PAL VCRs with good tracking

[Red Tiger]

Of the North American NTSC models, many can be bought cheaply in thrift shops,on Craigs List, on eBay, or obtained as castoffs from relatives and friends. I find most of the Sharp 4-head-HiFi VCRs track SLP/EP tapes really well, followed by some Panasonic/Quasar models and a few Mitsubishi/MGAs. Sharp made a great many VCRs, browse Craigs List or eBay and you can find them at giveaway prices in good condition. Panasonic made a very under-rated semi-pro model AG2560 about ten years ago which has excellent tracking at EP (as well as SP) its often found on eBay in great condition for $30-50 without a remote (you don't need the remote except to set the timer, any Panasonic remote or generic universal remote will operate the basic functions on the front panel). Many inexpensive ($25 or less used) Panasonic and Quasar models of the late 1990s (but not after 2001) track EP/SLP as well as Sharp VCRs: look for models like Panasonic 4720 and Quasar VHQ-860 or 960 (the mfr date can be found on the back panel- ask the seller).

Mitsubishi/MGA made many models over the years, some are better at tracking EP/SLP than others. Look for HS-U448, 449, 748, 749 second hand. Used Sonys can be tricky: the expensive fancy ones were hideously unreliable, the small compact cheap ones were often very good but hard to find in nice condition. If you see a compact black Sony model like the 685 in good shape for cheap, grab it. Avoid cheap JVCs, as I said earlier they tend not to track EP/SLP very well unless they made the tape themselves (there was a JVC DVD/VHS combo recorder model DR-MV5 which had a VCR with amazing HiFi tracking performance, the best I've heard in 20 years: this model has a bad rep for durability but if you can find one very cheap its worth a try). Some "very low end" VCRs with names like Emerson, Sylvania, LG or Samsung can surprise you with excellent EP/SLP tracking but are not worth risking money on to find out: if you can acquire them for $5 at a thrift shop or flea market take the chance but don't spend more than $15.

For an off-the-beaten-path budget alternative, see if you can find a JVC DR-MV5s DVD/VHS combo recorder. These tend to pop up frequently on eBay or Craigs List for under $50, much less if the remote has been lost (the remote is not necessary to operate the VCR). These 2004 units have a bad rep for unreliability, but the problems are almost entirely related to the DVD section: when switched to VCR mode they generally work very well. At one time I owned six of these that I ran simultaneously, I found the VCR section tracked extremely well (better than some hideously expensive "high end" vcrs). They do an especially good job with difficult hifi audio tracks, and slow-speed EP recordings. This contradicts the typical JVC VCR behavior, which is exactly opposite, so the VCR in these combo models must be designed differently.

Hi,

I'm looking for PAL VCRs (inexpensive decks) with good tracking for both SP and LP, but specially for LP tapes. Any brand/model recommendations?

Is there any PAL equivalent decks to the ones recommended (quotes above in bold) by orsetto? The JVC DR-MV5 DVD/VHS is the only one that I know.

regards

[oln]

I've never noticed all that much difference between tracking on PAL LP so not sure if it's as much of an issue as people seem to have with NTSC EP tapes.

Up until the mid 2000s, the consumer Panasonic VCRs sold in the US were completely different to ones in the rest of the world so it's hard to make a good comparison with them. The AG1xxx and AG-2xxx models on the other hand seem pretty close to the models sold in europe, though afaik with different video ics. The closest PAL model to the AG2560 might be the NV-HD680 or NV-HD670A/EA I think though tracking-wise I doubt there is going to be a lot of difference between those and the other panasonics with the same mech. The slightly older NV-HD variants (up to and including 1997) may be even nicer in that regard though given they have the older very solid K-mechanism, the same as in the well-renowned AG1980P. Panasonics up to around 2004 are generally well made though, after that they swapped to a more flimsy cost-reduced mech.

The DR-MV5 shares the vcr part with some other late model JVCs, though my experience with related decks (HR-XVS20, DR-MX1), which seems to be shared by some others on are that while those decks are otherwise nice, there seem to be some issue/design flaw causing somewhat distorted linear audio on them. I like the 1998 and 1999 JVCs, provided you use the EDIT picture mode. After that the models I've used seem to have either some weirdness with the dropout compensation, or on the later one linear audio problems. Also note many of the other late model JVCs, especially combos, were made by orion or LG and are quite different to models by JVC themselves.

