Lets fix 99¢ thrift shop VCR/DVD Player

[@jeffescortlx]

The recorded video footage is in a separate video (copyright music). Live now on my channel. kzbin.info/www/bejne/qqaTapiNeZJpqpI

[@belzebub16]

Nice, what resolution and bitrate are the recorded videos? 720x480?

[@jeffescortlx]

@@belzebub16 good question. I didn't check. But I will next time I'm playing around with it.

[@NCOV089]

Nice! I now know the basics of cusaplan. He he he

[@unitedstatesirie7431]

Can you please sell my one of the orange kitty cats ? 🐱 I will trade you the real cure for Cancer for that DVD / VHS machine.

[@jahrnsen]

Are you going to be selling g this? I'm on the board of a non-profit that needs to digitize a bunch of vhs tapes, and this puppy could really come in handy... 😀

[@johneverett3947]

Loved your video. Years ago my 41 inch Zenith flat screen ( which I had for years) lost power and I was ready to trash it. Thankfully I did some research and found there was a class action lawsuit for using poor components and they were required to repair effected units irregardless of age. All I had to do was call with the serial numbers, my address and take it off the wall. They sent a technician out and didn’t just change the comments but changed the whole supply board! Done for free, I didn’t even need receipts for the the set. Sometimes research is a wonderful thing.😊😊

[@scoutdogfsr]

I can tear apart and reassemble any transmission, any carburetor. Full frame off vehicle restorations? Kit car builds? No problem. But I watch in wonder and awe as you calmly diagnose the nearly intangible world of electronics. You sir have my full admiration!

[@whattheelijah]

teach me how to tune carburetors for my motorcyle

[@scoutdogfsr]

@@whattheelijah brother. If you are located in or visit Colorado I would gladly help. It is a gift to pass on knowledge and experience

[@whattheelijah]

@@scoutdogfsr young Argentine here i started working on a small scooter at about 12, I'm 16 as of now and i still can't get the mixture to not come out with black residue, i think i should lower the needle. another issue im facing is that the bike cuts off at high rpm, it doesn't ignite and stutters like crazy, i should upload a video about it but yeah, i don't think ill be going to the states at least until i finish my studies, many thanks for the offer though.

[@scoutdogfsr]

@@whattheelijah high rpm loss sounds like a clogged fuel passage. Most likely in the high rpm circuit inside the carburetor. Definitely remove the spark plug and diagnose what you see. You can find great videos that walk you through it. At 16 yrs old you have plenty of time to learn this stuff. Best of luck.

[@whattheelijah]

@@scoutdogfsr thanks for the advice, the fuel filter is somewhat dirty but the carb was cleaned many times presenting the same like loss of combustion at high rpms and lots of popping from the exhaust... I'll be trying to retune the carb next week probably

[@AdmiralPreparedness]

Your video brought back a long forgotten event decades ago.... Before I went into the Navy in 1976 to become an electronics technician, I made a repair to a portable tape recorder that a local pawn shop owner sold to me for $5.00. The seller said it worked and when I got it home, it didn't work. So, instead of returning it, I gave it a look to see if I could fix it. And I did see what was wrong right away. All it needed done to fix it was insolate a wire that nicked and was shorting on the solder side of the main CCA because it was pinched during assembly by the person putting that recorder together originally at the factory. I still have it and it works fine to this day. Thanks for bringing back that memory. I own a ton of old electronic consumer electronics that I have kept running all these years. From 80's pinball machines, one arm bandits to computers, monitors and printers. Toys and gadgets clutter my basement.

[@digitalwoodshop]

Joined the Navy in 75 and became a Gun Fire Control Tech and went to school at Great Lakes. Retired in 95 FCC(SW) and went to work for Sony in San Diego making CRT's for 2 years then 2 in the Cal Lab. Then off to Philly to the Service Center fixing PlayStation 2's and stuff like this.

[@benjaminwallace5644]

Thank you for making and posting this video, it gives me an idea of what is wrong with my JVC VCR, I know I would not be able to fix it myself. Take it in to a repair shop and tell them what the problem is.

[@karlreinke9653]

I have two of these for work. Panasonic made the best combo units ever. I’ve literally recorded hundreds of discs on these. They just don’t fail !

[@SHOOTERSBARLACROSSE]

They will fail if you use them in a beer soaked bar like mine has 2x but they are the best

[@mikemiller659]

that one did

[@colinpryor6590]

Yep got one myself fantastic unit

[@rkan2]

Panasonic electronics I often find the best. I've especially learned to like their 2nd hand kitchen appliances, like microwaves.

[@WaybackRewind]

Mine has failed and needs repair

[@PsRohrbaugh]

The most valuable feature is the firewire port, for backing up VHS tapes. Yes, you can burn a DVD, then rip the DVD, and go from there - but it adds several extra steps to your workflow and can cause even more headache if you try to back up an EP tape. Instead, you can record the MPEG stream directly to file regardless of tape length using the firewire port.

[@jeffescortlx]

Good to know 👍

[@namesurname4666]

the firewire port is an input used to connect cameras, how you can use it with vhs?

[@uxwbill]

@@namesurname4666 Perhaps it is actually bidirectional despite what the unit says? If so, you could record from VHS to your DV camcorder (or possibly even directly to a computer).

