Repairing the Grundig 2x4 Super Video2000 recorder.

[@davidfarrell7318]

i could never repair these machine's myself but it is nice to watch someone who knows what they are talking about and take's the time to repair them.

[@jarekjagielski366]

Great video, thanks for sharing it. I have a slightly different V2000 Grundig machine, and seeing this video motivated me to finally try and bring it back to life. Recapped the PSU so far, the roller brake engages on power on, but the display does not work, and it does nothing else. Will have to spend a bit more time on it ;)

[@video99couk]

Start with that lack of display, it may be that one of the CPUs is not powered. Check for split connectors. A service manual will certainly help. Good luck.

[@shivanl1695]

I have the same problem, scope showed that the voltages are fine and no ripple even with the old electrolytics. However, the board behind the deck which houses the battery is at fault, the battery has leaked and destroyed some of the tracks on the board. Currently making bypasses on the board to see if it will work again.

[@video99couk]

@@shivanl1695 Which model is that? The panel behind the deck on the 2x4 Super is the motor driver, not the CPU (with battery). Battery leakage is a common problem with many machines of this sort of vintage.

[@shivanl1695]

video99.co.uk it is the 2x4 best nr. 2000 (frontloader) And I just got it to work!! I made a lot of bypasses and soldered the display connector directly to the board because the connections were too damaged to use. It’s playing nicely! I also have a 1600 without DTF but the idler sprocket is broken so I’m afraid I cannot repair that anymore. Unobtainable part.

[@davidgregg8689]

Great ! Spent many years looking for an informative and detailed video on repairing these machines and now have finally found one. Not too technical with oscilloscopes etc. but really really useful for the average layman/ diy'er. Inspired me to have another look at the machines I have and maybe get one or two of them working again. Thank you for making the effort and taking the time to make such an interesting and helpful video.

[@mazochungo]

Sir, thank you very much for this video. I am by no means a repairman and my skills in electronics are rather poor, although as a computer engineer I do have replaced computer PCBs and certain components a number of times. Your video in particular has encouraged me to finally take a look inside a Grundig VCR like this one that a friend of mine gave away to me a few years ago, as he was aware I already owned a few VCRs and plenty of video tapes. But the machine was completely dead (when switched on, only a very weak light in the front panel would come on) and there was a cassette stuck inside. The first thing I have done is to replace the power supply -- thankfully, there are still some spares available in Germany. After that, the front panel came to life and so did the spinning rods that make the tape reels move. But the video head drum seemed to be stuck (it was dificult to rotate it even manually and after taking it apart it I noticed some broken bits inside, so I have also ordered a replacement). Moreover, the mechanism of the tape deck was not moving at all. The machine would not thread the tape nor eject it. After a while, I managed to eject the tape by manually sliding the belt. Then I tried to insert it back while reading the voltage on the terminals of the motor that should be moving that belt, which turned to be zero. However, by applying 12V to those terminals through an external power supply, the mechanism started to work and the tape was automatically loaded and threaded correctly. But after that I then noticed that the motor of the capstan sometimes remains still and sometimes spins very slow. After measuring the voltage, it shows 0.3 volts in the first case and 1.2 volts when it does rotate. Which I assume is not the expected value. Have you got any clue about what the problem may be or why these motors are not getting the propper voltage? Could it be a problem of the PCB that controls the motors (27502-061.01)? I have heard that it is also a common fault, and as far as I know, there are also some spares available so I could try to replace it. It would be really nice to see this machine working (I do have a few V2000 tapes). And although I really don't "need" to repair it, since I have nothing to lose and since I find it interesting to try to understand a little better how these complex machines used to work, I would like to try it myself. Thank you very much for your help. Regards from Spain.

[@video99couk]

Have a look at the connectors on the rear PCB behind the deck. The connectors break up, both on the top and bottom sides of the PCB. You can add a cable tie plus glue to hold the plastic connectors back together. Someone even told me that he 3D printed some new connector housings which is really taking it seriously. Also, even with a new PSU, I would check that the PSU relay is working properly. This is a very unreliable part. Also look at the switches on the underside of the deck, there are two or three (I forget), make sure they all work properly, and the contacts along the edge of the loading ring.