I like the late model Sonys (late 90s to around 2001, that are not samsung-made) for capture, they were pretty well made and have an edit setting. Downsides are that they blue screen on bad signals and seem a bit fraught with power supply capacitor problems. Haven't used the earlier ones.

Samsung decks can be usable as well, one useful thing is that they allow you to adjust picture sharpness.

I haven't really used any of the sharp and mitsubishis so can't speak for those, though I think the PAL ones don't differ to much from the design of the US ones at least.

Philips also made some nice decks (up to 2001, after that they stopped making them themselves and from then on were all funai junk) that afaik were never sold outside Europe. Main known issue is broken loading gear.

[Eric-jan]

The capture of a tape that was recorded in LP mode will be hard, the signal is worse than recorded in normal speed, but the more heads the (playing) vcr will have, the less bad the results will be…. so go for as many heads will be possible… most of the time 4 or 6
The "perfect slowmotion" recorders might give good results also but could also destroy quality by overdigitizing….

[Red Tiger]

The DR-MV5 shares the vcr part with some other late model JVCs, though my experience with related decks (HR-XVS20, DR-MX1), which seems to be shared by some others on are that while those decks are otherwise nice, there seem to be some issue/design flaw causing somewhat distorted linear audio on them. I like the 1998 and 1999 JVCs, provided you use the EDIT picture mode. After that the models I've used seem to have either some weirdness with the dropout compensation, or on the later one linear audio problems. Also note many of the other late model JVCs, especially combos, were made by orion or LG and are quite different to models by JVC themselves.

Those JVC combo decks are any good in terms of tracking performance and picture quality? What about those 1998/1999 JVCs, do you recommend any model?

I like the late model Sonys (late 90s to around 2001, that are not samsung-made) for capture, they were pretty well made and have an edit setting. Downsides are that they blue screen on bad signals and seem a bit fraught with power supply capacitor problems. Haven't used the earlier ones.

Some were Samsung made? Which ones? Late 90s Sony models like the SLV SF90 & SF99 are good? Any recommendations?

I haven't really used any of the sharp and mitsubishis so can't speak for those, though I think the PAL ones don't differ to much from the design of the US ones at least.

Just curious about the Sharp decks, hope someone (if possible) could share something about those VCRs tracking performance.

Philips also made some nice decks (up to 2001, after that they stopped making them themselves and from then on were all funai junk) that afaik were never sold outside Europe. Main known issue is broken loading gear.

The Philips VR900 and VR910 are good decks? This are also JVC rebadged models like the VR1000, 1100, 1500 and 1600?

The capture of a tape that was recorded in LP mode will be hard, the signal is worse than recorded in normal speed, but the more heads the (playing) vcr will have, the less bad the results will be…. so go for as many heads will be possible… most of the time 4 or 6
The "perfect slowmotion" recorders might give good results also but could also destroy quality by overdigitizing….

4 or 6 head VCRs regardless of the brand or any specific brand will give better results with LP tapes?

[techmot]

I have a Panasonic DVD/VHS recorder combi which is pretty good at tracking (auto tracking that is). I had one VHS home video tape, which for the first half an hour or so from the start of the tape would constantly jump all over the place on a different VHS player I was using; after about 30 mins the jumping settles down to a viewable picture. I then tried the Panasonic and it was able to track the picture and get stabilise the jumping pretty much completely, how I don't know. Unfortunately the VCR needs repairing due to the tape loader becoming faulty to me trying to load a tape without the spring attached to the back lid. From what I've seen from jumping tapes, I would recommend a DMR Panasonic VHS/DVD combi recorder. I have since used a cheap Bush 6 head video and the auto tracking system barely does anything.

[oln]

Those JVC combo decks are any good in terms of tracking performance and picture quality? What about those 1998/1999 JVCs, do you recommend any model?

I haven't tried any of the orion ones - LG made combos can be okay, though nothing spectacular, though they are the more reliable of the very late 2000s/2010s decks (though some have an issue with high-pitched whine on linear audio - not sure what caused it.)

As for the jvcs - the 1998 ones -
VHS: HR-J658, HR-J858, HR-J758 (though these don't have an EDIT setting so at least for the 658 which I have, so can be a bit soft)
SVHS: HR-S7500, S8500 S9500 (last 2 has TBC/DNR)


1999 models (from this year on all JVCs feature picture setting):
Standard VHS:
HR-J668 HR-J868
SVHS:
HR-S6600EK, S7600, S8600, S9600 (latter 3 has TBC/DNR)

Some were Samsung made? Which ones? Late 90s Sony models like the SLV SF90 & SF99 are good? Any recommendations?