[@namesurname4666]

@@uxwbill it would be amazing but have you tried it?

[@GeirEivindMork]

pretty sure it is dv in and not dv out. (for copyright reasons)

[@ThexthSurvivor]

That's an awesome find. I've never seen a combo unit with HDMI, SD slot and a USB port. And it has a tuner. Man these type of units should have been standard.

[@4redniwediS]

The sd and usb slots are most likely for viewing photos!

[@adamjensen8702]

It's incredibly lucky to find a VHS in a thrift shop, they seem rare in general. I always check and would absolutely buy one to relive the glory days

[@BigOlSmellyFlashlight]

yeah i only found one, it was also a dvd combo and it also didnt power on, and i spent $13 on it and i couldnt find any capacitor issues

[@jameswest6161]

I threw away abt 5 VHS players some with cd players. They where in mu grandfather old office and we where clearing it out, till the day he died that man still recorded stuff to VHS

[@lgoamity]

Suppose it depends on the store (policy) and a bit of luck... Locally I tend to see plenty of early 2000's era VHS, DVD, and newer Blu-ray... With a rare DVD Recorder, maybe some older 90's VHS or even a few "old time" Top Loaders or early VHS from early 80's...

[@Telephonebill51]

I had a Magnavox VHS/DVD copier/burner. this was when Mag no longer existed as anything other than just a name to be stuck on imported crap. It actually worked fine (although the instructions were way wrong in terms of dubbing) and I copied my son's VHS home movies as well as his Uncle's 8mm I converted.

[@theantiveganchannel3596]

I have a VCR that has both Dolby stereo ( they use the dual mono tracks)and HiFi apparently these are pretty rare.. if you did not have the Dolby stereo you would only get 1 mono track on newer VCRs unless it supported HiFi on the tape it self

[@daytontechnician]

Great find and always a pleasure watching you think and talk through the repair. Have to give you bonus points for the strange brew DVD.

[@rennethjarrett4580]

I have this exact same model, bought it at a thrift shop about 4 years or more back. It works fine. I don't use it to often now but so far it is good. It does have a few quirks... Before I get to that I was glad to see that you did not give up on it when it was showing the 00000, that is its boot up process and best to wait till it says hello and gives you the ch or VCR or DVD on the display. The quirk mine has is the over the air tuner, when I use the channel buttons on the unit it wants to keep rolling past to the next channel or the other inputs at times. Also this unit will play the SVHS tapes as well, not record on them but play them. Now I have a idea what might be the problem if goes dead...

[@CognacKidd]

Yep I fixed this exact unit last year, exact same repair you made. I own its older brother so after the 2021 repair I took mine apart and found a couple dif caps bulged - so I was proactive and replaced them. Thanks for the vid.

[@JGonYT]

I just got a similar unit by Toshiba at a Salvation Army for like $10. I picked it right up hoping it had complete output through HDMI. I grabbed a small TV and a random VHS from the media section and it did play through HDMI! It was in great shape too, with just a scratch on top. I now use it on my main TV. It has a composite input on front which is another main reason why I wanted it. My TV has a stupid pigtail connector for one composite input, which is very annoying. Now I can just plug something right into that unit's front easily and watch it through HDMI too! From what I looked up, The VCR in it may not have any belts, which is a big plus also. I got a remote off eBay for like $12. So just over $20 for something that goes on eBay for $170-220 isn't bad!

[@n6cid]

If you have a computer you can stream or download any video....Why bother using a old system as your main box....

[@JGonYT]

@@n6cid ??? I'm 34 and still have a lot of tapes and discs. I mainly use a Roku, but I like messing with older A/V equipment. Yes, it's more of a novelty/fun thing to do once in a while. The plus of this particular unit is you can play anything through 1 HDMI output, which is actually kind of rare, especially for VHS. I don't use it often, but I like to have it available. I still always have 2 optical drives/burners on my computers too. Just because something is old doesn't mean it's crap/garbage. That's a toxic mentality. Sadly a lot of consumer electronics these days come out of the factory already as garbage.

[@vernonland5987]

I like seeing you fix different things and watching you think your way through it. Impressive skills!

[@michaela6147]

Really nice find and some good skills.

[@TheWolfster001]

Back in the day when VCR's ruled the land.. I made lots of money repairing them.. I bought non working ones for about $2.00. I pulled all the caps from the completely broken VCR's.. About 95% of them I bought, I was able to fix and I sold them for like $25.00, Made very good living doing it, Them when DVD players started to take over, the same on them, 99% of the time it was either a bad cap or blown fuse that was wrong, sold them (one's I fixed) for $20.00 to $40.00.. Now with the Led Tv's.. I make even better money, from $50.00 to $100.00 repairing.. I buy them (non-working) for like $10.00 to $20.00, Fix them or scrap for usable parts, I sell repaired TV's (and computer monitors) for half the brand new price.. If you are (half assed) electronics skilled (and can soldier) you can fix them.. Not to brag, but I made just this week a tad over $8,000.00 (after taxes paid, parts bought or reused).. I plan on latter in 2023 (summer more then likely) Starting a KZbin channel on repairing old tech (like VCR's & such) also showing detailed how to repair computers, TV/Monitors, Laptops, tablets & such.. I have made good money for many many years.. It's time I give back.. Thank you for sharing.. Oh Those boards (you are working on) has a decent amount of silver in them, not much gold.. Sorry for babbling on.. Had to edit to add this little tip. Hot Glue is a good friend when replacing caps (holding them down) so you can solder them. also hold parts down so you can screw them down..

