JVC HRS5902U 4-Head Hi-Fi VCR, Black
Another rebuttal (This is fun!)
Okay!  I admit I was a bit condescending on my previous comment, but it's only because the review I was critiquing was illogical and the rating unfair.  I'll be good this time and try to be less of a smart aleck.<br />The original review to which I posted a rebuttal was flawed.  He bought an excellent, high-end VCR for the wrong reasons.  Then he complained when it did not perform better than technologically-possible in his system and gave it a one-star rating.  He has now compounded the error in his logic by trying to throw PRICE into the equation.  Did I realize that this machine costs 3 times as much as the cost of a standard VCR?  Yep, I just purchased an el-cheapo machine for about fifty bucks two weeks ago.  But I didn't need the capabilities of this sweet device.<br />First, a quick technology overview:  There are a number of factors that make up how clear and detailed a video image is going to look, but resolution appears to have the most effect so I'll concentrate on that.<br />The US television standard is called NTSC.  NTSC stands for National Television System Committee, or as those of us in the industry call it:  Never Twice the Same Color.  (NTSC stinks, but this is not the place for that discussion.)  Of the 525 NTSC scan lines, only 485 lines are used in the image.<br />Standard VHS VCRs can record and display only about 220 lines of resolution - less than half what your TV is capable of displaying.  Your standard TV broadcast (either off the air or cable) will get up to 330 lines on a good day.  A DVD player can output 540 lines.<br />The S-VHS VCRs can record and playback about 400 lines of resolution, or nearly twice what a standard VHS machine can display.  But there is problem:  it can only display as much data as was originally recorded.  If you're playing back an old VHS recording with 220 lines of resolution, that's all you're going to see.  If one records programs off the air ON THIS MACHINE, they will look a bit better when played back on this machine -- as good as your TV broadcast signal happens to be that day (up to 330 lines) -- but still not as good as a DVD.<br />So why would someone pay the big bucks and buy an S-VHS VCR?  Because if you have an S-VHS camcorder, this puppy is going to SHINE.  You can record and playback the full 400 lines of resolution - even on a standard NTSC TV set.  Also, the S-VHS technology allows for much better tape dubbing.  Ever try to copy a standard VHS tape?  The result appears to have about 100 lines of resolution and the colors bloom so badly it is unbearable to watch.  S-VHS machines do not have this problem.  Plus, this particular machine has a flying-erase head, which allows you to make beautiful edits.  You can take the six hours of video recorded at your family reunion and produce a one-hour tape of the highlights with seamless edits, then add your own narration with the audio over-dubbing capability of the JVC.  After that, you can make near-perfect copies to give to all your family members.  You CANNOT do that with a standard el-cheapo VHS VCR.  No way!  No how!<br />So...  If I owned an S-VHS camcorder, would I be willing to pay 3-times as much for this lovely VCR?  You betcha!!!<br />To give my own analogy, the previous writer said that there is no reason to buy a Porsche Carrera because it rides just as poorly as his Chevy pickup truck down the rut-filled dirt road he lives on yet costs three times as much as the Chevy and isn't as fast as a Lear Jet.  Substitute the JVC S-VHS VCR for the Porsche Carrera, a standard VCR for the Chevy pickup truck, an old VHS tape recorded off the air for the rut-filled dirt road, and a DVD player for the Lear Jet and you'll see my point.  He's comparing apples-to-oranges-to-pears.<br />And why, you ask, would I waste my time responding to this these ill-conceived reviews?  (It's quite obvious from the feedback so far that most people found my critiques much more \\"helpful\\" than his criticisms.)  It's because I use the reviews and ratings here quite often to determine which item I am going to purchase.  If I can help him (or others who read this) to THINK about what they write (state how well the item really operates, etc.) and then give fair reviews, we all profit and this customer review system becomes more valuable.<br />Thanks for reading this far.views and ratings here quite often to determine which item I am going to purchase.  If I can help him (or others who read this) to THINK about what they write (state how well the item really operates, etc.) and then give fair reviews, we all profit and this customer review system becomes more valuable.<br />Thanks for reading this far.