Picture Quality. SVHS ET. TBC. Dynamic Drum System. Jog Shuttle Remote.

No Manual commercial advance marking. Inefficient, but cost effective menu system. Some functions uncontrollable by remote.

[Review of JVC HR-S9600U (S-VHS) ( VCRs)]

I've only had the deck for 6 weeks, but I've found it to have super picture quality and great sound at half the price of comparable models from other Japanese manufacturers. I cannot say much for the build quality of this VCR when compared to those back in the 80s and early 90s, but I haven't had any mechanical problems with the unit thus far (unlike reports I've heard about the 4600U).

Although some of the features found on this unit were not well thought out. Commercial advance is great, but it would have been nice to be able to manually initiate a CA marking on tapes recorded on other machines -- and there's no way (that I've found) to fool it into marking tapes recorded on other machines. I heard that some older RCA units can do manual marking.

The Digital TBC featured on this deck works only in playback (I think). So if you want to make a backup of macrovision protected material, you still have to go through an external video stabilizer like the Sima SCC Pro. The picture is absolutely fabulously stunning. The best I've seen. ET on high standard tapes also looks much better than on regular VHS mode with a VHS tape.

The auto-set feature on this machine knocked the socks off me when I just plugged it in, and it set the time, date, channels, tuner, etc all by itself. However, now I can't seem to get it to set the time correctly by itself. It keeps insisting that its one hour later than it really is! Perhaps its just my area.

There really should have been a second button for the skip search feature. One that initates commercial advance, and one that skips 30 seconds every time you press it. Instead, there's one button for commercial advance and commercial skip. To switch between them, you have to go through an on-screen menu. Too much of a hassle since I use both so much.

VCR Programming is straighforward. I wish it allowed more than the limited 8 events, but that's pretty standard these days. So far, I've only seen Go-Video's deck to have more. they have 16 events.

What really made this VCR worthwhile for me is the Time Scan feature that allows you to scan the tape at 1.5x, 2x, 3x, 5x, 7x the normal speed but still have audio (and video) playback at intelligible rates so that I could just condense a 30 minute show in 15 minutes and get everything I want out of it. Also works in reverse (sound is still in proper playback).

Shuttle control on the VCR with frame-by-frame advance, with flying erase heads made editing on this deck painless. I like having control on both remote and deck.

It would have been nice to have dual SVHS and dual composite outputs. And why limit the gold plating only to the front input jacks?

As far as editing goes, Sony and Panasonic interface links beat the JVC in terms of compatibility. I don't have much use for a JLIP (Joint Level Interface Protocol) connector when I can only deal with Panasonic's 5 pin and Sony's Control-L interfaces.

Overall though, its a super deck with a few shortcomings. Shop around for the best price with a return policy. I'm very happy with my purchase. Thinking about buying another one. I'd be interested in hearing others who have tried the 7600 and the 9600u. What justifies the major price difference?

greenbean@bigfoot.com

Similar Products Used:

JVC SVHS 3600. Mitsubishi SVHS. Sony VHS models.

Makes a watchable picture on big-screen TV from standard VHS tapes.

Remote isn't my favorite.

I bought this because I was very unhappy with my old VHS videotapes on my new 32" high-res TV. Boy howdy! What a picture. I have multi-episode documentaries and mini-series recorded in standard SLP/EP VHS Hi-Fi; they were almost unwatchable on my new TV with my standard VHS VCR (and embarassing to show to others). With this VCR, my old tapes look almost as good as live cable programming. My new DVD player spoils me for rented VHS movies; this VCR makes rented standard VHS movies perfectly acceptable. Picture from standard VHS is so sharp, I still record in standard VHS so I can share tapes with friends.

VCR is $470 from Profeel, including shipping. Considering that I can't replace my VHS library at any price, it's a terrific value. The only reason that I rated it a 4-star value is that it has lots of features I don't use; for me, it could be stripped down. For compatibility with rented tapes, I'd rather pay the price of a straight S-VHS VCR for a standard VHS Hi-Fi Stereo VCR with the 9600's frame memory. That would rock !

Unbeatable VCR picture, great sound fidelity, lots of control over picture "tuning," good feature set

** Do not place too much importance on these factors ** - too many button selections to change options, you really need to live with the manual at your side until you're able to master functions that are important to you

The bottom line is this: Buy this player if you're looking for the best VCR for quality recording, playback, and sharp (enhanced) TV viewing. For the 95% of VCR owners who will not spend hours tinkering with features, and just want a high-quality VCR for home theater use, this is the one.