[@mazochungo]

​@@video99couk You are right! I have just checked the bottom side of the PCB behind the deck (I had already checked the top side after watching your video), and as you pointed out, the terminal of the cable that connects it to the motor of the deck is broken. If I make some pressure on it, then the deck starts to work. I will try your suggestion to tie it. Thanks a lot!

[@WolfmanDude]

I had the same unit, found it at the scrapyard some years ago. Wanted to repair it just for fun. There was some problem with the microsontroller, none of the buttons did anything and the display was nonsense. Supply voltages were good. Gave up and sold it on ebay, I got really into VHS machines instead. Seeing your videos now makes me think this was a very good decision! :D

[@psie9981]

Great Video! I love the V2000 Maschines and i have two of them in proper condition: 1x Philips VR 2324 (3nd. gen.) and 1x Grundig 2x4 Stereo Typ 2200 (3rd. gen.) But the pitch rollers are making problems sometimes. Not available anywhere in Germany.. :-(

[@wilburchubs]

Great video! And a bonus-Ferrograph Super-Seven....Superb decks,made just up the road

[@video99couk]

Perhaps I'll do a video about the Ferrograph too, never thought of it.

[@rolfbeil]

One of those machines is still sitting around in the basement of my parents' house. You just made me want to dig it out again.

[@video99couk]

Change the filter capacitors before plugging it in! Then save yourself some time by repairing the split plastic edge connectors on that rear motor drive panel. Only then actually try it out.

[@rolfbeil]

@@video99couk Thanks, I'll do that. I already had smelly experiences with a 2x8 and a Philips VR2340. The Philips did not even blow the mains fuse and just kept stinking till I pulled the plug. What I never liked about the 2x4 Super is that it keeps the lid open when there's no cassette loaded.

[@video99couk]

@@rolfbeil Similarly with the 2x4 Super, it will keep going even with clouds of smoke in the room. There's not usually enough current flow to blow the fuse. I have some 2x8 type machines here but don't have the time to work on them to get one going. I think they're both very high mileage and may be beyond repair.

[@brettogden6104]

@@rolfbeil I always leave a tape in the 2x4 to reduce dust ingress .

[@salvadorortega5249]

Genial

[@SFtheGreat]

I have 2x8, I had to replace the belt, also the tape winding prong was broken, so it failed the power up test, I glued it and it works. More or less. And it has button descriptions in German. And the top mounted without screws, you just push , the plastic bends and it opens, like on a battery compartment of a remote control.

[@video99couk]

I have a 2x8 here but have not repaired it yet. Actually there are two, slightly different models. But I think they have orbital miles on them and may be beyond repair.

[@chrisbircham221]

Great video. I used to work at Grungig Technical dept in Rugby. I still have one as new hardly used. I might just get it out and have a play. when replacing the capstan belt you ideally need a special tool to centre the meander plate over the flywheel. If it isn't centred properly there will be lots of wow & flutter on the audio playback. They are also quite sensitive to the type of belt used for replacement. I think the original part no was 29504-27100-27100. (from memory) lol

[@video99couk]

That's very interesting. I have another of these machines which I rarely use because there's a distinct audio flutter (though no wow), so I wonder if that's the problem.

[@geraldmcmullon2465]

I purchased a 2x4 Super for my parents. For the whole period he had this, my father had to read the instructions to enter programs into it. He never needed to do that with the Philips. The Grundig required you to enter the time and then tell it what that was - start or end. This is the reverse order of the Philips system. Although I had loads of issues with the Philips 2020 (the first machine released) and then with the 2840 (the last stereo top loading deck) where the new machine(s) supplied failed quickly the loan machine didn't and I eventually asked to keep that instead. The front loading Philip 2350 I got as ex-duplication machines. I got four and have been getting parts out of one to keep one machine running for many years. During one repair attempt (the shop gave up on it) my father was given three other 2x4s by another customer who had hoped the repair shop could get on machine working from the parts of the others. The four Grundig 2x4 Supers where left at the recycling centre in 2007 in a pile of hundreds of other video machines. I reluctantly upgraded my father's video to a Super VHS. He never did figure a way to programe it even with the three ways the system provided. At least he could play back the video I had recorded off air for him. I found many of the tapes dating from 1980-84 to be of poor play back quality. The video scrolls, is black and white and has a bizzare with bits of the recording visible. Some are almost okay. My Super VHS and Hi8 recordings date to 1990 and are usuall as good as they were originally even using the cheaper standard VHS or 8mm formulations.

