Checklist: is your tape S-VHS?
Pick up the cassette and look for these signs. If two or more match, it is most likely S-VHS:
- The label or shell says S-VHS, SVHS or Super VHS.
- There is a small extra hole on the underside next to the record-protect tab; this is how an S-VHS deck recognises the tape.
- It was recorded on an S-VHS or S-VHS-C camcorder (semi-pro JVC, Panasonic or Grundig models).
- A normal VCR shows only snow or a very noisy picture, even though the tape looks fine.
- It came from a wedding videographer, a studio or a TV station; professionals in the 1990s often shot on S-VHS.
How S-VHS differs from VHS
Tape and shell are the same. What changes is how the brightness signal is recorded: S-VHS uses higher frequencies, so it holds more detail, around 400 horizontal lines against VHS’s 240. In practice that means readable signs, more detailed faces and crisper edges.
That extra sharpness only matters if it survives the rest of the chain. So we capture S-VHS through the S-Video output, which keeps brightness and colour on separate wires. Through an ordinary yellow composite lead part of the detail would be mixed away, and the result would look like plain VHS.
How we capture S-VHS
| Step | What we do | Why it matters |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Inspect | Check tape and shell, re-tension | Even tension, fewer drop-outs |
| 2. Play | S-VHS deck with clean heads | A VHS deck cannot read S-VHS recordings |
| 3. Stabilise | Time base corrector (TBC) | Removes jitter and skew |
| 4. Capture | S-Video, full PAL resolution | Keeps the S-VHS detail |
| 5. Files | MP4, optionally with lighter compression | Ready to watch or edit |
If you plan to edit, say a wedding film assembled from several tapes, mention it in your request and we will save higher-bitrate files. Why the analogue signal path matters so much is covered in our analogue digitization explainer.
What threatens S-VHS tapes
Because S-VHS records higher frequencies and finer detail, any tape damage, mould spot or wear shows up more strongly than on plain VHS. Professional tapes were also often reused many times. We repair damaged cassettes for €9 and clean mould for €9. Compact S-VHS-C tapes are handled like VHS-C but played on an S-VHS deck.
Price and shipping from Latvia
S-VHS digitization costs €9 per tape, whatever the length. Orders of more than 20 tapes get 10% off. Send the tapes by Omniva, SmartPosti or DPD parcel locker to Tallinn, and pay by invoice as a private person or a company after the work is done.
How to order
- Send a requestTell us the formats and number of tapes. We reply with exact information, the price and shipping instructions.
- Ship to a parcel lockerWith Omniva, SmartPosti or DPD, from a Latvian locker to the Tallinn locker we give you.
- Get your filesUsually within 10–14 working days: MP4 via Google Drive or on USB, paid by invoice.
S-VHS questions
Can an S-VHS tape be played on a normal VCR?
Usually not. Decks with “Quasi S-VHS” playback show a picture, but only at plain VHS quality. To keep the S-VHS detail you need a real S-VHS deck, which we have.
What if my S-VHS tape is damaged?
We restore and repair cassettes, splicing the tape or rehousing it in a new shell. A repair costs €9 per tape.
How do I pay?
By invoice, issued to a private person or a company.