Of the european models, generally the ones named like SLV-SExxx with the second number 2 or higher are Samsungs, they also have a different simpler front display.

The F90 and F99 were the most advanced variants of those years and featured some "smart file" barcode thing. I think the F99 has digital noise reduction but otherwise is the same as the less fancy editions when it comes to playback (though I haven't used any of the F models so just going based on the fact that they otherwise share mech/video ic with the SLV-SE variants). The fancier late 90s Sony SLV-SExxx and SLV-Fxxx models have a sharpening feature ternmed "Reality regenerator" but I don't find it to help all that much, otherwise quite similar between the ones I've used.

There are also some SLV-EDxxx variants - those are multi-system.

The Philips VR900 and VR910 are good decks? This are also JVC rebadged models like the VR1000, 1100, 1500 and 1600?

I have the VR900 and it's very nice, though mine is a bit worn. The later top of the line philips models featured "smart picture" feature which is a bit like selectable the picture modes on the jvc decks but on the ones I have 2 of them produce black streaks.

for the SVHS ones you note
VR1000 is roughly JVC HR-S7600
VR1500 is roughly JVC HR-S8600
VR1100 is roughly JVC HR-S77xx
VR1600 is roughly JVC HR-S87xx

4 or 6 head VCRs regardless of the brand or any specific brand will give better results with LP tapes?

Yeah there are a few 2-head models that play LP but they're not really optimized for it and lack hi-fi. The naming can be a bit confusing sometimes. 6 head generally means 4 video + 2 hi-fi, but some decks will say 4 head + hi-fi instead. ( 5 or 7 head means there is a flying erase head as well which is not relevant for recording. Normally you want something with 4+ video heads and hi-fi. (There are a very few rare decks, such as one Bang&Olufsen model that featured 2 video heads + hi-fi but those won't do LP and not something I would seek out anyhow.)

Generally haven't noted much difference between tracking PAL LP tapes in general though, I think it's more an issue with LP tapes in NTSC land.

[Red Tiger]

I have a Panasonic DVD/VHS recorder combi which is pretty good at tracking (auto tracking that is). I had one VHS home video tape, which for the first half an hour or so from the start of the tape would constantly jump all over the place on a different VHS player I was using; after about 30 mins the jumping settles down to a viewable picture. I then tried the Panasonic and it was able to track the picture and get stabilise the jumping pretty much completely, how I don't know. Unfortunately the VCR needs repairing due to the tape loader becoming faulty to me trying to load a tape without the spring attached to the back lid. From what I've seen from jumping tapes, I would recommend a DMR Panasonic VHS/DVD combi recorder. I have since used a cheap Bush 6 head video and the auto tracking system barely does anything.

Like the Panasonic DMR-ES30 & ES35 models?

I haven't tried any of the orion ones - LG made combos can be okay, though nothing spectacular, though they are the more reliable of the very late 2000s/2010s decks (though some have an issue with high-pitched whine on linear audio - not sure what caused it.)

As for the jvcs - the 1998 ones -
VHS: HR-J658, HR-J858, HR-J758 (though these don't have an EDIT setting so at least for the 658 which I have, so can be a bit soft)
SVHS: HR-S7500, S8500 S9500 (last 2 has TBC/DNR)


1999 models (from this year on all JVCs feature picture setting):
Standard VHS:
HR-J668 HR-J868
SVHS:
HR-S6600EK, S7600, S8600, S9600 (latter 3 has TBC/DNR)


Of the european models, generally the ones named like SLV-SExxx with the second number 2 or higher are Samsungs, they also have a different simpler front display.

The F90 and F99 were the most advanced variants of those years and featured some "smart file" barcode thing. I think the F99 has digital noise reduction but otherwise is the same as the less fancy editions when it comes to playback (though I haven't used any of the F models so just going based on the fact that they otherwise share mech/video ic with the SLV-SE variants). The fancier late 90s Sony SLV-SExxx and SLV-Fxxx models have a sharpening feature ternmed "Reality regenerator" but I don't find it to help all that much, otherwise quite similar between the ones I've used.

There are also some SLV-EDxxx variants - those are multi-system.