[@lyleg.9192]

Yeah I've noticed on some recent manuf Electronics they seem to use hot glue or some other silicone to hold things in position from the factory

[@TheWolfster001]

@@lyleg.9192 Works good.. I have used it for decades.. When I have several compensates to replace, They all get a quick spot of hot glue, turn the board over, solder them and clip off the excess wire and done.. easy peasy..

[@lyleg.9192]

@@TheWolfster001 thank you for your response and do you have a preference on hot glue sticks because a friend of mine gave me a few to use with a glue gun I bought and I thought I had sticks and I didn't and the ones he gave me suck I thought maybe because they were colored and kind of stiff to begin with.. probably old

[@TheWolfster001]

@@lyleg.9192 It depends on what you are doing.. There are hot glue sticks made for use on electronics, But I don't use them.. I Actually use very cheap ones I buy from The Dollar Tree.. Yes it works very good.. If you are just using the glue to hold electronic parts in place to solder them, the type really does not matter (in my opinion) If you are using it to just hold parts from moving, the type does not matter either, for filling a void and/or encasing a part in glue, I use 3M.. My wife does lots of craft projects and she uses a wide range of hot glues. That gives me some to test with and by trial & error, pretty much all will work as long as it is just to hold parts in place for soldering. Just test some an see how they hold up..

[@benharv]

The green barcode sticker on the top case is from Best Buy repair. Probably would be interesting to give them a call and get repair notes.

[@marknesselhaus4376]

That was a very good find and fix. A few years ago I found a large flat screen Magnavox HDTV , 52 inch I think, that was on the free pile of a Re-Store. My wife insisted I take it home and once home it had no signs of power. I took my time getting it open as it had about a million screws to be removed or so it felt. The power supply section had eight caps that were swelled and or split so for about $16 in new caps I swapped them out and lo and behold the TV has been working perfectly every day since. I later read that back in the year 2000 period there were a lot of poorly made caps out on the market. Take care and 73 De WA4JAT 🙂

[@Antney-u6j]

The USB and SD card slots are input only to record to DVD. There’s also going to be some copy protection scheme so that you can’t rent a VHS and copy it to a DVD.

[@frpgplayer]

Beta machines, if you can find one,has no barriers

[@MrSloika]

You need a Macrovision 'scrubber'. Video out goes to the scrubber and than to a second VCR or DVD-R.

[@MrSloika]

@ProudOfYourRoots They sold some that worked, but the movie studios had their lawyers go after the people selling the devices. I actually built Macrovision scrubbers from plans I obtained from an electronics magazine. Macrovison was not encoding. Macrovision injected random noise into the video vertical blanking stage of the NTSC signal. That garbage effected the automatic gain control circuit of the VCRs but not TVs. That was the genius of Macrovision. Yes, some of the early VCRs were not affected.

[@digitalwoodshop]

As a former Philly Sony Service Center tech back in this era I was impressed with this video. Will look for more. :) My first thought was a bad Rotary Mode Switch if it had one... Good Job !!! Reading the comments... LOTS of Service Tech's here...

[@OneMoreRedNightmare]

You might not see this, Mr. Philly, but I scored a thrift store Sony receiver with a Master Amp that works fine so far. Problem is the speaker terminals are proprietory 6.2mm. I've had zero luck looking for any info about how to replace them with something more universal like banana posts. I really want to hook it up to some speakers and see what it can really do.

[@gs1100ed]

I have a very similar working unit Panasonic DMR-E75V, but mine does not have the HDMI plug. It does have an Optical outlet and some other Digital Audio outlet capability though. I really enjoy watching you repair non-working electronics, since most things nowadays are throw away items when they experience any kind of failure. Nice work! You make it look so easy!

[@xavierzander4201]

component is just as good as HDMI, not digital, but that's an advantage when you convert it yourself into HDMI :)

[@gs1100ed]

@@xavierzander4201 is that an internal or external conversion. External seems like it would be much easier with the right adaptors…

[@xavierzander4201]

@@gs1100ed consumer HDMI devices (internal) have HDCP, when you connect an (external) converter to the component connection that converts to HDMI, it has no HDCP, HDCP is always active on consumers devices, even if the content has no copyright protection, the external converter can be used directly with any HDMI "capture" device, being a usb or card in a pc. I now use a converter on my ES35V from component to HDMI or a converter to SDI, both options i use with Blackmagic Design recorders. works perfect.

[@DoubleMonoLR]

@@xavierzander4201 Visually, but HDMI is ideal for capturing as it doesn't have to get converted from analog to digital again. USB HDMI capture devices often don't seem to care about HDCP.

[@xavierzander4201]

@@DoubleMonoLR The analog output is not converted from the HDMI output, The HDMI output also digitizes the analog signal, so there are no extra "things" going on, HDCP will be mostly active on consumer devices, some "china" devices will give no problem, but that's not always the case. you have to check for users experiences, do not asume that by default, also be carefull sying such things if you have a youtube channel yourself.