But you'll probably also find that the HR-S9600U stacks up very well feature-by-feature with competitors. The features that will impress you are the terrific slo-mo, the vast number of picture enhancements and controls, and the S-VHS ET function, which really pulls the best quality possible from regular cheap tapes. Believe me, I threw some really cheap tapes at it, and the quality was much better than I expected.

Although you'll have to burn some time learning how to use the thing, don't let that be an obstacle to buying this VCR. The time is well spent after you see the results. Just think if JVC decided to do some usability studies and fine tune their interface/remote -- there would be NO negatives at all!

Some notes on the other consumer reviews below: (1) They don't make digital inputs to hi-fi VCRs because the VCR can't record the digital signal, and it would have to downmix it to Dolby Pro-Logic, resulting in poorer audio quality than if you pass a Dolby P-L signal via analog. (2) Take your Caps Lock key off when posting reviews. (3) This VCR is NOT noisy. (4) I do not detect any loss of high-freq. response; in fact, the audio is superb throughout the freq. range.

I paid about $450 delivered from eCost.com.

Similar Products Used:

Multiple VHS and S-VHS

I am looking for a really good full-featured S-VHS VCR for under $500 that would replace my gaggy old Quasar VCR. I believe that the JVC HR-S9600U is now being sold below that price by some vendors and is now being replaced by the newer model HR-S9800U which nobody owns yet and therefore has not made a review about. It may be that with this 2000 model, they have addressed all the issues that some consumers brought up to this forum. I also would expect them to add more features that was lacking from the older model but instead, the more expensive HR-S9800U omitted Movie & Commercial advance which the older model has. I emailed JVC about the omission and they have not responded. Also, both models do not have "Auto Head Cleaner" feature which is standard in cheaper models. I also expect a 6-Head VCR on the newer model although ...perhaps that would come as an HRS10000U digital S-VHS model soon, like next month? I'm not sure of the advantage of having a 6-Head but I believe that one can play EP mode as good as if one is playing the tape on SP mode, no degradation, and it provides sharper VHS freeze frame, fast-forward and frame-by-frame advance.


I like the champagne gold color of this top-of-line JVC S-VHS VCRs. They look very classy compared to other brands. Although I am leaning towards the Toshiba W808
6-Head S-VHS digital VCR, it has all features, now if it only comes in gold!...price yet to be announced.

I am looking for a really good full-featured S-VHS VCR for under $500 that would replace my gaggy old Quasar VCR. I believe that the JVC HR-S9600U is now being sold below that price by some vendors and is now being replaced by the newer model HR-S9800U which nobody owns yet and therefore has not made a review about. It may be that with this 2000 model, they have addressed all the issues that some consumers brought up to this forum. I also would expect them to add more features that was lacking from the older model but instead, the more expensive HR-S9800U omitted Movie & Commercial advance which the older model has. I emailed JVC about the omission and they have not responded. Also, both models do not have "Auto Head Cleaner" feature which is standard in cheaper models. I also expect a 6-Head VCR on the newer model although ...perhaps that would come as an HRS10000U digital S-VHS model soon, like next month? I'm not sure of the advantage of having a 6-Head but I believe that one can play EP mode as good as if one is playing the tape on SP mode, no degradation, and it provides sharper VHS freeze frame, fast-forward and frame-by-frame advance.


I like the champagne gold color of this top-of-line JVC S-VHS VCRs. They look very classy compared to other brands. Although I am leaning towards the Toshiba W808
6-Head S-VHS digital VCR, it has all features, not if it only comes i gold!...price yet to be announced.

Picture and sound. What else is there?

Still picture is sharp -- too sharp. So unless your source is rock-solid, you will see grain galore. (Slo-mo too)

This is one great machine with one major problem. It's more sensitive than a baby's butt. There is a long working-in period for this unit. At the beginning, there will be problems with tapes recorded on other units, especially in EP mode. Sometimes, BAD problems -- such as a comet bar running across the middle of the picture, or at the bottom. Sometimes, with sound distortion too. Sounds bad, right? FAHGEDABOUTIT!! All this goes away with time. (Everyone knows about "breaking-in" periods with speakers, and amps, and CD players, etc. Well gang, it also works for state-of-the-art VCRS!) Give this baby time (maybe a month), and it will give you picture and sound results second only to your DVD machine. (One way to speed up the process is to leave it on 24-hours a day. One day at a time. It needs rest too.)

