Sony DHR-1000 playback of MiniDV tapes

[Rob Wolf]

Hi everyone,

I recently bought a Sony DHR-1000 to archive some MiniDV tapes. The deck appears to be in good working condition, but I can't get tapes to play back on the device. When I press play, I just get a grey screen.

Here's what I know:
* It is connected correctly, because I can see and navigate the menus on my TV
* I've tried a few different connections (RCA and coax) with the same result
* I've tried a variety of MiniDV tapes recorded on multiple cameras (both consumer and professional)
* It is an NTSC unit, and my tapes are NTSC
* I ran a head cleaner on the device.

In order to illustrate the problem, I made a short video showing what's up: http://1drv.ms/1IyPunQ

Any ideas?

Thanks,
Rob
@thatrobguy on Twitter

[Tim Paynter]

It sounds like you may not have completed the set-up properly. Here is a link to the manual (with a lot of ads mixed in), but looks like the original issue.

I didn't have much time to read the manual, but I suspect the play and record buttons are critical in your playback scenario.

Table Of Contents - Sony DHR-1000 Operating Instructions Manual [Page 3]

Tim

[Ron Evans]

The unit is set up to edit using another LANC controlled recorder /player and is able to do complex insert editing too. Unless another player is attached the button will stay as REC , the master in the setup . It looks as if you have a more severe problem than a setup. My unit still functions fine and it was one of the first in Canada many years ago. Did it work when you bought it ?

Ron Evans

[Shaun Roemich]

Can you go to timecode readout? If so, does it run when playing tapes? If not, either you are trying to play back LP recorded tapes (which the DHR1000 doesn't technically support but the +/-50% tape speed on the deck WILL sometimes accommodate, even if only for a short period of time). If not, your heads may be shot. PS. I own one that I inherited from my mentor which like Ron's, is one of the very first in Canada.