[@stevegarcia1796]

That was extremely informative and you have a pleasant voice which made it more entertaining thank you. 👀👍

[@sergeleon1163]

That is a neat combo unit, you could also hookup a camcorder to digitize old recordings in a easy way to DVD and if the upscaler is good, you could connect via a HDMI capture device to you PC and digitize recordings straight to 1080p.

[@theantiveganchannel3596]

try recording from the ATSC tuner on to VHS we have been lied too the sound quality and picture quality is great on my HD CRT using the HDMI port.. even looks good on a LCD as well

[@gingerbreadaudio]

I still have and use two of these machines in the uk they are amazing, nice find 👍👍

[@ebaystars]

does the LSI in it dow Timebase correcting on the VHS replay ? Looks like a lot of chippery in it, (probably as a natural sync function of of its inherent upscaling function)

[@tk9780]

You may have on-screen control for record/playback combination

[@Baker-2111]

I saw this exact same VCR DVD combo at a tag sale this summer for $10 and as soon as I saw the HDMI port on the back I knew it was something special. Grabbed the replacement remote for $10 and immediately integrated it into my setup, which yes it does include a CRT as well as a more Modern Display. I was able to get mp3s and jpegs to play from the SD card slot but it looks like the DivX and other video files are only meant for the DVD drive. Yeah an older VCR might work, but you're stuck with just composite outputs and it can't do any of the cool things that this one can, glad to see you're able to get it fixed so cheaply!

[@filanfyretracker]

can it record from a video source like the tuner to the SD card?

[@bobblum5973]

It's always nice to find something good or rare at a thrift store, even if it takes cleaning or a bit of repair. One thing I hate is when the remote control is not with the device; I've actually found them sitting somewhere else and made sure to put them together. Same thing with power adapter/chargers, and special cables.

[@jeffescortlx]

Yes true. My local salvation army will make an effort to keep sets of things together. While the goodwill will just price everything separately and randomly throw it on the shelf.

[@bobblum5973]

@@jeffescortlx Sometimes it's hard to tell if a customer moved things around, splitting them up. Just today at a Goodwill I saw a Yamaha audio system with separate amp, tuner, graphic equalizer and CD changer. Two units were together, two together about 15 feet down the shelf, and the remote control was priced separately and in a third spot. 🙄🤦‍♂️

[@shawbros]

I hate when shoppers are so selfish that they open boxes, take stuff out, and then just leave it. That's how stuff gets scattered around. And the employees are sometimes not much better, in that they might be too ignorant to know what devices should be packaged together.

[@hugh007]

That was made in the era of widespread cap failures. Computers, TVs, amps and receivers..... Good job.Thanks

[@billysmidway7032]

I’ve owned one of these since it was new. It’s a very tedious device to wait for but it works well once it starts working. Mine had been showing signs of a bad power supply cap for a few years before it stopped working. I was planning to open it and do exactly what you did here. I’m glad you made the video since I now know what to expect on mine. I also use a Hakko FR-300 and it’s a great tool. I repair arcade games so this is simple in comparison. I’m actually excited to open mine and do the repair.

[@billysmidway7032]

Update: I opened mine and it also had the small 100uf cap and one of the two larger 1500uf caps leaked out the electrolyte. I replaced the little one with a high quality Nichicon cap I had but had to get two cheaper brand new 1500uf caps from the local electronics store. I did the same as you and tested voltages before reassembly and it seemed ok but I also removed each of the three parts mounted to heat sinks, added a little coat of thermal transfer compound and reattached them. I also reflowed a few questionable solder joints. Once I reassembled it, I let it do the self-test and it came back to life. I ran a head cleaner tape as a test and to ensure the tape path was clean, then I used the RCA plugs to a Sharp flatscreen CRT TV and played a VHS tape for a little while with a beautiful picture; then I played a DVD copy of Summer School and watched the entire movie. The picture was beautiful and reconfirmed my love of DVD on CRT. It’s nice to know I can get back to copying some important VHS tapes to DVD to extend their existence a little longer.

[@SyCoREAPER]

Genuinely fascinating piece of history, steal of a price and simple fix.

[@SyCoREAPER]

But please don't push drive trays. That makes me cringe watching people do it.

[@jimpurton4944]

Nice job repairing! I have the same unit. It was pretty expensive new. Mine still works, but seldom used. I still have the original owners manual too.

[@donotneed2250]

I learned in the mid 1980's how to repair electronics and the last shop I worked in at least once a month I'd get a piece in that was so new there weren't any schematics published and I had to really bring forth my training. Sometimes I did impress the shop owner but I just enjoyed the challenge. I left the field in 1991 but I still have my tools.

[@dfbiker]

Just found your channel. Loved you video. Always great to see what’s inside electronics. I’ll be watching many more. All the best from the U.K.

[@jeanious2009]

Remember these are 90’s electronics so they are going to boot up real slow. Windows 95 and 98 took 15mins just to completely reboot before being able to use them. Great find and quick repair.