[@video99couk]

I've found that regular 8mm is more reliable than Hi8, and particularly regular VHS is more reliable than SVHS. I suspect the more demanding requirements of the higher performance versions result in a shorter tape lifespan. Pity your 2x4 Supers got dumped, they are now quite sought after and they seem to give better results than Philips machines. They did have wacky timers though.

[@shawnjenkins8707]

It’s too bad this format never got popular in the US. Really a neat unit for the time.. I want one, just for my collection..

[@jasonhawkins4528]

You're correct about plastic. Use to work on BMW 525 TD airfilters, they always never fitted correctly after removing them.

[@video99couk]

In another life (job), I worked on a control system used in BMW cars. I'm not allowed to mention what I know about them, but will say that in my opinion, they used a plastic assembly in an inappropriate way.

[@davidgregg8689]

After watching the great video of the Grundig 2x4 service I wonder if you have a similar video covering the Philips V2000 machines especially the 2020 variation which appears to be more widely available. I have a number of machines both Philips and Grundig, some working and some used as donor machines collected over many years and hence I have ( being a complete hoarder ) a good selection of spares. If anyone reading this is struggling to obtain any parts let me know and I'd be happy to help if I can to keep these wonderful machines going.

[@video99couk]

I've worked on the VR202x machines in the past but I'm less keen on them. I think the Grundig 2x4 Super gives better pictures and has good playback features. Actually I have quite a lot of spares for VR202x machines including brand new video heads for some models and lots of other parts.

[@davidgregg8689]

@@video99couk Thanks for the reply Colin, good to know that you have heads for some models and I may well be in touch about availability as I progress along my restoration journey. Cheers .

[@pcb-electronics]

Hi! I have one in here my shop and it’s absolutely pristine but it went up in a puff of smoke when we attempted to power it on, the transformer on the PSU has failed, would you happen to have one or an alternative workaround by any chance? Thank you!

[@video99couk]

Best solution would be to pick up a used one. Replace all the electrolytic capacitors on the secondary side (care, some need to be low ESR types) and the mains filter capacitors (or they will explode), perhaps clean the relay contacts gently too.

[@daylyt100]

Excellent thank you!

[@giuseppe.m1913]

Great video

[@musmodtos]

I have a cosmetically perfect but faulty Philips Vr2023. Does nothing when a transport control is pressed except the brake solendoid on the bottom of the deck chatters for a few seconds. Any suggestions?

[@video99couk]

The list for this kind of fault on the VR2023 is long, they are not the easiest machines to work on. Firstly though I would unplug the CPU board and check for PCB damage due to a leaking battery.

[@musmodtos]

@@video99couk Thank you. My past project was a restoration of one of the Amstrad 'Double Deckers' which this can not be any more infuriating to work on. Shame it looks as new, boxed and even with a dust cover but just the brake solenoid chatters constantly and it is otherwise dead. I can't even find an English workshop manual for it which adds another layer of complexity!

[@video99couk]

@@musmodtos Oh they are hideous to work on, just don't break the loading wire or you will find out! Parts of the manuals exist in English, some are in German only though. Fortunately I know enough German to get by with them. The good news is that there's very little dedicated electronics in them, so with care you can fix almost any electronic fault with the schematics and a 'scope. I had one intermittently shut down every few hours or so, and I was able to pinpoint the fault down to component level with the diagrams and some patience (it was a relay).

[@musmodtos]

@@video99couk Thank you. Fortunately the backup battery is intact and not leaked. It has a terminal voltage of 1.8V but I'm not sure if that's likely to cause my fault. I've reseated the CPU card tonight and cleaned the connectors but no dice. I've also removed the transport for cleaning and further investigation, it's astonishingly heavy!

[@video99couk]

@@musmodtos The battery should not be the cause then. Before you start any serious work on it, replace the filter capacitor on the back of the power socket, or it may explode. I do have service manuals (mostly German) if you need a copy.