I have the VR900 and it's very nice, though mine is a bit worn. The later top of the line philips models featured "smart picture" feature which is a bit like selectable the picture modes on the jvc decks but on the ones I have 2 of them produce black streaks.

for the SVHS ones you note
VR1000 is roughly JVC HR-S7600
VR1500 is roughly JVC HR-S8600
VR1100 is roughly JVC HR-S77xx
VR1600 is roughly JVC HR-S87xx


Yeah there are a few 2-head models that play LP but they're not really optimized for it and lack hi-fi. The naming can be a bit confusing sometimes. 6 head generally means 4 video + 2 hi-fi, but some decks will say 4 head + hi-fi instead. ( 5 or 7 head means there is a flying erase head as well which is not relevant for recording. Normally you want something with 4+ video heads and hi-fi. (There are a very few rare decks, such as one Bang&Olufsen model that featured 2 video heads + hi-fi but those won't do LP and not something I would seek out anyhow.)

Generally haven't noted much difference between tracking PAL LP tapes in general though, I think it's more an issue with LP tapes in NTSC land.

Many thanks for your explanations and recommendations, they were very helpful.

[ConsumerDV]

there are a few 2-head models that play LP but they're not really optimized for it and lack hi-fi. The naming can be a bit confusing sometimes. 6 head generally means 4 video + 2 hi-fi, but some decks will say 4 head + hi-fi instead. ( 5 or 7 head means there is a flying erase head as well which is not relevant for recording. Normally you want something with 4+ video heads and hi-fi. (There are a very few rare decks, such as one Bang&Olufsen model that featured 2 video heads + hi-fi but those won't do LP and not something I would seek out anyhow.)

Do Hi-Fi models actually have separate heads, considering that Hi-Fi is recorded "under" video? Or are these sort of dual heads, one piece for video, another for audio, but still as a single unit? So when I look at the drum of a "6-head" VCR, I will see only four grooves anyway? And if I look at the drum of a "5-head" or a "7-head" unit, I will see five grooves?

[dellsam34]

Unlike Beta, VHS has separate heads for Hi-Fi audio, Two heads for audio spaced out from the video heads, 4 video heads, 2 for SP and 2 for low speeds with different azimuth, SP and low speed heads are on the same block about 2 degrees apart, Some high end VCR's have a flying erase head and a dummy head to balance the flying erase head spaced out from both HiFi heads and video heads. 3 head and 5 head configuration are for the very old generation VCR's, 4 and 7 head configurations are for modern VCR's.

[Wischmop]

Some years ago I also looked for good Combos but it was/is almost impossible to find. IMHO the quality of the VHS-part of the Combos are cheap and reflect in best case the quality of the last VHS-recorders which were more worse than from old, good VHS-recorders.

So I ended up with using good old VHS-recorders and DVD-/HDD-recorders. My favorite DVD-/HDD-recorder is the Sony RDR-HX750, made by Pioneer. I have also the RDR-HX725 which was an original Sony, but it react very slow after button presses and need much time for beeing ready to start. The overall handling is far away from
Pioneer-made Recorders.

I have also a Panasonic DMR-EH575 but it have many problems with the DVD-part.

On my (S-)VHS-sideI have the SLV-SF90 and the "Reality regenerator" have a very visible effect, the picture gets much sharper and more noisy. Turn it on/off epends on the quality of the recording.

I have also several Panasonics S-VHS like the NV-HS 950 for copy my old VHS to DVD/HDD

JVC (original and Philips-branded) also, like VR1600 and HR-S 9600.

Addiotional some Sharp, Akai etc.


I mostly used SP, so I have no experince with LP Tracking.


The only tracking-problems I had in my long VHS-history was regarding the Hi-Fi-sound.

Especially recordings from my Sony SLV-E1000 causes many problems. Most recorders, also the Sony SLV-E1000 itself have problems to find the Hi-Fi-tracks, produce noisy Head-switching or lost the Hi-Fi-track and switch to the awful Mono-track.

The Panasonic seems to be a bit more stable in this than my JVC or Sony SF90, but it´s very problematic.

I know the tape itself have also an influence, but I have many different tapes and the Sony-recordings and some of the Hitachi VT-F 550 are the only critical.

Recordings from my Panasonics, Akai and JVC are unproblematic.

Note that only my JVCs and the SLV-SF90 have a realtime-Autotracking which realizes tracking differences while playback and adjust the track constantly. I think (some) Mitsubishi have the same feature, but I don´t have one.

My other recorders adjust the track automatically after:

- new tape is inserted
- if the recorder was turned again on
- if the playback speed changes
- after a blank tape-position

This could be not important if you have only tapes which were recorded with one recorder, but if have have recordings
of different recorders on one tape you maybe have to adjust the tracking by yourself.

