Best recorder with HD under $500?

[kevs]

I'm looking at Toshiba RD-XS34,
Panasonic DMRREH55S
AND Pioneer DVR640HS

any comments out there? seems the Pioneer does not have DV link.

[lordsmurf]

JVC, Toshiba, Pioneer, LiteOn

[redwudz]

I have a Pioneer DVR-633H-S. It has DV in and a 160Gb hard drive. About $400US. I like it so far. I even like the EPG feature that some users complain about. . It works well with my cable system and makes scheduling recordings fairly easy.

[Frobozz]

I'm looking at Toshiba RD-XS34,
Panasonic DMRREH55S
AND Pioneer DVR640HS

any comments out there? seems the Pioneer does not have DV link.

I'm confident the Pioneer 640H-S will have the Firewire DV link. It is the 540H that doesn't have it (and that model may not be sold in the U.S. anyway). It would be silly for Pioneer to remove the feature when it always has been part of their top-end consumer DVD recorders.

[trhouse]

You might want to check out the Toshiba XS54 as well. It has a 250 GB hard drive and is less than $500. The only problem with Toshiba's is that they do not support dual or double layer disks.

[kevs]

thanks red, what is EPG?

thanks again TR, good point, that's thinking ahead, even though now those disc are too expensive. the pioneers, I take it will support dual. I can't find a place showing spec that it has DV link for some reason.

[redwudz]

EPG= Electronic Program Guide. It's sort of a TV guide that shows on your screen. You can move forward several days and set the programs you want to record by just clicking on the guide listing. It downloads the guide off your cable system. (At least most cable systems)

Some users complain about the hard drive running while it is downloading. Pioneer needs to work on a little noise reduction as you can hear the drive running in a quiet room. It runs a fair amount for a week or so, then gets caught up and it's not really that noticeable afterwards. But it does work well, at least for me.

[trhouse]

Gshelley61 tested the DV input of the Pioneer 533H on this thread ( the 533H is the DV input version of the 531H which does not have it ),

https://forum.videohelp.com/viewtopic.php?t=279460

It is subpar.

[FulciLives]

I'v seen enough tests to indicate that FireWire out and analog video out from a digital camcorder will give you the same quality when using a DVD recorder.

Now the Pioneer may have a sub-par DV input but what I am saying is all things being equal ... you will get the same quality if you use FireWire out or analog out from the digital camcorder.

So in the case of the Pioneer DVD recorders just use analog out of the digital camcorder to the Pioneer DVD recorder and if the DVD recorder model you really want has no FireWire port ... don't worry about it ... because it really makes no real difference.

- John "FulciLives" Coleman

P.S.
I have a Pioneer DVR-531H-s which is a stand alone DVD recorder with a built-in 80GB HDD and no FireWire input. I am very happy with the quality. The EPG thing ... I don't trust it ... I program everything manually ... it ain't no big deal to do so.

I think the new batch of Pioneer DVD recorders are due soon so you might want to wait for those to hit the market. Should be soon (next couple of months or so).

[FulciLives]

[DELETE]

I made an accidental double post.

[kevs]

Ah! good point. I have DVR by Adelphia cable, and now I have to unplug it every damn night because it's too loud. It's in the bedroom. It's make loud noise 24/7--whether recording or not.
Are these DVD/HD combos noisy like that? I don't want to bother if they are -- have 2 machines have to unplug every night.

you are saying, only make noise while it's recording and otherwise, perfectly silent and quite? that's norm for other brands as well?

thanks TR, but you find a link that confirm the Pioneer I listed has DV? and have any opinions between these three brands?

Fulci: isn't the Pioneer I listed the new one to come out? Don't understand what you are saying about analog from camcorder. I think my camcorders only have the FW port to go out, no?

[Frobozz]

I'm not going to debate FulciLives analysis of the picture quality on a Pioneer recorder when capturing from the Firewire input or with an S-video input from a camcorder. However, they can't be identical. When capturing via the S-video or composite video input the Pioneer applies its video enhancements that are set in the Pioneer's video adjust menu. In this way you can adjust certain video parameters when doing an analog input. The Firewire input captures the exact quality recorded by the camcorder with no affects from the digital-to-analog-and-back-to-digital process. Also, the Pioneer automatically creates a chapter marker at each scene break when doing a Firewire import, and the Pioneer's remote controls the operation of the DV camcorder while connected.

If you want to see the time/date stamp from your video you must use the analog connection rather than Firewire.

My opinion is that it is excellent to have the choice of capturing from a DV camcorder via either Firewire or analog and I would require my DVD recorder to have that ability.

[trhouse]

Pioneer's web site does not indicate it has DV input, but if they follow the path of the 531H, 533H, there will be one.

http://www.pioneerelectronics.com/pna/product/detail/0,,2076_4139_303089277_tab=B,00.h...etailComponent

[kevs]

I don't know TR, you look at the photo, and I don't see the dv link in the front I see with all other recorders.

Any comment on noise? thanks.

