm format as well as VHS tape.
DIGITAL8: Digital8 was originally developed by Sony in 1999. Digital8
records the same digital signal as DV onto less expensive Hi8 tapes. Hi-8
camcorders are backwards compatible and play back Video8 and Hi8 tapes. Hi-8
is forwards compatiable as well, able to use 8mm and Hi-8 cassesttes. Digital8
uses DV compression atop the existing Video8/Hi8 technological base. Digital8
records on Video8 or Hi8 tapes, but these run at twice their normal speed and
thus hold half the time listed on the label. Digitlal8 cameras usually have analog
inputs for digitally archiving existing analog footage. Audio is CD-quality. Only
available as camcorders, not decks. is a format that is far superior to HI-8 or
8MM. Digital8 will records up to 500 lines of resolution.
Digital8 will also play back existing Video8 and Hi8 tapes, even over 1394/i.link,
allowing such tapes to be read into NLEs (at least, those for which the lack of
timecode is not an issue -- batch capture utilities are unlikely to work, since
Video8/Hi8 timecodes are not sent across the 1394 connection).
Digital8 is a camcorder-only format as of Spring 1999; no VTRs are expected. It
appears to be the 8mm division's way of keeping its customer base from
defecting to DV. By leveraging the massive investments of 15 years in 8mm
analog camcorders and transports, the unit cost of Digital8 gear is kept very low,
roughly half of what a comparable DV camcorder would cost, and its ability to
play back legacy analog tapes is worthwhile for those with large libraries of 8mm.
All Digital8 camcorders can record from the analog inputs (at least outside the
EU), and all are equipped with i.link ports for digital dubbing and NLE
connections.
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The Video Home System, better known by its acronym VHS,
is a recording and playing standard for video cassette recorders (VCRs),
developed by JVC (with some of its critical technology under lucrative licensing
agreements with Sony) and launched in 1976. VHS officially stands for Video
Home System, but it initially stood for Vertical Helical Scan, after the relative
head/tape scan technique. Some early reports claim the name originally stood for
Victor Helical Scan system.
VHS became a standard format for consumer recording and viewing in the 1980s
after competing in a fierce format war with Sony's Betamax and, to a lesser
extent, Philips' Video 2000.
A standard T-120 VHS tape has a recording time of 2 hrs, and the resolution is
250 lines. Their appeal, or course, is the convenience of easy playback. The
large VHS camcorders are almost a thing of the past at this point. There are still
a few models available, but their substantial size and weight make them a difficult
sell against smaller camcorders VHS record at a slightly lower resolution than
8MM..
A VHS cassette contains a 12.70 mm (1⁄2-inch) wide magnetic tape wound
between two spools, allowing it to be slowly passed over the various playback
and recording heads of the video cassette recorder. The tape speed is 3.335
cm/s for NTSC, 2.339 cm/s for PAL.
A cassette holds a maximum of about 430 m of tape at the lowest acceptable
tape thickness, giving a maximum playing time of about 3.5 hours for NTSC and
5 hours for PAL at "standard" (SP) quality. Most cassettes have lower recording
times because they use thicker tape, which helps avoiding jams; careful users
generally avoid the thinnest tapes. More recent machines usually allow the
selection of longer recording times by lowering the tape speed even further: LP
mode (for PAL) halves the tape speed and doubles the recording time, while EP
mode (for NTSC, aka SLP mode) drops the tape speed to one-third, for triple the
recording time.
Of course these speed reductions cause corresponding reductions in video
quality, also tapes recorded at the lower speed often don't play well on another
recorder than the one they were produced on. Because of this, commercial
prerecorded tapes were almost always recorded in SP mode. An unofficial LP
mode with one of half the standard speed exists on some NTSC machines but is
not part of the VHS standard.
VHS tapes have approximately 3 MHz of video bandwidth, and a horizontal
resolution of about 240 discernible lines per scanline

The frequency modulation of the luminance signal makes higher resolutions
impossible within the VHS standard, no matter how advanced the recorder's
technology. The vertical resolution of VHS (and all other analog recording
methods) is determined by the TV standard — a maximum of 486 lines are
visible in NTSC and a maximum of 576 lines in PAL.
The video bandwidth is achieved with a relatively low tape speed by the use of
helical scan recording of a frequency modulated luminance (black and white)
signal, to which a frequency-reduced "color under" chroma (hue and saturation)
signal is added. In the original VHS format, audio was recorded unmodulated in a
single (monaural) linear track at the upper edge of the tape, which was limited in
frequency response by the tape speed. More recent hi-fi VCRs add higher-quality
stereo audio tracks which are read and written by heads located on the same
spinning drum that carries the video heads, frequency modulated to the unused
frequency range in between the chroma and luma signals. These audio tracks
take advantage of depth multiplexing: since they use lower frequencies than the
video, their magnetization signals penetrate deeper into the tape. When the video
signal is written by the following video head, it erases and overwrites the audio
signal at the surface of the tape, but leaves the deeper portion of the signal
undisturbed. The excellent sound quality of hi-fi VHS has gained it some
popularity as an audio format in certain applications; in particular, ordinary home
hi-fi VCRs are sometimes used by home recording enthusiasts as a handy and
inexpensive medium for making high-quality stereo mixdowns and master
recordings from multitrack audio tape.
Another linear control track, at the tape's lower edge, holds pulses that mark the
beginning of every frame of video; these are used to fine-tune the tape speed
during playback and to get the rotating heads exactly on their helical tracks rather
than having them end up somewhere between two adjacent tracks (a feature
called tracking). Since good tracking depends on the exact distance between the
rotating drum and the fixed control/audio head reading the linear tracks, which
usually varies by a couple of micrometers between machines due to
manufacturing tolerances, most VCRs offer tracking adjustment, either manual or
automatic, to correct such mismatches.
The control track can additionally hold index marks. These are normally written at
the beginning of each recording session, and can be found using the VCR's
index search function: this will fast-wind forward or backward to the nth specified
index mark, and resume playback from there. There was a time when higher-end
VCRs provided functions for manually removing and adding these index marks-so
that, for example, they coincide with the actual start of the program--but this
feature has become hard to find. A sign, perhaps, of the obsolescence of the
VHS format.

