JVC HR-S9600U Issue

[NightFire]

I have a JVC HR-S9600U that doesn't play anymore. Seems to load the VHS tape fine and then turns off. Does anybody have the service manual for this unit? I have seen for sale on the Internet but don't want to pay for one. :P

If anybody who knows how to repair this thing wants to help that'd be great. I checked the VCR out and it seems fine mechanically and I have the feeling it's a tension problem. If you press play quickly before the VCR turns off the tape transport and head cylinder turns and the tape is pushed up and over the left tape transport pin. If I trick the VCR into thinking there is a tape it still turns off anyway. It will power on and stay on if you don't load a tape. The internals look very basic (compared some of the other VCRs I have) so I think I maybe able to fix with the service manual or some help.

Anybody know of a JVC certified service centre in Canada?

[lordsmurf]

Only one I know of is Jots Electronics in Arlington, Texas (Dallas/Ft. Worth area).

[NightFire]

Alright thanks. I bookmarked their website as a last ditch attempt. I don't really want to ship to the USA because of the cost on top of getting it repaired. Oh well maybe I'll try buying the service manual and hope it's just a stuck gear or something simple. The whole tape loading assembly is extremely easy to remove (4 screws and two clips) but I am just not 100% sure what I should be looking for without the service manual.

[robjv1]

I had a similar problem with my 7600U. I took it into a JVC authorized repair place in town and he had a lot of trouble deciding what was causing the problem and eventually said there was some king of cracked metal plate in the unit that often caused VCRs to exhibit strange behavior. Take it with a grain of salt though - who knows? He said he'd taken it apart and put it back together 4 or 5 times trying to get it to work right. It still can be a bit flaky from time to time, so I tend not to use it as it had a nasty habit of chewing up tapes as well, although it hasn't done that since he repaired it.

[NightFire]

It's too bad that this started to happen. It actually worked really with no issues until this. I found a manual online for $15 so I guess it's worth a shot. I guess the next big question is, does anybody know where to get parts (if I need anything replaced)?