Im looking at buying a AGDVX100.

Does anyone know the average life of the heads?

I've seen a cam with about 400 hours on the heads.

your thoughts?

cheers

I bought a total of 4 Canon GL2's, 1 XL1, 1 XL1s, and 1 DVX100a, all used (all from Craigslist except 1 from eBay...and no I don't have all of those now, I sold a few too). All buying experiences have been great.

I guess if you have a good deal at you, see how many hours the heads have (I think they are good for about 1000 hours...someone correct me if I'm wrong because I've never been able to find a definite answer on the net) and if every function and button is working.

Some people advise to even bring a laptop and capture footage to it to make sure everything is good, but I never went that far. But I would bring headphones to make sure the audio still sounds okay and the headphone jack still works well.

I would say that is kind of up in the air on play heads. It could depend on a few things.

1) What kind of tapes did he use.
2) Did he clean the tape heads regularly.
3) Did he use the DVX to capture as well.(that will double the amount of wear on the play heads)

My friend had a DVX100A and his only went to about 200 hours before he had to have the play heads fixed. He had been capturing off it as well and I've notice that the DVX starts to show signs of wear after about 300 hours. You may buy it and find it works fine, but after about a month you could end up taking it to the repair shop.

Evan

Go for the A model if you can Tim, because Panasonic's first 100 model was quickly (and I mean quickly) revised, and for good reason.

Head life is like candle life - they work perfectly till they suddenly die. If he's used it on wind-swept beaches they'll die a lot sooner than if used to film weddings in little English churches.

Do get a look at any second-hand cam you intend to buy. Take a Maglight torch and carefully inspect the innards of the tape deck - it should all be bright, shiney and clean. Check for screw heads that are slightly burred, inspect the front element with surgical precision and listen carefully with your ear to the camera body as you film.

tom.

Thanks Tom

Yes, I may buy the DVX100A - looks good. Thanks for your advice on inspecting.

Regards

What are the differences between the DVX100E and the newer DVX100A?

The 100E may simply be the European (PAL) version of the original 100. The 100A brought with it many worthwhile improvements (slow shutter speeds for instance) and the B version was a last ditch attempt to sell the thing in the face of Sony's growing HDV competition.