A little background...
I'm transferring about a 100 VHS tapes I have from the 90s, various years. These are recorded TV shows and programs never released on DVD, otherwise I wouldn't bother with this project.

All were recorded on SLP/EP mode, and various 6 or 8 hour tapes (yes I know now this is frowned upon but nothing I can do about it now...I was a poor college student at the time).

Anyway my tapes are in great condition, but getting proper playback in regards to tracking and jumpy picture is an annoyance. I seem to get stable tracking on a Sharp VCR I picked up from a local Craigslist seller. The only problem is that I get a much better image on a newer panasonic. I have a panny DMR-EZ48V machine that gives a much softer more appealing VHS image, but the tracking and jumpiness on this machine is horrid. I'm basically just using it as a dvd recorder now, no use for the VHS. I'd like to find a VCR that can maybe give an image that's comparable with steady tracking..

Now to my question...would a Sharp S-VHS quasi playback VCR fit the bill? The Sharp VCR I have now is the VC-H952 model and does not have the S-VHS playback (as far as I can tell). I'm wondering if there would be much difference?

I've also tried a panasonic from the late 90s and it tracks okay, but the picture is too sharp and upon viewing a copied dvd it just looks too pixelated. I think the softer image gives a much better dvd copy (it's just more pleasing to my eye).

Hopefully someone can shed some light on what could possibly work...