My Aunt and Uncle had that amazing RCA TV monitor and it was one of the BEST TV's I'd ever seen. It was full STEREO and had Bass and Treble controls and such rich sound I couldn't get over it. I remember around 1988-1989 my parents brought over our brand new Sony HI-FI VHS and WOW!!!! The stereo on the TV felt like you were there!! All of these newer TV are terrible for sound and remind me of an old radio alarm clock with their horrible thin sound. The RCA TV I believe was 10 watts per side and with the speakers matched to the AMP in that TV gave an amazing FULL sound and even made a couple pictures in the TV fall over LOL. Great video Databits!
I forgot that the CED has stereo sound by 1983. Also, I remember that humungous remote control. And that "convertible" portable VHS, which has it's own problems.
databits I've been looking for a model of VHS VCR for a number of years now... I'm 90% sure it was a Ferguson, and the tape slot was on the left-hand side (front loading). It's unique feature was that it had a framestore module (that sat behind the right-hand side of the front panel). The framestore meant that it could do superb freeze frame, trick shots, and Picture-In-Picture. I'm pretty sure it even said "PIP" on the front. It had a fairly slim looking black case. I recall that the framestore module was fully shielded, but with many holes in the shielding, and contained a few Mitsubishi parts like SIP DRAMs. Just wondered if you (or anyone else) might have stumbled upon the same or similar VCR, possibly sold under different brand names in the US? I've looked all over Google Images etc., but haven't even found anything from normal searches.
My grandfather had this exact VCR! And the camera that went with it...unfortunately its belts have turned into goo, but I hope to get it working again soon.
Oh, THANK YOU for this video. I just picked up a VKP-950T in great condition, but the belts had literally melted. Trying to replace the belts and I couldn't figure out how to get the bottom plastic off. I didn't want to force it and break it, so I spent hours and hours looking for a VKP-900 or 950 datasheet or service manual, but nothing. I don't know what the difference is between your VJP and my VKP, other than the VKP appears to be black instead of silver. It's gonna look great on top of my RCA Dimensia. :D
Thanks bud, learn something new every day, I never knew the tape actually came out of vcr cassette, I honestly thought it read the tape like a conventional cassette, explains why mine ate prety much every video I put in.
Old VRCs are a treasure trove for resistors. I've got two that were completely broken I've been mining for years. Sure, the leads are short, but there's a certain satisfaction of reusing good resistors rather than having to go and buy new ones.
I used to have that VCR, and the camera. I remember using it to make videos, I got pretty good at the editing features on it. I seriously think my parents have gotten rid of it by now though, unfortunately..
That tape pickup issue is EXACTLY the same problem my thrift-find 80's VCR has. Of course I expected as much when I got it, and would love to fix it, but I'm not about to tear it apart enough to really get that deep into it. Maybe one day though, but not today. the few seconds of play I can get out of though look great, so I hope I can one day use it like it was intended to be - hooked up to an 87 Trinitron!
We had that convertible VCR when I was a kid. I assume they will mention it later in the video but you could sort of wear it as a purse/backpack and connect it to a camcorder and record video, the removable VCR part contained a battery pack.
Awe c'mon. Take the number of circuit boards in a CS-80 and divide by 10 and you have one little ol' VCR. How do you know you won't like it until you try it?
Oh I'd recap that thing. I'v recapped a few motherboards and DVD players before, can't be that much worse. I'd also likely replace everything I could with polycaps, so they don't need replacement again for a LONG time. Bet you it's only 10-20 different values, especially with things this complicated they want to make the manufacturing as streamlined as possible. And reducing the number of capacitor types is probably one of them. But I guess that's just my thoughts.
The one thing that's truly breathtaking is the reminder how much circuitry was needed to make this thing work! Now with today's integration it's still the same, but it just canot be seen like this. Also after seeing the video: OH MY GOODNESS, all the trimpots in there must have been a nightmare to adjust when servicing.
Reporting video for taking my breath away, couldn't breath and had to reach over with what little energy I had to press the stop button to save myself. I can now see why there were never very many VCRs with this design, a true health hazard. ;)
I could imagine somebody absolutely losing their shit at the absurdity of ripping your VCR in half to make it portable, and then just slapping it right back together. Also "marvel of compaction" made me chuckle a bit. Back then portable meant that you could realistically carry it with you, and it didn't weigh over 10 pounds.