vs.
VHS became a standard format for consumer recording and viewing in the 1980s
after competing in a fierce format war with Sony's Betamax and, to a lesser
extent, Philips' Video 2000. VHS initially offered a longer playing time than the
Betamax system, and it also had the advantage of a far less complex tape
transport mechanism. Early VHS machines could rewind and fast forward the
tape considerably faster than a Betamax VCR since they unthreaded the tape
from the playback heads before commencing any high-speed winding (most
newer VHS machines don't do this any more, as improved engineering has
stopped head-tape contact from being an impediment for fast
Since Betamax's technical specifications are better on paper, it is often stated
that VHS' eventual victory was a victory of marketing over technical excellence.
In fact, however, the root causes of VHS' victory are somewhat more complex.
Betamax held an early lead in the format war, but by 1980 VHS was gaining due
to its longer tape time (2 hours at SP) and JVC's less strict licensing program.
Ultimately Betamax did manage to make up the difference on recording time, but
this was too little too late for Sony, and Sony ultimately conceded the fight in the
late 80s, bringing out a line of VHS VCRs. Beta survived as a professional
format, and VHS had no serious competitors in the home video market until the
arrival of DVD and digital video recorders. (Other formats such as 8mm and
MiniDV have arisen, but have been mainly used for production purposes; neither
has ever mounted a serious challenge to VHS's dominance as the set-top format
of choice, being relegated to secondary roles.)
VHS-C is the compact VHS format used for portable video
recorders. VHS-C (Video Home System - Compact), is/was used in some
camcorders. Since VHS-C tapes are based on the same magnetic tape as full
size VHS tapes, they can be played back in standard VHS players using a
mechanical adapter, without the need of any kind of signal conversion. The
magnetic tape on VHS-C cassettes is wound on one main spool and used a sort
of a gear wheel which moves the tape forward. It can also be moved by hand and
so is the spool. This development hampered the sales of the Betamax system
somewhat, because the Betamax cassette geometry prevented a similar
development.
VHS-C was one of the pioneering formats of the camcorder market, along with
Video8. VHS-C was larger than Video8, but was compatible with VHS tapedecks,
making the choice between the two non-obvious, and splitting the market.

A higher quality version of VHS-C was released, based on S-VHS, known as S-
VHS-C, that competed against Hi8, the higher quality version of Video8.
Camcorder users who prefer to insert their video tapes directly into their VCR
may want to consider using the VHS/C compact format. VHS/C is regular VHS
video tape wound into a smaller cartridge.
Since the cartridge is smaller, the length of VHS/C tape is limited to a maximum
of 45 minutes - though longer times can be achieved using a long play mode,
the quality usually is poor compared to the faster (sp) speed. The compact tapes
are inserted into your VCR using a cassette adapter which comes with each
VHS/C camera. Once inserted, the tape plays just like any other VHS tape
you’ve ever used.
VHS/C compact model Camcorders, on the other hand, remain a popular choice,
offering many of the same key features as 8MM camcorders, at an equally
affordable price. VHS/C records at a slightly lower resolution that 8mm.
The VHS-C format is compatible with regular VCRs through an adapter,
this is because the tape is the same size as a regular tape, it's merely in a
more compact cassette design.
S-VHS or Super VHS was an improved, backward-compatible
version of the VHS standard for domestic video cassette recorders. It was
introduced in Japan in 1987. It offered substantially better color fidelity and
resolution, with approximately 400 dots per line (the standard measure of analog
video resolution). The S stands for super, as the resolution jumps from the VHS
standard of 250 lines to around 400 lines. This means the format could, in theory,
deliver a better picture than broadcast analog television; when viewing material
recorded off-air, a noticeable improvement over standard VHS was discernable.
It is a full-size format with resolution similar to that of HI-8. The format still was a
strong player in the industrial market, but its future is bleak with the release of
newer and better digital formats, namely MiniDV. This format is/was used for
videographers mostly for shooting and editing. Unfortunately, most VCR's will
not play a super VHS tape and has to be transferred to a regular VHS format in
order for it to be viewed on non-S-VHS machines.
To view the better picture that SVHS provides, a direct video connection to the
monitor was required, ideally an S-Video or component video connection as
opposed to a composite or RCA connector. Older television sets tended not to
support this, negating much of the improvement in picture quality, but with the
boom in popularity of DVD appropriate connectors have become common on mid
to large-sized screens.

