"Remove cassette" error message at DVinfo.net

Terry Postings · August 15th, 2004, 01:09 PM

I have owned a GL1 for three years and have been very impressed with the picture quality. However, it has not been a reliable camera. While it was still under warranty I experienced a "remove cassette" error message on playback and was unable
play back the tape. The camera went back to Canon for repair and they kept the camera for five weeks to carry out repairs.
Since then it has been back for repair three more times to a local repair shop for the same problem. I have tried different brands of tape, but that has not stopped the problem from returning. The tapes with the error message will play back on different cameras, so it does not appear that tape is the problem.
I am suspecting that this just a bad camera with a fault which is difficult to pin down, so am considering buying a GL2, as I use my camera on my travels and need it to be reliable.
Has anyone experienced this problem? Will the GL2 prove to be more reliable?

Thanks,
Terry

Graham Bernard · August 15th, 2004, 03:18 PM

Terry - . . . Try putting "remove cassette" in the search facility here. I got back 19 threads and the longest one had some 65 responses. the other "feature" is the wayward zoom. Would I buy another XM2? Yup!

Grazie

Rob Lohman · August 15th, 2004, 04:46 PM

Terry, welcome aboard. As Graham has already pointed out
there is wealth of information already available on this subject.
There was even one pretty high on the list when you entered
this forum (just a couple of threads down):

http://www.dvinfo.net/conf/showthrea...threadid=30534

Ryan Graham · September 13th, 2004, 10:42 AM

Hi All,

Having read through all of the threads about this problem (which I am currently affected by), I still have a question: if the camera is not under warranty, how much will it cost to have Canon do the repair?

Just FYI, I'm in the US and will be sending it to the NJ center.

Thanks,
Ryan Graham

Clayton Woodley · September 14th, 2004, 02:46 PM

The error message you are recieving is indicating that you have dirty heads. Head cleaning is a pretty big problem, and when you switched tapes to try to fix it you actually made it worse. Each brand of tape has a residue to it, these can build up pretty fast. It's recomended that you stick to 1 brand of tapes (I only use sony "premium" tapes) and i havent had a problem with them.

have you tried a head cleaning tape yet?

if that doesnt work you will have to send it to cannon
I think it's a couple hundred bucks to replace, I'm not sure.
ask them

Ryan Graham · September 14th, 2004, 04:14 PM

It's definitely not dirty heads. I've only used Sony Excellence tapes. This is a common problem with the Canons that is referenced in the link above. It does not affect playback, only fast-forwarding and rewinding.

Anyone actually sent their camera in for this problem? Just wondering if it is worth it to get it fixed, or if I should just buy another cheapo camera for playback/capturing.

Thanks,
Ryan

Eric Chan · September 14th, 2004, 07:03 PM

I don't think it has to do with mixing tape either... I only used Sony premium tape since the beginning and I started having the "remove cassette" problem happening 3 months ago. First it happened only when I tried to rewind tape. Then, it got worse (about 3 weeks ago) to a point that I can no longer record anything. I tried cleansing tape, no help. It just seem to me that Canon camera is not reliable enough for event capturing such as wedding and concert. Camera breakdown should be the last thing you need to worry on your list.

David Ennis · September 18th, 2004, 03:01 PM

I don't think it's tape brand either. I think it's random variation in the amount of drag in tape casssette mechanisms coupled with either a generally frail Canon design or specific defect in materials or workmanship that occurs in a small but unacceptably high percentage of units.

I discuss it a bit further in this thread:

http://www.camcorderinfo.com/bbs/t107226.html

Steve Olds · September 19th, 2004, 04:10 PM

You know I had a Sony analog that I did not take very good care of lots of outdoor hunting fishing use never a problem. It was a $350.00 camera. And the image is still great. Now with a $1700.00 camera I see people with all kinds of problems. I now baby my camera thinking that if I even frown at it it will go on strike or quit. What is the deal?

Eric Chan · September 28th, 2004, 07:38 PM

Just got a reply back from the local canon authorized repair shop, they said there is a problem with my camera cassette mechanism and they gave me 2 options:

CAD 450 to repair it or
CAD 680 to replace it

What is your suggestion? replace or repair?... both have 3 months warranty after and both need to order new parts.

Ryan Graham · September 29th, 2004, 07:27 AM

Is that 650 to replace the entire camera, or just the cassette mechanism? Because I've heard quotes of much less than that from Canon's repair center in New Jersey for replacing the mechanism. If that's for replacing the whole camera with a new one, then I guess that's a pretty good deal, though. If not, you might want to consider sending it off to New Jersey or one of the other Canon repair centers.