Was this branded as Akai in some parts of the world (Europe) back then? The first VCR my parents had in the early 80's was an Akai, and as far as I remember, it was practically identical to this. I have been looking for years for info about it, but can't find ANYTHING. So perhaps RCA and Akai is the same thing, depending on geography...?
I think RCA's OEM for VCRs was Matsushita, who also built units for many brands. There are a few books about Japanese industrial policy that detail who made what for VCR's.
Fixed many of those back in the day. Idler wheels and belts were common failure items. You should also remove the bottom cover and check to make sure that the four rubber cushions on each screwhole are removed. They were made of a type of material that would actually attack the PCB and eat up the traces. This is an extremely complicated VCR. I believe there also was a Minolta version.
Hold on,I'm catching my breath! Thanks for this. I got one yesterday. Powers all up and almost tries to play. I do have goo in my player. The giant silver thing spins,but the tape doesn't. I will watch all this and find out what I can maybe do
I'm pretty sure this is a Hitachi built model, it looks a lot like my 1983 Hitachi VT-7A. I got mine from my next door neighbor and I think the belts are also shot on it. It doesn't load and the tape doesn't move at all. It also makes a bad sound when it tries to thread the tape. I would like to try replacing the belts but I will bet money there will be other electronical problems which is beyond repair for me (soldering etc). It also looks like a nightmare to access the belts, so many boards you need to remove. And yup, you're right about the VHS portables, they are cursed with bad caps everywhere. I just gave up on trying to find one working and got a Betamax portable (SL-2000) from 1981, it works great and there's no leaky caps. Sony's stuff was amazing and still holds up today. I also have an older industrial Betamax portable, an SLO-340 from 1978. Still works.
Is the power button a latched style or momentary? I have to hold the power button down to keep the power on. This would really help me in diagnosis. Thanks!
I picked up a VKP-950T. Thanks to your video I was able to take it apart without breaking it and replace the belts. However, it's pretty slow to thread tape, and it's incapable of actually getting a tape to move. I just ordered a new pinch roller and idle assembly in hopes that'll fix it, as an old VCR repair video demonstrated the exact issue I was having as a result of a bad idler. However, when watching said VCR repair video, they're able to put it into some kind of service mode where it doesn't need a tape (so you can actually see the mechanism working.) Unfortunately the followup videos that show you _how_ to do it are missing. I looked everywhere for a service manual and couldn't find one that didn't cost $20,000 from some sketchy website. Do you have any idea how to put it into service mode so I can inspect the mechanism without having a tape in it?
I have a Panasonic top-loader from 1984 that tries to play tapes but then just spits them out after pulling some of the tape out, would that be a take-up issue?
1:12 "What you see here are the latest RCA video components. They represent some of the most sophisticated technology and video system design concepts available today!" Lol
Try this to fix the idler tire, remove the tire from the white plastic, wrap dental floss around the plastic to thicken the outer diameter, then put the tire back on. Trial and error to get it working right. This works I've done this, and no cost
What's the polarity of the 12v of the machine? I have a similar RCA Selectavision VCR that's a full portable unit and have no idea what the polarity of the plug is. I obviously don't want to blow it up by using the wrong polarity power supply.
The only other VCR I've seen with 5 video heads was the RCA VMT-590 which had amazing pause/scanning. And this definitely has 5, you can see them 16:09 (the head facing bottom left of the screen has the extra special effects head)
0:15 HD-DVD? What kind of dinosaur are you? :p (I still have my X360 HD-DVD drive, and some sealed disks. I actually preferred it to Blu Ray tbh. The menus seemed faster on similarly-priced hardware / software players at the time, and the video quality was awesome.)
Found it, thanks. Our Salvation Army store had an RCA CED player with a bunch of discs, but I remember how crappy they were when they were new so I passed on it.
Why is not taking the tape, the belt goes to a dedicated motor to do that ? or it is done by the tire in the middle. I would check is the 5V are fine since you get garbage on the LCD probably the other logic funtions are messed up as well.
Hey man, I have the same vcr that i'm tryna revive. Before I tried anything I could hear the motor turn and all fhe mecanism trying to work when I pressed play. I replaced all the belts and now when I try press "power" I can only hear a "click". Do you know what my problem is? Btw, you made a very nice video!!
