OT - Playback Issue with mini-dv tape

Tony_G wrote on 3/15/2015, 8:35 PM
I can use some advice. I still shoot with the Sony FX1 camera and I only use Sony Mini-DV tapes. Yesterday I shot a wedding, and one of the tapes is not playing back. I have tried it in the recording camera and other Sony FX1 cameras. It only gives me a blue screen with the time and date showing. I can fast forward the tape and see the video, but it will not play back at normal speed. All of the other tapes I used before and after this one worked fine.

Is there a way to manually adjust the tracking on these cameras, (I can’t find it in the manual) or is there a data recovery place that is recommended?
Thanks,
Tony

Comments

riredale wrote on 3/15/2015, 9:07 PM
I had an identical issue with an HDR-HC3 when they first came out. Couldn't solve it, sent the camera back.

I think what is happening is that the recording camera heads are getting clogged and are not putting a full-value signal on the tape. On FF the electronics in the camera can get enough information to build a low-res image, but otherwise can't build an HD image on regular playback, though they have enough to generate a timecode. That's my guess, anyway.

I've noted here that when in the past I experimentally re-used 80-minute HDV tapes many times there came a point at the beginning of the tape where playback couldn't build an image for the first few minutes, because of all the previous test passes on that part of the tape. The rest of the tape played fine. So I think it's a signal-strength issue.

All I can suggest is trying every HDV camera you can get your hands on. Perhaps one will be able to pull a satisfactory signal off the tape. Oh, and clean your heads. That may have been the issue in the first place.

One thread I saw just now while rummaging around with Google says that one guy got the video off his HDV tape by playing it in a deck that was able to play back at slow speed. He copied it that way, they sped it up in his NLE and it was perfectly fine. Except that he never got the audio off the tape.

I have several HDV cameras, as do many others on this board. I'm sure we would be willing to help if you want to mail the tape around.
Tony_G wrote on 3/15/2015, 9:27 PM
Actually, I’m starting to wonder if Sony has reduced the quality of their tapes. I noticed this last batch seemed a little different. I just found a tape from last weekend’s band performance that is not playing back either, and it was recorded in one of my other cameras.
johnmeyer wrote on 3/16/2015, 1:01 AM
I can fast forward the tape and see the video, but it will not play back at normal speed. All of the other tapes I used before and after this one worked fine. I also have a Sony FX-1.

If you can see something when fast forwarding, then the tape is still probably good. I've seen things like this before, both with my FX-1, as well as with my older SD Sony TRV-11 DV camcorder. I agree with the earlier post that this is most likely just a simple dirty head issue. Buy a cleaning tape, follow the directions exactly, and don't run it for more than 10 seconds at a time. I expect that if you use it 1-3 times, the problem will go away.

If you don't have a cleaning tape handy, try fast-forwarding all the way to the end, and then rewinding all the way to the beginning. This action of moving the tape rapidly over the heads sometimes will clear simple head clogs.

While the camera is in this funky state, try to avoid switching between tape brands. For example, don't try to play a Panasonic tape, and then right after that play a Sony tape. There were lots of posts about this a decade ago, stating that the difference in tape formulations could increase the likelihood of a head clog.

Don't worry too much about dirty heads. This is simply what happens to tape recorders and tape-based cameras as the oxide-based tape moves across the heads. Don't clean the heads until you need to, but when you start having problems, don't fret about having to clean them. It is a normal thing to have to do.
farss wrote on 3/16/2015, 2:25 AM
Exactly what causes this I don't know. We' had the same thing happen with one tape, the previous and next tape that was recorded on the same shoot with the same camera was fine.
We tried every HDV VCR we had, exactly same result. Tape was sent to Sony Au for analysis and they sent it to the boffins at Sony HQ. Never had an explanation as to what was and what wasn't on the tape to cause these symptoms, it couldn't be a head clog, something more like the I frames weren't recorded but how or why that can happen seems to escape everyone's knowledge.
The same camera worked flawlessly until we retired all our HDV cameras.

I wish I knew more, it is interesting that someone else has had the same problem though.

Bob.
TheHappyFriar wrote on 3/16/2015, 6:49 AM
Don't clean the heads until you need to, but when you start having problems, don't fret about having to clean them. It is a normal thing to have to do.

The only issue with that is that waiting until a problem happens leads to a situation just like Tony had: unusable footage from a job. Periodic maintenance would be the best prevention but the manuals don't help much in that way. :(
JackW wrote on 3/16/2015, 2:11 PM
I have two mini DV decks that seem to play just about anything. I'll be glad to run your tape through these and see if I can recover video for you.

Contact me via forum email link if you want to give this a try.

Jack
Tony_G wrote on 3/16/2015, 7:56 PM
Thank you everyone for taking the time to reply. I do occasionally run the cleaning tape through the cameras, usually after I have several shoots or when I notice an increase in dropouts. I have only used Sony tapes in my cameras because of the issues with the different tape formulas (wet & dry). Of course that does not mean it’s not a dirty head issue. As suggested, I ran the cleaning tape through the camera again, and also tried running the tape back and forth from end to end with no luck. I have also tried the tape in every camera I have.

Now that I have seen two tapes that were recorded from two different cameras do the same thing, I’m suspecting it could be the quality of the tapes. I noticed the last batch of tapes seemed a little different, the cases seemed flimsy and the inserts were a little different, but the tapes look identical to the others. I have used several from the last batch with no other issues, so it could just be a fluke.

Jack I really appreciate your offer and I’m sending you an email.