Oh, I realize my answers are a bit late, but forgive me as I've been spending time learning how to use my Linux computer and haven't transferred my bookmarks to it yet. Tho I will write this address down and bookmark it when I shut down this whine-doze box and start my Linux box. Later. Pepse.

In case anyone is wondering the Rent a Betas mentioned above are player only decks that are in a very hard cae, designed to be rented out with beta tapes by stores in the 1980's. I beleive they were made by Toshiba. This was during a time when not evryone had a VCR and stores could buy these to rent to customers with tapes. They chose Beta since they were introduced at a time when VHS was begining to gain market share and thus there would be more Beta tapes available in the store.

Gordon, There is an official Sanyo modification to the VTC5000 to increase the torque of the reel motor during play and unloading. Replace D6 with a 3,3V zener diode, and R49 (2R2) with a 1.0R, 0,5W metal film resistor, on the motor servo board. I've done this to mine, and have had no problems with the reels, since.

Pepse: Would'nt ya say that Linux, Mac & OS/2 are all to the computer world what the Betamax is to video? Far superior in many ways but never as popular. I've used Linux & Macs in the past and have one box on my homenet running OS/2 Warp v4. I bought a cheap copy @ that same ham/comp fest I got my HF1000 from. I once had v3 running about '94 and thought it better than anything Mi¢ro$oft had @ the time!

Madness, yeah, I would agree Linux, Mac, OS/2 are in a similar boat as Beta vs vhs. "Superior in many ways" and not as popular. And do to the type of person I am; "beat of a different drummer" I guess it wouldn't be me to stick with the norm. Now all I gotta due is get another Ford Capri and I'll be back to normal. On a side note, earlir tonite I went to a dance recital for 2 of my grand kidz and took my GCS1 along (my wife actually suggested it, strange; believe me). Anyway the one thing that's been buggin' me since I got this thing is that the "low lite" lite is on in low lite situations but yet when I got home and put the tape in everthing looked great. And the "white balance" wouldn't set either, but again everthing looks great. I must admit tho the only big drawback to carring around a Beta camcorder is the weight. Wasn't as bad tonite as last summer when I went to a car show. Definately gotta work out my right arm before July and the car show again. Later. Pepse.

hai i am from india .i want to chat with americans , is there any american to chat with me at 11 am indian time ,india,s time is 5 .30 hour more than greenwih mean time .byeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee

Am looking for a fully functioning Sony Beta VCR, Model SLHF-1000 OR SLHF-2000. Must be set up for NTSC system and 115V AC input 60 cycles. These models have the Super Highband 6 mhz capability, which gives near-broadcast resolution, but which is not reproducible or recordable on other models.

Trevor: If you're looking for a machine that records in Superhighband, keep in mind that you get it @ BI only (aka BIs). BII and BIII are @ normal or super beta. So you'd get the best quality available w/ BIs @ the expense of lesser recording times. So an L-500 would be good for an hour; L-750 for and hour and 30 minutes; L-830 for an hour & 40 minutes. Anything above that, you'd prolly have to roll your own custom tapes (custom L-1000 for 2 hours).

As for machines: The SL-HF1000 is certainly one; as are the SL-HF750 & the SL-HF2100. The GCS-50 pro editing deck can be set to record at it also w/ a hidden switch. The SL-HF900 can be modified to, but does not record @ BIs by default (this also applies to the clone Pioneer VX-90). And finally, I think there's one model from NEC that does BIs. The SL-HF2000 is normal or super only @ BII/BIII. For the ultimate quality, you'd have to find an ED-Beta machine. They use metal tapes to achieve as close to maximum quality NTSC can deliver (about 500 lines or so).

I was cleaning out my closet and found my Sanyo 7200 Betamax with remote. Anyone want it? I have no idea how much it goes for but if you're interested, make an offer.

I have a Sl-hfr30 BetaMax vido recorder and I am trying to locate a service and repair manual. I would like to get this recorder back into operation condition, Or locate a repair station in the So. California Area around Orange county.

Glorious news! I have arrived! Ed is now in control of all he sees. Ed also has too much caffiene in his blood stream. Muahhahahahahahahahahahahahaha! You are my pawns, I know all! - A very, very messed up ED

Well, I just got back from a trip to NYC to see 'Ground Zero' and just my wonderful luck, my reliable 'money in the bank' old Betamovie 500 has finally given it's last. Almost all my video is ruined because, as it turns out the auto-iris mecchy has burnt out leaving the iris stuck in the all open setting. My poor hard shell case is all lonely now...

Well, I guess Beta proves itself again. I mentioned wherein I did some recording with my GCS 1 last nite and my son-in-law was sitting one row in front of me with his RCA vhs camcorder (1 year old unit) and as it turns out his recording was crap. Too much glare and you couldn't make out the faces. In my point of view his area was no different than mine except he was maybe 2 feet closer. Lighting shouldn't have been much different; at least not to the point of "washout". Don't think it has anything to do with the format do you??? hahahahahahahahahahaha. Anyway, it makes me feel good. Later. Pepse.

Franny, that's a bummer. Too, bad you didn't live in the US, I'd sell you my parts camcorders; BMC 550 and VRC 500. You could definately make one unit out of these 2. Well hopefully you will find another one. Later. Pepse.

I think what might've happened was that when I recently lubricated the gears to the zoom lens - to hopefully weed out this grindy sound - I may have gotten some oil in the iris mechy and jammed it up irreperably. Since I was testing the camera indoors before my trip I didn't have noticed the problem until too late. And the sad thing is that I did go and buy a parts camcorder to spruce this one up a bit and the parts camera was rusted out inside so I couldn't just use it...

