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X0 Equivalent for vcr's?

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Does anyone know what is best for playing back regular VHS tapes? Like how the X0 is the best laserdisc player. Laserman reccomended a D-VHS/D-Theatre deck, or a S-VHS deck. I wanted to hear what others thought. I know S-VHS can record at a higher resolution but does it play back standard VHS better than a Hi-Fi vcr? I use my computer to edit so I have no need for some of the advanced linear editing features, just what produces the cleanest picture and if s-video and component outputs are available. The vcr I currently use for capturing is I believe a Panasonic 4 Head Hi-Fi PV-9661 and it does a really good job, but lacks s-video/component outputs.

Similarly, I was wondering what was the best way to play back analog 8mm/Hi8 tapes. Does a Hi8 vcr or Hi8 broadcast deck produce a significant advantage over a general camcorder? If anyone knows specific model names or could even post comparison screenshots, that would be a big help.

Thanks a lot.

Edit: The Panasonic vcr I have is actually a PV-9662.

Take back the trilogy. Execute Order '77

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Unlike the X0 for laserdiscs, there is no universally accepted best deck for VHS playback.

I once followed a few threads on Doom9 about this, I'll try to summarise what I remember:

1. Don't consider anything other than JVC or Panasonic.
2. Professional edit decks have better tape transport build quality, so should give better results than even top of the range consumer decks.
3. SVHS decks with s-video outputs do offer an advantage, because even on standard VHS the chroma and luma are separate.
(However, there is some dispute that the VHS-only professional units may have bigger tape heads that are more suited to VHS playback than SVHS decks)
4. A time base corrector is essential, either built-in to the deck or as a separate unit.

This is the deck I use.

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Regular VHS decks don't normally have s-video outputs.

Edit: Found this post on the Doom9 forum.

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Thanks for the thread. I should probably mention that I live in the US and therefore use NTSC. So it seems S-VHS doesn't necessarily do better with everything else equal. Sounds like it varies upon the wiring, in which case it would be hard to find a better vcr than the one I have. I know some vcr's do have s-video. In fact, at my college, I saw a vcr with component outputs.

So is anyone here very familiar with Hi8? My camcorder does have an s-video output like most others.

Take back the trilogy. Execute Order '77

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I can recommend the Panasonic AG-1980. Having the TBC built in and the video noise reduction are a godsend on regular VHS tapes. In the nine years I've owned one, only a handful of tapes gave me any playback headaches. It's a damn shame they don't make them anymore. Panasonic's current prosumer line looks like consumer decks at a costume party.
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The great thing about many SVHS decks are that they typically have some kind of noise reduction hardware built into them, making playback better. However, if you plan to capture any VHS sources, you really need to have a time base corrector (TBC). A TBC will realign the output signal (because VHS inherently degrades each time its played) to its proper parameters, giving you an even starting point for your preservation work. Occasionally, you can find a decent deal for professional edit decks with TBCs on the eBay or you can purchase a TBC separately. Two models that I highly recommend are AV Toolbox's AVT-8710 and Datavideo's TBC-1000.
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Can a time base corrector have any side effects like the temporal smoothing on the THX laserdiscs? My hi8 camcorder has one and the only difference I noticed with it on or off was the picture on the tv screen looked brighter and more washed out (worse I thought) with the TBC on.

Take back the trilogy. Execute Order '77

http://www.youtube.com/user/Knightmessenger