Convert VHS to Digital - How to use OBS with a cheap Video Capture Card (Windows 11)

This follows up a post I wrote back in August 2025 when I tried to use an 'Honestech' DIGITNOW! video capture device with my HP laptop. 

Back then I had a very frustrating time tying to get this to work so I could make a digital recording of my first edition Star Wars VHS tapes. Firstly the software which came with the device proved to be useless. At the time I did try an earlier version of Open Broadcaster Software (OBS) as an alternative without success. I can't remember what the issue was but it could have been my video converter card was not recognised within OBS. I resorted to a very long-winded process of using a very old video capture device and software on an equally old Dell laptop running Vista. Anway, that was covered in detail in my earlier post. 

DIGITNOW! video capture card sold under the name 'Honestech'

This whole issue recently came to mind once more and I had an idea to try a different approach using the latest version of OBS. 

I began by searching for the official DIGITNOW! website and checking their software download page. To my surprise it linked to an OBS version 27.0.1 download (not the newest). So I decided to download the latest version from the official OBS website which was version 32.1.2. If the video card maker was recommending OBS then it must work, right?

I don't always have the patience to watch tutorials, so I dived straight into OBS. The user instructions which came with DIGITNOW! provided the device name for video as AV TO USB2.0 and the audio device as USB2.0 MIC. I plugged in the capture device into the USB slot and checked on Windows 11 device manager to make sure these were listed, which they were. I then went into OBS looking for those names.

I've added some screenshot steps below. I suspect this process could also work with other branded converters made in China. The hardware is probably made in the same factory and just packaged differently. That’s good news if you have a converter but no longer have the original software. 

With the cables, I plugged the scart socket switched to 'OUT' into the bottom of the two sockets at the back of my VCR. 

Once I inserted a VHS and played it, I could preview the playback in OBS. Previously, I had to playback the video on a TV screen to capture it. So it was recording the signal directly this time. 

After a test run I found I also had the option to adjust some lighting and colour settings. I did adjust the colour slightly so the faces no longer appeared so red and now had a better skin tone. 

The other significant improvement with using OBS directly with the VCR signal was that I had a far better replay with no lines and scratches as before. Also without any annoying 'Macromedia' copyright blocks. I even tested a Disney VHS and could now record without any copyright issues.

This was very satisfying after the frustrations when I tried last year. I'm not sure if the success was due to a newer version of OBS or just that I worked out how to get the correct settings. 

The final recording came out as 2.66GB.

Here's some step-by-step screeshots. This was a trial and error process for me but the settings I made seem to have worked. There's functionality to tweak these settings further and even make some direct changes to colour etc. I wasn't familiar with all these options or what they did so left most to default. 

1. Start by clicking on the + symbol. 

2. Select Video Capture Device from the drop down list.

3. Make sure the video capture device is plugged into the USB socket. Select create new and provide a name. 

4. Select the video capture device which should be listed on the drop down list provided. In my case it's called "AV to USB2.0". Then go down this pop-up box and select the audio device which for me was called "Microphone (USB2.0 MIC)".

5. Your newly created profile name will appear in blue under Source on the bottom left side. This should give you a screen like this. You can move the red borders. With your new 'source' active in the bottom left, you can then right-click and get a long list of options. 

6. I checked through these options to see if there was anything I should change. The only thing I found to change was to make the aspect ratio suitable for a square television 4:3. These VHS tapes were produced for the old style square televisions. Do this by selecting Filters. 

I've now tested this successfully on all my Star Wars trilogy first edition VHS tapes. There was no 'scrambling' which appears when I previously tried digitally recording these same VHS tapes using an older video capture card via a television screen. See my previous post for how this went. 

Star Wars A New Hope came to 2.66 Gb, The Empire Strikes Back 3.47 Gb and Return of the Jedi 3.07 Gb.

The quality of the VHS playback improved with each film. The first film being the oldest, may have been rented out significantly more tmes than the others, which may explain the poorer picture quality. 

Looking at the following screencaps, you can see there's a black border on either side of the picture. I believe this can't be avoided if playing in VLC. I would need to check the settings again in OBS to see if it can record without the black borders on either side. 

Episode IV screencaps

Episode V screencaps

Episode VI screencaps

M-65 Field Jacket dilema

I've been interested in military clothing for as long as I can remember and recently found myself being drawn to the US M-65 jacket. I like the idea of wearing this jacket for 'everyday use' - it’s practical and can be worn with almost any form of casual combo. I'm currently procrastinating on whether to buy one. 

The Alpha Industries M-65 Field Jacket (reproduction)

In fact I've owned various surplus clothing over the years so understand how durable military spec garments are. Standard civilian high street clothing just doesn’t need to be so well made. 

