Hey guys, whenever I record some footage and watch it back it's very glitchy!!! I'm not sure if I pressed a button or what, the glitches aren't in the same spot everytime. Could it just need a good cleaning? Will my Mack Warrenty cover this?? If so do you know the average time for this to get fixed.
thanks guys
mike

yes, it sounds like your heads are dirty, the Mack warranty will cover normal cleaning issues, however, I hate their service as they will take their time with your camera.

over a month? I could let them have it for a month or so, I just finished my movie so i'm chillin!!

Greg,

Before you go shipping your camera away for service, take a trip down to your local electronics store and buy a MiniDV head cleaner. It shouldn't cost more than $15 and you should be able to find them at any Best Buy, Circuit City, etc.

Run the head cleaner through the camera in VTR mode and see what you get. Make sure you follow the instructions very carefully. Only run the head cleaner for 10 seconds. DO NOT REWIND! And DO NOT RUN MORE THAN 3 TIMES IN A ROW! This will effectively clear any normal head clogs you may have. And it may very well solve your problem in a few minutes instead of a month.

And by the way, for future reference, extended warranty plans are usually bullsh*t. I've never had a problem with a prosumer camcorder that wasn't covered under the manufacturers warranty, or cost more than $200. And most extended warranty plans will require that you ship the camera away for a month or longer. That's ridiculous.

If the $15 head cleaner doesn't clear up your glitches, then get your money's worth from that extended warranty. But be glad that you don't need the camera any time soon if you do ship it away.

Hey guys, whenever I record some footage and watch it back it's very glitchy!!! I'm not sure if I pressed a button or what, the glitches aren't in the same spot everytime. Could it just need a good cleaning? Will my Mack Warrenty cover this?? If so do you know the average time for this to get fixed.
thanks guys
mike


Greg, make sure to go to DVXuser.com for head cleaning procedures on the DVX. The details are on the site. Best of luck.

Greg--How many times have you seen glitches? I've owned both a DX100 and DVX100A, and on both cameras I will encounter the occaisonal "glitch" or dropout. Just curious to see if you are getting a lot of these, or just a couple. Additionally, glitching is not always the fault of the camera. It can be the tape, too. Are you using Master Quality tape?

Peter

yeah it's glitching so much you can't hear the audio!!! I use sony and only sony tapes, I haven't ever use any other tapes!!

Strange. I will say that it has been my experience that the DVX100 is very picky about tapes. Whenever I've put another brand tape in (never to record, just to play back into my computer for digitizing) I've had problems. I always run the head cleaner when I do this, as well, as different brand tapes have different lubricants that can gum up in the heads. Sometimes the DVX simply will not play these tapes back clean, and I'm forced to use a deck or find another camera to play them back. I'm guessing you've been using the Sony tapes for a while without problems, however. Did you switch grades or anything? I'd try the head cleaner, like everyone here suggests, and then buy just a box (5) of the Panasonic Master Quality tapes and see if you have better luck with these--they have been really great for me, with the performance of other brand tapes being spotty at best.

Peter

Peter,

It is very true that different manufacturers used different tape lubricants. However, the MiniDV tape lubricant was supposedly standardized in 2002 to eliminate this issue. I don't know whether or not this actually happened and was adopted by every manufacturer. I do agree that is still preferable to stick with one brand over another.

I've experienced problems with the Master Quality series of tapes. And in my opinion, they are overpriced.

There was an article published in VideoMaker Magazine that reported the findings of coercity and rentivity of MiniDV tapes. It found that all tapes performed exactly the same. With the exception of the Sony EX tapes. The Sony EX (Excellence) tapes performed better with higher coercity and rentivity ratings. The Sony EX tapes were found to be the same tape that used in Sony's DVCAM stock. Basically Sony was charging DVCAM buyers twice the price for the little blue case!

Also, it is not uncommon for head alignment to be a factor in playing back of tapes shot on other camcorders. Particularly Canon cameras. It is widely know issue that Canon's XL cameras have head alignment issues. And it is expected that the heads of any camera or deck could drift in alignment over time. Since MiniDV has such a microscopic track width, it is expected that you will eventually run into a tape that looks glitchy or as if your gear has a head clog, when if fact that tape is fine and alignment of the recorder or deck is off... If you're using your DVX as a playback unit to digitize footage from another camera, then you could very well be experiencing tape that was recorded with misaligned heads. Of course, you should always test for and then rule out head clogs and tape issues first. Then alert the owner of the tape that he may have misaligned heads. A couple days in the shop can realign the heads with little or no cost. Though you should inform them that they need to clone any footage shot before the head alignment is performed. Since after the heads are re-aligned the old footage will be out of whack!

Greg,

I suggest that if you feel you need to upgrade the tape stock you are using, then you should look into the Sony EX or Sony Digital Master. That way you stick with the same brand. Though it is still a good idea to have a head cleaner on hand for the occasional head clog.