JVC DR-MV5S User Feedback

[divuer]

I've been going through this forum for several weeks now trying to educate myself on the current DVD recorder models. There appears to be a variety of problems with a majority of the units in particular the JVC DR-MV1S.

About a week ago I purchased the JVC DR-MV5S at Best Buy and even though I haven’t done any rigorous testing, I’m satisfied with the results. Unfortunately JVC only offers a 90 day warranty and I am a bit concerned about the unit’s lasting ability after reading various postings stating that everything worked ok at first but months down the line they started having problems.

I would like to hear from users who have been using this unit for a while. What has been your experience?

[lordsmurf]

People worry about warranties too much. If you read the fine print, it probably doesn't cover much beyond 30-90 days.

You can always buy extra warranties from some stores, but I'd only do one of those "no questions asked, free replacements, free fix or free upgrade" type deals that only costs like 5% of the item price.

Most of those 1-year or longer warranties only cover basic stuff, which is NEVER going to be all you need. You'd end up paying shipping, labor, parts, etc.

[trhouse]

Other brands like Pioneers and Panasonics both have one year on parts and labor, but not on rechargeable batteries, dvd-ram disks, etc which might come with the unit. Pioneer will not honor the warranty if the unit does not come from an authorized dealer. Panasonic does not say that but does say if you are in Canada and purchased the unit outside of Canada, you have no warranty.

Both will not honor the warranty if the unit is used is some businesses. Panasonic includes hotels and restaurants specifically. Pioneer says any trade or business.

[divuer]

My objective is to know what the long-term experience has been for as many users/owners of this unit as possible. A high number of problems have been posted about its predecessor (DR-MV1S) and some users claim that their DR-MV5S is also problematic. Now, are this isolated incidents that have been “overblown by the forum trolls” as lordsmurf puts it, or, are these JVC units buggy overall especially after a few months of use?

BTW, I contacted JVC via their 800-252-5722 number to clarify one of the features (the Owner’s Manual really needs some major editing) and at the end of our conversation I asked him if there were any known issues with this model. He placed me on hold and after a minute or so came back and stated “I’ve checked with my supervisor and it seems that all models in the DR series are problematic”. What??!!??

As for warranties, I see them mainly as the faith the manufacturer has on their products. If they use more robust components, they place the product in an upper-tier model line (Pioneer Elite, Sony ES), etc and give it a two to three year warranty. If they feel that the product will hold up for at least a year, you’ll see a one year warranty. JVC only offers a 90 day warranty which raises a red flag to me. Hence my question has anyone in this forum owned this model for more than 45-90 days and if so what is your take on it? Thanks all!

[lordsmurf]

I know people that have had the DR-MV1S for more than a year now, they're all happy. One of them saw loading and got it fixed. That was a first-gen machine, the newer MV5 should not have it.

Closest I can come to giving what you ask.

[trhouse]

I do not know if this will help you. There was a thread going for awhile in which a bunch of us were trying to help troubleshoot various problems with the older M10 and MV1. I received copies of the service manuals for both and have gone though both analyzing the use of components and their application.

First I should say I do not have manuals like this for other brands of recorders so cannot say how they stack up. I have opened other brands just to see how they work and what they use.

As with most recorders, about 1/3 of the inside is made by someone else, items like the dvd drive and tuners. JVC makes two big custom chips, one which switches all the various inputs around and includes some of the filters, the other has the analog to digital and digital to analog converters plus some other functions which may relate to filtering. They make the power supply, system controller ( that is what controls the keyboard, displays, etc.), bundle a board with the LSI chip.

The weakest points are the power supply electrically and the LSI mechanical heat sinking. No parts are running at more than their maximum rated values but some come close. This may just be commercial practice. I work on industrial grade equipment so we have a different set of guidelines about how close you can be to maximum ratings.

My conclusion was that these failures reported on the earlier units probably are due to defective parts not any design issue. The LSI mechanical problem relates to the heatsink being held against the processor via a thermal pad which may be too thin to do the job. That could cause the LSI chip to overheat and fail.

Some of the "failures" attributed to the machine are not necessarily so. The reset function of these machines has a lot of inputs from the drives and other places. The reset is initiated by the system controller so things like bad media could cause it to trigger. I vaguely remember there is a mechanical button to do what appears to be hardware reset but I do not recall if that button is internal to the machine and intended for service personnel.

I have not seen the newer units so cannot conclusively say that all these issues are gone, particularly the heat sinking problem, but there are far fewer complaints. If I wanted one, I would probably take a chance. Recorders are just not that expensive anymore.

[gshelley61]

To set your mind at ease, why don't you purchase Best Buy's extended service warranty?

For the record, I've acquired and re-sold dozens of open box store return MV5's over the past six months and have not run across even one defective or malfunctioning unit so far. They've all operated perfectly fine, and the folks who have bought them from me have not reported any problems.

[divuer]

I appreciate the feedback from the 3 of you, especially the last one from trhouse, very informative. It appears that those folks who posted getting an MV5 a few months ago either got rid of them or are not actively participating in the forum at this time.

As for gshelley61’s suggestion of getting Best Buy’s extended service warranty, come on, you’ve got to be kidding. I have never seen any store’s extended warranty that is worth even a dime. If the extended warranty was offered by the manufacturer I would consider it depending on the actual coverage and the cost. Unfortunately JVC doesn't even offer an extended warranty. I’m beginning to get cold feet and I may return this unit in a couple of weeks and wait for the Pioneer DVR-640H-S (shipping in June 2006).

[lordsmurf]

Best Buy has one of the only warranties I would consider, it is a good one, usually for 3 years (used to be 4 years in the 1990s). But back then it was like 10% of costs. These days it can run 20% of the item. Paying $40 warranty on a $200 device is stupid in my book, but for people who insist on warranties, it is a good one.

Wolf/Ritz Camera has another great policy. Same situation, it's gone up in price since the 1990s.

On price going up, I can only guess people (ab)used them. I do know people who would purposely break their electronics, but make it look accidental or device-self-inflicted, and then claim 3-4 times, which let you get the latest and greatest model. Not a bad deal when you traded in a 3-year-old PIII and get the newest P4, though ethically challenged, no doubt.

[JCWBobC]

I am curious as to when Pioneer & Panasonic started giving 1 year warranties on their DVD recorders as trhouse stated? I can guarantee that, at least until 2005, they had the same 90 day labor 1 year parts warranty that all other electronics companies in America give.

As for the DR-MV5S their are no known issues and most of the units sent for service are because people do not know that their is no RF output. You must use the composite or component output as the RF is just a pass-through.

[lordsmurf]

The RF thing is true of 99% of all DVD recorders, by the way.

[trhouse]

Panasonic DMR-ES10 purchased 03/25/05
Pioneer DVR-531H purchased 08/25/05

Panasonic's warranty


Pioneer's warranty