Zenith XBV442 Progressive-Scan DVD/VCR Combo
Great once you get a working one!
I spent a good few days doing research on DVD/VCR combos on amazon.com since so many people seem to have problems with Sony and Panasonic models.  I found the Zenith model seemed to have the least number of bad reviews so I went to Circuit City and bought it (for the same price as Amazon had it, but this way I could forgo shipping costs)<br /><br />That being said, I got home and hoooked it all up... and had the SAME exact problem as Kolbasik wrote abought a few entries below.  The one sound channel made a horrible crackling noise.  Obviously this a fault in production.  Yes, it played the audio, but theres was high pitched static throughout it.  So, it was another trip to Circuit City and I exchanged it.<br /><br />What I did notice, however, is the model I had with the audio problem was manufactured in August of 2004.  The working model I was given as an exchange was manfuactured in Spetember of 2004, so maybe whatever flaw in the audio was fixed?  You can't find out when it was made unless you open up the box and look at the back of the unit itself, but it's something to think about.<br /><br />As for the working DVD/VCR player itself, it works great!  The only qualm I have is that it does not automatically format DVDs at times.  If you are watching a 16:9 widescreen format, it will sometimes leave it at full screen or at the wrong format of 2.35:1 which will either make everything squished or everything stretched out looking.  Not a huge issue since you can easily go into the menu and change the screen format, but I just find it a little odd it doesn't do it automatically from time to time like my old DVD player did.<br /><br />The video quality is excellent, and the same goes for the audio.  The DVD side had extremely fast forwarding and rewinding, and I like that when you forward to the next chapter, it tells you it's 2/16 of 5/25 (handy to know when your skipping through scenes of TV shows on DVD)  There are front AV jacks, and seperate ones for the DVD player and the VCR, and theres also one for the VCR DVD combo so you don't have to switch.<br /><br />In any event, once I got past the exchange process, it's pretty much worth every penny of the price.  Just watch out for models manufactured in August of 2004!  Keep your reciept until you get home to try it out!ayer and the VCR, and theres also one for the VCR DVD combo so you don't have to switch. <br /> <br />In any event, once I got past the exchange process, it's pretty much worth every penny of the price.  Just watch out for models manufactured in August of 2004!  Keep your reciept until you get home to try it out!