Top Rated Stand Alone Recorder

[KennyV37]

I posted earlier about the "hesitation" or "skipping" problem i'm having with recorded programs on my Toshiba DR-2. I have gotten Amazon.com to authorize a return for full credit on this unit.

I'd like to ask you fine folks here what you all think the best stand alone unit made is, one that is pretty much flawless and isn't picky about what brand of media is put into it! It must also be under $350, be a DVD DVD-R recorder (already have lots of discs), and NOT SKIP!! Seriously, this Toshiba has a terrible problem with skipping on playback. Recorded programs from this unit skip on any player!

Should I purchase something that has a hard drive perhaps?

Opinions on the best and most problem free recorder would be appreciated!

Thanks, guys!

[budz]

Get the PIONEER 220-S from walmart.com for $198.76. It's great standalone recorder if you're looking for a DVD-R recorder.

[rkm69]

I use the Pioneer DVR-320-S and have had no problems at with this unit,

[trhouse]

I noticed on your earlier thread on this subject that it was never resolved whether the problem is the recorder or the media. Switching recorders may not solve your problem if it is media related.

I once bought some very low cost dvd-r's that identified themselves as Taiyo Yuden but were fakes. Some of those disks would skip very nicely if recorded more than 75% towards the outer edge. I took one of those skipping disks and copied it to a genuine TY disk. The real TY played back fine.

[KennyV37]

trhouse, yes, I did buy top quality DVDs (Taiyo Yuden, Verbatim) and tried them out but to no avail. The picture quality was more clear using them but the darn hesitation was still there throughout the recordings.

Ok guys, I sent my Toshiba DR2 back for a full refund and have ordered the Pioneer DVR 320S. I just hope this unit does better on records than the Toshiba. I do not want to see any hesitations again. From what i've read, this Pioneer has a recorded picture quality that is second to none. Would you owners agree with that? Have any of you noticed any kind of hesitation or "snags" during anything you have recorded using your Pioneer?

I have Taiyo Yuden, Verbatim, ProDisc DVDs leftover from the Toshiba. Will these work OK on the Pioneer? They are quality brand name discs so i'm not counting on any problems.

Thanks, guys, for all your help along the way here!

[steve2713]

The Pioneer 220/320/420/520 do have a good picture and are well designed feature-wise. I've got a 420 and I've been quite happy with it.

BTW, what did you pay for the 320? Most of the 320's I've seen are priced MUCH higher than the 220, the ONLY added feature is a Firewire port. I've actually seen the 520 priced about as cheap as the 320, and the addition of the HD in the 420/520 makes these machines MUCH more versatile.

[lordsmurf]

None of them are 100% trouble-free, see the FATALS FLAWS list in this forum, but these are the three best machines:

- JVC
- PIONEER
- LITEON (and the clone like ILO)

[budz]

KennyV37 wrote

From what i've read, this Pioneer has a recorded picture quality that is second to none. Would you owners agree with that? Have any of you noticed any kind of hesitation or "snags" during anything you have recorded using your Pioneer?

I haven't had any problems with hesitation of any kind with my 220-S unit. The only problem I encountered was the MADE IN JAPAN 8x MAXELL DVD-R that wouldn't be recognized in the unit although with another spindle they were ok. There seems to be some quality control issues with the 8x MAXELL DVD-R. I use DVD-RW discs more than DVD-R since I edit with my pc.