Digitization Services
Digitization Services
Table with laptop and large speakers, digitization equipment for analog audio

The Stanford Media Preservation Lab is dedicated to preserving and enhancing access to original sound and moving image materials that are held by Stanford Libraries. Working closely with curators, archivists, conservators, and library staff, our core operations focus on creating a high-quality copy of the original content in a digital format that is easily accessed by researchers and the Stanford Libraries community.

Stanford Media Preservation Lab

Equipment

Day to day, the Stanford Media Preservation Lab (SMPL) uses a variety of equipment to digitize and preserve analog media from the library's collections.
video digitization rack with different playback decks connected with wires
SMPL's video digitization rack, which can handle numerous analog and digital video formats
multiple machines for digitizing open reel analog audio tape
We employ multiple machines to accommodate analog audio tape in various configurations (Studer A807s and Ampex ATR-102/104s are most frequentlyused)
Cylinder and wire digitization equipment
For some of the earliest audio formats held by the libraries, we use the Endpoint Audio cylinder and dictabelt machine
person looking at screens monitoring analog video as it is digitized
The process of digitizing analog video includes careful monitoring and calibration of equipment to correctly capture the signal from a tape
two audio cassette racks on either side of a table with a monitor and speakers
Our audio cassette digitization set-up is capable of performing parallel transfers, which means we can digitize multiple audio cassettes at once
studer open reel audio machine with reels
Here's how the open reel audio tape looks when it is set-up correctly

Supported formats

The Stanford Media Preservation Lab supports a variety of formats found in our collections: 

Audio Video
Cylinder, Dictabelt, Dictaphone cylinder 1/2" EIAJ-1, 1/2” Sony CV
Transcription disc (AKA "acetate" or "lacquer") VHS (NTSC/PAL/SECAM, S-VHS, VHS-C, D-VHS)
78 rpm disc (AKA "shellac") 3/4" U-Matic (LB, HB, SP)
LP (AKA "vinyl") Betamax (NTSC, ED Betamax)
Audiocassette Digital Betacam
Microcassette Betacam (oxide, SP)
1/4-inch analog reel (quarter track stereo, half track and full track; 15/16, 1-7/8, 3-3/4, 7-1/2, 15, 30 ips) Video8 (8mm), Hi8 and Digital8
1/2-inch analog reel (half track: 15, 30 ips; four track: 3-3/4, 7-1/2, 15, 30 ips) DV (MiniDV, DVCAM, HDV, DVCPRO/50/HD)
Digital Audio Tape (DAT) LaserDisc
Compact Disc (CD) DVD
MiniDisc  

Although we are unable to digitize film in-house, original motion picture film materials (8mm, 16mm, 35mm) are inspected for content as well as format identification and physical condition. Lab staff work with professional vendors that provide film-to-film or film-to-video transfer services.