[@kevinbean3679]

Nice video, Jeff. It's a trip back through time looking at old circuit boards with ancient ( comparative) software. You read the board great, as to signal side vs. power, and aside from a bit of booting up, understood what was going on. My problem with repair usually happens after finding the obvious, and sneaky circuit board cracks or partially functioning ( but not dead) components hamper the operation. We are all still learning... 😁

[@jeffpowers1979]

That is not that old. I am twice as old as that lol. There are circuit boards with PC chips on them. I have old amps that run off of diodes transistors, capacitors and resisters only. Also transformers. You know, Neanderthal amps.

[@kevinbean3679]

@@jeffpowers1979 My apologies! I guess I always assume young people produce KZbin channels

[@ebaystars]

looking at it ist quite a advanced product with HDMI, upscaling processor LSI video processor its a remarkable peice of tehcnology that would have cost a fortune to replicate on U-matic and older tape systems in the late 80s before digital came in. Looks like a neat archivist machine especially for dads old family VHS shoots.

[@juliedunken1150]

I LOVE clean energy… who is with me right ? We can all live a greener life , lets DO it!

[@zurnie]

My best friend's dad when we were kids use to go to auction sales all the time. This was mid to late 70s. My friend picked up a huge 25 inch color console TV with 8-track, turn table and AM\FM tuner. He got her in his room and started checking out all the devices and couldn't figure out at first why it was not working. He then pulled the 110 volt fuse on the back panel and it was blown. He replaced the fuse and everything worked flawlessly. When new it sold for over a thousand bucks. He got it and a box of tubes and components for a buck.

[@ReelFilm2016]

I found my unit in a charity shop for £10. Works likes a dream. I didn’t know what I had when I bought it, but like some others, when I saw the HDMI on the back, I knew it must be something cool. Amazingly, about a week later, when I knew what a gem I had discovered, I found another one in a different charity shop and spent the same amount purchasing it. I sold it straight away for £100 but I wished I kept hold of it now. I recently picked up a slightly earlier version of this unit without the HDMI and use that unit as my main one now. The 49V has been packed away.

[@Aaron-hk6st]

My mom has had one of those for years. Still works great. She has literally hundreds of VHS home movies.

[@CAESARbonds]

I really need one to backup a precious 30 year old copy of the terminator, but in Germany these machines cost 100-200 euros or dollars at minimum. rescuing a tape is an impossibility now, amd thanks to this video prices are skyrocketing.

[@dag7388]

This must be a direct match to a machine that I bought from Costco about 10 years ago. Absolutely stunning machine and incredible audio from CDs via the optical output! Mine had very slow processor and each function had to complete before the next function would begin. The zeros are it's booting process. I had mice get to the area and Mine won't get power now :( Still need to convert more family videos to digital.

[@WJHandyDad]

that's a really cool find and thank you for showing us how to fix things like that. I have a pile of old VCR's, DVD's, and receivers in the attic that you would probably be able to fix in 5 minutes or less.

[@patprop74]

Oh, i agree something that can take your old movie collection and make them to DVD in one self-contained unit would be gold!

[@markw208]

Nice, informative video. I noticed your INITECH cup 👍. Do have a red Swingline stapler?

[@darrenwells2277]

These things are popular with Laserdisc collectors as you can upscale via HDMI better using this than going through Composite. Good machines, my Dad has one.

[@iVTECInside]

Upscaling aside, the reality is that the analog to digital conversion that goes on in these units is really quite good. Any external device to match or exceed the quality is still going to be kinda expensive. I've asked above if this device does pass-through conversion, ie plug laser disc s-video/audio in and get HDMI output, that is worth more than anything else the unit can do these days if it works.

[@theantiveganchannel3596]

@@iVTECInside try recording from the oTA tuner crisp sound and video on the VHS it even records it in the wide screen format

[@iVTECInside]

@@theantiveganchannel3596 not sure what you mean? VIA the COAX? That'd be an absolute last resort, quality is crap compared to composite even. VHS was always 4:3 too, that's how it should be recorded digitally.

[@sting64az]

Nice overlook and repairs on this Panasonic model. I still have mine since new when television converted to HD. Bought at Best Buy for under $400 which was near top grade at the time. It serves me well for recording TV and using it for my older camcorders in playback and record to DVD or VHS transfer to DVD. Still works flawless never an issue. I love it.

[@Dancing_Alone_wRentals]

tHanks for the video. It is fun watching these repairs.

[@munsters2]

Nice work! The trouble with working on discarded electronic equipment is people almost never leave the remote control with the main unit. Must be a ton of people who have a drawer of old remote controls in their house. I don't know what they ever plan to do with them?

[@DoubleMonoLR]

You can always use something like a Logitech Harmony remote at worst, they have suitable codes for most machines.

[@munsters2]

@@DoubleMonoLR Yes, but the key words are "most machines" and "some functions".

[@MaximumRD]

I still have 2 decent VHS machines which I pulled from our electronics recycling in excellent condition just in case I need one.

[@iChillypepper]

My brother had one of these - you need the original remote to access all the features. Love the cats

[@jeffescortlx]

So far the Harmony 650 seems to have all the needed buttons.

[@calzonemaniacsvideocorner0804]

You forgot the best part. They were watching the WIDESCREEN copy of Titanic on VHS.