[Frobozz]

I don't know TR, you look at the photo, and I don't see the dv link in the front I see with all other recorders.

Any comment on noise? thanks.

The link should be behind the flip down door on the front. Here's a description from a UK site and it mentions the Firewire link. However, the UK 640 and US 640 will have some differences (such as the small HDD in the US version).
www.avland.co.uk/pioneer/dvr640/dvr640.htm

[TBoneit]

Well some complain about noise and some do not... maybe different production runs?

I have mine (531h) about 6 foot away from the bed and do not hear it. It dows make a little bit of noise for a few minutes after being shut off and it is silent. in normal operation the DVD burner makes more noise when burning then the hard drive does.

or IOWs I've been happy with it despite the 80Gb hdd. As I see it drive space is like a closet the larger it is the more junk builds up.

I have a DVR with 90 hours of storage and the 531h and free space runs approx 6 or 7 hours free on both due to clutter.

[kevs]

thanks Fro, well dang, still not sure 100% of link, and it's a requirement for me. Strange don't list it no? and today in Circuit city I saw a Panasonic recorder with HD and no DV link, so you can't assume it's there. maybe I will have to e mail pioneer. maybe they don't know.

tboneit, "despite the 80GB hdd"
did not get that. is the HD why you buy the unit?

[kevs]

also:
there is circuit city nearby. only unit with dvd & HD is Panasonic, wondering if any opinion on it. their return policy is flexible so it's easy to try it out. bit more expensive than others I mentioned.

[TBoneit]

Pioneer 531h in use. Why?

a. Good word of mouth here
b. Good editing
c. Good control of input characterisitics, brightness amount of color, correct color, sharpen or noise reduction, control of white level and black level and IRE setting etc.
d. Hard drive to allow easy editing, allow to be used for timer recording off of basic cable. With the hard drive I can set timers and record hours of shows at the XP or SP level for quality and edit out commercials (Fund raiser breaks on 3 PBS stations)

Split recordings or combine recordings into one show, good control over chapters and thumbnail.

IOW having used a A Tivo and other DVRS I can no more stand to watch TV live with all the adverts than I could spend all day walking on my hands with my feet in the air. I have 170 hours of DVR time available, not counting the Pioneer, in the room where I watch TV. IOW why despite the 80Gb was in reference to the fact that they also had a model with a larger Hard Drive available when I bought. As I say with all that time available most if it is always tied up. There is so much interesting stuff available on my 180 channel package + Locals that some things just don't get watched before the get auto deleted to make room for new stuff.

a HD equipped is the only way to go if you care about the end results. OTOH if all you will ever do is dump a commercial free movie off of a DVR where you can pin down the exact running time to optimize recording time then No a Hard Drive isn't needed.

Off topic as cheap as discs are why squeeze more than one movie onto a disc and throw away quality?

Cheers

[TBoneit]

also:
there is circuit city nearby. only unit with dvd & HD is Panasonic, wondering if any opinion on it. their return policy is flexible so it's easy to try it out. bit more expensive than others I mentioned.

Search here on Panasonic it seems to end up with two camps. Camp a says great machine and camp b. says terrible past 2 hours a disc.

[kevs]

It's funny, but the machine with the VCR included has a DV link, and one without the VCR did not have DV link, which was first recorder I've seen without one. Did someone at Panasonic forget to add it on?

What is the issue with HD, I don't have any HD now, but maybe in few years.....

[TBoneit]

Well depends on what HD you mean, When I say HD for example I mean Hard Disk Drive not HD=High Definition.

No real HD recorders right now they all record as 720 by 480 SD. So that could be considered an issue.

[kevs]

oh sorry T. I thought you meant high def, cool. when I put HD, I'm talking hardrive too. any idea of the DV link being included?

[FulciLives]

It is a long standing "thing" now that HDD = Hard Disk Drive

Not just HD

Usually HD means High Defination.

It's like talking to children in this thread LOL :P

- John "FulciLives" Coleman

[TBoneit]

FulciLives, Old habits die hard, when I started on BBSes before the internet took off HD was hard drive, there was no HiDef.

I used to log into CP/M BBSes at a blazing 300 baud if that tells you anything. What an upgrade going to 1200 baud was, now the text could scroll faster than I could read it rather than the other way around.

My first computer had 16k of ram and a friends first computer had 4k of ram when he bought it. One of my upgrades I performed was adding floppy drives and comtroller, Lower case kit, a memoryt mod that let me add up 64k memory. Hundreds of dollars back then for memory upgrades. Then IBM came out with its PC and more or less killed off Atari, Commodore, Radio shack's non PC DOS line. The Apple II transformed into the Gray Screen Mac and away we go. I still have a 2 floppy portable (well it had a handle) with a 9" or so green screen display and 128k memory in the basement. It was the size of a Portable sewing machine and had to be plugged in.

[FulciLives]

I had a VIC-20 with the "audio cassette" tape drive.

Then I had a C-64 with the rather large external 5 1/4" floppy.

Ahhhhh those were the days LOL

- John "FulciLives" Coleman