I have a TV that receives digital channels but my VCR is an old analog type. Can I record digital channels ?

Question

on my analog VCR.?

Answer 1

Not directly, they would have to be converted to analog.  If you use the VCR for free Over The Air TV, then you could use a converter box.  If you are on cable or satellite, you would need to use an analog output from the cable or satellite box.

I hope this helps.  Please return and select a Best Answer from all of those submitted.

Answer 2

Yes you can but you have to connect a free-view box to the television and video as we did with ours.  

Answer 3

Depending on the model of your TV, it may output the digital channel you are tuned to on its Scart connector (you didn't say which country you are in, but I get the impression from the terminology you are in the UK. If you are in Bush country, this answer does not apply to you).  The trouble is that you would then have to leave the TV switched on while you are recording.

By far the easiest solution is to get a separate Freeview box specifically for your analogue VCR. They're very cheap these days. Connect the Freeview scart to one of the VCR's scarts. Then, when you programme a recording, make sure your VCR is set up to record from the scart (usually something like AV1 or LL1, depending on the model), not from the channel numnber.The Freeview box must also be set to the channel you want to record. If you want to record several programmes from different channels, you will have to programme both the VCR and the Freeview. This solution also enables you to watch a different channel from the one you are recording, or even have the TV switched off.

This might all sound complicated, but it's not really. I set it up for my 82 year old mother, so she could record with the hard-of-hearing subtitles. She manages just fine (but only records one programme at a time).