[@metlaband]

Hello, can you give me some advice? I have two Grundig 2x4 EU=RO. I'll put the cable in the power and nothing. Where do I look for a bug?

[@video99couk]

Power supply is the place to start. This can be removed for inspection. Capacitors fail in the secondary, but also the filter capacitors on the input go up in smoke and one of those may have blown the fuse.

[@metlaband]

@@video99couk Thank you for your answer.

[@volkerking5932]

19:32 this is not the Video Head this is the Videodrum (well known as scanner(Philips) or Headdrum). In this metal drum are two small slots in behind the Lineal are the 2 Video Heads each side. The Videohead's are very small an mounted each on a Piezo Crystal that move the Heads up or down for the Dynamic Track Following (DTF). Each line on the tape have a (4 different) frequency and this will be read from this heads and the Electronic will align the heads in the highness. This make the Track Following Mechanismen. Nice Video! Best Regards Volker from Vienna. Thumb-Up Nr 151 The top of the drum earth contact is need for the drop-outs they come from the Film static falshes that disturbing the Videosignal. The Actuator need around 150Volt for working that shoulb be in contact if not the DTF is not working and a record will not correct on tape! There are 2 resistors that can be also high-Z impedance so change this 2 resstor for the 150Volt. That are destroyed after a Tape snap. :-) The brake contact are often not in contact and can not start if the µC 8031 are not recognize that this contact is closed. Also the backplane Motorcontroller board are the green connector and red one are often broken so they don't have a contact to the board. Solder it on direct but first change the Akku first. One interest thing is also the left side totch buttons you must cut out the holes on the left side because the green LED display are everytime show you the Clock so the Plastic Front is shrinking. Cut out the left side of all buttons on the left side and everything will be fin.

[@video99couk]

The upper head drum is often referred to as the video head or video heads. On a later video I actually show the Piezo Crystal actuator under a microscope.

[@Bloufo]

Hi, perhaps you could offer some advice. I have a VR2022 VCR. The previous owner mentioned something to the effect that "last time I used the machine there was smoke coming out of the top left area of the VCR". So I suspect that was the RIFA capacitor which blew? Now, the VCR still works but it does get very hot to the touch near that PSU area at the back. Not sure if that has always been the case with these V2000 machines. Will replacing or removing that particular capacitor have any effect on the operation of the unit?

[@video99couk]

That's the capacitor right behind the mains power socket, it should be replaced. It's quite possible that the machine will have other faults though, given the age and unreliability of that model, but if it seems to work once you have replaced that capacitor then maybe you are lucky.

[@Bloufo]

@@video99couk Thanks for the reply. My question I guess (since you seem to be well versed in these matters) was more though whether that capacitor is needed for the operation of the unit. What will happen if it is not replaced? Is it not true that these are usually not critical to the power supply and are only there to provide some isolation? I ask this as the VCR seems to work fine as-is (and has done so for several weeks now). So a case of why attempt to repair or remove something on a fully functional unit?

[@video99couk]

@@Bloufo You need to replace the capacitor because 1: It may go up in smoke again, or worse. 2: It is part of the filter designed to protect the power supply. It's OK to run it for testing purposes without the capacitor, but I would never leave a bad capacitor in there, that's dangerous. Yes, I've had this component fail on the Philips VR202x models.

[@Bloufo]

@@video99couk Thank you, exactly what I needed to know. One last question please. Regarding the replacement thereof, what would be a suitable modern equivalent of that capacitor?

[@video99couk]

@@Bloufo I don't know what the value of the Philis VR202x filter capacitor is right now, so first you need to find it and get the value. Probably about 0.1uF or 0.22uF. Then just by a new Class X rated capacitor of that value. See more info here: www.allaboutcircuits.com/technical-articles/safety-capacitor-class-x-and-class-y-capacitors/

[@adavidives]

I've got one of these Grundig 2x 4 super v2000 machines, but it has a faulty power board. Can you advise where I can obtain a service manual for this machine, or even just a circuit diagram of the power board ? thanks.

[@video99couk]

It's available from freeservicemanuals.info/en, but if you get stuck with downloading that, let me know. It's in German though.

