i agree
 

the panasonic amq tapes are every bit as good as the higher costing sony or canon...just a slight variant in lubricant. And the cost is 1/3 that of the $23 tapes. They are excellent for either HDV and SD Bill

I'm shooting mostly HDV with the tapes but have done two SD shoots for a friend. I really don't think there's much different between the "HDV" tapes and other high quality ones except the packaging. I've always been an advocate of using the best tapes possible, but I think paying $15-$20 for HDV tapes when the Panasonic AMQ are under 9 bucks is a waste. Also, one of the sponsors here who's sold a lot of XL H1 packages says most of his customers are using the AMQ with no problems. I do, however, like the Sony boxes you get with their more expensive tapes...but they're not worth the cost.

Has anyone actually seen the 83's have an issue, or is this just a theory? I've used 83's for SD for ages, so I have an inventory . . .

The Sony HDV tapes (DVM63) are under $10 on B&H Site. The cover says Mini DV Digital HD Video. HDV/DV