[@xavierzander4201]

A nice ! so i guess it detects letterbox vhs tapes, sad thing only… it reduces the resolution, because it enlarges the small screen area.

[@zepar221]

I built a media PC in 2000 with a ATI RAdeon 64 VIVO graphics card and hooked a JVC VCR, stereo, and CRT TV to it for all my transfer needs. It will copy anything played into it via composite input to your HDD then you burn DVD if you want. I still have it. These combos were for non-PC people. I have been watching TV with a PC for 22 years.

[@sangbeta2043]

I think the SD slot was for viewing photos. It may play video or music formats, but I'm pretty sure you can't record video to it.

[@jeffescortlx]

Yes this is correct. The SD and USB ports are only for play back. Just the VHS and DVD can record.

[@norbkowa]

I have 5 of the sitting in my closet all working plus i used to have 3 of those but instead of DVD recorder it had a BluRay player. Panasonic made some amazing and revolutionary items.

[@MultiDanzig]

Yo man are you selling any?

[@norbkowa]

@@MultiDanzig i actually may simce i gathered so many electronics over time i dont have room. I have one of those combo unitsnwith original box. I will be putting it on ebay but dont know when yet.

[@MultiDanzig]

@@norbkowa you get ahold of me message me your details and let me know

[@norbkowa]

@@MultiDanzig i have one for sale on ebay this moment and will probably list couple more

[@10p6]

I have sold about 100 variants of these Panasonic models. It is nice being able to record Digital TV direct to DVD Ram. Sucks that it cant copy protected VHS to DVD though.

[@theoztreecrasher2647]

Somewhere here there is a device to circumvent that to convert all your old commercial VHS tapes to DVD. (After all you paid for them!) I can't really remember what it was called (Simi or something lurks back among the Old Timer's Diseased cells) but I believe it was banned and removed from sale. Never did much service before the tapes all got mildewed and dumped. CDs and DVDs have proved a much more enduring medium.

[@MarkMcCluney]

Gosh, that was an exceptional find. I've never even heard of such a machine. Thanks for sharing.

[@T-Bag13]

I once knew someone who bought a VHS player from an auction. Got it home and noticed a "funny" smell coming from within. He opened it and found a *turd* inside. 🤣

[@pouncytaur]

That's awesome! Thanks for the peek inside, and what sort of time failure this unit can have. I bought one of these new for my parents quite a few years ago, when I moved out, so they could play DVD's and VHS without my equipment. Indeed, the unit does have a significant boot up time, and there is a lot banging around in its brain, but it's a pretty cool device if you can put up with those little quirks. As far as I know, theirs is still running well, but I would like to dive into it and replace those caps before they blow, as well as adding heatsinks to the chips roasting the circuit board.

[@LucidDreamer54321]

Wow, where can I find a 99¢ thrift shop?

[@KrazyGoodMods]

Very cool find! You can find some real treasures among the junk sometimes in thrift stores. Years ago I got a Sega Genesis with original box and paperwork(plus 2 controllers, Sonic 2 and an NHL game) for $6.

[@jeffescortlx]

I've been hoping to find a Sega Genesis at a thrift store but I haven't seen those around for about 15 years.

[@dannysunay4386]

It is still junk.

[@heirandspare]

You got yourself a keeper. My brother had two of them. I only wish I had transferred all my VHS tapes onto DVD. Lucky you.

[@chriswebb4162]

Nice video. Lucky guy getting it for 99 cents. I've been looking to find one of these 'tape to DVD' machines for years.

[@slowens21]

Yeeeesss!! I had a very similar model! Not only could you transfer vhs to DVD but mine also recorded TV shows and had commercial skip it was a pretty sweet back in the day.

[@ekner]

Love the initech cup! I gotta say, I'm surprised those two caps got it back to life, what a lucky find!

[@jeffescortlx]

Yes lucky find indeed! Also, don't forget those cover sheets on the TPS reports.

[@ekner]

@@jeffescortlx I've already read the memo, won't happen again.

[@yemarican]

I am so in love with the mechanism inside the VCR. I mean its all moving parts. I miss those days :(

[@mmlchaelcurtice5404]

Jeff I have two of those bought them brand new and ABC Warehouse for $240 each I still have one in the box unopened brand new the other one is backup DVD player against my Blu-ray and it works fine. Mile marker Mikey Trenton Michigan. I've had them for years. 👍😁🇺🇸

[@futurepastnow]

Is Titanic the most statistically likely tape to find jammed in a broken VCR?

[@jeffescortlx]

It's definitely the most common VHS tape you'll find at a thrift shop!

[@Christianpreaching]

Good find. I'm glad you got it instead of someone just throwing it away in our wasteful society

[@lorettacaputo6997]

I just picked up a similar deal at a thrift store and all seemed well until I tried to do a dvd recording. The DVD player would play and produce an image on a tv, but when trying to make a DVD recording, the device shows that it is recording but it will not finalize the process. I am thinking that the recording feature in the dvd drive is dead. Can I swap out a dvd player / recorder drive? Any specs that I need to match?

[@jeffescortlx]

I'm not too sure. But if you look around the comments section there are a few guys that know this unit really well that repaired them professionally. If you can contact them I'm sure they will know exactly what's wrong.

