vcr problem

When I use by Quasar 4- head vcr to play commercial tapes - movies, etc, the picture is snowy and jumpy..I cleaned the heads with no improvement''I get a perfect picture when I play back thingsd i have taped myself..I tried all 3 speeds - sp,lp and slp and the results is the same

What do you think is the problem and is there any solution?(other than replacing the vcr?

thanks

Ken

Reply to
ken
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clean the heads again.... and again.... carefully.... refer to

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for the proper procedure. If you still have problems take it to a repair shop for a professional cleaning and/or repair estimate.

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Reply to
sofie

Based on the information you have provided, one explanation could be that the tape path of your machine is out of alignment. If so, then playback of tapes recorded with the same misalignment could be fine, but commercial material recorded on well-aligned machines would behave as if the tracking is off (appear noisy and shaky), like you have described. If the heads were dirty, then one would not expect a clear picture under any circumstances. Therefore, it is not likely that more head cleaning will help.

You can easily try to verify this using a know good VCR: Play one of your tapes on another VCR that you know works well on commercial tapes. If your tapes now look snowy and jumpy, you have your answer.

While you could seek out a professional repair, it is very likely that the cost to repair an old machine (often at least $75 for them to even look at the machine) will be more than the cost of a brand new VHS VCR, which are now under $40 at Wal-Mart, Best Buy, or on eBay.

Reply to
VCR Gymnast

What in the heck are you talking about.... "often at least $75 for them to even look at the machine" ??? My shop regularly cleans VCRs for $19.50 and repairs many problems for $25 to $45 . Of course there are problems that will cost more to fix and may make sense for the really high end Sony and JVC machines of the early to mid

90's. And many of the fairly inexpensive or mid price machines that are just 5 or more years old are much better than the new throw away WalMart garbage no matter what the brand. At the very least the VCR should be taken to a repair shop that is really in the VCR repair business.... not some shop that doesn't want to be bothered and will blow you away with a high over the counter rough estimate of high flat rate.
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Best Regards,
Daniel Sofie
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Reply to
sofie

Ken, do you know how to adjust the tracking control? Mark

Reply to
Mark

Well, in that case I suggest he send it to your shop. However, as I said, I don't think it is simply a matter of dirty heads. My experience is limited to dealing with the service centers that are "Authorized" by Panasonic, Sony, and/or JVC, and they all charge $50-75 to diagnose the problem, which then goes toward the final cost of the repair, parts, and labor. If the customer doesn't want them to go ahead, they keep your $50-75. I assumed that Ken tried to adjust the tracking without success. If it is just tracking, he doesn't need any service center. I'm not sure if Quasar made any high-end models. If they did, I would recommend an authorized service center. Depending on where he lives, he might have to ship the VCR, which adds to the cost. The important thing is that Ken has some good options. If your shop can do the diagnosis. realignment, and cleaning for less than $50, then it sounds like your shop is the answer to his problem.

Reply to
VCR Gymnast

I took one of the tapes I taped material on and viewed it on another VCR and it was fine - no snow or jumpiness.In other words, stuff i tape on my machine looks fine - both on my vcr and on another vcr - but commercail tapes are snowy and jumpy on my VCR

Ken

Reply to
ken

Bad tracking.

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N
Reply to
NSM

Gosh, what a helpful response.

To the OP: Specifically, the tapes you've been viewing OK are recorded at slow speed, the rental-type tapes are at SP speed. A 4-head machine, which yours must be, uses different heads for the different speeds. Obviously, your SP heads are dirty or worn out. A proper cleaning is in order. May or may not fix your problem.

Mark Z.

Reply to
Mark D. Zacharias

another

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speed,

must

heads

fix

Another thing which has caught me out a couple of times on 4 head decks is that one set of heads seems to remain "bad" despite cleaning, leading one to believe they are worn out. However, turned out leaky caps on the head amp pcb gave me those symptoms and after changing them, things were fine. Could have been an expensive lesson if i had simply changed the upper drum without checking first! NOTE: that applied to (AFAIK) a sony and hitachi unit from about

1994-5, not as likely to be a problem on newer units but you never know...

Ben

Reply to
b

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