Note2: I have the experience that some JVC S-VHS-recorders recognize some VHS-recordings as S-VHS which made it useless in these cases.

[Sodapop74]

Those JVC combo decks are any good in terms of tracking performance and picture quality? What about those 1998/1999 JVCs, do you recommend any model?

I haven't tried any of the orion ones - LG made combos can be okay, though nothing spectacular, though they are the more reliable of the very late 2000s/2010s decks (though some have an issue with high-pitched whine on linear audio - not sure what caused it.)

As for the jvcs - the 1998 ones -
VHS: HR-J658, HR-J858, HR-J758 (though these don't have an EDIT setting so at least for the 658 which I have, so can be a bit soft)
SVHS: HR-S7500, S8500 S9500 (last 2 has TBC/DNR)


1999 models (from this year on all JVCs feature picture setting):
Standard VHS:
HR-J668 HR-J868
SVHS:
HR-S6600EK, S7600, S8600, S9600 (latter 3 has TBC/DNR)

Sorry for reviving an old thread, but I'm interested if anyone (oln?) has anything to say about later post 2000 JVC HR-J basic VHS machines. Are they noticeably worse than the 1998-1999 machines and if so why? I know S-VHS is preferred but they are impossible to come by, especially ones with TBC.

[lollo]

I know S-VHS is preferred but they are impossible to come by, especially ones with TBC.

https://vcrshop.com/category/vcr/?filter_brand=jvc&query_type_brand=or&filter_media-fo...edia-format=or

[Sodapop74]

I know S-VHS is preferred but they are impossible to come by, especially ones with TBC.

https://vcrshop.com/category/vcr/?filter_brand=jvc&query_type_brand=or&filter_media-fo...edia-format=or

Thanks for the link. I’m not sure if a JVC S-VHS costing 250€ nets me 5 x picture fidelity compared to a 50€ standard VHS. Tapes are nth Gen dubs from Video8 or similar after all transferred from an entry level Video8 camcorded to entry level VCR.

[lollo]

The tapes are what they are. A high-end player won’t introduce additional degradation. Your 5x equation for quality/price is simply wrong, in any contest, not just this.
Final decision is yours.

[Sodapop74]

Another way I’m thinking it is I can get 90% of the available quality with a standard VHS + ES10 compared to 100% of TBC-less S-VHS + ES10. Is this at least somewhat accurate assessment? If the quality improvement isn’t obvious without A/B comparing and pixel peeping, the lesser quality is fine for me let alone anyone in my family who would watch them.

[lollo]

Is this at least somewhat accurate assessment?

No. Nobody can say that for sure, too many variables. For serious activity, we use different VCRs, having more or less intrinsic quality, but sometime the best is not the more adequate for a specific tape (Don't get me wrong, I am still talking of high-end players)

If the quality improvement isn’t obvious without A/B comparing and pixel peeping, the lesser quality is fine for me let alone anyone in my family who would watch them.

Go for the cheap option then, in any case you won't see what you are missing. Or spend some money more since the beginning and put yourself in the safer side.

[Sodapop74]

Thanks for the input, I might start with the cheaper model and get better later if it doesn’t produce satisfactory results.

Re my original question about later LGs, reading back on the thread oln touched on this a bit in his first post but any more specific info on the later standard VHS models?

I like the 1998 and 1999 JVCs, provided you use the EDIT picture mode. After that the models I've used seem to have either some weirdness with the dropout compensation, or on the later one linear audio problems. Also note many of the other late model JVCs, especially combos, were made by orion or LG and are quite different to models by JVC themselves.

[lollo]

I agree with oln. Best machines are SX500 and SX600 with TBC/N.R. In that order, because 1998 series has more primitive and then less aggressive chroma noise reduction.

[Sodapop74]

Ok, good to know. Are you saying that at least on S-VHS models it gets worse year to year so 1998 > 1999 > 2000 > 2001 > 2002. On DigitalFAQ all later models are listed as good to go with S7965 bolded as most respected machine and 7600 and 7800 not.

[lollo]

The differences are minimal. Year to year, additional useless options have been added for image processing, that you do not need because you want to capture in edit mode anyhow.
As knowledgeable use oln said, later models suffers on some defects not seen in 1998/1999 models.

I do not know personally the 7X00 series, because some of them have not TBC then I never used them, so I cannot comment on that, but I have seen nice captures from 7600.