[@adavidives]

Many thanks @@video99couk

[@ksnstechtopics8650]

I had one of these with the outboard remote back in the 80's. As I remember the audio was out of sync compared to a Philips VR2020 and the tapes were not 100% interchangeable because of this. I did prefer this model compared to the early Philips machines. Picture quality did seem to have the edge which isn't saying much for what is basically a 1/4" video format.

[@brettogden6104]

Thankyou from Australia. I've owned a 2x4 super from new, & you've inspired me. I've ordered new belts from Germany but just noticed the red rubber brakes on the spindles have crumbled. Are replacements available & where from ? Thx

[@video99couk]

I've never had to replace those. You may have to fabricate your own (I made up brake surfaces for one of my Umatic machines once, but they are a different material than the V2000 ones.)

[@aidanlunn7441]

Hi Colin, do you know where to get the service manual for one of these? I'm just about to begin restoring both of mine.

[@video99couk]

The service manual is available online such as at www.freeservicemanuals.info but as far I'm aware, nearly all the manuals are in German only. There's also a good article in Television Magazine July 1984 page 492. Most of these magazines are archived here: worldradiohistory.com/Practical_Television_Magazine.htm

[@stickytapenrust6869]

Hi, I’d be grateful for your advice and assistance on something wrong with one of my 2x4 Supers. I’ve got two of these to transfer a huge wadge of V2000 tapes. One needs a total overhaul but the first one is (was) actually in pretty good condition as it had been overhauled by someone else in the recent past. All that was needed to bring it back to life when I got it was replacing three s/c diodes, one right next to a connector on the main PSU and two in parallel on the sub-board that goes in the battery connector compartment at the back. It worked perfectly! Bargain of the century for the 99p I paid for it! However... while changing a tape over the cassette door became slightly mis-timed. And tapes started getting caught behind the door when ejecting. I just decided to remove the cassette door for the time being although I will look to re-placing it soon. After a while trying to diagnose this (the cassette carriage has an occasional habit of mis-timing itself, requiring it to be manually spun from the motor) I think I’ve got the carriage timed correctly. Now, however, the chopper immediately above the large blue block in the power supply does *NOT* sound happy, the bank of resistors on the “beiden-einhet” board behind the display get very hot and the cassette tray doesn’t go all the way down when it detects a tape is present (it often sinks and lifts every couple of seconds, never sinking the tape far enough to reach the spools). The spools spin like crazy. Also when ejecting, it doesn’t pull down that “lip” that springs up when a tape is fully inserted. I’ve now reminded myself of why I prefer old TVs to VCRs, so any help you can offer is greatly appreciated! 🙂

[@video99couk]

Before doing any real fault-finding on these, I would start by going through all the connectors, top and bottom, of the rear vertical panel behind the deck. The connectors are always splitting apart on this and give you loads of weird symptoms. If the PSU isn't happy, change the smoothing capacitors on the PSU for low ESR types throughout. And of course do those mains filter capacitors before they burn up.

[@stickytapenrust6869]

@@video99couk Sorry, I should have added, the connectors seem to have all been replaced, someone refurbished the machine recently and actually replaced all the end connectors. Many capacitors have been replaced by the same person (though they just removed the two mains filters and didn’t replace those, I frequently just take out the same caps from old TVs I restore and generally don’t bother replacing them as they work fine without them, but of course the PSU in 1950s TVs is still very different), but not all electrolytics have been replaced (only about half) and the machine has been shown to be working fine in two videos I shot for my KZbin channel. It has worked through about 40+ tapes until the cassette door started getting snagged. That transistor (is it the chopper? Large metal heavy current type bolted to the PCB just above that blue block in the PSU) is now constantly squealing even when in standby when it didn’t before the cassettes started getting snagged behind the door and now the clock display just dims when it should be off instead of flashing on and off fully. After a minute, the brightness of the clock display stops varying at all, as if whatever oscillator is driving it is off frequency. I’m beginning to wonder if a bit of silicone was damaged by the eject motor constantly whirring as a cassette got jammed by the door. On one of those occasions, I did smell a bit of burning - no smoke though - while trying to rescue a cassette that got stuck a few minutes after it started getting cassettes caught on the door just as it opens. I unplugged as soon as I smelt that faint whiff of something being burnt out. (The cassette tray problems began soon after I resurrected it about a week ago and it was my fault, not being used to this slightly odd method of pushing in a tape for a front-loader, I pushed one in a bit too eagerly and ended up mis-timing the cassette tray, which I manually re-timed by spinning the cassette tray motor by hand to move the cassette tray to the eject mechanism. That was about a week ago and I’ve had occasional problems with the cassette tray since...

