HV20 reliability as a VCR? at DVinfo.net

Marty Hudzik · April 23rd, 2007, 08:15 AM

I own a Canon XL-H1 and an HV20. Obviously the HV20 is intended to be used as a VCR primarily and a home movie type of camera whenever possible. Here is my issuse.

Dropouts. Plain and simple. Well....not so simple.

You see, tapes I have recorded in the H1 have dropouts frequently when playing on the HV20. We are talking on the magnitude of 7-8 in a 15 Minute span. However rewinding and playing back they do not occur in the same spots. It is a spontaneous playback glitch. The tape is fine when played back in the XLH1 but when in the HV20 it seems to have problems regularly.

This also happens to tapes that are recorded in the HV20. I shot 7 minutes at my nephews bowl-a-thon for charity and there were at least 8 dropouts when viewing from the HDMI port to LCD. Playing it back again they are always in slightly different spots.

I then proceeded to capture this using Cineform and there were only 2 places where a dropout occurred. I lost 1-2 seconds and the clips that this occurred on were split in half. Going back and vieweing these sections on the tape show no droputs and recapturing them is fine. The problem here is that I want reliable capture of my footage....not split scenes and lost seconds of clips all the time.

I ran a head cleaner through the unit as soon as I got it but so far it still seems somewhat unreliable.

Doug Lange · April 23rd, 2007, 01:20 PM

I've had the same issue. I wasn't sure if it was the cheap consumer grade tape or dirty heads. I forgot to clean the heads before using my HX A1 and HV20 for the first time.

My plan is to recapture some of the footage and see if it is the tape or the HV20.

Marty Hudzik · April 23rd, 2007, 01:28 PM

For me it is clearly the HV20 so far. The same tapes play fine in the H1. I can watch a 10 minute segment on the HV20 and I see a few dropouts. I rewind it back and play it again and the ones I saw before are gone and there are new ones in new places. A 3rd time will get even different results.

In the H1 I do not see any. This happens in tapes that were recorded on the HV20 and the H1 so signs point to a tape playback head problem on the HV20....IMHO.

Henry Cho · April 23rd, 2007, 04:54 PM

marty,

i've found that keeping the lcd open introduces playback stuttering when video is output via the component cable. if it's some internal bandwidth issue as i suspect, keeping the lcd closed during the capture process might help.

Terry Johnson · April 23rd, 2007, 05:19 PM

Interesting, I have shot about 25 hours of video with my XL-H1 and never seen a dropout. I use Panasonic Professional AY-DVM60XJ tape. I was looking forward to getting a HV10 or 20 to use as a vcr but now I will wait to see how this issue works out.

Marty Hudzik · April 24th, 2007, 11:25 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Terry Johnson

I was looking forward to getting a HV10 or 20 to use as a vcr but now I will wait to see how this issue works out.

In the interest of making sure this does not turn into FUD, this is not necessarily a known problem. I am experiencing it for sure. But I think there are many other out there that do not experience this. So please don't jump to any conclusions based on what I am seeing so far.

In regards to the tape stock......I find this is not happening at the same spots on the tape. Playing the same thing over 3 times will get dropouts in different areas each time. The parts that dropped out the first time play fine for the next 2. So there is a randomness to it that is not directly related to a spot on the tape that is weak or corrupt.

I'm inclined to think Henry is thinking in the right direction with it being a potential bandwidth issue.....kinda how digital cable stutters once in a while because of network congestion. I do keep my LCD closed when viewing or capturing.

April 23rd, 2007, 08:15 AM	#1
Marty Hudzik Trustee Join Date: Jul 2004 Location: Canton, Ohio Posts: 1,771	HV20 reliability as a VCR? I own a Canon XL-H1 and an HV20. Obviously the HV20 is intended to be used as a VCR primarily and a home movie type of camera whenever possible. Here is my issuse. Dropouts. Plain and simple. Well....not so simple. You see, tapes I have recorded in the H1 have dropouts frequently when playing on the HV20. We are talking on the magnitude of 7-8 in a 15 Minute span. However rewinding and playing back they do not occur in the same spots. It is a spontaneous playback glitch. The tape is fine when played back in the XLH1 but when in the HV20 it seems to have problems regularly. This also happens to tapes that are recorded in the HV20. I shot 7 minutes at my nephews bowl-a-thon for charity and there were at least 8 dropouts when viewing from the HDMI port to LCD. Playing it back again they are always in slightly different spots. I then proceeded to capture this using Cineform and there were only 2 places where a dropout occurred. I lost 1-2 seconds and the clips that this occurred on were split in half. Going back and vieweing these sections on the tape show no droputs and recapturing them is fine. The problem here is that I want reliable capture of my footage....not split scenes and lost seconds of clips all the time. I ran a head cleaner through the unit as soon as I got it but so far it still seems somewhat unreliable.

April 23rd, 2007, 01:20 PM	#2
Doug Lange Regular Crew Join Date: Apr 2005 Location: Fairbanks, Alaska Posts: 138	I've had the same issue. I wasn't sure if it was the cheap consumer grade tape or dirty heads. I forgot to clean the heads before using my HX A1 and HV20 for the first time. My plan is to recapture some of the footage and see if it is the tape or the HV20. __________________ After years of lurking, I finally made the mistake of opening my mouth.

April 23rd, 2007, 01:28 PM	#3
Marty Hudzik Trustee Join Date: Jul 2004 Location: Canton, Ohio Posts: 1,771	For me it is clearly the HV20 so far. The same tapes play fine in the H1. I can watch a 10 minute segment on the HV20 and I see a few dropouts. I rewind it back and play it again and the ones I saw before are gone and there are new ones in new places. A 3rd time will get even different results. In the H1 I do not see any. This happens in tapes that were recorded on the HV20 and the H1 so signs point to a tape playback head problem on the HV20....IMHO.

April 23rd, 2007, 04:54 PM	#4
Henry Cho Major Player Join Date: May 2005 Location: NYC Posts: 516	marty, i've found that keeping the lcd open introduces playback stuttering when video is output via the component cable. if it's some internal bandwidth issue as i suspect, keeping the lcd closed during the capture process might help.

April 23rd, 2007, 05:19 PM	#5
Terry Johnson New Boot Join Date: Oct 2004 Posts: 19	Interesting, I have shot about 25 hours of video with my XL-H1 and never seen a dropout. I use Panasonic Professional AY-DVM60XJ tape. I was looking forward to getting a HV10 or 20 to use as a vcr but now I will wait to see how this issue works out.