In other words, if you can hack the busting of its cherry -- buy it! (Onecall.com currently has it for $420.)

Similar Products Used:

Mitsubishi U-60, U-790. Panasonic AG-1800.

Features, Price.

Build Quality

This is my 2nd HRS 9600U. My first one continutes to give me the best video performance I have ever seen from any consumer VCR, and I have owned over 6 SVHS units. But the unit that just arrived from CameraWorld of Oregon has awful video compared to the first one I purchased. As another reviewer has noted, this specimen has a flicker problem coupled with an overall video noise level that is completely unacceptable. This is very disheartening as I assumed that every specimen of this machine would be of equal quality. My unit goes back for exchange tommorrow, and I would caution any new buyer to check their machine carefully immediately upon arrival. It is obvious that JVC will pass machines that do not all have the same high standards, unfortunately. This quality control issue tarnishes the reputation of what can be an excellent VCR.

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Same model.

Excellent video quality, nice remote.

High price; Confusing manual.

Excellent VCR which has allowed me to view several "damaged" tapes which were not viewable on my Sony VCR using its image correction feature. Recording quality on regular tapes using the SVHS-ET mode is significantly better than regular VHS mode. One caveat: SVHS-ET tapes can only be played on SVHS-ET compatible vcrs.

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Sony VCRs

1st RATE BUILD AND FEEL

SLIGHTLY SOFT,COMPARED TO DVD....KIND OF LIKE WHAT AN ANALOG RECORD SOUNDS LIKED,WHEN COMPARED TO DIGITAL CD!

FIRST...PLEASE LET ME APOLIGIZE TO THE FEW PEOPLE THAT E-MAILED ME ABOUT THE $341 I POSTED LAST TIME. I MADE A MISTAKE...IT WAS $441...AND THE COMPANY WAS "HUPPINS" OR AKA ONECALL.COM. AS PROMISED,I SEARCHED FOR MY SALES SLIP.
WHEN I FOUND IT,I FELT FOOLISH.I SHOULD HAVE REALIZED WHEN ALL OF YOU QUESTIONED THE $341 !!!!!!!!! MY EXCUSE IS AS FOLLOWS: I AM A VERY BUSY PERSON. AROUND THE SAME TIME,LATE IN 1999,I UPGRADED 50% OF MY HOME THEATER.I MADE SO MANY LARGE PURCHASES(AND MANY SMALL) I QUESS I JUST HAD FORGOT WHAT I PAID.AND BEING IN THE FOOD INDUSTRY,MY TIME IS SO BROKEN UP,I FORGET WHAT DAY IT IS,SOMETIMES.
ANYWAY...I SPEND A GREAT DEAL OF MY SPARE TIME INDULGING A HARMLESS VICE.I CALL IT IT MY "LIVING" ROOM.IT'S WHERE I WATCH A MOVIE,LISTEN TO SOME GOOD MUSIC,OR READ BY A FIRE WITH MY DASCHUND"SNICKERS".IT'S WHERE MY TEENAGERS ENTERTAIN THIER FRIENDS.

IN KEEPING THINGS SHORT,ONECALL IS A GOOD COMPANY TO DEAL WITH.THEY DID HONOR THE 9500 WITH THE 9600,WHICH AT THE TIME WAS $499.

THE JVC 9600 IS AN EXTREME MACHINE....AND IF YOU ARE FORTUNATE TO USE ALL OF ITS FEATURES...JUST BUY IT.
IT WILL BE THE LAST ANALOG RECORDIG/PLAYBACK DEVICE YOU WILL BUY....MAKE IT A GOOD ONE.AGAIN....SORRY FOR MY ERROR.

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MANY

Has many features that are not on many other VCR's.

Would say price but I got mine for $414 shipped at crazyg (refurbed), which is a decent price from the list.
Manual
Why can't they make a vcr with digital audio inputs?+--

Features such as time base correction, SVHS-ET mode, audio while fast forwarding and rewinding, -7 -5 -3 -1 -1.5 -1/3 1/3 1/2 1.5 2 3 5 7 rewind and ff speeds, video calibration, video stabilizer, and s-video front input. Looks cool on top of all that.

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Panasonicn PV-S4446 SVHS VCR