Home S-VHS decks never became popular outside of Japan, probably mainly
due to their high cost; S-VHS camcorders (S-VHS-C) did become popular for
high-end amateur work, as it allowed for at least second-generation copies
(necessary for editing) to be made at good quality.
W-VHS is a high definition analogue video tape format
created introduced by JVC in the 1994 NAB (National Association of
Broadcasters) show. The recording medium of W-VHS is a half-inch magnetic
metallic tape stored in a cartridge physically identical with VHS. The tape can be
used to store MUSE encoded video at a resolution of 1125 lines, two
simultaneous standard definition NTSC signals, or many hours of NTSC footage.
Audio is stored in the VHS HiFi or S-VHS Digital Audio formats.
Normally records 1125 lines of analog RGB video, but can switch to an NTSC
mode, in which it can either record twice as much high quality NTSC video, or
even two different video signals. The latter function is used for field sequential 3D
video.
D-VHS is a digital video format developed by JVC, in
collaboration with Hitachi, Matsushita and Philips. It uses the same physical
cassette format and recording mechanism as VHS, and is capable of recording
and displaying both standard definition and high definition content.
HD content is stored at 28.2 Mbit/s, while SD content can be stored at bit rates
from 14.2 Mbit/s down to 2.0 Mbit/s. The most capacious D-VHS cassette can
store 3.5 hours of HD content and between 7 and 49 hours of SD content,
equivalent to 44 gigabytes of video data. This cassette contains 1378 feet (420
m) of tape, equivalent to a 3.5 hour NTSC or 4.9 hour PAL VHS cassette.
Although Video8 acquired a digital variant, Digital8, D-VHS has not been adapted
to will be adapted to a compact format, as the industry has moved on to better
formats since first transitioning to digital tapes, during the era of Digital8 et al.
New format by JVC. This is a digital "bit bucket" format which is intended to store
future digital broadcasts directly in its compressed format. Particularly, the
machines will not have conventional video inputs and outputs at all - they work
through a set-top decoder, just like direct digital broadcasts off the air. The
machines will all have IEEE 1394 digital interfaces, like some DV format
equipment do.
Longest tape should be able to store 44.4 GB of data. Recording times depend
on the mode used, ranging from 3.5 hours of HDTV to 49 hours of 2 Mbps video
in LP mode. Standard mode will record seven hours of video at 19.14 Mbps.

Digital S is a digital format downward compatible with S-
VHS. Cassette is basically a W-VHS high coercivity tape in a dust-proof version
of the VHS cassette case. Digital S rivals the much more expensive Digital
Betacam in terms of picture quality because of the mild compression and 4:2:2
quantizing.
JVC's Digital S editing deck sports a rarely seen feature, video pre-read head,
which allows the old video recording to be played back while recording new
signal just after that. This makes A/B roll edits possible with just two decks.
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Video 2000 (V2000) was a video recording standard
developed by Philips and Grundig as a competing format to VHS and Betamax.
Unlike its rivals it used double-sided cassettes. The video cassette recorder (or
VCR, less popularly video tape recorder) is a type of video tape recorder that
uses removable cassettes containing magnetic tape to record audio and video
from a television broadcast so it can be played back later. ... Koninklijke Philips
Electronics N.V. (Royal Dutch Philips Electronics Ltd. ...Manufacturer of home
entertainment equipment, established after WW2 in Nuremberg/ Germany. ...Top
view VHS cassette with US Quarter for scale Bottom view of VHS cassette with
magnetic tape exposed The Video Home System, better known by its acronym
VHS, is a recording and playing standard for video cassette recorders (VCRs),
developed by JVC (with some of its critical technology under lucrative...Sonys
Betamax is the 12. ...
The Video 2000 cassette was slightly bigger than a VHS cassette. Special
features were the possibility to record/play 4 hours of video on each side of the
cassette and most models included a piezoelectric automated system for track
following, known as dynamic track following. Some models used this such that
even still and picture-search pictures were displayed perfectly. Piezoelectricity is
the ability of certain crystals to produce a voltage when subjected to mechanical
stress. ...
Video 2000's predecessor was the Philips Video Compact Cassette (VCC)
Format introduced in 1972. The first Video 2000 video recorder VR2000 was sold
in 1979, and the last V2000 products by Philips were produced in 1988.
[1] (http://home.wanadoo.nl/martijnbelle/Philips/philips.html) Video Compact
Cassette (VCC) was the official name of Philips domestic video format, later (and
much more commonly) known as Video 2000. ... 1972 was a leap year that

started on a Saturday. ...1979 is a common year starting on Monday. ...1988 is a
leap year starting on a Friday of the Gregorian calendar. ...
Video 2000 was in some respects technically superior to both Betamax and VHS,
but the format was introduced late, at the height of the VHS / Betamax war.
Whereas VHS and Betamax were world standards, Video 2000 was marketed
only within Europe. By the mid 1980's VHS was starting to establish itself as the
de facto home video standard, and Video 2000 could never overturn its position.
The position was exacerbated because Philips failed to produce a much
demanded portable recorder early on in the format's life. By the mid-80's Philips
had conceded defeat and began making its own VHS format machines. Sonys
Betamax is the 12. ... Top view VHS cassette with US Quarter for scale Bottom
view of VHS cassette with magnetic tape exposed The Video Home System,
better known by its acronym VHS, is a recording and playing standard for video
cassette recorders (VCRs), developed by JVC (with some of its critical
technology under lucrative...
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U-matic, is an analog videocassette format developed
by Sony in 1969. It was among the first video formats to contain the videotape
inside a cassette, as opposed to the various open-reel formats of the time. The
tape is 3/4" wide - and the format was often known as 'three-quarter-inch'.
The format was introduced in 1971 but it is still used by some videographers
who have been using the format for a long time. It can produce good quality
video and 3/4" decks are still commonly available in duplicating houses. U-Matic
has been used by professionals the world round and found mostly in studios. The
format is slowly being replaced with digital equipment such as DV and Mini DV.
Umatic has three different versions (LB, HB and SP), which differ by the
subcarrier frequencies used for luminance and chrominance recording. U-Matic
LB (Low Band) has been around from the early 70s and is one of the oldest
cassette video formats HB (High Band) has increased chroma subcarrier
frequency, which improves color resolution.
Sony introduced the semi backwards-compatible High-band or BVU (Broadcast
Video U-matic) format, this had an improved color recording system and lower
noise levels. BVU gained immense popularity in ENG (Electronic News
Gathering) and location programme-making, spelling the end of 16mm film in
everyday production. By the early 1990s Sony's 1/2" Betacam SP format had all
but replaced BVU outside of corporate and 'budget' programm making. Sony
made a final improvement to BVU by further improving the recording system and
giving it the same 'SP' suffix as Betacam. First generation BVU-SP and Beta-SP

