Tape issues

[Dharma Singh]

Is it necessary to use the same brand of tape with XL 2 ? In one of the old threads I read that the unit jammed when a different brand of tape was used.
I have been using Sony tapes in my XL 2 and thought of trying JVC.I think I need some expert opinions on this before I try the different brand on my XL.

[Jarrod Whaley]

There are varying schools of thought. It certainly can't *hurt* to stick to the same kind of tape.

I have always switched back and forth at will, and have experienced no discernible problems. My GL1 has some very minor dropout issues sometimes, and occasionally the time code gets all funked up. This might be due to the constant switching of tape brands, but it might just as well be due to the fact that the camera is now going on 7 years old and has been used a LOT. It might just be regular wear-and-tear on the tape head; seems reasonable to me.

At any rate, there's certainly no drawback to sticking to one brand. The only reason I haven't is because I'm perenially broke and am always looking for cheap tape stock. I go through a LOT of it.

[Petri Flander]

Originally Posted by Dharma Singh

Is it necessary to use the same brand of tape with XL 2 ?

I have mixed panasonic and sony tapes abt. three years on PD100 without any problems. No dropouts, tape jams etc.

From what i have read, this head clog issue seems to be "TDK vs. the rest of the world". They have previously used different tape lubricant than the others.

It is also said that this incompatibilty is less severe now, but many users still vote against mixing TDK with others.

I am not sure to which camp to place other brands like Fuji, Maxell and JVC - It is obvious that there cannot be more than a handful of factories (or maybe only two...) who make minidv tape media. So ask around if you're planning to use some of these "other brands".

Penny-wise... i think sony basic tape DVM60-PR3 can be found at 2.5 e/usd each on 8-packs.

To summarize:
If you should play nice with other producers and editors, always use sony or panasonic tapes.
Consumer or pro tape? - Select according to your project - basically anything goes as long as you keep wrong brands out of your camera. Pro tapes like Pana AY-DVM60PQ and especially sony dvcam tapes look of course more pro...

Cheers,

Petri