Anyone Else Not Buying Into DVD Players/Recorders

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Earlier today our nearly fifteen year old (could be more)JVC VCR finally died. Sadly the thing went with one of my favourite tapes inside, so had to open it up and pry the tape out. After one realised the VCR wasn't going to work properly without a repair, even with the removed tape, stopped being gentle and rather had to damage a few bits, but got my tape back and that is all one cared about at the moment.

After reading some of the online reviews of the sorry DVD/VCR combo units (still have lots of VCR tapes and have no plans for chucking them out), decided the best thing would be another stand alone VCR, but sadly they are no longer offered for sale. Thank goodness for eBay (where America shops, *LOL*), and nabbed a MIB JVC deck at a very good price.

Seems to me aside from DVD players, person have more problems with DVD recorders, combination sets and the lot. Nothing has any quality today, and if one gets more than a year of service out of the thing, it is considered good.
 
You may have gotten a good deal on that JVC. I got a couple of JVC decks used, and they are the best VHS VCRs I've had. Then, again, JVC invented VHS so they probably know a few things....

Like you, I have a number of VHS tapes. I seldom record, but I like to buy since they are so dirt cheap now. A chance to get favorite movies, plus try stuff I'd never try.

I think modern electronic quality is pretty much on a par with modern appliance quality: that is pretty poor. Which is just another reason why I buy used.
 
Was going to scout around local thrifts for a used VCR unit, but since one was on eBay earlier, got one for about $100. Unit is a bit later than my new dead unit, but has many of the same features if not more, so am that well pleased.

Really hate to chuck the old unit out, but it will go into the rubbish tonight. Darn heavy and solid piece of equipment, unlike the cheap tat one finds today.

L.
 
The old VCR could possibly be repaired...although it would probably cost a fortune. Then, again, this is your chance to read an exciting book on Repair Your Own VCR.

Then, again, it's probably easier to just replace....
 
I've pretty much given up on VCR's. I must have bought at least seven over the past decade or two, and most of them have conked out after a few years. The exception: a Sanyo beta player that I got in the early 80's and is still working just fine - albeit not with much use any more.

I got a Panasonic DVD recorder - VCR a couple of years ago and it's been basically fine. I've figured out its peculiarities - it wants to be powered down ever few recordings or it will balk at recording a scheduled program. I think it has something to do with the built-in anti-piracy firmware - it seems to think I'm running an illegal duplication factory when all I'm doing is recording TV shows for viewing later. I gather from on-line reviews and message boards that I'm not the only one to encounter this issue with this brand.

Unlike some other models, this one came with an ATSC tuner when stand alone tuners were very hard to find. One big reason why I got it - to watch digital TV channels. Now, of course, the tuners are common, but the quality of the DVD recording is excellent - especially at the 2 hour or less setting. Not quite as good as the original HD broadcast, but still very good - as good as most store-bought pre-recorded DVD's. The DVD recorder also stores the closed caption information, so one can call up the captions on playback - something I've never seen a VCR be able to do.

Starting next month, no standard VCR will be able to record off-the-air programming, because it will be all digital. You can get around that by sticking an ATSC tuner between the VCR and the antenna, I suppose. But I don't record tapes any more, the DVD's do it so much better and they take up so much less room to store. Plus they are cheaper than tapes.
 
From what one understands, the quality in terms of performance for early DVD recorders and DVD/VCR combination units was good, often too good for the Motion Picture industry, so screws and power were applied under the guise of piracy.

One hears and reads so many stories of persons giving up trying to program and or otherwise get their DVD recorder to record they've dug out their old VCRs! *LOL*

What gets my attention is the vast numbers of consumers who purchase DVD players and or recorders that report units dying in less than a year, often within a few months.

Reason why one loved my old JVC is how simple it was to operate and set up. Taping a program, even if half way though and one had to leave, required nothing more than pushing a button (assuming the unit was powered up).
 
Most of the DVD players I've owned have had low lifespans. 3/4 of my movie collection is on VHS so having at least one working VCR is a must. I have three. Two are combo units with deceased DVD players but awesome working VCR's. The third is an old MGA that I bought at a garage sale for $5. It came with remote, dust cover, and owners manual. Works like a charm.

I have gone through, not including the combo units, 4 stand-alone DVD players. They are generally junk, no matter how much you spend or what brand it is. I've tried all sorts of brands with no better luck. My 5th DVD player is working alright...for now. But, I won't spend alot for a new one when it does go.

~Tim
 
We've had vastly different experiences.

We've still got 2 7 year old Panasonic DVD players that are going strong, and an NEC from that is 9 years old.