[@joshmiller887]

I found one like this about a year ago with a tape stuck inside just like yours. I haven’t opened it yet…I think you inspired me to dig it out 😂

[@abnerdoubleday6145]

We have this exact unit. The 0000 stuff is it telling you it is still waking up. It has a power save mode. It takes forever to wake up. If memory serves there is a way to set it to "always on" mode. So, it powers up much quicker. Overall, it has been a great unit to dub from VHS to DVD & back again. Nice job working your way through the repair!

[@MrRobbiepee]

That's really cool. What a find. Some of the Panasonic machines can be slow to startup if they haven't got an antenna connected - that seems to be true for their DVD recorders as far back as 15 years or so ago (UK models)

[@MrSloika]

I've got a similar Panasonic unit. These are amazing machines and they record DVD-RAM. I had the same problem, dried out caps on the power supply board, easy fix.

[@rottmanthan]

i have a silver sony vcr dvd combo, i got it from the local dump, it still had the label with the specs on it on the cover. it needed a fuse, im not using it but its been fine since changing said fuse.

[@karengaynor126]

Mine as not been used for a while was working then now just no power at all iv checked all the wires and the amp but just no power theses are selling for £300 where I live

[@moodberry]

Strange me...I watched this whole video. Why? Because I learned something by your detailed explanation of what components do on a circuit board. Please do more of that type of video. I think they would be a hit on YT.

[@colinsnyder3082]

Occasionally you find one of these with a dvr and hdd in them as well.. treasures!

[@Changa_Husky]

This is the best deck I use for digitizing VHS. Can digitize using the HDMI and preserve everything at 1080p. I also use this deck for making footage look vintage instead of digital filters.

[@holdenmenard1312]

Will this particular VCR/DVD combo able to transfer old VHS quality to Digital DVD quality? I know I’ve always wanted to that.

[@jeffescortlx]

Yes as long as the VHS tape isn't copyrighted protected. The quality will only be as good as the original VHS quality. But yes it can record a VHS onto a DVD.

[@holdenmenard1312]

@@jeffescortlx Oh, okay thanks! The one I have at the moment is a Philips DVD to VCR combo, not a VCR to DVD combo, but I hope to find one, one day.

[@jeffescortlx]

@@holdenmenard1312 yes the VHS to DVD burner style is harder to find and more expensive.

[@holdenmenard1312]

@@jeffescortlx I forgot to ask one more question, can it also record blank DVD discs from the TV, wether it’s DVDR+ and DVDR-? I just want to know in case a movie or TV show gets removed completely from several streaming devices.

[@jeffescortlx]

@@holdenmenard1312 I believe it will, but I haven't actually tried to record over the air shows. But this model does have an HD digital tuner.

[@andrewmiller3834]

Stationed in Tokyo from 84-86 I found out (from a Japanese person) that when given a choice, Japanese people choose Panasonic. My own experience validates the reliability and functionality of their devices. Hope you enjoy your new toy!

[@ebaystars]

panasonic broadcast cameras were as good as sony

[@Starry_Night_Sky7455]

What about Hitachi?

[@leifhietala8074]

Had one. Moved some home movies onto DVD. And once that was done, the utility of the VHS side was pretty much zero, since the tape collection was just dying due to use and age by that time, and the whole video collection was moving to DVD. Interesting piece but it was a product of its time, that time being the brief period where VHS and DVD overlapped.

[@SEGAdude95]

Cool thanks for sharing. I love going to thrift stores and hunting for whatever catches your eye. 😁👍✌️😎

[@Thinker2-truth]

Great find and easy repair! Congratulations!

[@iVTECInside]

Panasonic made some of the best devices for converting analog to digital video. I picked up a Panasonic DMR-ES15 a while back in my quest to digitize some of my old VHS. The reason that model is handy is because it will pass through time base corrected video allowing any analog capture device on a PC to work very well without frame drops. Simply playing the VHS back over HDMI means you could just use that VCR and a digital capture device for the same purpose, depending on your level of "purist" anyway.

[@ebaystars]

time base correction is essential on tape PB, used to be a fortune for early TBCs on broadcast and dubbing equipment

[@samsinger5135]

wow... a rare find ... i had one of them like that but it didn't have a SD card slot so this is a really a bit of gold in the sands

[@karengaynor126]

Hi mine is the same my vcr is stuck an no power at all I carnt do what you have just done .can you fix mine for me please

[@uxwbill]

Panasonic did make an updated version of this that had a Blu-Ray player. Unfortunately, it seems rarer than rocking horse poo. One thing that always bugged me about so many of these combination players (even those that were otherwise of good quality) was how the component, S-video or HDMI (if equipped) outputs were always marked as for the DVD player part only. That always struck me as a copout. Why even bother with the higher quality outputs if you have to "waste" another input on your TV to watch VHS tapes? Likewise with the tuner...after ATSC, almost all of these machines just dropped the tuner function entirely, instead of updating it. I'd love to know if any other manufacturer offered a model as well thought out and equipped as this Panasonic unit. That's not to say it's perfect. Whatever it's got for a CPU is definitely sluggish (or the firmware is just that bad), the digital TV tuner doesn't seem all that sensitive and tuning to different ATSC stations seems to behave a bit strangely at times. I've had this thing's tuner get "stuck" on certain stations, and it doesn't seem like there are options to reformat the picture to fit your screen. For some reason, at least as per the manual, you can't record digital TV to VHS. (I've yet to try it.) But on the plus side, the VHS transport seems reasonably well made and it sure is nice that every source is brought to all the output options. I need to see if the RF modulator actually outputs MTS stereo. If it does, Panasonic really did think of just about everything.