Oh well the lab my father works at has a bunch of old SL-F1s and cameras they don't use much any more. Since they're surplus, I can pretty much help myself to one whenever I want. I wish they made a CCD camera that could go to an SL-F1. ..

To Franny (and Alan) - That RentaBeta player is built by Sanyo. I have one in that same @#$% shade of blue. Mine has a 10-pin camera socket just below the RF out jack and if you remove one screw to unclip the power supply, behold a NP-1 rechargeable will fit in and run it! Inside is a top-load solenoid operated transport based on the Sanyo VCR4000, same as in my long-gone Sanyo 2-piece portable recorder & tuner. I should order new rubber for mine someday because it won't thread anymore. The guy I bought it from in 1994 had about 20 of them at the back of his video store and some said Sears Model 30803 on the box. That was in a small town with only one highway thru when the snow finally clears. Can't imagine how he'd have sold them all yet with so few neighbors. All quite true, not the fabled ED-Beta warehouse story of a few weeks back.

To Edward the IV: hopefully you've had a chance to come down off that caffeine, buddy. Do you realize you actually said you like VHS-C a few postings ago??? (I thought I was all alone) The problem with them is once JVC finally built a decent NTSC Super VHS-C HiFi low lux cam with hi-res color viewfinder, the GR-SZ9U, they ripped out the HiFi heads from all its descendants so that it could be inferior in both audio and video to SuperBeta again. There is one on eBay till May 8 but I'm keeping mine to transfer movies onto my SL-HFT7.Note that a new camcorder format war is brewing with the barely adequate Mini-DV possibly winning against the potentially superior Sony Micro-MV upstarts.

Hi,How can I fix the following problem on by betamax C5: ?

When I insert a tape, the machine only rarely will accept the tape now. It usually whirs continually for around five minutes before it succeeds loading the tape. I have also noticed the sound is much quieter on newly recorded programmes than on programmes recorded up to twenty years ago - neither is the picture as higher quality - many older programmes look almost as if one is watching them live but now I can only just get as good quality as VHS, for the latter problem i've tried cleaning the heads several times but it made no difference.

Dennis:

One of the best Beta repair guys in the world is in CA.. but he's not that close to you. He's up in Modesto. He does do work through the mail, and is very thorough. His name is Andy Sanchez. I have recently had him overhaul my SL-HF1000, and I am very happy with his work. He's also very very reasonable. You can e-mail him at [email protected]

Yes. I did realize I said I like VHS-C. I do like the minorities of the world. Beta, VHS-C, Laser Disc, Sega Master System, Dreamcast, and Mongolians. Althogh I prefer Red-Heads. Good Times! -ED in the morning

To Franny with the 'dialated' BMC-500 ; Sux 2B U...

Sony did produce an NTSC CCD camera the CCD-G5 for the SL-2000 VCR ( SL-F1 to you). Nothing at PALSite indicates a similar camera was made for the PAL/SECAM market but that doesn't mean there weren't any CCD cameras around.

Hi from a UK Betamax fan. I don't know much about what is available product wise so have a question.Is there a Super Betamax machine, in PAL format, still available anywhere? About a year ago I heard a rumour that they could still be obtained in Germany.If not, are they rare on the used market?Also, are there any snags in using one, compared to standard Betamax? How about the tapes; are they normal or do you need metal ones like difference between VHS and S-VHS tapes?I imagine that if Super metal tapes are needed, then they will be next to impossible to find!

Dear John, (Sounds like a help column letter)

In regards to your query about the superbetas, PAL are actually fairly easy to find, but if you can get an NTSC w/converter, or (Heaven Help Us) Go and steal a middle eastern superbeta from bin laden or hussein. That's why it took the government so long to release those tapes to us yankees. Although, being in japan is fairly nice, the machines here are expensive for a working class betaphile. And you can just use regular tapes for a suberbeta. Only ED Betas and BetacamSP use metal tapes (Although there are rare instances of a modified regular betamax) I'm sorry I haven't informed you yet, I'm currently in Tokyo's downtown district! It could a once in a life time chance. And another question for you beta maniacs out there, if you have any copies of the 1st broadcast day of MTV (BII or BIII) I'll buy! -Enjoying the amazing weather and beta rentals- ED

Ed 4th: You'te IN Tokyo??? Have you been able to find any SL-200D's or EDV-9000's? The guys on http://www.betamax.to tell me that they're still both readily available! I wanna take my other ½ and go to Tokyo! WAAH!! :~(

ED IV:

Yeah, what Madness said. I'm just across the Sea of Japan from you.. if you can find any brand new SuperBeta HiFi machines, please let us know, and where to get them. I'd buy one in a heartbeat. I'm not sure about ED-Beta right yet, the tapes are a lot harder to come by. I don't care though that the Japanese channelization is different than the American/Korean channelization... I have convertors to take care of those kinds of problems.

Take care, and stay well.

To Madness and the others: Yes. I have run across the EDV-9000's, about 5 or 10, but that was the black market mostly. (They were going for about 110,000 yen a piece) But no others have appeared, but some weird sensei pulled me from my Yoga class to see his monument. I was a little confused. And he had stacks and stacks of JP-7's (I believe they were called that) completley running at the same time. He said I was worthy to touch his prize. A US SL-2000, and he asked if I enjoyed the experience. What do you think I said? And I am contemplating the thought, but I've got a well paying job over here as a nuclear scientist, (Sort of) and I might move in here. Thats it, The glories of today. -ED

Whilst most of my BMC-500 footage I took in NYC is bad my Sony floppycam piccys came out great. I've posted the album of them at URL http://www.ofoto.com/PhotoView.jsp?collid=71806990403&photoid=66321801403&UV=437667612812_90818801403&US=0 if any of you want to have a look...