ecordings were hard to tell apart; despite this the writing was on the wall for the
U-matic family.
In the SP variant, both chroma and luma subcarrier frequencies have been
increased.
U-Matic SP is still a popular production format for those not wealthy enough to
use Beta SP or similar. Although U-Matic doesn't appear much better than Super
VHS on paper, the higher color resolution and much better signal-to-noise ratio
make the picture subjectively far more enjoyable. The U-Matic tape transport is
also much faster in changing modes, which makes editing less frustrating.
LB and HB U-Matic tapes are often used for archiving because of the relatively
low tape costs and low recording density, which makes the tapes robust against
aging.
U-matic is no longer used as a mainstream production format, yet it has such a
lasting appeal as a cheap, well specified, and hard-wearing format that almost
every television facility the world-over still has a U-matic recorder. Nearly 36
years after it was developed the format is still in daily use for the menial tasks of
the industry, being more highly specified and suited to the needs of production
staff than domestic VHS.
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Betamax tapes were a format originally introduced by Sony in the 80's.
Betamax players came first as a consumer product that VHS and in terms of
picture quality was a better format. However, the Beta vs VHS wars took place
and VHS was the victor. There are still a few Beta fans out there though and you
can still get a Betamax machine if you look around.
Betacam is a family of half-inch professional videotape
formats developed by Sony from 1982 onwards. A high-quality analog and digital
video format introduced (in analog) by Sony in 1982. Although heavy by today's
standards, the first Betacam camcorders were considerably lighter than the video
cameras of the era, a welcome breakthrough for cameramen shooting on
location. Designed for professional TV recording, time codes are built into its 1/2"
helical scan format to support precise editing of the recorded material.
Digital versions of Betacam VTRs can typically play back analog cartridges. In
2001, Sony announced it would no longer make analog camcorders. Following
are the Betacam formats.

Model Recording Method
Betacam Component Analog
Betacam SP Component Analog (metal tape)
Digital Betacam 4:2:2 Digital (uses DCT)
Betacam SX MPEG-2 Digital
MpegIMX MPEG-2 Digital (higher Bitrate)
HDCam 10-bit DCT compressed/ 4:2:2 HD res
HDCamSR MPEG-4 Digital 4:4:4/HD res
BetaCam was first introduced in 1982. It is currently geared for broadcast use,
although there have been some less expensive models destined more for
industrial use. Pictures you will get using a BetaCam system (or other
component format) will generally be markedly superior to those you would get
using any of the preceding formats. Colors in particular come out looking much
more vibrant and objects appear three-dimensional. The superiority of BetaCam
shots comes partly from the technical aspects of the tape format but also in large
part because of the use of superior optics and other camcorder and VTR
components (and generally better operators!).
Betacam videotape recorders (VTRs) are not your ordinary home VCRs.
Used in professional studios, they cost from 50 to 100 times that of a
consumer VHS machine. Betacam is the de facto broadcast video format
worldwide, and cartridges come in small and large formats.
All use the same shape cassettes, meaning vaults and other storage
facilities do not have to be changed when upgrading to a new format. The
cassettes come in two sizes, S and L. Betacam cameras can only load the
S tape, while VCRs can play both S and L tapes. The cassette shell and
case for each Betacam cassette is colored differently depending on the
format, this allows for easy visual identification. There is also a mechanical
key that allows a video tape recorder to tell which format has been
inserted.
BetaCam cassettes are large. Ninety minute cassettes measures 5.5 by 10
inches (14 by 25 cm). Typically BetaCam field units (camcorders or dockable
decks) handle only smaller cassettes with shorter lengths of tape (30 minutes
and less). These smaller cassettes are 4 by 6 inches (10 by 16 cm) in size.
The difference between BetaCam and
BetaCam SP, introduced in 1986, is in the tape. BetaCam SP uses a metal tape
and is an improvement over BetaCam.
BetaCam SP is still the de facto standard for professional broadcast videotaping,

partly because of the large number of units out in the professional videotape
community. Some authors assume that over 90% of all professional videotaping
is done using Betacam and Betacam SP.
The original Betacam format launched in 1982. It is an analog component format,
storing the luminance (Y) in one track and the chrominance (R-Y, B-Y) on
another. This splitting of channels provides a crisp, true broadcast quality product
with 300 lines of horizontal resolution.
In 1986 Betacam SP was developed, which increased horizontal resolution to
340 lines. Beta SP (for "Superior Performance") became the industry standard
for most TV stations and high-end production houses until the late 1990s. The
recording time is the same as for Betacam, 30 and 90 minutes for S and L,
respectively.
Betacam and Betacam SP tapes are usually grey.
Digital Betacam (commonly abbreviated to
Digibeta or d-beta) was launched in 1993. It supersedes both Betacam and
Betacam SP, while costing significantly less than the D1 format and providing
high quality and reliability. S tapes are available with up to 40 minutes running
time, and L tapes with up to 124 minutes.
The Digital Betacam format records a DCT-compressed component video signal
at 10-bit YUV 4:2:2 sampling in PAL (720x576) or NTSC (720x480) resolutions at
a bitrate of 90 Mbit/s plus 4 channels of uncompressed 48KHz PCM-encoded
audio. A 5th audio track is available for cueing, and a linear timecode track is
also used on the tape.
Some Digital Betacam equipment can also read Betacam and Betacam SP
tapes. Along with the identical cassette size, this meant for easy upgrading.
Digital Betacam is considered to be the gold standard of formats for standarddefinition
digital video, is capable of outperforming cheaper digital formats such
as DVCAM and DVCPRO, and associated equipment is comparatively
expensive. Panasonic offers the DVCPRO50 competing format, which has
similar technical abilities.
Another key element which aided adoption was Sony's implementation of the
Serial Digital Interface (SDI) coaxial digital connection on Digital Betacam decks.
Facilities could begin using digital signals on their existing coaxial wiring without
having to commit to an expensive re-installation.
Digital Betacam tapes are a muted blue.