We've had a Panasonic DVD/HDD recorder (With Built in SD Tuner) for 3 years now. Not a single problem other than its occaisional idosyncratic behaviour. TV Scheduling this year has meant that on Mondays, I've taped 1 channel to HDD and another channel to the Seperate VCR. Now I'm used to frame by frame fast forwarding and instant stop on the DVD/HDD, getting through the ads on VHS is a tiresome process that involves lots of FF, Stop and RR to get to the right point.

I've slowly been copying my must have VHS onto DVD as most of the old ones are now starting to break down after 20 years.

We've had no issues with our devices at all, and once the prices drop a bit more, will give the current HDD/DVD recorder to Mum and get the current Dual Tuner HD version.
 
I've had a Sylvania (built in Japan by Funai) VCR-DVD recorder combo for four years, no problems whatsoever. I bought it originally to move VCR content to DVDs so I could toss the tapes (which I did). Now I use it only to record programs (movies) to DVDs. Programming is simple and results are great up to the 8 hour speed....the 10 hours speed (10 hours on one DVD) looks like a VCR recording. When you use two hour speed (one movie per DVD) it looks like a purchased DVD movie.

The only drawback is that the maximum write speeds that the recorder can use is 8X DVD-minus (DVD-R) disks. The industry standard is now 16X, so I mainly have to buy the 8X DVD-minus disks on line, but it's easy to do, and the prices online are better than what you find at office stores like Office Depot or Staples. Any recorder sold now uses 16X disks, but that's the price of keeping a unit that is nearly five years old.
 
When my last VCR died. I won a JVC on eBay for $0.99 plus shipping, I was the only one that bid on it. At first it didn't work, so I took the outer cover off and cleaned the heads and it works perfectly now.

I still have several movies on VHS that I don't have or haven't been able to find on DVD. Every once in a while I will tape something on one TV while watching something on the other TV.
 
T

toploader

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Messages
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Why would anyone want to record TV on VHS or DVD? I can see wanting it for archival use but on a daily basis? Wow.

I've been using a DVR for over a decade now as is all of my extended family. In fact I got a call a couple of weeks ago from a cousin who was trying to track down a VCR to borrow, she had no luck.

I might have a couple hundred VHS and Beta tape stored down the basement, haven't looked at or thought much about them for years. I do have some I recorded with my camcorder of family that I'd like to burn to DVD, but at this point I don't have a vcr to play them on.
 
Matt

Some of us work right at the exact time an important program is broadcast. I teach Wednesday afternoons, for example, right in the middle of the Green Acres re-runs on TV here.

Now, that is important and a very valid reason to record.

Which I do - using a computer, to HDD. From thence to DVD.

As best I can tell, there is no relationship between price and quality in the consumer electronics market anymore.

Anyone who has VHS recordings they value should be transferring them to DVD. If that isn't possible, then it would be a very wise thing to buy a second VCR and store it properly.
 
I bought a Magnavox TV-VCR-DVD player in 2005. The VCR part acted up within a year. It was the positioning switch that was the culprit. I took the back off, cleaned the rotary switch, and have had no more problems. Why should it have been dirty after only one year? It is a Funai made unit. On the other hand, I bought a Sony VCR in 1999 and have had no problems whatsover with it. I also have two 1953 Packard Bell 21 inch televisions (black and white, of course) that are still functioning wonderfully. I had to have a picture tube rebuilt in one of the units, but still they work great. Let's go back to TUBES!!!!
 
WHITEKINGD:

Where is the rotary switch on those units? I have an Emerson unit that is the same, just a different name on it, and it's doing the same thing.

Any info on locating/cleaning the switch would be helpful, particularly tools and cleaning solution info.

Thanks!
 
Sandy,

First, you have to de-activate the spy-eye which registers your ever move and reports it back to Amazon.

Teasing. Forgive me?

OK, you can't use the contact cleaner you'd normally use because of the laser lens. Same with WD-40, etc.

I don't know whether your Emerson is the same as my parents' unit, but on theirs, there are silver-plated contacts with a gap between them at 12, 3, 6 and 9 o'clock behind the switch.

I gently cleaned them with a micro-fibre cloth. Very gently cleaned the contacts on the back of the switch with the same.

That was two years ago, everything ok since.

Hope this helps.

Oh, and the DVD lens. You can buy cleaning disks which do a decent job on it. Be careful of static electricity and remember, even if the unit is unplugged, the capacitors have enough juice stored that a short circuit can fry components in the system.
 
No, my point is not to record but how to record. A dvr is much more practical, no tapes to loose or accidentally tape over. Depending on the dvr smart capability to track a show no matter where it moves, and lots of other pluses.

You can get units with or without subscriptions though it's getting harder to find those.
 

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