My Sony U-matic V0 9800 SP is NTSC, sorry, but, still hoping for help.

I have a box of quite a few KCS-20 Umatic S video tapes. I have played a couple of others in my machine a year ago or so, but having troubles with this 'new' bunch. 1st one I tried my machine tried to load, pulled the tape out of the cassette about an inch, or 2.54 cm, then it stops, and after a few seconds the machine goes into Error 20 mode. Then it won't eject the tape. I finally opened the machine, lifted the tape off the pullout spindle, pulled the tape carriage up and got the tape out that way.

So, I put in my testing tape, a 60BRS full size tape, and it loaded, played, and ejected no problems.

I have not tried any of the other KCS-20 tapes yet.

I've been told the KCS-20 tapes have been sitting in their big cardboard box since about 1980. They look ok to me, just looking at them.

Any thoughts ?

Could I try baking the video tapes ?

Steve, KCS tapes are known for their 'sticky tape syndrome', start baking them probably for a few days as they appear to be really bad.

Thank you Roderick. So, how do I go about safely baking the KCS tapes ?

How to Bake a Video Tape

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7qJ9s9iTCFY

Roderick, everything I've read do NOT mention Sony KCS-20 tapes as having sticky shed syndrome problem. Do you know if those tapes can have the problem too ?

Hello,

how can I check which Umatic VTR model has a TBC?

Is the BVU 950P the only machine which has a TBC?

br

Christoph

Dear Christoph G.

as far as I know all BVU models have built-in TBC.

Half speed u-matic?

A guy on another forum has me tapes that appear to be recorded at half speed. Does anybody remember such a machine?

I vaguely remember one, but can't find any info.

Cheers, Phil.

Hi Phil,

maybe it's just standard format related. Are you trying to play a NTSC tape on a PAL VCR or viceversa?

Hello dear U-Matic friends!

My name is Hans Crispin and i live and work in Stockholm Sweden. I am looking to buy a Sony VP 9000 U-Matic or a Sony VP 9600 U-Matic Both in PAL. It must be compatible with both lowband , highband and SP in good working condition. Please give me a call or drop me a E-mail if you have any of the above for sale!

Best regards to you all

Hans Crispin

Cell +46 70 590 77 88

[email protected]

Hellow Phil,

Sony VO-7000, this is a 2 Hour U-Matic (normal and extended play/Rec. )

Hi guys. I've just bought a sony sl 6ub mk2 which needs a set of belts and the caps replacing on the servo board. Where can I buy the replacement parts from especially the belts. Many thanks David

Hi , thank you. I use to run a VHS Pal duplicating operation many years ago. Since retired, I still have approximately, 70 to 100 brand new, blank unused, packed low band Umatic tapes which I would like to sell for a nominal amount, rather than throw them away and to create some space. Please contact me for a good exchange of a reasonable price, please offer, thank you.

In the late 1970s we made a 16mm school film which the BBC kindly did a transfer to U-matic and VHS for us.

Former pupils would like to see the film again yet the VHS transfer is poor and as their teacher (now retired) I would like to find someone with a U-matic recorder who could make a transfer to an electronic file for a modest charge.

Our universities in Manchester do not have this equipment now, nor does the BBC of course. The cassette is FUJI and is likely to be a hi-band transfer.

Does anyone in Britain know of someone with a functioning recorder that can playback this material (16mins), please?

Thanks, Raymond Walker, Wilmslow, Cheshire

Hi!

I've found in my parts stock 2 Sony cards with a BVU form factor, but i can't find in which BVU (or maybe DMR Digital audio?) model they fit.

MD-19 (1-608-861-13)

CD-24 (1-608-862-13)

Does anybody know which VTR these cards could come from?

Thanks!

Hello guys .

I m looking for a U Matic player that works.

I have a JVC CP-5060ET and it come with about 25 Umatic tapes from the 70:s

And i want to transfer them so i m looking for a working machine that can take this BIG Umatic tapes.

If someone in sweden have one i can rent / borrow a week for the transfers that shuld be very nice . Or sell a working one that are simular to the JVC i posted so i get one that works with this tapes ?

Please contact me at [email protected] if you have one .

Many thanx / Stefan / Sweden .

I have a Sony VP-5000 U-MATIC VCR. I picked it up in a local Tucson auction and was delighted that it worked and played my 3/4" tapes. It's put on maybe two hours since then and today I ran into an issue with it.

I press POWER and it begins to engage for about one second and stops. During that second, the video drum turns about 1/4" and stops. I turn off POWER and the video drum spins about two inches and stops. The first time this happened, I took off the top and inspected it. I turned on POWER and it operated normally. After about five minutes of operation, the issue returned.

I've taken off the top and bottom covers. Lifted out the tape loading carriage and inspected the belts and motion mechanicals. Belts look in good shape and everything that needs to spin, spins fine. Nothing I can see stands out as the problem. I'm wondering if there a bad sensor.

Has anyone run into this issue or something similar? Any insights or tips are greatly appreciated. Thank you.

@Glenn McCreedy

It could be that you have a tape with the "sticky shed syndrome". The tape becomes slightly sticky and will stick to mechanical parts. The VCR will then do an emergency STOP and will not accept any other command until you power cycle it. It could be any brand of tape, but Ampex ones are the most prone to have this disease.

If it really is a sticky tape DON'T INSIST IN TRYING TO READ IT: YOU CAN DAMAGE BOTH THE TAPE AND THE VCR, ESPECIALLY VIDEO HEADS.

And in this case, you also must eject it (probably manually) and carefully clean every mechanical part in tape path, especially drum and video heads that are probably clogged with sticky particles.

@Stefan Carlberg, @Glenn McCreedy, but also @everybody thinking that having a VCR is enough to digitize tapes correctly:

To ensure the best transfer possible and preserve your VCR, you MUST first inspect and clean tapes, preferably with a specialized device like RTI Tapechek VT-3100.

And sticky tapes MUST go through a BACKING PROCEDURE before ANY READ ATTEMPT.

And of course, the use of a TBC is mandatory, preferably using DUB Input and DOC (Drop Out Compensation). This imply to use VCR with DUB Out + Sync In + RF (Off Tape) Out (and corresponding In/Out on TBC side).

Trying to self digitize old tapes of any kind (U-Matic/BVU, Betacam...) is NOT a straight forward and easy process, and trying anyway will, most of the time, lead to deceiving results, and ruined tapes and possibly VCR. That's why i would recommand to instead send your precious tapes to a REPUTABLE professional (beware of the ones that will declare themselves "professionnal" just because they have a VCR and a digitizing device, but will not know better than you, and don't have suitable equipments).

If you try anyway: good luck!

Hello I have a Paramount Pictures U magic cassette God Father 1987 clips I am trying to find out what I might be able to get out of selling the tape I imagine anything with the godfather and being original would fetch a shiny penny or two any one with any info please get to me by smstext

[email protected]

Good evening, I recently purchased a Sony VO-2610 deck, and it is in very good looking condition, aside it will not record a video signal. If I connect the line inputs, it will record the audio, but when playing back the tape, only the audio plays and I get no video output. I am wondering if anyone has experience in this kind of error condition and if there is a part known to fail. I've tried removing the RF board. Any help would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!