Keep us updated, though. I'd be interested to see how this turns out!

Ryan Graham

Eric Chan · September 29th, 2004, 10:09 AM

The quote are in Canadian dollar and it only covers the cost of replacing/repairing the cassette mechanism. I wish they will give me a new camera for that price... :0

Steve Olds · September 29th, 2004, 11:55 AM

Yikes! lots of bucks there.
Steve

Rob Lyons · January 20th, 2005, 03:19 PM

Tape brand is actually very important, theres hardly a difference in quality between the different brands, but picking one brand and sticking with is the key. I shoot on fuji film tapes and occasionaly when I'm forced to use a different brand I've encountered the "remove tape" message. The problem was solved after head cleaning and returning to fuji brand tapes. After extensive shooting on many 3 ccd camcorders I've realized this problem is more apparent in the canon cameras than sony or panasonic. From experience I believe that the majority of " remove cassete" errors is due to tape residue issues on the heads.

Chris Dornack · January 25th, 2005, 05:17 PM

cost me 412$ US to repair the problem direct from the cannon new jersey facility. Explanation on the invoice said 400 labor 12 tax and that was it. However, camera appears to be working again.

August 15th, 2004, 01:09 PM	#1
Terry Postings Tourist Join Date: Aug 2004 Location: Edmonton Alberta Canada Posts: 1	"Remove cassette" error message I have owned a GL1 for three years and have been very impressed with the picture quality. However, it has not been a reliable camera. While it was still under warranty I experienced a "remove cassette" error message on playback and was unable play back the tape. The camera went back to Canon for repair and they kept the camera for five weeks to carry out repairs. Since then it has been back for repair three more times to a local repair shop for the same problem. I have tried different brands of tape, but that has not stopped the problem from returning. The tapes with the error message will play back on different cameras, so it does not appear that tape is the problem. I am suspecting that this just a bad camera with a fault which is difficult to pin down, so am considering buying a GL2, as I use my camera on my travels and need it to be reliable. Has anyone experienced this problem? Will the GL2 prove to be more reliable? Thanks, Terry

August 15th, 2004, 03:18 PM	#2
Graham Bernard Old Boot Join Date: Aug 2002 Location: London UK Posts: 3,633	Call me shortsighted . . . .. Terry - . . . Try putting "remove cassette" in the search facility here. I got back 19 threads and the longest one had some 65 responses. the other "feature" is the wayward zoom. Would I buy another XM2? Yup! Grazie

August 15th, 2004, 04:46 PM	#3
Rob Lohman RED Code Chef Join Date: Oct 2001 Location: Holland Posts: 12,514	Terry, welcome aboard. As Graham has already pointed out there is wealth of information already available on this subject. There was even one pretty high on the list when you entered this forum (just a couple of threads down): http://www.dvinfo.net/conf/showthrea...threadid=30534 __________________ Rob Lohman, visuar@iname.com DV Info Wrangler & RED Code Chef Join the DV Challenge \| Lady X Search DVinfo.net for quick answers \| Buy from the best: DVinfo.net sponsors

September 14th, 2004, 02:46 PM	#5
Clayton Woodley New Boot Join Date: Nov 2003 Location: Manhattan Beach, CA Posts: 14	gl heads The error message you are recieving is indicating that you have dirty heads. Head cleaning is a pretty big problem, and when you switched tapes to try to fix it you actually made it worse. Each brand of tape has a residue to it, these can build up pretty fast. It's recomended that you stick to 1 brand of tapes (I only use sony "premium" tapes) and i havent had a problem with them. have you tried a head cleaning tape yet? if that doesnt work you will have to send it to cannon I think it's a couple hundred bucks to replace, I'm not sure. ask them

September 18th, 2004, 03:01 PM	#8
David Ennis Fred Retread Join Date: Jul 2004 Location: Hartford, CT Posts: 1,227	I don't think it's tape brand either. I think it's random variation in the amount of drag in tape casssette mechanisms coupled with either a generally frail Canon design or specific defect in materials or workmanship that occurs in a small but unacceptably high percentage of units. I discuss it a bit further in this thread: http://www.camcorderinfo.com/bbs/t107226.html __________________ "Nothing in the world can take the place of persistence..." - Calvin Coolidge "My brain is wired to want to know how other things are wired." - Me

