Panasonic Or Pioneer?

[mister_to_you]

I'm looking to purchase a DVD Recorder, but can't make my mind up on which one.

I would like a Hard Drive with it, are there any big differences between Panasonic and Pioneer?

Does both record up to 12hours on a disc and which manufacture plays the most media?

[trhouse]

I have a Panasonic non hard drive model and a Pioneer hard drive model ( 531H ). The Pioneer manual only mentions -r, -rw playback but it seems to play +r fine. Same with Panasonic. The big difference is the media that can be recorded. Panasonic does dvd-ram, dvd-r, dvd-rw, dvd+r, dvd+rw, dvd-r DL, and dvd+r DL. Pioneer does dvd-r. dvd-rw, and dvd-r DL.

Panasonics cannot record dvd-rw in VR mode ( but can read a Pioneer dvd-rw VR mode disk), Pioneer can. It does have a few advantages. The Pioneer allows off loading from the hdd and up loading to the hdd in dvd-rw VR mode with no re-encoding. The Pioneer can also make copies of non copyrighted disks which is very handy for making copies of home video for relatives.

The resolution of the Pioneer is slightly less than Panasonic. Tests by Gshelley61 of Pioneer hdd models with DV input show the DV input to be subpar.

The Pioneer manual says that 12 hours is the maximum time for one title but I found that if I am doing timer recordings, I sometimes cannot get that ( the timer start and stop times will not allow it). I do not know what the Panasonics do under the same circumstances.

[ChainsawDude]

The big difference is the media that can be recorded. Panasonic does dvd-ram, dvd-r, dvd-rw, dvd+r, dvd+rw, dvd-r DL, and dvd+r DL. Pioneer does dvd-r. dvd-rw, and dvd-r DL.

Are you comparing this years Panasonic with last years Pioneer? The latest Pioneers record to more formats than Panasonic i.e. dvd-ram, dvd-r, dvd-rw, dvd+r, dvd+rw, dvd-r DL, and dvd+r DL but including VR mode DVD-RW.
My recorder is Pioneer DVR-440HX-S (UK model) maybe called 540 in US, not sure.

However, the latest Pioneers do not have DVI (used for camcorder stuff if you dont want to use your PC).

HTH

[TBoneit]

The picture is going to look pretty bad if you are trying to squeeze 12 hours onto a DVD?

I suppose you could get 12 hours of VCD quality using a DL blank. FWIW I never put over 3 hours on a 4.7 Gb DVD and try to stay under 2 hours.

I've been tempted to get the new Pioneer 640 with the big hard drive to replace my Pioneer 531h (640 has twice the hard drive and support for +R & -R is why)
New model Pioneers support both +R & -R media

[Marvingj]

Personally, I like Pioneer over Panasonic but Panasonic has the best filters...

[starwarrior29]

I have a Panasonic with a hard drive and my brother has a Pioneer with a hard drive and to me the Pioneer's video quality looks better. Because of having a hard drive I only record in XP or SP mode and anything I want to save I'll burn to a dvd ram disc and transfer to my computer to clean up the video before burning to a dvd.

[trhouse]

ChainsawDude,

Are you comparing this years Panasonic with last years Pioneer?

Yes, I did not realize the 640 was available yet but here it is llsted for $399 at BH.
http://www.bhphotovideo.com/bnh/controller/home?A=details&kw=PIDVR640HS&is=REG&Q=&O=pr...ist&sku=429920
The BH ad does not show support for dvd+r DL. I hope that is wrong. The Pioneer USA web site is down for maintenance at the moment.

TBoneit,

The picture is going to look pretty bad if you are trying to squeeze 12 hours onto a DVD?

I thought the 12 hours meant 12 hours to the hard drive, but the 531H can do over 13 hours in MN1 mode with 352 by 240 resolution onto a dvd. It would look pretty bad.

I am very tempted to get the 640 for the same reasons.

[bnbhoha]

Either one is good. The pioneer offers more versatility with their manual speed recording adjustment whereas panny offers the flexible mode. The new panny and pioneers are coming ou this month. The pioneer 640 does not have a DV input for your camcorder whereas the panny does. The panny EH55 will have a larger hard drive. It's going to be a toss up, but personally from my experience and from what I've read, the panny has a slightly better picture in SP mode. Also, Panny has this LP mode (4 hour mode) which increases the lines of resolution or something like that making the picture a lot better. Both recorders will do all formats including dual layered and ram discs

[TBoneit]

trhouse, as I recall the 640h has a 160Gb drive so using the 1 hour speed that fills a 4.7gb DVD it should still hold roughly 32 hours on the hard drive. Some space may be reserved for the DVD Copy function and TV Guide data so I say roughly.

On My 531h & I would hope the 640 is similar choosing the 1Hr 45Min setting for example will show me how much time is left to record by pressing the display button as I recall it or by pressing the button that takes me to the screen showing recorded programs it shows at the bottom of the screen time left. It does have one annoying habit when turned on if less than 5 hours left it puts a message on the screen as a warning.

[kitty]

If you want a Pioneer, you'd better hurry
https://forum.videohelp.com/viewtopic.php?t=302154

I tend to shy away from manufacturers that are getting out of a market.

[trhouse]

Kitty,

Further down on that thread, Pioneer denies it.

[TBoneit]

kitty, they didn't say getting out of the market just outsourcing manufacturing in the thread you refer too.

Example Sony sells DVD burners but they don't make them anymore, that doesn't make them out of the market.

[kitty]

True - they could use JVC, they could use Lego, we'll have to wait & see.

[handyguy]

Lots more comments by SPECIFIC model numbers:
https://www.videohelp.com/dvdrecorders

[CrayonEater]

I'm not sure about the HD-equipped Panasonics, but most of the non-HD models have a kind of TBC that helps in VHS dubbing, if you plan to do any of that. That's the main reason I bought mine. The built-in TBC won't handle really bad tapes or copy-protection like a good-quality standalone TBC might, but it's something to consider. Don't know about the Pioneers.

However, stick with 2-hr (4-hr for DL?) mode if you want decent quality.