[@stickytapenrust6869]

@@video99couk I do have a broadcast engineering degree (so I’m sorta dangerous!) but that was after tape formats fell out of widespread use, as I only graduated 8 years ago. I’m quite good with diagnosing electronics but mechanisms are the reason why I prefer to stay away from collecting and restoring VCRs - the reliability of the mechanism on these is what made me choose them over Philips-made ones. After I’ve checked (possibly fixed) and passed the electronics, what’s the process for timing the cassette mechanism, as part of me getting a jammed tape out of it after removing the cassette door had to involve pulling the cassette tray up manually to the point where it’s teeth were removed from the toothed gears that drive it, which are in turn driven from the worm gear below deck.

[@video99couk]

@@stickytapenrust6869 It's a long time since I've worked on the tray part of one of these. Do see my latest KZbin video about Television magazine, there's a link to where you can read most of them. There was an article about working on these, July to October 1994. In particular October page 663 will be a huge help I think.

[@stickytapenrust6869]

@@video99couk Well, I don’t suppose the 13V rail for the LED from the PSU being 38V is helping! The buzzing and squealing is actually coming from the blue transformer itself...

[@niklasschn7197]

Great video! I have an Grundig 2x4 (model type 700) recorder here, too. I have not much knowledge about the electronics in this recorders. When I turn the recorder on, nothing happens on the tape drive unit (only the light of the tape drive turns on). Only the display turns on, displaying channel number, etc. Maybe someone here can help?

[@mspysu79]

Very interesting video, I enjoy seeing these machines that we will never see here in the states. For the relays, could you not fashion a replacement on a protoboard using a modern solid state relay?

[@video99couk]

There are some high voltage contacts in there, I'm not sure a solid state relay would be suitable. I could probably use a different type of relay, or two relays, but it's lot of wiring.

[@dtox2331]

It was a quality system this especially the picture quality and weighed about the same as a car wheel .

[@jasonhawkins4528]

I would love to see the workings of a phillips V2000 as never seen one clearly. Facinated by not seen format

[@TontosVotanPaSocialistas]

It is heavy beast! I have it!

[@alexstevensen4292]

I have some experience with those machines. If you get 'blue swirls' across the screen the supply electrolyte capacitors need replacement.

[@video99couk]

My next video is likely to be about this model, I have my head in one today as it happens. Power supply capacitors can certainly be a problem on these, but fortunately they are reasonably easy to get to.

[@Telewaifus]

I was working on the exact same machine, dead IC display but the real problem is brocken capstan. I will keep it for spare parts...

[@Mrpoulenc1899]

Thank you for the video Colin, i learn`t a lot, and enjoyed seeing ye-olde video 2000 once again, i have a retired Philips machine on a shelf - will it ever work again ? ? ? Now all one has to wonder is what quirky video format your next vlog will be about ? what have you tucked away in the store shed that hasn`t seen the light of day for a goodly time. Cheers Colin, regards Simon.

[@video99couk]

The early Philips ones are a bit hideous, but the later models can be OK. Hmm, next whacky format. Well I may do a Umatic repair next week.

[@Mrpoulenc1899]

I fear mine would be of the earlier variety tis a 2022, ? i am thinking you are meaning hideous to run, repair, keep going, when it was working all those years ago, it seemed fine to me, but that was rather a long time ago, was mono, had no video out, no remote, yes Colin i think you are right, was pretty hideous by today`s standards. (of course it will have heard me say this so will instantly burst into flames if i ever power it up) must look into replacing the Caps on the Power board. Many thanks Colin, look forward to the next vlog, have you any ideas what it may be ? Simon.

