When it works (about 70% of the time) it is a very good unit, with quality and featues I want and need.

When it is not working (30% of the time)... you know the story.

I purchased this VCR brand new in 1999. I did not really need another VCR (I had two that worked beautifully), but I was enticed by the thought of using SuperVHS. Plus, I perform video editing on my Power Macintosh, and wanted better video quality than standard VHS could afford. But to the VCR. I should have assumed it was a preminition of things to come when the first time I put in a tape, the unit actually shut itself off. I ejected the tape, put it back in and it worked fine afterwords... For about a month. Then the picture would fade in and out when recording video from any SVideo source. A situation that quickly seemed to remedy itself. To cut to the chase, I had these sorts of problems on and off for the past 4 years with this VCR. Indeed, when it works, it works beautifully, but when it does not, it is enough to give a man an ulser. It is infact, right now sitting at the repair shop, waiting for some part of the video head. I am also very dissatified with the customer support from JVC US regarding this unit, which amounts to them saying it is not their fault. If not for the truly good quality products JVC does make, I would consider not buying anything made by them again. I paid $300 for this VCR, and if it worked to my expectations (if at all) I would have considered that a very good value.

Similar Products Used:

Sony SLV-750HF (a remarkable VCR), Sony SLV-585HF (another remarkable VCR), RCA VR-676HF (a very good VCR).

Reliability

At 1st I really liked this VCR. But after only 1 1/2 years it is now destroying my VHS tapes. S-VHS is fine when you are the only one watching the tape, but try to lend a friend a tape that you recorded with S-VHS and you''ll see what a pain it is since they can''t view it. And at $90 to repair it, I''d rather pick up a new one.

A quick follow-up to the review I placed on 11/24/00.
I had noted the blurred picture in standard vhs, and gave this as the main reason for it having a "poor" picture. I have since found an adjustment that can be made that dramatically improves the "blurred" picture. Under "Picture Control" set the mode to "Sharp", and "imo" don't use the "Auto" setting as it does not function or present the best picture possible. With standard vhs, having only 240 lines of res. you need all the "sharpness" you can get, not a "soft" blurred factory "default/Auto" setting! With this change, I would change my rating to 4-4 1/2 stars.

Great Picture, clear and color no sound problems

none

Superb machine for the the price, love the Auto Channel and Clock Feature no more blinking 12:00. could use Audio level meter, Remote has just about all the same features as the desk.

Similar Products Used:

RCA machine with not that many feature

Great picture, auto tracking, s-video

For the price I paid you can't beat the product I got. I needed a VCR with s-video input and output so I could run my digital cable with s-video and this vcr fit the bill perfectly. It plays with great accuracy and a great picture. And together with my JVC tv and JVC dvd player they all work great with the acculink cable.

If you can find this piece for the price I did, pick it up and enjoy it.

Excellent recording and playback quality

reliability

This VCR quit working after 4 months. The warranty was 1 year for parts, and 3 months for labor. The service center was going to charge me $90 to fix it, and I declined. It is absolutely ridiculous that after 4 months I have to pay $90 to fix the VCR. I don't recommend it for that reason. I see that Crutchfield has these things on sale, so I think they're trying to dump them. Maybe others have had problems.

Before the unit broke, I found that the video quality was very good. The recordings made from DSS were almost as good as the original broadcast. Even normal VHS tapes played with the unit had good images. It's to bad the unit is unreliable.

Picture quality. Although not DVD quality but definately better than any other VHS recording.

Timer programming is lousy. Would like a regular on screen menu where you can use the number pad to enter channel/date/time. All the different setups are confusing to me. The manual is marginally helpful.

System:

A/V Receiver: Nakamichi
DVD player: Onkyo
CD carousel: Pioneer w/ on screen
Sat: Directv RCA
Speakers: Boston CR series all round (5.1)

VCR: you know

TV: Hitachi 50" projection
Remote: Home Theatre SL9000 (the most important component)

In addition to the comments above, I have a difficult time getting to watch a regular program through the VCR. This may be more to do with my connections than the VCR. I only do this to make sure that I'm taping the right channel.

The picture quality is a significant improvement over the old RCA, which has been abused and never cleaned but still works.

I notice "signal hum" on tv/sat recordings. Comments welcomed.

I hate the timer recording. I'm used to the RCA menu where you select menu, select timer recording and use arrow keys and the number pad to enter the ch/time/date.

For $129 I can't complain. If you have to buy a VCR, you can't go far wrong. Cool logo (SVHS) in front.

Similar Products Used:

RCA hifi (when 4Head/hifi first came out $300+)

Picture Quality, FF/REW speed, Tape remain counter, Inputs/outputs, remote

A bit noisy, audio tracking errors

I tried to compare the motor noises on this VCR with my other S-VHS ET machine, the Panasonic. While it's a bit noisy, the JVC is no worse than the Panasonic. I am pleased with the picture quality, both in S-VHS mode and standard playback of tapes made in other machines. I notice an improvement in resolution with standard grade tape and high grade tape when using the S-VHS ET mode. I also see an improvement when recording at the SLP speed using the S-VHS mode, making this mode watchable. My only complaint on this unit is occassional audio mistracking, even on tapes made on the same machine. This is manifested as an intermittent static sound that lasts for a second or two, but can be disturbing. Perhaps this is unique to my particular unit. In any case, for the money, it's hard to beat the value of this machine (I assume the 3800, which replaced it, is similar).

Similar Products Used:

Panasonic S-VHS ET machine

Tuner, S-VHS/S-VHS ET

Standard VHS picture quality (poor)

Using quality tapes and recording in S-VHS ET, the picture quality is fairly good, about what you would expect for a $159.00 vcr. On the other hand, the standard vhs playback is poor to say the least. The images are so blurred you can hardly stand to sit (and watch) through a whole movie. My old NEC vcr has much better focus, detail, and sharpness playing a standard vhs tape. The real strength of this vcr is; producing good recordings, if you use high quality tape, use premium cables, and having strong high quality signals. In my opinion, this vcr would be best used for recording/playback in S-VHS/S-VHS ET, but for standard VHS, I would buy a different brand.

Similar Products Used:

10 year old NEC vhs, Orion vhs

Great picture on S-VHS. ET tapes look good as well. Hi-Fi section sounds very good. Tons of features.

No audio level controls or meters.

I have been very happy with this unit. I haven't had any problems with it whatsoever. I give it a good cleaning every 2 months. I have used S-VHS tapes(Panasonic, Maxell)and the results are superb. I found a trick in an old issue of Video magazine (RIP) about tricking your vcr into thinking a standard tape is a S-VHS tape. A small hole is drilled into the tape shell on the lower left-hand side(look at a s-vhs tape first to see where the hole should be drilled) be careful when doing this, a variable speed drill is best. When hole is drilled, put tape into vcr to see if it recognizes the hole and read s-vhs in the display, if it does, you're set. I have gotten excellent results with standard grade/high grade tapes and no problems using this method. A fine machine in every respect.

Similar Products Used:

Sony, Sanyo.