Edward The 4th, your comment about superbeta's "PAL are actually fairly easy to find" </br>WHERE????????</br>I have been beta hunting for just over 10 years now, hmm I have bought 2 dead mono superbeta's and 3 working hifi's. There’s only 3 Hifi models ever that I know of, the HF950, HF77 and HF99. 3 or 4 multisystem models SL-700ME and 800ME and I bet one or two I haven’t seen, then the SL-S2000 mono superbeta only deck. I would have amassed over 250 VCR's, all but one being PAL (here in Australia an NTSC beta is RARE) of which about 15 are Hifi's (they are RARE here we get jealous at ebay with all those CHEAP hifi NTSC beta's). Where are these PAL superbeta's? I’m cashed up and ready to buy!http: users.bigpond.com jsparkin

In my attempts to try to get nicam sterreo to my 950 I've decided to do it using A/V connectors (or SIMULCAST or A/V) but when there are bilingual programs- which can be perfectly separed in B-hifi but the 950 doesn't record a twin chanel track on non beta hi-fi and I get mixed audio (Catalan/English) and it can not be played in a non beta hi-fi. When the 950 (ES) detects bilingual broadcast reception it does record only the MAIN/L channel. Is there any way to make believe the 950 that the audio in is bilingual.

Thanks for help.

PS: My tomson-jvc v-h-s vcr has broken. The if modulator doesn't give an awful signal (as it is supposed to do -not as beta- ) gives a snowy signal and now I have to conect it throgh TV AV. VHS stinks- and I think more new made-in-china VHS than old VHS (Ihave a THOMSON-JVC 20 year-old unit and it has never been out of home) and also beta. I think it is better to have chinese VHS and to keep all the old treasures that having new digital chinese-betas.What about the beta-convention?

HiI have a problem with the rewinding/fforwarding on one of my Sanyo VTC5000. I have fitted a new idler and replaced the little belt from themotor to the idler but it is very jumpy when it is rewinding orfastforwarding and sometimes it just seems to be slipping.I have read the mod above to give mor torque to the motor but I dontknow if this would help because the motor itself doesnt actualy stop.

Regards

Clint.

I have recently obtained an SLHF100, but it is missing the loading synchro belt (3-679-119-00) and the little lever that lifts up the flap on the cassette (3-679-133-00). Does anyone know where I can obtain these, or an alternative? Apart from that it works fine. The little guide rollers were also missing, but I managed to make a good substitute from some 4mm pop rivets.

Re Ed 4th: Well, you came across a guy w/ stacks & stacks of SL-J7's? That must've been a sight! Didn't happen to have a digital camera w/ ya, did ya? ;) But hey, I'd love to get a few SL-200D's if you find some. Tuner is no big deal; I'd just leave 'em in line mode and use my satellite TV receiver.

Here's the SL-J7: http://www.betamax.to/archive/photo/SL-J7.jpg

Gotta love Japan: Anime.....& beta heaven?

Came Home today, and no, I didn't have a camera. It was interesting. I'm just letting you know, If you have any new messages for me, send 'em to my Yahoo! mail account. Still looking for pictures of your machines. You know where to send them, and I'm thinking about dropping my hotmail account. See ya! Happy Recording.

Re: Betamax & Super Betamax Transfers to DVD:

I just wanted to get the word out that my company which has been transfering Betamax & Super Betamax tapes to DVD since late December of2002 - is now duplicating DVDs as well. We can currently duplicate 50 ormore DVDs with 24 hour turnaround; and rates are as low as $10.50 perdisc on larger orders. If interested, please e-mail us or call us inPortland, OR at (503) 222-9202 between 9:00 A.M. & 6:00 P.M. Pacific Time. All major credit cards accepted.

I have been trying to get a copy of the 2 tape BBC program TINKER,TAILOR,SOLDIER,SPY Anybody got a copy they want to sell BETA-VHS-PALor NTSC.I am in the United States so I would need the cost and shipping charges in American dollars.THANKS

I am not a Betamax fan. I just need to convert a Betamax tape into..a VHS tape. It is a "souvenir". Who can help me (I am in Paris)Thanks

To Javet: It's actually not that hard to find someone to transfer a Beta tape to VHS. Video duplicators and/or production companies and some photo shops will be able to transfer an old Beta tape to VHS. Certainly anyplace that advertises that it can transfer old home movies to tape will likely be able to to Beta transfers. The same goes for your PAL/SECAM/NTSC conversion needs...

Hello. I will be taking things on a more serious note for this posting. I am at the mercy of the beta gods.

Olive, Franny, Pepse, Madness, and Brenda: I have a serious message to tell you all. I finally saw the light. I knew beta was better, but I saw very little of it in action. (My Sanyo's tracking controls went shortly after I got it. and It also was a sanyo.) Knowing this, I bid on and won an SL-2300 off of Ebay, and recieved it last night. I took one of my tapes, and put it in. This was the first time I had truly been impressed by something recorded over 11 years ago on a video tape. I want to apoligize for having any doubts. I now have the knowledge to admit keeping my VHS for regular use wouldn't be as necessary anymore. Thank you for supporting me and teaching me the ways of Beta. Thank you all.

