1. Low-cost A/V Digitization
Prof. Laurinda Weisse
University Archivist

2. Composition of Magnetic Tapes
The binder is responsible for holding the magnetic particles on the tape and facilitating tape transport. If the binder loses integrity - through softening, embrittlement, loss of cohesiveness, or loss of lubrication - the tape may become unplayable. Sticky tape and sticky shed are commonly used terms to describe the phenomenon associated with deterioration of the magnetic tape binder.
Dr. John W.C. Van Bogart Magnetic Tape Storage and Handling: A Guide for Libraries and Archives. National Media Laboratory. June CLIR Publication 54.

3. Compact Cassette Tape Born 1963 Bulk 1970-2000 Polyester magnetic tape
Compact cassette. Image by Lori Dedeyan, available under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike license (CC BY-NC-SA 2.0). Courtesy of UCLA Library Special Collections.

4. VHS Tape
Created 1976
Oxide-coated Mylar magnetic tape

7. Digital Audio File Types
Uncompressed
Lossless
Lossy
WAV
FLAC
MP3
Uncompressed = exact copies of the original source audio.
Standard format on Windows PCs.
Large in size - around 10MB per minute of music.
Compressed = takes up less space.
Lossless format = audio quality same as the original source.
Better for listening than WAV, but limited choice of media players (ex:VLC Media Player).
Most common lossy format around.
Compatible with most media players.
Low quality, but small file size
Proprietary Formats also exist Uncompressed 
AIFF: AIFF is made by Apple, so you may see it a bit more often in Apple products. Also uncompressed, this format is like WAV, but a little less widely used. Since both these formats are uncompressed, they take up a lot of space.
Lossless 
Apple Lossless: Also known as ALAC, Apple Lossless is similar to FLAC. It's a compressed lossless file, although it's made by Apple. Its compression isn't as efficient as FLAC, so files may be a bit bigger, but it's fully supported by iTunes and iOS (while FLAC is not).
APE: APE is a very highly compressed lossless file, meaning you'll save the most space. Its audio quality is the same as FLAC, ALAC, and other lossless files, but it isn't
compatible with nearly as many players (must download a plugin or extension to play in most popular media players). They also work your processor harder to decode, since they're so highly compressed.
Lossy
AAC: Advanced Audio Coding, also known as AAC, is similar to MP3, although it's a bit more efficient. That means that you can have files that take up less space, but with the same sound quality as MP3. It is almost as widely compatible with MP3.   
WMA: Windows Media Audio is Microsoft's own proprietary format, similar to MP3 or AAC. It doesn't offer any large advantages over the other formats, and it's also not as well supported as MP3 or AAC.

8. Digital Video File Types
Preservation
Access
No single accepted format
AVI, MXF, MOV all accepted
MOV and AVI played by many common players like Apple Quick Time
MP4 – most widely used online

9. Essentials + OR +

10. Creation of access copies or clips
Workflow
Metadata Creation
Digitization
Transfer onto Server
Inspection of tapes
Creation of access copies or clips

11. Inspection of Tapes

12. Creation of access copies or clips
Workflow
Metadata Creation
Digitization
Transfer onto Server
Inspection of tapes
Creation of access copies or clips

13. Track 1: Consumer Transfer Solutions
Many options available
Generally bundle of hardware and software
Most in the $50-$100 range
Designed for ease of use

14. Parameters for Consumer Digitization Tools
Very easy to use
All-in-one (or close)
Cheap
Easy to acquire – either from vendor already in our system or via Amazon

15. Elgato

16. Elgato: Technical Specs
Automatically detects NTSC, SECAM, PAL and PAL/60 video formats for worldwide compatibility
Video resolution: 640×480 (4:3) or 640×360 (16:9)
Video format Mac Software: H.264 at 1.4 MBit/sec or MPEG-4 at 2.4 MBit/se
Video format PC Software: H.264 at 1.4 MBit/se
Audio: AAC, 48kHZ, 128 kBit/sec

17. Elgato: Digitization

18. Elgato: Basic
Name your file, hit continue a few times to check input, then record
Very few options to choose from

19. Elgato: Evaluation Intermittent hardware issues
Out-of-sync audio and video
Options too limited
BUT
Dead simple to use
Possible option for organization which needed access copies and had very limited skills

20. Roxio Easy VHS to DVD

21. Roxio Specs Export video as MPEG1, MPEG2 or MP4; audio as MP3
Go directly from VHS/cassette to DVD 
Set frame rate, resolution, and data rate individually OR
Use the slider to choose a quality and the other values will auto-adjust to that

22. Roxio: Digitization
Choose This

23. Roxio: Digitization Finalization

24. Roxio: Evaluation A few more options than Elgato Easy to use
Audio and video sync properly
Light-weight video editing capabilities included in software
Still very limited options and no archival video formats
BUT
Good options for orgs with limited tech skills

25. Limitations of Consumer Transfer Systems
Output formats not preservation quality
Output formats limited in metadata capabilities
One-size-fits-all approach to a media type with significant variations
mpeg4

26. Track 2: Open Source Software
Bonus: It’s free!
Pay only for hardware needed

27. Cassette Transfer

28. Audacity
Formats available: AIFF, WAV (16 bit), WAV (32 bit), MP3, OggVorbis, FLAC, MP2, M4A, AC3, AMR, WMA, Custom
Easy import/digitization
Advanced editing options
Customizable metadata

30. Video Transfer

31. Creation of access copies or clips
Workflow
Metadata Creation
Digitization
Transfer onto Server
Inspection of tapes
Creation of access copies or clips

32. Metadata for A/V
Dependent on type of project
Dublin Core
PBCore

33. Example partial oral history metadata
Interviewer
Interviewee(s)
Location
Date
Signed consent form?
Subjects discussed in OH
Summary/abstract
File format
File name
Length of recording
Person who digitized
Transcript available?
Transcript file name
Language

34. Creation of access copies or clips
Workflow
Metadata Creation
Digitization
Transfer onto Server
Inspection of tapes
Creation of access copies or clips