| There are six different
consumer videotape recording standards in the world.
PAL, PAL-N, SECAM V and SECAM H
are all 625 lines, with 50 fields per second (25 frames per second), so
VHS machines will usually play a monochrome signal between these four standards,
but they are not compatible with NTSC or PAL-M. Each may only play
the colour portion of the signal for the other three if it has the relevant
colour circuitry built in. In SECAM countries, production is generally
done in PAL and is converted to SECAM at the transmitter.
NTSC is 525 lines, with 60 fields per second
(30 frames per second).
PAL-M is also 525 lines, with 60 fields
per second (30 frames per second), but the colour burst signal is handled
differently compared with NTSC. PAL-M is not compatible with PAL,
but the black and white part of the signal is compatible with NTSC.
Only Brazil and Laos use PAL-M so their consumer recorders often have the
colour circuitry to play back both NTSC and PAL-M. |
| PAL
(625
lines, 50 fields - colour sub-carrier frequency 4.43MHz) |
|
United Kingdom, Afghanistan
(also SECAM-H), Albania, Algeria, Andorra (also SECAM), Angola, Australia,
Austria, Azores (also NTSC), Bahrain, Bangladesh, Belgium, Bosnia-Herzogovina,
Botswana, Brunei, Cambodia (also SECAM-V), Cameroon, Cape Verde, Channel
Is, China, Christmas Is (Kiritimati Atoll), Croatia, Cyprus (also SECAM-H),
Denmark, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Falkland Is (Malvinas), Faroe Is, Fiji, Finland,
Gambia, Germany (former East Germany used SECAM), Ghana, Gibraltar, Greenland
(US Forces base uses NTSC), Guinea (formerly SECAM), Guinea-Bissau, Hong
Kong, Hungary (also SECAM-H), Iceland, India, Indonesia (inc New Guinea,
Borneo and Java), Ireland, Israel (inc West Bank and Gaza Strip), Italy,
Kenya, Kiribati, Kuwait, Lesotho, Liberia, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg (also
SECAM-V), Macau, Macedonia, Madeira, Malawi, Malaysia, Maldives, Malta,
Melanesia (New Guinea, Solomon Is, Vanuatu), Mozambique, Namibia, Nepal,
Netherlands (Holland), New Zealand (inc Cook Is), Nigeria, Norfolk Is,
Norway, Oman, Pakistan, Papua New Guinea, Poland (formerly SECAM-H), Portugal,
Qatar, Romania (formerly SECAM-H), San Marino, Sao Tome and Principe, Seychelles,
Sierra Leone, Singapore, Slovenia, Somalia, South Africa, Spain (inc Canary
Is), Sri Lanka, Sudan, Swaziland, Sweden, Switzerland, Syria, Tanzania,
Thailand, Tibet (China), Tonga, Turkey, Uganda, United Arab Emirates, Vatican
City, Vietnam (also NTSC and SECAM-V), Western Sahara, Yemen, Yugoslavia,
Zambia, Zimbabwe |
| PAL-M
(525
lines, 60 fields - colour sub-carrier frequency 3.58MHz) |
| Brazil, Laos |
| PAL-N
(625
lines, 50 fields - colour sub-carrier frequency 3.58MHz) |
| Argentina, Paraguay, Uruguay |
| SECAM-V
(625 lines, 50 fields - colour sub-carrier frequency 4.43MHz) |
| Benin, Burkina Faso, Burundi,
Central African Republic, Chad, Comoros (inc Anjouan, Grande Comore Mayotte
and Moheli), Congo, Corsica, Djibouti, Equatorial Guinea, France, French
Guyana, Gabon, Guadeloupe, Guinea, Haiti, Ivory Coast, Lebanon (also PAL),
Madagascar, Mali, Martinique, Mauritania, Mauritius, Monaco (also PAL),
Mongolia, Morocco, New Caledonia, Niger, North Korea, Reunion Is, Rwanda,
Senegal, Society Is (inc French Polynesia and Tahiti), St Pierre and Miquelon,
Togo, Tunisia, Western Samoa, Zaire |
| SECAM-H
(625
lines, 50 fields - colour sub-carrier frequency 4.43MHz) |
| Bulgaria, Cyprus (also PAL),
Czech Republic, Egypt (also PAL), Estonia, Georgia, Greece (also PAL),
Iran, Iraq, Jordan (also PAL), Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Latvia, Libya, Lithuania,
Moldova, Russia and former USSR, Saudi Arabia (also PAL), Slovakia, Syria
(also PAL), Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Ukraine, Uzbekistan |
| NTSC
(525
lines, 60 fields - colour sub-carrier frequency 3.58MHz) |
| Antilles Netherlands, Bahamas,
Balau Is, Barbados, Belize, Bermuda, Bolivia, Burma (Myanmar), Canada,
Cayman Is (also PAL), Chile, Columbia, Costa Rica, Cuba, Diego Garcia,
Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Galapagos Is, Grenada, Guatemala,
Guyana (formerly SECAM), Haiti, Honduras, Jamaica, Japan, Leeward Is, Marshall
Is, Mexico, Micronesia, Panama, Peru, Philippines, Puerto Rico, South Korea,
Samoa, St Lucia, Surinam, Taiwan, Trinidad and Tobago, USA, Venezuela |
| This information is published in good
faith and believed to be correct, but responsibility can't be accepted
for errors or omissions. Please
report any incorrect entries. |