Well. Now, onto another message.

Well, another message has arrived. (More Lighthearted)

Last night, My beta arrived, and I was shocked by the ironiscism of the whole thing. As I recall RCA never made a Beta machine, and refused to do so. My SL-2300 came in an RCA stereo cd changer box. When I opened the package, I saw the manual, the machine, and one of the most unusual things I've ever seen, a wired remote! It was tiny, and my brother upon seeing it said, "Where do you put the batteries?", and he sat for a half hour, while I carried the thing to my room, pressing the betascan and pause buttons. The machine weighed a ton! (OK. 25 lbs. sound good?) I hooked it up, and noticed there was a tape in there. It was a copy of E.T. "Could have been babes in toyland." I said to myself. It was interesting to see this, but noise bursts kept appearing. When there was a low chord, tracking lines would appear and dissappear. I am looking for a good head cleaner, but I read how to spool VHS tape onto beta cartridges, and have a good idea. I can hear phoning home any time now. -ED

Can anybody out there help? I am looking for an old film (1980) called "The Shillingbury Blowers" starring Robin Nedwell and Trevor Howard directed by Val Guest. Ideally vhs would be best but I suspect that my best chance of getting this film would be on Betamax as the film is no longer available. Thanks.

hi to all, but I need a help...

I have 60 betamax cassette from a long time ago, but i need vhs adapter that i can put the betamax cassette inside it... any one heard about this ??? I wanna buy some thing like that... I'm looking for it for along time...

Please :)

Well, it's been a while since some hapless plebe came around to look for the storied Beta -> VHS adapter. Sadly, the Beta -> VHS adapter exists only in legend. It's simply impossible to make a Beta tape playable without a Beta VCR....

If you need a Beta VCR, then you're pretty much gonna have to look on E-bay like the rest of us...

I am interested in purchasing a Sony betamax video player, preferably a later model stereo version

Hi

I am having truble with the colour on a sony sl 8000, on palsite itsayes to crean the presets in the chroma circuit. This may sound astupid but witch circuit is that :-)Also I am havind truble finding new tyres for it, Telepart have beltsso there no problem.

regards

Clint

Clint, Sony is pretty good at marking off sections on their VCR circuit boards. Look for section outlined in white called 'CHROMA'. You'll see within that section a few potentiometres - or variable resistors. From the advice given in the technical section, they want you to check them for contamination or corrosion - maybe cycling a few of them back and forth - putting them back as you found them - to re-establish good electrical contact. As for the tyres you might try sanding the crust off of them with fine sand paper or a nail file if you can't find the right replacement.

Alright! I finally got my site up and running! Here's a link, http://www.geocities.com/edwardx4/index.html Enjoi!

FWIW-I've got an SL-HFT7 up for auction on eBay now. Ignore the Buy It Now price-I made a mistake keying that one in and ended up asking $250 instead of $150. Reserve is reasonable, and the machine works great, except for the tuner issue noted in the item description. The URL is http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=1352579732.

Also, I'm still looking for a remote for an SL-HF1000 (the ever popular RMT-148). If anyone has one, or one for an SL-HF750 that they're looking to sell, let me know via e-mail.

Thanks!

Hi All Beta fans out there,

I have a Sony HF950ES from 1986Drum motor won't go and tracing back I think the IC CX20124 on the SS-50 board is kaput.Bypassing it I can make the drum motor run, but without speed control.Can anybody help me with:A diagram of SS-5oThe IC CX20124 (any revision will do)Maybe the complete SS-50 board

I sure could do with some help here. I love my 950 and it's too good to throw away.

Thanks in advance

Bjorn

Hi,I am looking for the following Beta remote controls: RMT-125 (SL HF900), RMT-148 (SL HF1000), and for the remotes for an EDV9500 and EDV9300. Please reply to the email address as I don't check this site every day. Thank you

I need a carriage for sony slo 420 beta vcr.

I would like to know if there is an adapter, to watch Betamx cassetes on a VHS video.

Hi

I have a SONY SLC 30 (UK PAL Model). I'm looking for a "Gear Limiter" part no: 3-684-163-01.

If anyone knows where I can get one I'd be very gratedul to hear from you.

Many thanksRobert - Herts, UK

Oh God

Vhs adapter???????

Where do they hear these thing??????If they don't exist DON'T ASK!:-)

Well I'm looking for an adapter that lets me play some of the VHS tapes that have been gathering around on my Beta VCR....

Hi Betaphiles,

I recently aquired an SL-3000 portable deck. The tape won't advance during play and record. It will go forward during Cue (Fast Forward.) Would this be an easy fix?

Is there a "breakout box" or universal adapter for Sony K-Connectors?

Finally: What would be the value of the SL-3000 deck and a HVC-1000 camera? The camera is in near-perfect condition.

Thank you,

Jesse

To Jesse: Your SL-3000 should be an easy fix if you can find the right sized belts and tires for it, as that's likely all it needs to get running. Likely you can just sand the crust off the tires and reinstall them and get the VCR going. That seems to work OK for my SL-5400 'Beefmaster' VCR. As for value, well SL-2000s seem to do better on E-beta because they're that much lighter and the battery more available. $50 to $100 is about the price range to expect, unless two people decide they HAVE to have an SL-3000, HVC 1000 combo.

I actually built a 'breakout box' for a K-connector based on the pinouts diagram posted at PALSite available here -> http://www.palsite.com/kcon.html . The pinouts apply to both US and PAL versions of the connector.