Digital successor to the venerable Betacam SP format. Introduced by Sony in
1993, uses physically similar half-inch cassettes. Camcorders with 40-minute
capacity are available, making Digital Betacam the first component digital ENG
(electronic news gathering) format. Digital Betacam units play back, but do not
record analogue Beta SP tapes.
The 2:1 compression is based on DCT (discrete cosine transform), like most
modern video compression techniques. Each field is compressed separately.
Betacam SX is a digital version of
Betacam SP introduced in 1996, positioned as a cheaper alternative to Digital
Betacam. It stores video using MPEG 4:2:2 Profile@ML compression, along with
4 channels of 48 KHz 16 bit PCM audio. All Betacam SX equipment is
compatible with Betacam SP tapes. S tapes have a recording time up to 62
minutes, and L tapes up to 194 minutes.
Hot from the ovens at Sony, Betacam SX is a digital format using a 4:2:2 coded
variant of MPEG. Like DVCPRO, it's capable of accelerated playback/recording
and is part of Sony's new all-digital production concept, targeted especially for
ENG and newsroom use. Some units are 4:3 / 16:9 switchable.
Despite primarily being a tape format, some decks are actually disk/tape hybrids
and provide rudimentary stand alone non-linear editing capabilities. "Briefcase"
field editors resembling laptop computers are available, similar to what
Panasonic has for its DVCPRO format.
Betacam SX tapes are bright yellow.
MPEG IMX is a 2001 development
of the Digital Betacam format. It uses the MPEG compression system, but at a
higher bitrate than Betacam SX. The IMX format allows for a CCIR 601 compliant
video signal, with 8 channels of audio as well as cue and timecode tracks.
With its new IMX VTRs, Sony introduced some new technologies including SDTI
and e-VTR. SDTI allows for audio, video, timecode, and remote control functions
to be transported by a single coaxial cable, while e-VTR technology extends this
by allowing the same data to be transported over IP by way of an ethernet
interface on the VTR itself.
IMX VTRs such as the MSW-2100M are capable of playing back Digital Betacam
cassettes as well as analog Betacam SP cassettes, but can only record to their
native IMX cassettes. S tapes are available with up to 60 minutes capacity, and L
tapes hold up to 184 minutes.

MPEG IMX tapes are a muted green.
HDCAM, introduced in 1997, is a HDTV version of
Digital Betacam, also using 10-bit DCT compressed 4:2:2 recording, but in 1080i
or 720p resolution, and adding 24 and 23.976 PsF modes. The recorded video
bitrate is 144 Mbit/s. Audio is also similar, with 4 channels of AES/EBU 20-bit/48
kHz digital audio. HDCAM tapes are black with an orange lid
HDCAM SR, (Super Resolution) introduced
in 2003, uses a higher particle density tape and is capable of recording in 4:4:4
RGB with a bitrate of 440 Mbit/s. Some HDCAM SR VTRs (SR camcorders are
not available) can also use a 2x mode with a even higher bitrate of 880 Mbit/s,
allowing for a single 4:4:4 stream at a lower compression or two 4:2:2 video
streams simultaniously. HDCAM SR uses the new MPEG-4 Studio Profile for
compression, and expands the number of audio channels up to 12. It is used for
Sony's cinematic CineAlta range of products.
HDCAM VTRs generally play back all older Betacam variants, and tape lengths
are the same as for Digital Betacam, 40 minutes for S and 124 minutes for L
tapes.
HDCAM SR tapes black with a cyan lid.
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: MII introduced in 1986, is Panasonic's answer to BetaCam SP. All
MII tape is metal. The 90 minute cassette at 4 by 8 inches (11 by 19 cm) is
considerably smaller than the 90 minute BetaCam SP cassette. However the
dockable decks take only a small 20 minute cassette (3.6 by 5 inches - 9 by 13
cm).
Technically, MII is equal to or superior to Betacam SP. Panasonic MII field
equipment includes several small dockable decks usable with a variety of camera
heads and some excellent portable decks.
Be aware if you get into MII that at some point repairs may become an issue and
that few duplicating facilities or clients are likely to have MII. Therefore you will
probably have to copy your MII programs to another format at some stage.

