JVC DVD Recorder jitter

[chris.newbold]

Ah the old JVC jitter-bug again!

Have just bought a lovely new JVC drmh-300. Picture is stunning. A few idiosyncrasies - frame accurate editing seems to result in nigh-on nothing being dubbable at high speed. Menus are a bit clumsy.

The main problem for me though is a flaw when copying from vcr. I am using a jvc 7xxx (something or other) with tbc etc etc OR a crappy old bog standard Matsui vcr (sometimes better with some tapes).

I get totally random picture jumps (not actually jitter but a single noticable picture jump every now and then) on recordings. Also occasionally a stuttered frame (frame missed, so the previous frame is repeated - ie frame sticks for 2 frames). This flaw is a recording rather than playback aspect as it is also there when played on a friend's DVD.

I have tried - switching off all jvc features (the dvd recorder compensates and still produces a lovely picture anyway!), using the other vcr etc. The playback signal is fine. If I replay the same bit of tape there is no obvious flaw and it will be rerecorded fine! ie. it seems a totally random problem. Recording off-air is ok as far as I can tell, so it is a vhs specific problem.

I am loathe to return it. It is cleaning up my old tapes (and other ropey DVDs) really well. I don't think it is faulty - I think the preprocessor in the DVDR is reacting to 'something' in the tape signal. ie it is an offshoot of the software cleaning up. You can't switch the preprocessor off!

Any ideas? Would a TBC help or not in this case?

[Cole]

I would say an external TBC may help as I had this problem with some VHS tapes while capturing from some VHS tapes to an ADVC-50. The TBC (in my case a Datavideo TBC100) has solved this problem and I have not had the issue since installing the TBC.

However, the Datavideo TBC-100 is a PCI Card, so this won't really be an option for you.

As I understand, this is something to do with dropouts on the VHS tape in the verticle sync region. The TBC will give out a new syncronised signal which should prevent this from happening.

I have a JVC 7965 which is more likely in my experience to be more sensitive to sync region drop-outs. An older Panasonic NV-HD90 is less sensitive to these (but not immune), but the picture quality is no-where near as good as when using the JVC.

I hope that this is helpful.

[chris.newbold]

Hi Cole

Yes thanks that is helpful. Dr Who tapes were they? Join the club! Funnily enough I've just been testing Destiny and Genesis so your avatar made me laugh! BBC videos do cause more problems don't they?

I have 2 JVC vcrs - both tend to jitter with tbc on. Luckily this JVC dvd recorder cleans up everything beautifully except for this fault!

I hope a TBC will help .The only concern I have is that the fault isn't constant jitter - just the odd frame and it varies - on replay it's not there! Will plod on. A nice company in Derby have offered to send me a tbc to try and I can return in 10 days if it's useless.

[Cole]

Isn't that uncanny!

From my experience, yes, the BBC tapes are causing me a lot of headaches. I am converting a rather large collection of vintage television tapes (off air and commercial) and I am having a spate of BBC tapes causing me problems. I have already done all of my Tom Baker Doctor Whos, and strangely enough, hardly a problem; I am currently doing the Jon Pertwees and they are nearly all having some problem somewhere!

Many of the BBC tapes at the moment are having jitter problems but some of the issues can be a mixture of not liking the DNR/TBC turned on, but having the jitter correct is a bit of a life saver at times.

For my best results, I have to test every tape individually before I start to record them and sadly, the current trend is that I have to go with the DNR/TBC off.

I have never used the JVC VCR to merely playback to a television, so I don't acually know if the same issues transfer to a normal television

Hope that the TBC works for you though.

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[MeekloBraca]

When I had the JVC DRM100 with some Panasonic VCR it had some major jitter. No jitter when connected straight to the TV. When I had the JVC 7600 and the Lite-On 5005 i had major jitter as well.

I would avoid buying hundreds of dollars worth of equipment in external TBC's and all that jazz, and try and find a VCR and DVD recorder that will give you the best results.