The breakout box I made was modified from a spare AC-220 SL-2000 power supply and a spare K-connector plug from a dead SL-2700. I posted pix of the conversion in the photosection of -> http://groups.yahoo.com/group/TheBetamaxVideographer/ While it seems to run well enought to be able to test operation of a camera, I'll probably need to find a way to ground it out because I get little wavy lines in the picture that make it rather ill suited for recording...

To Franny: Best of luck finding an adapter to play crummy VHS tapes (yeah they do seem to accumulate like roaches) on a Beta VCR. I use the Sony SL-VN50 HiFi 'adapter' myself. Plays/records VHS tapes and even can act as a cable box to my SL-HF 360. About all it's good for...

Hi Beta Fans;

Firstly my name is Michael I currently live in Toronot, Canada, It's going about (7) seven years I am a proud owner of a Sony Beta SL-HF1000 and I get to like this unit so much I have even got an offer of up to $1000. Canadian and I wouldnt even sell it becuse of the brilliance of the sound and picture, since recently I am experiencing a little problem, when I insert a tape to play it start to stick inside and it won't release the tape, I am afraid it's gonna cost me a whole lot of money to get it repair by sony, does any one have any kind suggession, like what can I do to get by, is it repairable by any and any person, I've turned to the Beta site for help, I would appreciate your kind suggession, you can email me back at email provided.

Thanks in advance.

Mike.

I have a good 2 dozen beta tapes I'd like to get rid of. Only a couple are commerically recorded -- the rest are movies copied from TV or other tapes. Anyone interested? If so, lets talk.

Franny: That VHS tape adaptor you're looking for can be found at any hardware store.. just ask the proprietor for a sledgehammer.

Mike: Sony won't repair them anymore at all. But you can get it fixed by any of a few dedicated Beta repairmen in the states. The most highly recommended of the lot is Andy Sanchez in Modesto, CA. E-mail him at [email protected] His prices are the most reasonable I have ever seen, and his work is top notch. He also gladly does work via post.

Take care, all, and stay well.

hi all so you wont to

Well, fellow Betaphiles, I have a nice deal for the first person that wants it.

What I have are several used Beta tapes, 2) L-125, 1) L-250, 2) L-500 and 21) L-750. A total of 26 tapes. These all seem to be in good shape, but I choose not to use them, opting instead to use new tapes I have recently purchased.

Now, here's the deal: You can HAVE these tapes, for only the cost of actual shipping to wherever you are. I will ship via US Postal Service Priority mail only, due to the fact that I am at a US military address, and have no other choices (I do have Parcel Post, but it's not that much cheaper, and takes up to two months to deliver, or Media Mail, same story)from Zip 96205-0044. Contact me if you want to give these a good home.

Take care, and stay well.

Greetings fellow betafans! Just a few days ago I was lucky enough to be the purchaser of a working SL-HF750 superbeta hi-fi VCR. I own various superbeta hi-fi's (360s, 400s, 450s, 550s, 600s, 650s, 900s, etc), but never a 750, until now. The unit is in Texas, and will be shipped to me here on the east coast soon. My question concerns the shipping screws used to lock down the linear skate tray during shipping. I know they exist, and I want to mention this to the seller, who is not the original owner of this unit (he bought this unit at an estate sale for later resale). For those who are SL-HF750 owners (or SL-HF950 PAL owners), I have the following questions for you conerning the shipping scres: 1) how many shipping screws are there to secure the linear skate tray? 2) where are the screws secured when the unit is in use? (I understand that the 750 has dummy holes that the shipping screws can be secured in when the unit is in use; is this true?); 3) If the shipping screws are missing, does the linear skate tray become easily dislodged during shipping? Will taping down the linear skate tray to the chassis prevent this from happening. Any info cocerning the SL-HF750 shipping screws and properly securing the linear skate tray durng shipping is deeply appreciated. Thanks! Howard

Howard,

There are three shipping screws and they are supposed to be re-located to the back panel, near the phono/ lanc/ BNC plugs They are special screws and have a small unthreaded section which passes through the holes iin the base alowing you to tighten them securely, without gripping the base of the VCR tightly.

Now, All I can see them doing is holding the transport in place from sliding out, but I suppose if the machine were to be tipped upside down, then the carriage may become dislodged from it's running tracks. As shipping conpanies are not reknowned for 'Handling with care' at all times, I would advise you should get the seller to try his best to secure the carriage. If the correct screws are not there, then some metric M6*8 bolts, with heads big enough to stay outside the baseplate and spacers on to stop then biting to tight, should do the trick.

finally, lucky you to get one of these machines. This is the ultimate top of the range UK machine - the ONLY one we had with hifi sound and perfect still/slow.

Steve Whelan: Thanks for the info concerning the SL-HF750 shipping screws and advice on shipping the unit. Very much appreciate it. I will pass this info onto the seller and hope (and pray) he will do a darn good job of securing and packing this unit for safe shipment to me. Howard

To Mike in T.O.:

By your description, I'm guessing that the tape is getting "hung up" in the loading mechanism. If this is the case, the most likely cause is a broken tooth on one of the gears - a common problem on the carriage used in the HF1000.

You have to remove the loading mechanism from the machine, replace the gear, and re-align the gears. Total shop time should be under an hour. Alternatey you can just swap the mechanism from a working Betamax. (any Sony post SL5000/SL2700/SL2400 uses the the same, only the window changes slightly) I've done many repairs and swaps of this mechanism, it's not hard for any mechanically minded person.