[@jeffescortlx]

Yes I agree when I see those combo units out in the wild typically the HDMI port is only for the DVD player. I was happy to see this one wasn't labeled that way.

[@sidewinder3434]

I have this Panasonic combo. It still works great ! Yes, it's slow to boot up and shut down ! This was the the first time I heard of HDMI output.

[@sidewinder3434]

This unit was ahead of it's time ! If you were lucky to find blank DVD RAM discs online ( very expensive now) it lets you start a playback of a program as you're recording it ....all at the same time. I believe it's called chasing or slipping playback. You should download a copy of the owner's manual

[@stevehall4708]

Beauty choice of DVD you used for testing, eh! That movie is in 3B…three beers and it’s lookin good. Love your video…well done sir.

[@txmac1966]

Out of curiosity I looked online that same VHS to DVD machine is available from amazon for "only" $274.00. Good on you for repairing what many people would send to the landfill.

[@rectify2003]

Sometimes when they don't seem to work from 1st Startup, its because its going through the Boot Sequence. You would see that probably if a screen was connected Panasonic's are notorious for that It would be worth getting a remote. I have a few here and they all look similar.

[@KENPOJOE1]

Hi there! Glad to see this video! I have a few of these panasonic units! I would reccomend you get the manual online via pdf to answer your questions on the SD slot and other issues! Do a follow up video after you get more info. See if you can find the panasonic original remote too! Although your universal seems to address the functions.

[@RoughJustice2k18]

Looks like you scored a real bargain. I repaired a couple of 2007/08 era Panasonic DMR-EZ47V combos recently which had the all-too-common "U 81" error on the front display. Replaced several ruptured capacitors in the start-up circuit on the DVD/power control board and they worked again. Look for an oddball valued cap on that board in these models - a 120µF electrolytic. If it looks bad, replace it. You might be able to purchase the original Panasonic remote for this unit on eBay or somewhere if needed. Glad you got it working. 😎 👍👍

[@juliedunken1150]

Sure? Also I repaired a bunch if My Little Pony animate me etcha scetchers from 1988

[@RoughJustice2k18]

@@juliedunken1150 I have been repairing various vintage consumer electronics (TV's, VCR's and tape decks) for over 35 years so yes I am sure. Never tackled an Etch-a-Sketch unit from any year (I'm not into fixing toys) but the senior tech I worked with back in the 1990's had a couple of those come in (one had a cracked screen) but they were the original 1970's models.

[@jeffescortlx]

So far the Logitech remote does a great job with controlling it. Normally I don't like universal remotes, but this one is setup great.

[@MakeKasprzak]

Nice find. I've been ignoring VCR's, but knowing there's units like this out there I'm going to start paying more attention.

[@brodriguez11000]

It was a really easy way to convert tapes to disc. Other way had more moving parts to get right. Course my Magnavox predated HDMI and used S-VHS in and out.

[@SchwaAlien]

I have this exact model I “recycled” for a customer of mine, it used to work - I ripped a tape to DVD but I brought it to my parents house for them to convert some tapes and it died. I have separate dvd recorder and vcr but it would be great to restore the all in one unit.

[@swift561]

Man what a score! Those vcr combos with hdmi are pricey plus all the extras that one has.

[@kairon156]

As someone who grew up in the VHS era it's always cool to see tech that crosses generational media like this. Thanks for sharing and bringing this device back to life. I wonder if you can record a DVD onto VHS with this. Just to see what it'll look like.

[@xavierzander4201]

It can, hence the navigation buttons on the right. (both directions)

[@kairon156]

@@xavierzander4201 I think he did mention in the video near the end after my comment as well. :)

[@nohrtillman8734]

Yes, as said above. The downer is realizing how poor the quality of VHS actually is/was. Most DVDs won’t look near as nice downgraded to 480.

[@ryanglaser5336]

Mine the HDMI port never worked with VHS, only on DVD side. Always thought it was an analog limitation and by-design...but now I am reconsidering that the HDMI was DOA defective on the VCR side only, as your port just worked on Titanic!

[@joe6096]

I used to be an A/V tech at the old regional Best Buy service/repair center in Cleveland before it closed. From 1998-2008. I had countless of these combos come across my bench in their prime. Fun times!! Coolest thing on your bench is the Initech coffee mug. Bill Lumberg would be proud. Uhm, yeeeeaaaah.

[@jeffescortlx]

If you could remember the cover sheet with the TPS reports that would be great.

[@joe6096]

@@jeffescortlx I’m kinda busy so don’t bother me, I got a meeting with the Bobs.

[@jeffescortlx]

@@joe6096 😯

[@johnlarro6872]

I wonder if it has any kind of TBC between VCR -> digital... Generally have to go for a JVC unit for that feature sadly.