September 13th, 2004, 10:42 AM	#4
Ryan Graham Regular Crew Join Date: Dec 2003 Location: Baltimore, MD Posts: 81	Hi All, Having read through all of the threads about this problem (which I am currently affected by), I still have a question: if the camera is not under warranty, how much will it cost to have Canon do the repair? Just FYI, I'm in the US and will be sending it to the NJ center. Thanks, Ryan Graham

September 14th, 2004, 04:14 PM	#6
Ryan Graham Regular Crew Join Date: Dec 2003 Location: Baltimore, MD Posts: 81	It's definitely not dirty heads. I've only used Sony Excellence tapes. This is a common problem with the Canons that is referenced in the link above. It does not affect playback, only fast-forwarding and rewinding. Anyone actually sent their camera in for this problem? Just wondering if it is worth it to get it fixed, or if I should just buy another cheapo camera for playback/capturing. Thanks, Ryan

September 14th, 2004, 07:03 PM	#7
Eric Chan Regular Crew Join Date: Apr 2004 Location: Vancouver, BC, Canada Posts: 60	I don't think it has to do with mixing tape either... I only used Sony premium tape since the beginning and I started having the "remove cassette" problem happening 3 months ago. First it happened only when I tried to rewind tape. Then, it got worse (about 3 weeks ago) to a point that I can no longer record anything. I tried cleansing tape, no help. It just seem to me that Canon camera is not reliable enough for event capturing such as wedding and concert. Camera breakdown should be the last thing you need to worry on your list.

September 19th, 2004, 04:10 PM	#9
Steve Olds Regular Crew Join Date: Oct 2003 Location: Rolla, Mo Posts: 116	You know I had a Sony analog that I did not take very good care of lots of outdoor hunting fishing use never a problem. It was a $350.00 camera. And the image is still great. Now with a $1700.00 camera I see people with all kinds of problems. I now baby my camera thinking that if I even frown at it it will go on strike or quit. What is the deal?

September 28th, 2004, 07:38 PM	#10
Eric Chan Regular Crew Join Date: Apr 2004 Location: Vancouver, BC, Canada Posts: 60	Just got a reply back from the local canon authorized repair shop, they said there is a problem with my camera cassette mechanism and they gave me 2 options: CAD 450 to repair it or CAD 680 to replace it What is your suggestion? replace or repair?... both have 3 months warranty after and both need to order new parts.

September 29th, 2004, 07:27 AM	#11
Ryan Graham Regular Crew Join Date: Dec 2003 Location: Baltimore, MD Posts: 81	Is that 650 to replace the entire camera, or just the cassette mechanism? Because I've heard quotes of much less than that from Canon's repair center in New Jersey for replacing the mechanism. If that's for replacing the whole camera with a new one, then I guess that's a pretty good deal, though. If not, you might want to consider sending it off to New Jersey or one of the other Canon repair centers. Keep us updated, though. I'd be interested to see how this turns out! Ryan Graham

September 29th, 2004, 10:09 AM	#12
Eric Chan Regular Crew Join Date: Apr 2004 Location: Vancouver, BC, Canada Posts: 60	The quote are in Canadian dollar and it only covers the cost of replacing/repairing the cassette mechanism. I wish they will give me a new camera for that price... :0

September 29th, 2004, 11:55 AM	#13
Steve Olds Regular Crew Join Date: Oct 2003 Location: Rolla, Mo Posts: 116	Yikes! lots of bucks there. Steve

January 20th, 2005, 03:19 PM	#14
Rob Lyons New Boot Join Date: Jan 2005 Location: Vancouver B.C. Canada Posts: 19	Tape brand is actually very important, theres hardly a difference in quality between the different brands, but picking one brand and sticking with is the key. I shoot on fuji film tapes and occasionaly when I'm forced to use a different brand I've encountered the "remove tape" message. The problem was solved after head cleaning and returning to fuji brand tapes. After extensive shooting on many 3 ccd camcorders I've realized this problem is more apparent in the canon cameras than sony or panasonic. From experience I believe that the majority of " remove cassete" errors is due to tape residue issues on the heads.

January 25th, 2005, 05:17 PM	#15
Chris Dornack New Boot Join Date: Aug 2003 Location: Rochester, MN Posts: 21	yup its a problem cost me 412$ US to repair the problem direct from the cannon new jersey facility. Explanation on the invoice said 400 labor 12 tax and that was it. However, camera appears to be working again. __________________ Chris Dornack@hotmail.com