Now the bad news - you may have trouble finding the part (gear) as it is such a common failure, Sony's supply might be dried up. The repair shop here hangs onto dead Betas to strip parts. Yes we have a shop here that still does Beta repairs.

I would phone around Toronto to see if you can find a shop to do the work. I would avoid shipping your HF1000 if at all possible.

Hope this helps - [email protected]

original message...........>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

Name: MIKE - TOEmail: [email protected] 15th May 3:44 am U.K. Time Hi Beta Fans;

Firstly my name is Michael I currently live in Toronot, Canada, It's going about (7) seven years I am a proud owner of a Sony Beta SL-HF1000 and I get to like this unit so much I have even got an offer of up to $1000. Canadian and I wouldnt even sell it becuse of the brilliance of the sound and picture, since recently I am experiencing a little problem, when I insert a tape to play it start to stick inside and it won't release the tape, I am afraid it's gonna cost me a whole lot of money to get it repair by sony, does any one have any kind suggession, like what can I do to get by, is it repairable by any and any person, I've turned to the Beta site for help, I would appreciate your kind suggession, you can email me back at email provided.

Thanks in advance.

Mike.

call

To Amer: NO!

I asked a few days if there is any way to make the 950ES record a bilingual track when the "Bilingual" broadcast signal is not capted by the 950 (ex: when doing recordings through AV in) because on non hifi sound there is mixed chanel sound.

If someone has a copy of the service manual of the 950ES I could try to look for this feature. Thanks

If I find out anything I will publicate this on the chat

To Casimir; Have you tried switching the Monitor Select to the bilingual channel you want to record? On my SL-HF 300 at least, if you select the L or R channel (or mixed) you will only input audio from that channel through the Line In jacks L or R (or mixed) you selected but they will be recorded on both L and R HiFi channels. The linear track however is either a mix of the two if you're on Line/PCM, or if you're on Line Audio, you'll get the channel you've tuned without the line audio signal.

But the problem is on non hi-fi machines where the 950 records a mixed audio signal and not only Ch1 as it would do on bilingual broadcasting because if I play this cassate on a non hifi machine there is mixed chanel sound.

Please if someone could send me the service manual or some help...

I think it isn't so difficult. In a SLV-T2000 NP there is a switch to select ilingual line in (Hi8)

OK all you SONY SLC9 owners particularly in Australia. I will provide a repair service for DC/DC convertors. (Both Mk 1 & 2) They provide the display and tuner voltages for these machines and as many of you would know, they are the bane of an SLC9 owners life. I have just refurbished five of them for my machines so I fairly confident of success. I can now source or rebuild all the parts. Email me for details.-regards B1

In the 950 what Olive says it can't be done. PAL and NTSC betas are very different. NTSC betas are more evolutioned and the 950ES has only got a 2-chanel selector (Ch1-Ch2/Ch1/Ch2) only operational for beta hi-fi.

Lets face it, us Bods in the UK have to put up with a Naff selection of Beta machines. I mean whats the HiFi choice - SLHF950 - I have one of these but can you get PRO - X tapes for Superbeta mode? I think not, I some of these tapes but they must be over ten years old so would the quality be any beeter than the hugely overpriced Standard grade tapes still available from Sony centres? Then we have the SLHF100 - (in my view the best Hifi out them all) but sadly no real time counter and very limited timer facility. Also do the record level segments or the hall effect decice ever last more than 18 months? Then if you look hard enough the big industrial SL1700 - Nice big level meters but no tuner or infared remote. So the last choice is the Sanyo (noisey operation can you get any parts at all?) M40. Not much of a choice if you want decent sound. I mean looking at the NTSCs they seemed to make buckets of superb machines even a HIFI version og the NAFF C6 (Does anyone have one that actually loads tapes without bashing the side or keep replacing all the belts). Then the so called "marvelous" C9 - yes a great machine, good timer real time counter trick play etc but sadly very poor sound. Why couldnt Sony make at least a handfull more selection of decent PAL Machines. Its enough to make one sell up and head for Texas!

Considering that NTSC machine could be made and sold in Japan as well as North and Latin America the European market must've seemed too 'small' for Sony to justify the R&D expenses in varieties of PAL/SECAM machines. That's just a guess though...

Stewart,

Its a pity that UK uses a different TV video bandwidth and sound carrier system to Europe or they could also enjoy the SLHF150. It does not have the LED dropout problems and seems to perform well. Still doesn't have the realtime tape meter though. - If the SLHF950 had used the SLC9 drive mechanicals it would have been perfect! - B1

Hello all,In my rush to replace the belts For A Sanyo vtc-5300 I forgot to make a note of how everything went back together :o(

I'm having problems with the main black spindle that controls play & FF, specifically how it all goes back together. Failing that does anyone know where I can obtail a service manual for this vcr?

Ta

Bill

To Bill; In the Sanyos I've fidgeted with, the idler spindle thingie I think you're talking about is made with white plastic - so take this advice with the caveat that I may or may not be talking about the same part - the plastic hub that transfers motion from the idler motor via the idler belt to the two idler tires(tyres). On the idler spindles over here, the wider thicker hub was turned to the bottom side with the narrower thinner side on top. It's easier to tell if one has the half geared idler which makes such replacement direction more obvious...

Hello all,

Well I've managed to get my Sanyo 5300 working, thanks to Olive for her ideas.

I've learn't two things from this repair, always make notes and don't put cogs on upside down.