[@Mrpoulenc1899]

Hope you are not inferring my dear U-matic format to be Whacky ? (OMG what does Colin know that i do not ! ! ! ) simon.

[@video99couk]

@@Mrpoulenc1899 No, Umatic is not really very whacky, but if you go back to a previous video, you will see a whacky implementation of it used for audio recording: kzbin.info/www/bejne/pKa3lX2Xfs5sqLs

[@video99couk]

@@Mrpoulenc1899 From memory, the filter capacitor on this one is right behind the power socket, and yes it will burst into flames, or at least lots of smoke, so should be replaced before powering up. The VR2022 is one of the earlier models, they were very troublesome. The lacing system has a wire through pulleys and that often goes wrong. The DTF boards develop dry joints (care they can shock you even when powered off). The battery leaks all over the CPU board and causes lots of faults including rotting out of IC pins. There is an emergency shutdown signal which can be triggered by a multitude of different faults, which can be very confusing if the machine runs for just a few seconds. I built an A/V output mod for these machines, it's fairly easy apart from making up a suitable connector to the machine.

[@andydelle4509]

That strikes me a quality unit with the motherboard design. Most consumer VCRs, even the so called "high end" units, were built as cheaply as possible. And a switching power supply in a 1982 consumer product - rare as well. And seriously? Dynamic tracking in a 1982 consumer VCR? What did this cost new?

[@video99couk]

The motherboard design was seriously compromised by having lots of messy wiring on it. It might have made for easier maintenance had it been done properly, like a professional machine. Switching power supplies were not so unusual, the Sony SL-C7 onwards had those from 1979, but true that some machines such as Sanyo were still using big transformer supplies. Cost was probably in the £450 area, so quite expensive compared to say a Sanyo VTC5000 which was about £240. Of course it had many more features, but was much less reliable too.

[@SwedishRetroTechNerd]

I had this model but mine broke it just came a bunch of smoke from it while it was on :(.

[@video99couk]

That will be the mains filter capacitors, I do mention replacing those.

[@salvadorortega5249]

😊

[@magicphred]

WTF is up with the MIC audio?

[@bobjerome5390]

hi this something you may like i have seen over the years fools have put reel on on reel to reel tape decks that are to heavy say a tascam 32 1/4 tape this will take they put on 1/2 tape tape and killed alot of the power side of the ff rew ic's inside the deck there's a man on youtube that got a teac 7XR running full 14 inch 1/4 tapes he changed the motors i still think this is a bad thing i have a otari mtr 12 with the right motors that can easy take 14 inch 1/4 tape i have seen decks in the past where fool tryed to pimp them up and burned out alot of parts in the power unit you do it right i have 2 tascam decks that were pimped up and one's i have fixed because of the pimp decks pissed me of big time

[@colinlowe7167]

I have a Grundig 2000 2x4 plus that’s been sitting in a loft for several years. It powers up, accepts the tapes, will rewind and ffd but doesn’t seem to ‘play’ the tapes. Anyone interested in the device or getting it working...? I’m based in Essex U.K. I’m willing to part with it if some is keen to have it...

[@stickytapenrust6869]

If you’re willing to post up up to Sheffield, I’m willing to have it 🙂

[@janosnagyj.9540]

My solution for the connector separation problem: www.thingiverse.com/thing:4250683

[@video99couk]

Nice solution, especially since there's not always room for a cable tie between the connectors. Apart from the connectors and power supply, these Grundig machines are more reliable than the Philips ones, and I think give a better picture too.

[@janosnagyj.9540]

@@video99couk In fact I'm surprised how good picture (and audio!) quality I find on cassettes recorded 30+ years ago...

[@UHF43]

Papst-motoren

[@video99couk]

Very reliable motors in these machines, I don't think I've ever had one fail.

[@Mouse2113]

Theres a Grundig 2 x 8 on my local Facebook marketplace for 20 quid

[@video99couk]

Bargain. It won't work, but the 2x8 is a rare model (supports XP long play mode). That would make an interesting project.

[@Mouse2113]

@@video99couk I thought it may be. I don't have any tapes to test it. It's a little dusty and sold as seen. If anyone was interested I can pass on their details to the seller who may post from north east of Scotland 🙂