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MicroMV is a new videotape format by Sony. The cassette is
physically smaller than a Digital8 or DV cassette. In fact, MicroMV is the smallest
videotape format.
The MicroMV format does not use the DV format; instead, it uses MPEG-2
compression, like that used for Video CDs (VCDs) and DVDs. This means that
footage recorded on MicroMV format cannot be edited with most computer DV
editing software (though iMovie does support MPEG-4 movies). MicroMV
camcorders have USB 2.0 ports, and Sony supplies its own video editing
software (for Microsoft Windows only). The Moving Picture Experts Group
(MPEG) is a small group charged with the development of video and audio
encoding standards. ... Video CD or VCD is a standard format for storing video
on a Compact Disc. ...DVD is an optical disc storage media format that can be
used for storing data, including movies with high video and sound quality. ...The
title given to this article is incorrect due to technical limitations. ...MPEG-4,
introduced in 1998, is the designation for a group of audio and video coding
standards agreed upon by the Moving Picture Experts Group (MPEG). ...Note:
USB may also mean upper sideband in radio. ...Microsoft Windows is a range of
commercial operating environments for personal computers. ...
It is unknown as yet whether MicroMV will be a successful format. Currently,
Sony is the only electronics manufacturer to sell MicroMV cameras.
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The better known MiniDV tapes (or “S-size”) are 65 x
48 x 12 mm and hold either an hour or an hour and a half of video depending on
whether the video is recorded at Standard Play (SP) or Extended Play (EP). The
tapes sell for less than USD 5 each as of 2003. DV on SP has a helical scan
track width of 10 micrometres, EP uses a track width of only 6.7 micrometres.
Software is currently available for ordinary home computers which allows users
to record any sort of computer data on MiniDV cassettes using common DV
decks or camcorders. A 60-minute MiniDV tape will hold approximately 13
Gigabytes of data in this form of usage as the DV video format has a constant
data rate of 3.6 Megabytes per second (3.6 MB/s x 60 seconds x 60 minutes =
12,960 MB per hour = 12.9 GB per hour).
Mini DV tapes are the smallest of the video formats. They take and maintain
crystal clear images because of the nature of a digital format. Editing enthusiasts

enefit from Mini DV as well, since copying between two units is done with no
quality loss. That means edited or copied video looks and sounds every bit as
good as the original footage. Mini DV tapes are available in 30, 60,63 and 80
minute lengths. Digital camcorders have the highest resolution of all the
camcorders, starting at 500 lines.
DVCPRO is a professional variant of the DV by
Panasonic. The only major difference is doubled tape speed, which is needed for
better drop-out tolerance and general recording robustness. It is also capable of
4x normal speed playback. This doesn't mean ordinary Fast Forward with picture,
but rather, accelerated transfer of all of the information, for example, into a nonlinear
editing system.
Panasonic's DVCPRO was specifically created for ENG use (NBC's
newsgathering division was a major customer), with better linear editing
capabilities and robustness. It has an even greater track width of 18 micrometres
and uses another tape type (Metal Particle instead of Metal Evaporated).
Additionally, the tape has a longitudinal analog audio cue track. Audio is only
available in the 16 bit/48 kHz variant, there is no EP mode, and DVCPRO always
uses 4:1:1 color subsampling (even in PAL mode). Apart from that, standard
DVCPRO data (also known as DVCPRO25) is the same as DV. However, unlike
Sony, Panasonic chose to promote its DV variant for professional high-end
applications. With two DV codecs running in parallel for a data rate of 50 Mbit/s
and 4:2:2 color sampling, the DVCPRO50 standard was created for ENG
compatibility but with reserves for HDTV upscaling. The HD variant, DVCPRO
HD (also known as DVCPRO100), uses four parallel codecs and even higher
tape speed for a data rate of 100 Mbit/s, at a HDTV resolution of 720p
progressive or 1080i interlaced. A camcorder using as special variable-framerate
(from 4 to 60 fps) variant of DVCPRO HD called VariCam is also available. All
these variants are backward compatible but not forward compatible.
DVCPRO cassettes are always labeled with a pair of run times, the smaller of the
two being the capacity for DVCPRO50. A "M" tape can hold up to 66/33 minutes
of video. The color of the lid indicates the format: DVCPRO tapes have a yellow
lid, longer "L" tapes made specially for DVCPRO50 have a blue lid and DVCPRO
HD tapes have a red lid.
The DVCPRO VCRs can play back DV and DVCAM tapes, but MiniDV tapes
usually require an adaptor.
DVCPRO, DVCPRO 50, and DVCPRO HD refer to digital videotape formats
using the DV codec, and devised by Panasonic. You may also see in older
Panasonic literature references to 'DVCPRO 25' and 'DVCPRO 100'. These were
the original names for DVCPRO and DVCPRO HD respectively.

The numbers refer to the number of megabits per second the tape is designed to
transport. DVCPRO videotape machines were introduced in 1996. The
differences between DV, DVCAM, and DVCPRO are ones of track width and
tape speed. Before the digitized video signal hits the tape, it is the same in all
three formats.
DVCPRO was from the start intended for ENG use, as well as for industrial or
'prosumer' applications. Designers placed as higher priority better error
correction and ease of analog editing. The format quickly found use in NBC's
newsgathering operations, which gave the format a tremendous boost. DVCPRO
videotape machines will play back DV and DVCAM tapes without an adapter.
MiniDV tapes require an adapter for use in a DVCPRO machine. DVCPRO
machines do not record on MiniDV tapes.
DVCPRO 50 was the follow-on format, intended to supplant DVCPRO in uses
where ENG compatibility was required, but higher resolution was desired for
upscaling to HDTV. DVCPRO 50 machines will play back DVCPRO tapes at the
25 Mb data rate. However, DVCPRO machines cannot play back DVCPRO 50
tapes. Panasonic achieved the higher data rate by doubling the tape transport
speed.
DVCPRO HD, formerly called DVCPRO 100, couples four DV codecs in parallel
to achieve a 100 Mb data rate, which is sufficient for 720p progressive scan
digital video, or 1080i interlaced digital video. DVCPRO HD machines will play
back any DVCPRO tape at the recorded data rate, or upconvert it to a 100 Mb
data rate.
At the US National Association of Broadcasters show in 2004, Apple Computer
and Panasonic announced enhancements enabling real-time DVCPRO HD nonlinear
editing with Apple's Final Cut Pro software in 720p or 1080i HD format.
DVCPRO P2 is a professional digital video
format introduced by Panasonic in 2004, and especially tailored to ENG
applications. It features tapeless (non-linear) recording of DVCPRO or
DVCPRO50 streams on a solid state flash memory card. This card, called the P2
card, is essentially a RAID of SD memory cards in the PCMCIA form factor, so
data transfer rate increases as memory capacity increases. The system includes
cameras, decks as drop-in replacement for VCRs, and a special 5.25" computer
drive for random access integration with NLE systems. The cards can also be
used directly where a PCMCIA slot is available, as in most notebook computers.
Since the memory capacity of the P2 card is relatively low (as of February 2005,
2GB and 4GB cards are available), cameras, decks and drives have multiple
slots, with the ability to span the recording over all slots. This way, effective
recording time is multiplied, allowing up to 80 minutes on 5 4GB cards in normal

