Head cleaning a new HV20

[moira]

This is probably a silly question but I read on another forum you should run a head cleaner through a new camcorder. I think it was a reply to tape stutter. I wondered what you guys thought seeing as I'll only have the one chance.........soon.
Be ready for a plague of questions
Cheers
Moira

[Mal]

Run a cleaner tape through a new cam?
Never heard that, and never done it. Never had a problem not doing that either. A cleaner tape is basically an abrasive thing running along the heads, so you shouldn't run a cleaning tape too often.

Best advice I can give in that regard, is buy one type of tape, and stick with it.

Panasonic PQ or Panasonic AMQ is a safe bet. You could (possibly) switch between those two, but you shouldn't go: one tape Sony, the other Panasonic, the next JVC....

[24Peter]

I'm with Mal. I think the best advice is to only run a head cleaning tape when the camera needs it. Sometimes new camera's need it - usually they don't.

[David]

I'd never heard that either, but Chris Hurd and others at dvinfo.net seem to think it's the way to go. In fact, they talk about it like it's common knowledge that the first thing you should do as soon as you take the camera out of the box is to run a head cleaner through it.

[moira]

Thanks everyone, I m happy to hear that ,it does sound a bit drastic. And you know why I asked, David,thanks for that, I couldnt remember where I d read it but they were so adamant I had to wonder if it was the thing to do.
Rest assured, I won t be sanding anything down for a long time I hope.
Cheers
Moira

[Mal]

Rest assured, I won t be sanding anything down for a long time I hope.

LOL
Yeah, I've never had a problem, just running a cleaning tape when it needed it, for a few seconds.

David; that's interesting - thanks for the information. That's why this group is so cool; I learn something new everyday, as someone else also pointed out a few days ago.


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Something else on tapes: some camcorder manufacturers warn not to use the extended play tapes (80 or so minutes). Assumably because the tape is quite thin. They recommend to stick with "normal" 60 (or thereabouts) minute tapes. This has been something I've adhered to.

[24Peter]

LOL

Something else on tapes: some camcorder manufacturers warn not to use the extended play tapes (80 or so minutes). Assumably because the tape is quite thin. They recommend to stick with "normal" 60 (or thereabouts) minute tapes. This has been something I've adhered to.

David and I banged heads a bit on the issue of reusing tapes elsewhere on the Forum (he says used tapes are more prone to dropouts than new ones - in theory perhaps but for me in practice at least I've found that's not the case.) On the other hand, manufacturers consistently do advise against using extended play tapes esp on HDV cameras, and I too intend to adhere to this recommendation as the tapes are thinner, more subject to stretching and with less density/area to record to.

[David]

David and I banged heads a bit on the issue of reusing tapes

I'd say "bumped" more than "banged" Just a case of different experiences resulting in different habits I think.

[jkatme]

Hey guys
I had a bit of a discussion with a salesman about tapes and he was quite adamant that I should use a HD tape.
The panasonic AMQs the Mal recommended are like $20 each in shops.
I ended up buying one JVC ProHD 63me.

What would be the cheapest option that would be reliable?

If I'm not going to swap tape type/brand I wouldn't mind getting it right now.
j

[Mal]

Hey guys
I had a bit of a discussion with a salesman about tapes and he was quite adamant that I should use a HD tape.
The panasonic AMQs the Mal recommended are like $20 each in shops.
I ended up buying one JVC ProHD 63me.

Considering it really is just 1s and 0s that's laid down to tape (isn't it?), I can't see what HD would mean, other than a neat marketing name.

I've NOT touched JVC tapes in years, they weren't my favorite, that's for sure.

The AMQs can be had for $6.89/ea online at B&H:
http://www.bhphotovideo.com/bnh/cont...ughType=search

[hdvbymark]

You should run a head cleaner after some use, which some say is 20 hours.

It is important to run the head cleaner when changing tape formulations.

[Rikki]

I read on another forum with a new unit to record a full tape (leave it running), rewind it and play it all the way through. This saves drop out and such like appearing. I thought, what the heck and did it just in case.

[ardo]

I read on another forum with a new unit to record a full tape (leave it running), rewind it and play it all the way through. This saves drop out and such like appearing. I thought, what the heck and did it just in case.

This is exactly what I did for 7 years whenever my Sony camcorder would exibit dropouts. Works like a charm. The only time I had to use a head-cleaning tape is when I ran out of my Sony tapes and was forced to use a Panasonic tape in a pinch.

[24Peter]

I read on another forum with a new unit to record a full tape (leave it running), rewind it and play it all the way through. This saves drop out and such like appearing. I thought, what the heck and did it just in case.

Hmmm... not really sure how that would help. In the old days of analog tape machines they used to black tapes like that. But my understanding is it won't do anything for digital recording.

My experience with the HV20 - "dropouts" were seen as freezing image on playback. The image would freeze for a second randomly throughout a tape but always in the same place when I play it back. To me this indicated dirty heads (check the owner's manual). I ran my Panasonic head cleaning tape for 10 SECONDS - that's it. Head cleaning tapes are abrasive. Haven't had any dropouts since. (The image freezes in HDV because of long GOP encoding - info for 15 frames is grouped together, so if one goes, the whole 15 goes.)

[Rikki]

Although the recording is now digital its still a spinning and drum and capstan holding the tape inside the unit (i think) so the same theory would apply?