Astound Video Duplication and Transfer

Wonderful customer service! I recently recovered a college orchestra recording that had been missing for decades. It was on an old Maxell tape cassette. I wanted it transferred to DVD for a surprise birthday gift for three of the original members of the orchestra. Dave at Astound was fantastic, friendly, professional and helpful. He did a very thorough job of patiently reviewing the entire recording and breaking it down into separate tracks to listen to. We couldn't be happier with our experience and the high quality work from the nice folks at Astound Video Duplication and Transfer in St. Paul.

This VHS video of a family member was taken by someone who was paid to take it, but the quality was not good. I spoke to the technician about the problems, and he thought he could improve it somewhat. I had previously had this transferred by a mass market company, and the result was unwatchable. At Astound, they were able to produce a watchable DVD, saving a record of something that was personally very important.

Took a long time, but was done on the date promised.

unknown

unknown

unknown

unknown

unknown

unknown

Knowledgable people. Very responsive.

went well

The job was done on time and the quality of transfer is excellent. DVD menu is quite ugly but I was after the digital files and that portion exceeded my expectations. We took in many more films after seeing the results from that first test set.

This was the second time I used this provider. They scanned some color slides from the 1960s and 70s onto a DVD. Everything was well done and on time, except that the color from a few slides was off--shifted from red to orange (when the slide wasn't that orange). I would definitely use this provider again, and probably ought to go back to see if they would re-scan those few slides.

I dropped off and picked up at the Apple Valley location. It is my understanding that all 8mm work is transferred to the Roseville location. The good: They did capture all 51 films and placed them on a portable hard disk that I provided and they delivered it on time. The bad: The videos are "washed out". I captured some some of the films myself using an old projector and a video camera and the colors are bright and vibrant -- these videos they provided -- not even close. Some of the movies "jump" as though whatever projection unit was used was not grabbing the film properly. The Apple Valley tech told me that no "problems" had been reported such as some of the films were bad, yet there are multiple instances where they are just not viewable because the image shakes too much. In the collection of films I had 4 different sets and I wanted them labeled and organized on the hard drive as such, instead I have 51 sequentially numbered files and now it is my job to determine which file goes with with film to best sequence them. In the end I do now have a digital collection of these 51 films however I am extremely disappointed with the results given the price I paid. I have not yet contacted Astound as I just picked up the films on Friday and viewed some of them over the weekend, but I will do so today or tomorrow. -- Buyer beware...

I had approx 8 different size reels that were taken in the 60's and last viewed in the 70's on a projector. Most had been protected in tin canisters but still worried about quality after 30+ years. Very satisfied with the movie quality and way they made chapters for each reel on the dvd. Each copy had its own boxed sleeve with the title I chose which made for a nice presentation (given as gifts).

When I went to Astound, we viewed together the DVD that had the previously transferred movies. The speed was too fast and there were areas that were difficult to see. Some movies were not in chronological order. We discussed what they could do to make the result better.
After discussing the costs, I left the movies for them to redo and set up an appointment to review them with a technician . At that appointment , we went through all of the newly transferred movies and made changes, got things in chronological order, deleted some material. They explained what they had done to improve the quality. They answered all my questions .I had them produce some DVDs and a hard drive ( that I store in my safety deposit box - by the way, there is room on that hard drive for the rest of my projects).

It might cost you more but you get a much better result. Plus, you get a chance to preview their work before they make the final product. Plus, you don't have to ship your precious cargo to who-knows- where.

Your movies and slides and VHS tapes are a record of your family's life. They should be handled with care by someone who is an expert in the field. I felt very comfortable bringing my home movies to Astound. I will return with numerous boxes of slides, VHS tapes, etc ., and I know that they will do a great job. THEY KNOW WHAT THEY ARE DOING . An exceptional experience.

Action performed as requested

It was an excellent experience. They were professional, friendly, punctual and did a wonderful job. When we had a problem with one of the videos they redid it at no etra cost.

Astound could not possibly have been nicer, more professional, and more user friendly. They took the tapes and gave a date and price and when we went to pick them up the presentation of the DVD's could not have been more professional. I would highly recommend their services and have actually told everyone I have run into at how happy we are with their services. Though I should add - we were at the Minneapolis store on 614 W 54th St - not the store in St Paul as - we actually live about a mile from the Mpls store.

The tapes were over 20 years old, but the digital copies look quite good.

They were professional, quick, and did a good job. It was easy dealing with them during the project.

Everything went well, and my wife had no issues with the service. They charged a reasonable price, too.

The work itself was fine--I can view the DVDs. My complaint is with the staff giving me a date they would be complete, allowing me to arrive on that date only to be told there was a delay (they had my phone number--why didn't they call?) He said he would call when they were ready--they'd been sent to the St Paul store. He even took down a second phone number for me. No one ever called. I went over several days later. "Oh yeah, they're ready. Whoops, looks like we have all but one. It's still at the St Paul store--they're having trouble with it, but they'rll try it on another machine. I'll phone you when it's ready in a day or two." I totally understand that technology goes awry. My complaint is the lack of customer service. I got a call from him not in a day or two, but a week and a half later. I told him I was disappointed in the service, he muttered he'd been out sick, was sorry, but it was half-hearted. Yuck!

They did a good job. It took about a week. Afterwards, I wanted an additional CD made, and that was not a problem. They made it. They called me when it was ready, and I picked it up. They were friendly.

They know exactly what they are doing. They let you sit through and edit the material. They fixed the speed and everything. Family members tried a big-box store, and their experience was terrible. I would highly recommend them. It was a great experience and the product turned out better then I could have ever done. The price was right for the quality you got.