Video repairs.

[pre65]

I got home about 9.00 this evening and decided to watch a "steam" video that a friend gave me. When i ejected the tape there was a graunching noise from within and the cassette did not pop out.

So I took the lid off and found a moulded plastic piece jammed in the mechanism.Now after quite a while of head scratching the original position of this piece was found and it was put back in position.

Testing it before putting the metal lid on revealed that the cassette started playing as soon as inserted,but waving a finger in the area of the "big white cog" stopped the tape moving,as did putting the lid on ! Spooky

Anyway it's working proper like now.

So Greg-thats why I did not see your request till after the e-mail arrived.

[pre65]

Seems my confidence in a satisfactory repair was misplaced.

I do have a cheap video to fall back on, but as it is frustrating at times not to be able to view freeview channels now might be the time to invest in a DVD recorder with an inbuilt freeview tuner.

Any suggestions for which make/model ?

Would something like this do,or are they "cheap and nasty" ?

http://www.ebuyer.com/product/159257

[andrew Ivimey]

I'm cheap and nasty.

Actually what I did was find a recorder in eBay - cassette and DVD and it is a Hitachi, so I assumed a good and reliable model.

It was very cheap.

I have had my head under the bonnet a few times. It will have been a product return. it all works but gets hot and the little fan on the microprocessor works overtime. The cassette door stays open and and and... it has worked for nearly two years so fingers crossed. No freeview though.

I suppose it was a good price.

or Comet/Curry's ... 'Which?'

[simon]

It's no good for playing videos or dvds but our Humax hard disk recorder has been excellent. It has two freeview tuners so you can record two programs at once, whilst watching a recording (or another channel on the same multiplex that you're taping from). All your recorded programmes are in a list with date, time, channel, name etc and you can preview them too. Also has the elcectronic programme guide so it's a doddle to record a programmme.

We've had ours two or three years now without problems (fingers crossed!) and would rush out and buy another if it packed up.

[al newall]

Phil.
I invested in one of these nearly a year ago, after buying some rubbishy freeview boxes, that didn't last or in some cases didn't work well . We don't have the best signal strength here.
This works great, gets used every day and even the wife can work it.
Might be a cut above the rest. It's certainly well built.

http://www.tvonics.com/digital-tv-recor ... fp150.html

Nice to look at too.
I believe it was originally designed and built by redundant Sony engineers in S. Wales.

[pre65]

The Humax looks good,but it would be nice to have the facility to occasionally burn a DVD for long term keeping.

[pre65]

Phil.
I invested in one of these nearly a year ago, after buying some rubbishy freeview boxes, that didn't last or in some cases didn't work well . We don't have the best signal strength here.
This works great, gets used every day and even the wife can work it.
Might be a cut above the rest. It's certainly well built.

http://www.tvonics.com/digital-tv-recor ... fp150.html

Nice to look at too.
I believe it was originally designed and built by redundant Sony engineers in S. Wales.

Thanks Al-it says there is no direct aerial input,so does that come from the TV via the scart ?

[al newall]

Might be a misprint or an updated version.

Mine has two co-ax sockets, for aerial in and tv out. Plus two scarts. Not sure if all have to be connected, but mine are.
Could always give them a call.

[Mike H]

Testing it before putting the metal lid on revealed that the cassette started playing as soon as inserted,but waving a finger in the area of the "big white cog" stopped the tape moving,as did putting the lid on ! Spooky

Yes I've noticed that. There's obviously a light sensitive thing in there, something to do with transport control but not sure what

Now after quite a while of head scratching the original position of this piece was found and it was put back in position.

So didi it come off again? Maybe needs to be glued on.

[floppybootstomp]

Youse all is still playing magnetic tapes to watch video? Spooky.

Ok, we all of of us probably have oodles of stuff on VHS but it's dying, isn't it?

I have transferred all my absolutely 'must-haves' from VHS to DVD, maybe youse all should do the same.

The other 300+ VHS cassettes are going to go to landfill or whatever ecologically-concious place I should dump them to.

In a VHS recorder there is a lighthouse.

The cassette slides over it and it beams it's light through some cunningly placed holes in the cassette to a pair of optical sensors which register this thing.

This tells the player 'Thunderbirds are go' or similar

If you want to watch the mechanism play without a cassette in there, cover the lighthouse with a biro top or something and you will see the transport arms work in all their glory.

DTB and I been down this road too many times, lol

[simon]

The Humax looks good,but it would be nice to have the facility to occasionally burn a DVD for long term keeping.

Aye, one of each, sorted .

[pre65]

Youse all is still playing magnetic tapes to watch video? Spooky.

Ok, we all of of us probably have oodles of stuff on VHS but it's dying, isn't it?

I have transferred all my absolutely 'must-haves' from VHS to DVD, maybe youse all should do the same.

The other 300+ VHS cassettes are going to go to landfill or whatever ecologically-concious place I should dump them to.

In a VHS recorder there is a lighthouse.

The cassette slides over it and it beams it's light through some cunningly placed holes in the cassette to a pair of optical sensors which register this thing.

This tells the player 'Thunderbirds are go' or similar

If you want to watch the mechanism play without a cassette in there, cover the lighthouse with a biro top or something and you will see the transport arms work in all their glory.

DTB and I been down this road too many times, lol

Its still hi-tech to me,and the dinosaurs think its magic !

When I tried it on Saturday morning (after a marathon tinkering session Friday night) it seemed to play OK but would not rewind proper.Would rewind a bit then stop.

Looking at it again I could not get it to work at all wiv the lid orf.

Did not realise you and DTB were able to repair things like wot this is,anyway might have another look later.

[Dave the bass]

Did not realise you and DTB were able to repair things like wot this is,anyway might have another look later.

Video?

Nah, never looked at one in me life guv.

<runs away and hides>

S'funny but from what I've seen the processing of the signal has got better and better but the actual mechanics has got worse and worse.

DTB

[little mick]

Hello

Re Rewinding

If its torque related it will pull less on a full cassette rather than an empty one, having said that the take up speed of motor the motor will decrease as it winds in the tape, if its tyre driven I would clean the take up and supply reels and idlers with something like belt or plattern cleaner, if its gear driven it may be possible to temporally get the clutch going they often have a felt pad arrangement which can be roughed up.

With a Feeview PVR that has USB or Ethernet you could not only transfer out the films to a PC for archive, but I imagine with some mulipition on the pc you could convert exiting video audio to suitable streams for use on the PVR.

Regards

Stuart

[Mike H]

Youse all is still playing magnetic tapes to watch video? Spooky.

WHOOOOO-OOOO!!!!

S'funny but from what I've seen the processing of the signal has got better and better but the actual mechanics has got worse and worse.

I'll second that! Same goes for the actual tapes, audio as well. They're deliberately crap as a conspiracy to MAKE you buy CD's and DVD's. Got nuthin' to do wiv technology, it's a marketing driven excercise to make you buy more stuff to replace your existing stuff.



End of rant...