:o)

Bill

Hi everyone,

Got a problem with my Sony SLC30 UB. Suddenly it's decided not to rewind. All other functions are fine including fast forward. I've had the top off but can't find the cause other than I suspect a solenoid. It rewinds for five seconds then stops. Temperature seems to be a factor as from cold it will rewind for slightly longer before stopping.Any ideas or help appreciated

Tony

I want to sell a Sony Beta Max SL5800 The Time Commander in mint condition with VidLid hard plastic cover No Remote or Manual the remote and manuel are lost, and a Sony AG300 multitape changer The changer is still brand new in the origional Box with manuel as well as a bunch of used blank tapes mostly with operas on them.

The beta unit belonged to my dad who passed away and hardly used it, he was the origional owner. This Beta is waiting for a good home. E-Mail me.

Mike

Hi,

Don't know if anyone on this site is interested but I have a few Sony Beta User manuals and catalogues (UK versions) on eBay at the moment. I would hate to think anyone who reads this site would miss out on them if they are interested.

They are at;-

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=1354384779&ssPageName=ADME:B:LC:UK:1http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=1354380951&ssPageName=ADME:B:LC:UK:1http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=1354379917&ssPageName=ADME:B:LC:UK:1

Best wishes.

Barry.

To Tony with the C30 that won't rewind.

It's not a solonoid, it's the opto sensor under the reel table [wheel that furns the spools]. If the machine plays and fwds OK, then it's the one under the rewind wheel.

The change it, is quite easy [fortunately, they did one thing right!] Take the bottom off the machine, remove the two screws that secure the PCB under the mech. Unplug the screened cables from the silver box [head pre-amp] and hinge the PCB away. [good idea to stand the machine on it's side]

You'll see many tiny bits of PBC locked into the plastic and metal chassis that is the 'sub-frame assembley'. round about where the rewind reel table is should be a small PCB with three wires soldered to it. Pop out this PCB and you'll see a small opto sensor fitted to it [it has 4 terminals]. This is what you need to replace, and your machine will be fine again.

Hint, while it's out, clean the underside of the reel table by sticking a cotton bud through the hole where the sensor was, and rotate the reel from above.

It works on the principle of relection/ no reflection to detect rotation and the saftey circuits are cutting in to stop the machine.

good luck

Is anyone selling a betamax player, any model? If so please email with the details including price.

Thanx

A warning to Betafans. Someone may be using this site to pass along viruses! I've recieved several messageless letters with attachments that contain viruses and evidence (he had enclosed a picture labeled as a beta vcr idler) that the person had aquired my address from this betasite. I've tried to pass said letters along to my E-mail services abuse line but while they can deliver me a virus infected letter, I can't pass it along to the proper authorities...

In my case [email protected] was the sender address and [email protected] was the return path address

Odds are the virus sender won't use the same addresses twice but if anyone else sees those addresses then be on the alert for an attached virus...

Hi alltogether!

I come from Germany and i have only Betamax Videorecorders. I hate VHS.My best recorder is the SONY SL-HF100. It´s a great recorder and i enjoy it every day. I also use the SONY Betamovie-camera BMC-100P. Near my bed is the SANYO 5400 toploader.

Greetings to all Betamax-friends from Germany,

Elmar Zielke

Some journalists and TV studios give me used BETACAM tapes from time to time,I have two SLT 50 pal secam Ntsc machines, one SL T20 pal secam (exceptional picture quality), one SL F1 PAL portable, one SL HF 860D HI FI NTSC with digital effects, sold new equiv of U.S.$ 600 only, that was back in 1992. Its audio performance is superior to that of a CD !Never broke down , used daily as an audio recorder together with a PCM F1 digital audio converter (also NTSC model)If you pass by Paris, I can give you some tapes I have too many but always accept themBetacam tapes I used were primarely regular then SP type, then BETAMAX DIGITAL. I have no idea if they may damage the heads. Who can give me info on the subject ?

Re: Virus infected emails

I've gotten quite a few of those messages myself, though of course the senders addresses were different. So, I concur that he/she/it got them from this site. I should find his real email address and spam his ass right back *evil grin*

I'm finally going to be able to transfer my Beta tapes to DVD. I own 2 Beta VCR's but they both have composite video outputs. I was wondering if Sony ever made a Beta VCR with s-video outputs. I need the highest quality playback to input into the DVD recorder. Thanks in advance.

Tad, if you are in Europe or Australia and use PAL format Betas, I think you are out of luck in terms of S-Video connections. If you reside in North America and use NTSC betas, there are four North American models that come to mind, but none of them are common or cheap. The SL-HF2100 superbeta hi-fi (from 1991) has s-video connections, but they are very rare and go for really big money (the word is that only about a thousand units were ever imported to North America by Sony). The other three models are ED-Betas from 1988, the ED-V7500 and ED-V9500 (also sold in Canada as the ED-V7300 and ED-V9300) pro-sumer ed-beta units, and the professional/industrial EDW-30F Ed-Beta editor. All three of the ED-Beta models are also really rare and really expensive, but if you REALLY want to get one or all of these units with s-video connections, be prepared to mortgage the house and bid high for them on ebay. Good luck. Howard

Only 1000 SL-HF 2100...

Makes me wonder what the minimum run order from some Asian VCR factory would be if someone got hold of the plans, tools and dies needed to make a brand new Beta VCR... I'm sure most of the Sony patents have run out by now...