DVCPRO mode. Cards are recorded in sequence, and when a card is full, it can
be swapped out while another card is recording, allowing unlimited recording
time assuming an adequate supply of cards is available. If a card is partially full,
the deck will record only until it's full. Unlike tape, old video cannot be recorded
over accidentally. Old footage must be manually deleted.
DVCam on the other hand, is Sony's variation of the
theme, sitting somewhere between DV and DVCPRO. Tape speed and track
width have been increased, but not as much as for DVCPRO. Furthermore, it
uses the same metal evaporated tape as DV, while DVCPRO uses metal particle
tape.
Sony's DVCAM is a semiprofessional variant of the DV standard that uses the
same cassettes as DV and MiniDV, but transports the tape 50% faster, leading to
a higher track width of 15 micrometres. The data format is the same as DV, but
because of the greater track width the tapes are much more robust, and the EP
mode of DV is not supported. All DVCAM recorders and cameras can play back
DV material, but DVCPRO support was only recently added to some models.
DVCAM tapes (or DV tapes recorded in DVCAM mode) have their recording time
reduced by one third.
DVCAM is not available in higher bitrates or HD modes. Sony reserves this
market for their digital Betacam and HDCAM product lines.
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D-series
D-1 was the first major professonal digital format, introduced by Sony in
1986/87. Although still considered a quality reference, D-1 is expensive to buy
and use and has been mostly superseded by the more cost effective later
formats.
D1 stored uncompressed digitized component video, encoded at YUV 4:2:2
using the CCIR 601 raster format, along with PCM audio tracks as well as
timecode on a 19mm (3/4") cassette tape. Uncompressed component video uses
enormous bandwidth, and a simpler D2 system soon followed.
D1 was notoriously expensive and the equipment required very large
infrastructure changes in facilities which upgraded to this format. Early D1
operations were plagued with difficulties, though the format quickly stabilized and
was renowned for its superlative image quality.

D1 is still in some usage as of 2003, and many of the technologies introduced
with this format are still common to more recent digital videotape formats.
Panasonic's D5 format has similar specifications, but was introduced much later.
A format for component digital video tape recording working to the ITU-R 601,
4:2:2 standard using 8-bit sampling. The tape is 19 mm wide and allows up to 94
minutes to be recorded on a cassette. Being a component recording system it is
ideal for studio or post production work with its high chrominance bandwidth
allowing excellent chroma keying. Also multiple generations are possible with
very little degradation and D1 equipment can integrate without transcoding to
most digital effects systems, telecines, graphics devices, disk recorders, etc.
Being component there are no color framing requirements. Despite the
advantages, D1 equipment is not extensively used in general areas of TV
production, at least partly due to its high cost. (Often used incorrectly to indicate
component digital video.)
D-2 was developed by Ampex around the same time as D-1 was introduced
and is meant to be a fully transparent storage for composite video, useful for
composing "spot tapes" for programmes such as news. D2 is a professional
digital video format, created as a lower-cost alternative to D1. The format still
used no digital compression, but saved bandwidth and other costs by sampling a
fully encoded NTSC or PAL composite video signal and storing that directly on to
tape, rather than sampling component video. This is known as digital composite.
D2 used 19mm (3/4") tape loaded into cassettes. PCM-encoded audio and
timecode are also recorded on the tape. The tapes are similar to the more
popular D1 format, though they are not interchangeable.
D2 has always had a mild stigma associated with it, and as of 2003 only a
handful of broadcasters use it, and even then only to access materials recorded
when the format was more popular.
The VTR standard for digital composite (coded) NTSC or PAL signals that uses
data conforming to SMPTE 244M. It uses 19 mm tape and records up to 208
minutes on a single cassette. Neither cassettes nor recording formats are
compatible with D1. D2 has often been used as a direct replacement for 1-inch
analog VTRs. Although offering good stunt modes and multiple generations with
low losses, being a coded system means coded characteristics are present. The
user must be aware of cross-color, transcoding footprints, low chrominance
bandwidths and color framing sequences. Employing an 8-bit format to sample
the whole coded signal results in reduced amplitude resolution making D2 more
susceptible to contouring artifacts. (Often used incorrectly to indicate composite
digital video.)
D3 is the equivalent Panasonic format.

