What to do with collection of VHS Trek tapes??

[Kor]

I never knew commercials were so intrusive during the broadcast of Voyager. No matter how exciting the beginning of an episode is, this puts you back into reality.

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This was a sponsor message, not officially part of the opening credits. IIRC, these would frequently appear after the credits or after a "bumper," which was a very brief snippet of logo and possibly music from the show and, then go to commercials after the sponsor message. In the video you linked, you can just hear the VOY theme music fading out and see the picture fading to black, and then the broadcaster immediately displays the sponsor logos superimposed over an image from the show's opening sequence.

I remember seeing these "[program name], brought to you by so-and-so" messages quite frequently, especially with Trek shows, as that was just about all I watched for a while. I can't remember how common it was to actually use a still or footage from the show along with sponsor logos, but here's one from Deep Space Nine where they show sponsor logos over images of the space station, right after a bumper at 0:34:

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Kor

 

[Lance]

Something I do remember from some broadcasts were break bumpers, usually with an isolated little sting of the theme music, and though I obviously know they aren't actually a part of the show I also kinda get nostalgic and miss them sometimes lol

 

[c0rnedfr0g]

Re-label them as "Instructions to Finding Buried Treasure" or "The Secret to Happiness," etc. then leave them randomly in public places for people to find. Who knows, you may inadvertently create a new Trekkie!

 

[C.E. Evans]

Last time I checked (several months ago), prices for blank VHS tapes has taken off like a rocket. Some online stores that still have some unused tapes in their inventory are selling them anywhere up to $12 USD per cassette. If you can blank them or simply advertise them as tapes to be recorded over, there's probably an online seller's market for them too.

 

[Daddy Todd]

Last time I checked (several months ago), prices for blank VHS tapes has taken off like a rocket. Some online stores that still have some unused tapes in their inventory are selling them anywhere up to $12 USD per cassette. If you can blank them or simply advertise them as tapes to be recorded over, there's probably an online seller's market for them too.

I’m astonished by that. However, the fact someone is trying to sell them for $12 doesn’t mean anyone is buying them for $12. I see this a lot on eBay.

 

[Mojochi]

Use the video tape to tie together a raft. Tie your best friend Wilson The Volleyball to it & set sail

 

[clorets]

I tried to sell some of my video collection. I got very little response and those that did respond basically were pranksters or people saying "haha! you watch Star Trek? Nerd!"

 

[Jayson1]

I tried to sell some of my video collection. I got very little response and those that did respond basically were pranksters or people saying "haha! you watch Star Trek? Nerd!"

You see your first mistake was trying to sell them to Nelson Munch. His family doesn't have much of what you would call disposable income after his dad left for a pack if cigarettes and never returned.

Jason

 

[johnnybear]

I remember we sold my Avengers video set to a woman who wanted them for her Mother who was a big fan and a fellow turned up at the front door to collect the UFO VHS set! I remember we had a good chat over sci-fi stuff and I tried to sell him my Space 1999 videos but he said it was too much to lay out expense wise and that he was a bigger fan of UFO than 1999!
JB

 

[1001001]

Last time I checked (several months ago), prices for blank VHS tapes has taken off like a rocket. Some online stores that still have some unused tapes in their inventory are selling them anywhere up to $12 USD per cassette. If you can blank them or simply advertise them as tapes to be recorded over, there's probably an online seller's market for them too.

So Star Trek video tapes are worth more erased than intact?

Yikes.

 

[JirinPanthosa]

You see your first mistake was trying to sell them to Nelson Munch.

Yeah, are these people...adults? If an adult says something like that to you, you have the victory of knowing they are sad, sad people.

 

[hbquikcomjamesl]

I’m astonished by that. However, the fact someone is trying to sell them for $12 doesn’t mean anyone is buying them for $12. I see this a lot on eBay.

Yeef! You can get Betacam SP tape stock for that price (assuming you have the hardware for it, which most of you, like me, probably don't). Virgin Betacam SP 90s (the "L" size, which are quite a bit larger than the "S" size, which is the same size as a Betamax cassette, but holds a maximum of 30 minutes) used to run something like $100 or so each (broadcast videotape is not cheap).

 

[Kor]

I just did a cursory search on the famous auction site, and pricing seems to be all over the place for blank VHS tapes. A lot of them are cheaper than $12 a piece.

Kor

 

[C.E. Evans]

I’m astonished by that. However, the fact someone is trying to sell them for $12 doesn’t mean anyone is buying them for $12. I see this a lot on eBay.

That's why I said anywhere up to $12. Don't get fixated on that price, that's more of the upper limit. You can search the 'net high and low and can find cheaper ones, but they all do seem to be steadily inching upward as more time passes. A year ago, all those prices were half what they are currently, so it'd be interesting to see where they all will be a year from now.

So Star Trek video tapes are worth more erased than intact?

Yikes.

Yeah, it does seem funny, especially given it's an obsolete and abandoned technology, but I think "the VHS Club" is going to be more of a niche collector's group, like the ones that still love typewriters.

 

[JirinPanthosa]

VHS collections don't make sense to me unless it's something like, a person collects all Star Trek merchandise and wants the full official VHS collections.

It's not the same as vinyl. Vinyl records don't have significantly lower quality than the more convenient things that replaced them.

 

[Lance]

I have still got a VHS recorder, and I still use it from time to time both for recording and playback. Its probably more widespread than any of us think. There is secondhand product out there available that never came out on DVD, and I have a fascination sometimes with pan and scan versions of movies as a legitimate, alternative version. Also, living in a PAL region, there are the legendary colour timing issues on a few of the PAL Next Generation DVDs, whereas the PAL VHS tapes don't have those problems. In this way, the PAL videotapes are actually superior to the DVDs...

 

[BillJ]

I keep my collection of Star Trek and James Bond VHS tapes in watertight plastic bins safely in my garage.

For easy access?

 

[CaptainMurdock]

For easy access?

Well that and I don't have room for them in the house.

 

[johnnybear]

I have still got a VHS recorder, and I still use it from time to time both for recording and playback. Its probably more widespread than any of us think. There is secondhand product out there available that never came out on DVD, and I have a fascination sometimes with pan and scan versions of movies as a legitimate, alternative version. Also, living in a PAL region, there are the legendary colour timing issues on a few of the PAL Next Generation DVDs, whereas the PAL VHS tapes don't have those problems. In this way, the PAL videotapes are actually superior to the DVDs...

I've only watched the first two seasons of TNG on DVD, Lance, so what are these colour timing issues?
JB

 

[Lance]

I've only watched the first two seasons of TNG on DVD, Lance, so what are these colour timing issues?
JB

During the process of transfering the American NTSC DVD masters to PAL, the colour timing was a little messed up, so some shots (sometimes in the middle of scenes) will suddenly appear very desaturated and with a pinkish hue. This affects the first three seasons of the show. For an example, in "The Naked Now" during the first scene with Riker, Geordi and Crusher in Sickbay, many shots are vibrant and in full colour but there are others with a distinctly less colourful look and an overpowering pink hue. The original American NTSC DVDs, and even the TV broadcasts and PAL VHS tapes, do not exhibit these problems so it was definitely an error during the transfer.

It's not prevalent from seasons 4 onwards.