How 'bout an SL-HF1ME - portable Hifi multisystem HiBand (maybe ED if it's in budget range) with K-camera socket (for the HV-CCD F1 camera of course) and matching tuner/timer with built-in PCM encoder. It would be based, of course on the SL-F1 /2000 design with the same drive system and controls but would add beta skip-scan and full A/V insert capability when hooked to a VE -F1 edit controller. Maybe include a NLVE -F1 nonlinear video editing module with a 20gig hard drive so one can edit video or use it like a TiVo...

and all for 24 easy payments of $49.99....

If anyone with a spare VCR factory is reading this, I'll take two....

Well as long as we're dreaming how about a BMC -F1 -ED 'baby Betacam' styled camcorder with one of those K-connectors that would let you 'genlock' that SL-HF1 †berBeta VTR so you could record two tapes at once or in sequence just like the pros can? It would have to have 4 channels audio (2 linear 2 HiFi) electronic viewfider and you could record in standard, highband or ED mode (assuming the SL-HF1 of yours is going to have ED.

or at least someone could figure out a way to adapt a VHS-C sized cassette to work in a Beta adapter so we can have a Beta-C compact camera.

Every six months or so they invent a new audio or video format and a tape or disc to go with it - remember that Philips Digital Compact Cassette?. There's no reason why they can't make stuff for the people who still like Beta...

Thnaks to Steve. I'll try this as soon as I can.

To Alain (Paris): It's not a good idea to use Betacam SP tapes in any normal beta machine. Metal tape is no good for your precious video heads. Normal oxide tapes (that say just "Betacam") work fine. I've had lots of excellent results w/ used tapes from TV stations and eBay.

Olive: What about trying to convince a company like GoVideo to make some beta machines? They seem to innovate on all other weird stuff (VHS/VHS & VHS/DVD duals). Maybe a dual beta or DVD/Beta? ;) Or a DVD/ED-Beta deck? *vbg*

Seriously, some of these companies may not know it, but if one of them started making new beta machines, I'd bet they'd get plenty of sales from just word-of-mouth or forum posts even before they did much advertising. Wish someone in their brass would wake up and smell the coffee! ;)

Hey guys! I'm writing from Brazil and I'm desperately seeking advice on fixing my Beta. I own a Brazilian-made Betamax Sony VCR, model SL-500MD. It's a dual system model, made specialy for south america, which can handle both the Brazilian PAL-M standard as well as the NTSC standard used troughout mos of Latin America. I have bought it earlier in the year, through the Internet, from a very reliable source. Unfortunately it suffered a minor accident during shipment, and the rear right corner of it was slightly bent up. An inspection showed that part of the PC board had broken off, for it was screwed onto the case( there were no components on this piece of the board, just a piece of copper track. I repaired the case and entrusted the circuitry to a friend of my father's that's very skilled with soldering and stuff. (He's actually a retired TV repairman, but he never got training in VCR repairing)He managed to place a jumper on the cracked spot and restore the connection. I brought it home, installed it on my TV and I inserted a blank tape. I recorded about five minutes of tape (everything was going allright 'till then) and then rewound it and pressed "Play". The image appeared on the set briefly and then the screen went black. Now, although the machine apears to record perfectly, I found out that the picture only shows on the screen while on Pause, FastForward or Rewind search modes, whereas when in playback mode the image shows on the screen for only a second or so, (sometimes the sound is all mushy and sometimes is just fine) before it goes blank. Nevertheless, the tape keeps moving as nothing happened, at regular speed, and everything is otherwise perfect, albeit for the total absence of picture and sound. What could be happening? As far as I can tell, the head and drum assembly is in tip-top shape, and the picture it displays on Pause mode is crisp and clear, even more so than the ones in my VHS VCR. I have no one else to turn to, since most repairman refuse to take my Beta in.(Actually, most of them don't even know what a Betamax machine is!) FOR THE LOVE OF GOD, help me to make my Beta work again!

Luiz Augusto Alvarenga de Barros:

If you can afford to ship it to the states, I'm sure that Andy Sanchez can put it into top condition for you. You can e-mail him at [email protected] He gladly works through the mail, and his rates are very reasonable. His work is first rate.

We want one unit of brand new, immediately delivery Sony Betacam PVW-2650 PAL System.

Hello Betamax-Fans

I received a Sony SL F 60 PAL video recorder, but the complete power supply is missing. Otherwise the machine seems to be in good condition.

Is there anybody who can offer me such a power supply or maybe a dead machine, from which I could use the power supply?

Thank you very much for your help.

Best regards,Felix

to Luiz Augusto:

what you need to do is change the pinch roller - hey presto machine will be back in perfect working order. right now, the tape is being moved away from the ACE head [Audio/control/erase] and the machine is automatically blanking out due to loss of synchro signal.

I'm sure even someone with a slightly mechanical mind can achieve this task, and i think there's even details of how to do it on this site under 'repairs'

good luck

Hello Everyone,

i have just bought a 2000p camera off ebay for a little over five quid. It is an excellent condition with case. It was a nostalgic thing really my dad had one twenty years ago ( i remember i couldn't lift up the portable recorder for more than three minutes) The problem is I assumed that it had a 14 pin connector so I bought it to use with my 6800 portable ( i also have a KY 15, DXC M3 and a BY110) but of course it has this K plug thing. Ive got the pin outs from this site but I don't want to butcher the plug. Does anyone know if adapter leads exist or were I can purchase a K female to make something.

I have also just got as PSU and np1 charger for an F1, so all as as need now is an SLf1.

Thanks all.

Steve