stever@wjvax.UUCP (Steve Reinhold) (04/05/91)
I have an old (>5 years) 2-head Sharp VHS VCR. It works fine except that now
the front panel tracking control runs out of adjustment range before the noise
bar disappears. Can I (as an EE and experienced tinkerer) get inside the box
and adjust the tracking so the front panel control is "centered" again?
Please email if possible.
Thanks
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Steve Reinhold
{..!pyramid,..!decwrl!qubix}!wjvax!stever
Watkins-Johnson Co., San Jose Ca. : (408) 435-1400 x3203
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Steve Reinhold
{..!pyramid,..!decwrl!qubix}!wjvax!stever
Watkins-Johnson Co., San Jose Ca. : (408) 435-1400 x3203duncan@bolero.ati.com (James R. Duncan) (04/07/91)
In article <1804@wjvax.UUCP> stever@wjvax.UUCP (Steve Reinhold) writes: >I have an old (>5 years) 2-head Sharp VHS VCR. It works fine except that now >the front panel tracking control runs out of adjustment range before the noise >bar disappears. Can I (as an EE and experienced tinkerer) get inside the box >and adjust the tracking so the front panel control is "centered" again? > I thought I'd post, as others might be interested in the discussion. This is most likely a mechanical problem and not an electronic one. After a lot of use and perhaps just aging, the physical relationship between the rotating heads and the tape changes to the point where the tracking errors can no longer be compensated. The likely solution: After carefully cleaning all the guides and heads (you should probably read up on this procedure in a tech book or service manual), you can put a test tape on the machine and very carefully adjust the guide height immediately before the head - the one after may need a touch also. I did all this very crudely and had fantastic luck on several machines. Although I have the proper chamois tipped swabs, I just used (carefully) ordinary Q-Tips for the cleaning on one machine. For a test tape, I used a previously recorded tape that I could stand to lose; if you fool around like this, it will end with at least crinkled edges in a couple of places. Make sure that the various idlers and belts are in good condition also; these may no longer be providing proper tension. For tools and parts check out MCM Electronics (800-543-4330). They have lots of VCR stuff. -- KUFX | w ["] | WA6MBV 94.5 |.. |___|_____..duncan@bolero.ati.com | Jim Duncan FM | H | +1 408 297 5977 \_____I_____/ 37 3 10N/121 59 10W ---------------
ttonino@bio.vu.nl (Thomas Tonino) (04/11/91)
In article <29943@bolero.ati.com> duncan@bolero.ati.com (James R. Duncan) writes: >In article <1804@wjvax.UUCP> stever@wjvax.UUCP (Steve Reinhold) writes: >>I have an old (>5 years) 2-head Sharp VHS VCR. It works fine except that now >>the front panel tracking control runs out of adjustment range before the noise >>and adjust the tracking so the front panel control is "centered" again? >carefully adjust the guide height immediately before the head - the one >after may need a touch also. > >I did all this very crudely and had fantastic luck on several machines. Please be careful on this one: it is rather aesy to spoil all at once. Besides, most VCR's have an internal tracking control with greater range than the external one; I would first try this one, as it is easier. However I agree on the idea of cleaning with swabs, which is a good idea. Regards, Thomas