However, buying one of these high-end player will setup a nice workflow. And remember that instead of the intrinsic characteristics, what matters most is the actual condition of the player more than the specific model!

[Alwyn]

Another way I’m thinking it is I can get 90% of the available quality with a standard VHS + ES10 compared to 100% of TBC-less S-VHS + ES10. Is this at least somewhat accurate assessment?

IMO yes. I have two SVHS VCRs (non TBC) and there is very little difference between them and my four or so normal VCRs, two of which were in sealed boxes until two years ago; certainly not worth the pain and risk (for me at least) of getting a used SVHS shipped from overseas.

Your 5x equation for quality/price is simply wrong

Just to clarify, are you suggesting that you'll get 5x the quality for 5x the price?

[Sodapop74]

The differences are minimal. Year to year, additional useless options have been added for image processing, that you do not need because you want to capture in edit mode anyhow.
As knowledgeable use oln said, later models suffers on some defects not seen in 1998/1999 models.

I do not know personally the 7X00 series, because some of them have not TBC then I never used them, so I cannot comment on that, but I have seen nice captures from 7600.

However, buying one of these high-end player will setup a nice workflow. And remember that instead of the intrinsic characteristics, what matters most is the actual condition of the player more than the specific model!

Thanks, I'll try to get my hands on a 1998 or 1999 model, be it normal VHS or S-VHS! And I'll keep in mind that the most important factor is the condition of the specific unit.

[lollo]

IMO yes. I have two SVHS VCRs (non TBC) and there is very little difference between them and my four or so normal VCRs, two of which were in sealed boxes until two years ago; certainly not worth the pain and risk (for me at least) of getting a used SVHS shipped from overseas.

That's why my recommendation was to buy a high-end JVC S-VHS with TBC

Your 5x equation for quality/price is simply wrong

Just to clarify, are you suggesting that you'll get 5x the quality for 5x the price?

The opposite! You pay much much more for a (small) improvement in quality. That's true for almost any sector of life

[lollo]

Thanks, I'll get my hands on a 1998 or 1999 model, be it normal VHS or S-VHS!

Wait a second, what discussed was about high-end S-VHS machines with TBC, not normal VHS or low end S-VHS player!!!

[Sodapop74]

Thanks, I'll get my hands on a 1998 or 1999 model, be it normal VHS or S-VHS!

Wait a second, what discussed was about high-end S-VHS machines with TBC, not normal VHS or low end S-VHS player!!!

I know, but I'll assume the same basic rules apply to the lower end models as well. And if they don't, well I won't go bankrupt.

[lollo]

Thanks, I'll get my hands on a 1998 or 1999 model, be it normal VHS or S-VHS!

Wait a second, what discussed was about high-end S-VHS machines with TBC, not normal VHS or low end S-VHS player!!!

I know, but I'll assume the same basic rules apply to the lower end models as well. And if they don't, well I won't go bankrupt.

I have no experience with lower end models, so you better do not extrapolate infos but wait for user oln or Bogilein to chime in or send a PM to them.

The doom9 german board also has some nice overview of the PAL VCRs, have a look there!
https://gleitz-info.translate.goog/forum/index.php?board/29-analoges-video-capturing/&..._x_tr_pto=wapp

[techmot]

My what I've seen, a Panasonic VHS/DVD combi does a good job at stabilising and tracking tapes. My Panasonic combi (before it became faulty through me trying to load a tape without the back flap on, which made the loader malfunction) was very good at stabilising alot of my very worn and jumpy tapes. I'm assuming this was down to the built-in TBC?.

[Alwyn]

I'm assuming this was down to the built-in TBC?.

It was indeed. The "Diga" system.

[techmot]

I'm assuming this was down to the built-in TBC?.

It was indeed. The "Diga" system.

I wondered what Diga was for. Also good on that machine was the s-video output. Sorry if I'm derailing the thread, but do you know if it's possible to repair a Panasonic combi?. I did mention the fault awhile back on another thread, but from what I can remember it seemed like it wasn't possible. After it powers up the tape loader will just keep moving (best I can describe it) even when I switch it to DVD mode. When inserting a tape it will lace the tape part way but then eject it. I suppose I could just buy another one off ebay (one in working order would be about £140; I see alot of machines on there for spares/repairs that need repairing and they are being listed for about £40. I tried giving mine away on Gumtree for nothing and noone was interested. I can't imagine anyone buying one that doesn't work. And why do so many old VCRs on ebay don't come with a remote?.