Abstract. The evolution along the tank of unidirectional nonlinear wave groups with narrow spectrum is studied both experimentally and numerically. Measurements of the instantaneous surface elevation within the tank are carried out using digital processing of video-recorded sequences of images of the contact line movement at the tank side wall. The accuracy of the video-derived results is verified by measurements performed by conventional resistance-type wave gauges. An experimental procedure is developed that enables processing of large volumes of video images and thus allows capturing the spatial structure of the instantaneous wave field along the whole tank. The experimentally obtained data are compared quantitatively with the solutions of the Modified Nonlinear Schrödinger (MNLS, or Dysthe) equation written in either temporal or spatial form. The adopted approach allows studying evolution along the tank of wave frequency spectra, as well as the temporal variation of the wave number spectra. It is demonstrated that accounting for the 2nd order bound (locked) waves is essential for getting a qualitative and quantitative agreement between the measured and the computed spectra. The relation between the frequency and the wave number spectra is discussed.