I can't deny that I'm influenced by it's screen appearence in films like Taxi Driver, Annie Hall, Rambo First Blood and others. It's classic and cool. I think it also suites both younger and older people well. 

Al Pacino in Serpico (1973)

Robert De Niro in the film Taxi Driver (1976)

                                                

Woody Allen in Annie Hall (1977)

Sylvestor Stallone in Rambo First Blood (1982)

Jesse Eeisenberg Zombieland 2

I started reading some reviews about which jacket maker would be best and found myself disappearing down a rabbit hole. 

First of all, everyone has different needs and opinions. Some believe it has to be a genuine military issue jacket. However, I'm past the days where as a teenager I would happily adorn a variety of military surplus clothing. Having now reached my 'mature' years I don't really want to wear someone elses scruffy discarded clothing. I've reached the age where I'm happy to trade-off 'original' for something very similar but new and perhaps better suited for the modern urban use. Also, the original surplus jackets are now quite expensive. 

So this brings me to what's available in terms of a modern newly made 'replica' or 'reproduction'. For me, this is a jacket for 'everyday' town use rather than something I'm going hiking or camping with. So it that way, I'm happy if the quality is reasonable and it looks how it should. Something between 'original' and high-street fashion. 

I've concluded that for me anyway, this leads to the Alpha Industries M65 jacket. Now I like that fact that it's a reasonably accurate representation of the original. I dislike the fact that it's made in China, but these days there's not much which isn't. It's not so much a question of quality, but I'm not so keen on supporting the Chinese economy. 

There are of course alternative makers who produce jackets which are faithful reproductions made to a high standard, which comes at a cost. For me, I simply cannot justify spending that kind of money. These include Rothco, Buzz Rickson or Cockpit USA.  On the other hand, Alpha Industries are not too cheap but not the most expensive either. Would I expect any jacket to last a lifetime? - probably not. 

Another positive thing is that this had become such a 'classic' that it's unlikely to ever look 'out-of-place' even in an urban environment.

The final factor in deciding if the Alpha Industries field jacket is for me, is the fit. I read that the jacket is 'over-sized', which is in-keeping with the original. This lead me to think that I would need to downsize from my regular size Large to a size Medium. 

Yet another plus with the Alpha Industries jacket is that there's a shop near to me selling them. Having the option to try the jacket on beforehand is a major plus for me. I’m under no illusion that this would look good on me, as the style is intended to be more loose and even 'baggy' than fitted. My worst fear is that it looks like I'm wearing a poncho. Due to these 'complications' this is one jacket that I wanted to try on beforehand. 

High Street fashion goes military

High street fashion has been inspired by military functional clothing for a very long time. I had a look through my own wardrobe and found a heavy-weight cotton shirt/jacket which I bought in the early 2000's. After some recent online research it turns out that this particular item is almost an exact copy of a German Bundswehn 'moleskin' work shirt/lightweight jacket. Original versions can still easily be found online. What surprised me was how good this fashion version was, which even incorporated detail such as three waist loops which were used for attaching trousers using a button loop. The trousers would be worn on top of the shirt. It also has epaulettes which can be unbuttoned. I would say that even the cotton material is similar quality and 'weight' to an original. The few 'give-aways' include a fashion label "Rocha John Rocha" at the bottom hem, buttons printed with the same name and a makers label saying Debenhams, Made in China. 

An original shirt is shown below on the left-side and my Debenams fashion shirt on the right. This highlights the differences quite well. The collar on the original is smaller and pockets without buttons sit higher. There's also colour variation but the fashion shirt colour doesn't look wrong. You can see how even the loop strips running down the front from the pockets has been copied. There's also ventillation holes under the armpits on both shirts. 

Original German army 'moleskin' shirt (left) and high street fashion version (right)

Here's another original, which usually come with the German flag on each shoulder. These are very common, along with a similar lighter weight shirt which doesn't have any loops on the front for trousers. 

These loops on the front are for attaching trousers  

Debenams 'fashion' version of the German Army Moleskin shirt

Below is another of my 'fashion' jackets which has taken inspiration from military styles. This particular one has been produced for sale by the high street shop John Lewis. It's a polyester shell with cotton lining made in China. For a relatively cheap jacket made in China it's surprisingly well made. I've had this over 15 years. It's still in perfect condition, but that's because I've not really worn it enough. An M-65 jacket would be a replacement for this and hopefully I would wear it more than this one. I would say it's ideal for Spring or Autumn, being showerproof. Four pleated pockets means there's enough room for your sunglasses etc. 

Re-inforced elbows

Slanted military style breast pockets with poppers

Buckle style collar

Cotton lining