D-3 A composite digital video recording format that uses data conforming to
SMPTE 244M. Uses 1/2-inch tape cassettes for recording digitized composite
(coded) PAL or NTSC signals sampled at 8 bits. Cassettes are available for 50 to
245 minutes. Since this uses a composite signal the characteristics are generally
the same as D2 except that the 1/2-inch cassette size has allowed a full family of
VTR equipment to be realized in one format, including a camcorder. It is
essentially the Panasonics’ version of D-2.
D-5 have both been developed by Matsushita. D-5 units can use two different
sample rate / resolution combinations and are generally capable of playing back
D-3 tapes. While D-5 is still a studio format. D-3 camcorders are available from
Panasonic.
D-4 As a curiosity, D-4 doesn't exist and probably never will, as the number 4
is a major taboo in Asian cultures (4 being pronounced the same as "death" in
Japanese). Rumours go that this even delayed the standardization of D-3 and D-
5.
The number 4 in Eastern cultures has similar bad connotations to the number 13
in Western cultures. Specifically, the Chinese/Japanese character for four is shi
which also sounds much like the word for death.
Many traditionally minded Chinese car owners refuse to accept license plates for
their new cars that end with the number 4. So much so that the authorities in
China have bowed to public demand and do not issue such license plates, much
to the chagrin of reform-minded Chinese who wish to get rid of old superstitions.
D-5: D5 is an professional digital video format introduced by Panasonic in
1994. Like Sony's D1, it is an uncompressed digital component system, but uses
the same half-inch tapes as Panasonic's digital composite D3 format.
A VTR format using the same cassette as D3 but recording component signals
conforming to the ITU-R BT.601-2 (CCIR 601) recommendations at 10-bit
resolution. With internal decoding D5 VTRs can play back D3 tapes and provide
component outputs. Being a non-compressed component digital video recorder
means D5 enjoys all the performance benefits of D1, making it suitable for highend
post production as well as more general studio use. Besides servicing the
current 625 and 525 line TV standards the format also has provision for HDTV
recording by use of about 4:1 compression (HD D5).
D-5 HD A high definition version of has been introduced by Panasonic. It
uses 4:1 compression in order to accomodate the 1.2 Gbps HDTV data rate. It
can work with both 1080 line interlaced or 720 line progressive (American) HDTV
formats.

HD D5 uses standard D5 video tape cassettes to record HD material, using a
intra-frame compression with a 4:1 ratio. HD D5 supports the 1080 and the 1035
interlaced line standards at both 60 Hz and 59.94 Hz field rates, all 720
progressive line standards and the 1080 progressive line standard at 24, 25 and
30 frame rates. Four uncompressed audio channels sampled at 40 kHz, 20 bits
per sample, are also supported.
HD material also is often captured for post production of film projects, especially
on lower budget films, from the Super 16mm film format (15:9 aspect ratio crops
well to 16:9 HDTV widescreen ratio) whereby the HD D5 scanning equipment is
cheaper by the hour than a full resolution 2K film scan. Most importantly the
1920x1080 resolution at 24 progressive frames per second, with MPEG-2 or
MPEG-4 compression, can be edited on high-end desktop computers in 2004.
D-6: is a digital HDTV recording format by Toshiba/BTS. Stores 600 GB worth
of data on a physically huge 64 minute cassette. I was told that this format is
more or less dead and the remaining tape transports were bought out by Toshiba
- but in IBC'97, I saw a D-6 recorder in action, demonstrated as a joint venture
between Toshiba and some other Japanese manufacturer, whose name escapes
me. The picture quality was truly impressive.
A digital tape format which uses a 19mm helical-scan cassette tape to record
uncompressed high definition television material at 1.88 GBps (1.2 Gbps). D6 is
currently the only high definition recording format defined by a recognized
standard. D6 accepts both the European 1250/50 interlaced format and the
Japanese 260M version of the 1125/60 interlaced format which uses 1035 active
lines. It does not accept the ITU format of 1080 active lines. ANSI/SMPTE 277M
and 278M are D6 standards.
D7: ( or DVCPRO). Panasonic's development of native DV component format
which records a 18 micron (18x10-6m, eighteen thousandths of a millimeter)
track on 6.35 mm (0.25-inch) metal particle tape. DVCPRO uses native DCTbased
DV compression at 5:1 from a 4:1:1 8-bit sampled source. It uses 10
tracks per frame for 525/60 sources and 12 tracks per frame for 625/50 sources,
both use 4:1:1 sampling. Tape speed is 33.813mm/s. It includes two 16-bit digital
audio channels sampled at 48 kHz and an analog cue track. Both Linear (LTC)
and Vertical Interval Time Code (VITC) are supported. There is a 4:2:2
(DVCPRO50) and progressive scan 4:2:0 (DVCPRO P) version of the format, as
well as a high definition version (DVCPROHD).
See also: DVCPRO50, DVCPROHD, DVCPRO P.

D8: There is no D8. The Television Recording and Reproduction Technology
Committee of SMPTE decided to skip D8 because of the possibility of confusion
with similarly named digital audio or data recorders.
D9: (Formerly Digital-S) Digital S is a digital format downward compatible
with S-VHS. A 1/2-inch digital tape format developed by JVC which uses a highdensity
metal particle tape running at 57.8mm/s to record a video data rate of 50
Mbps.
The tape can be shuttled and search up to 32x speed. Video sampled at 4:2:2 is
compressed at 3.3:1 using DCT-based intra-frame compression (DV). Two or
four audio channels are recorded at 16-bit, 48 kHz sampling; each is individually
editable. The format also includes two cue tracks. Some machines can play back
analog S-VHS. Digital S rivals the much more expensive Digital Betacam in
terms of picture quality because of the mild compression and 4:2:2 quantizing.
JVC's Digital S editing deck sports a rarely seen feature, video pre-read head,
which allows the old video recording to be played back while recording new
signal just after that. This makes A/B roll edits possible with just two decks.
D9 HD: A high definition digital component format based on D9. Records on
1/2-inch tape with 100 Mbps video.
D16: A recording format for digital film images making use of standard D1
recorders. The scheme was developed
specifically to handle Quantel's Domino (Digital Opticals for Movies) pictures and
record them over the space that sixteen 625 line digital pictures would occupy.
This way three film frames can be recorded or played every two seconds. Playing
the recorder allows the film images to be viewed on a standard monitor; running
at 16x speed shows full motion direct from the tape.
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