@@databits But have you an idea why it worked before I opened it to change the belts? And I really need to change ALL the capacitors? There are so many of them hahah
Oh, you gotta get that brown goo off the boards! That stuff becomes conductive with age as it dries out! I would take a little chisel to it to get it off. But yeah, that brown gunk will definitely cause electrical issues. For sure!
1. Ive never seen a 5 head vcr. even in the 90s there was just 4 head hi-fi ones. 2. Just what is that in the beginning that loads from a case then spits it out? Is there a laser disc in that it removes and plays?
smcelectronics.com have a bunch of replacement idler wheels for vcr's. what you refer to as the tire. Also, if it's not totally hard, you can try a rubber restorer product, just be sure it's safe for plastic. I use CaiKleen RBR. Also, get yourself a can of Deoxit instead of using sandpaper to clean contacts.
those rubber idlear wheels are no fun and the one thing I have with rubber idlear is a panosonic caseett recorder from the arely 80s. the belt and rubber idlear are the original ones from the factory and still do the job. this tape recorder wasn't used very much
Sun James Just a name. The remnants of RCA were bought by Thomson, the French TV manufacturer. I am not sure off the top of my head whether Thomson still exists or was itself bought by some Asian company...
That 1983 promo video at the beginning was fun to watch.
johneygd I was kinda disappointed that we didn't get to see the whole thing.
Thank you so much for making this video!! We had this very same VCR with the camera. This brought back so many memories!
INTP Blog INTP for life
Very nice demonstration on how to open and dismantle an old and best quality tape recorder .thanks for your excellent video and informations.
Thanks for watching!
My Aunt and Uncle had that amazing RCA TV monitor and it was one of the BEST TV's I'd ever seen. It was full STEREO and had Bass and Treble controls and such rich sound I couldn't get over it. I remember around 1988-1989 my parents brought over our brand new Sony HI-FI VHS and WOW!!!! The stereo on the TV felt like you were there!! All of these newer TV are terrible for sound and remind me of an old radio alarm clock with their horrible thin sound. The RCA TV I believe was 10 watts per side and with the speakers matched to the AMP in that TV gave an amazing FULL sound and even made a couple pictures in the TV fall over LOL. Great video Databits!
I forgot that the CED has stereo sound by 1983. Also, I remember that humungous remote control. And that "convertible" portable VHS, which has it's own problems.
Stop, stop you had me at 18 function remote control
databits
I've been looking for a model of VHS VCR for a number of years now...
I'm 90% sure it was a Ferguson, and the tape slot was on the left-hand side (front loading).
It's unique feature was that it had a framestore module (that sat behind the right-hand side of the front panel).
The framestore meant that it could do superb freeze frame, trick shots, and Picture-In-Picture.
I'm pretty sure it even said "PIP" on the front. It had a fairly slim looking black case.
I recall that the framestore module was fully shielded, but with many holes in the shielding, and contained a few Mitsubishi parts like SIP DRAMs.
Just wondered if you (or anyone else) might have stumbled upon the same or similar VCR, possibly sold under different brand names in the US?
I've looked all over Google Images etc., but haven't even found anything from normal searches.
My grandfather had this exact VCR! And the camera that went with it...unfortunately its belts have turned into goo, but I hope to get it working again soon.
I got one does anybody know where to get all the belts beside Lowes ?
www.newark.com/c/fasteners-mechanical/mechanical-power-transmission/drive-belts
Databits love your channel
The promo's on CED, how ironic.
This a neat compact machine that is crammed full with electronics, motors, mechanics, wow. Looks well made and serviceable.
This demo disc is amazing
Oh, THANK YOU for this video. I just picked up a VKP-950T in great condition, but the belts had literally melted. Trying to replace the belts and I couldn't figure out how to get the bottom plastic off. I didn't want to force it and break it, so I spent hours and hours looking for a VKP-900 or 950 datasheet or service manual, but nothing. I don't know what the difference is between your VJP and my VKP, other than the VKP appears to be black instead of silver. It's gonna look great on top of my RCA Dimensia. :D
This is AMAZING ! Thank you for upping this.
Thanks for your comment!
Me too!
I was impressed when the guy in the demo slide the portable half off. I didn't know anything like that had ever been made.
I kinda wish RCA's Selectavision VCRs actually doubled as CED players.
Thanks bud, learn something new every day, I never knew the tape actually came out of vcr cassette, I honestly thought it read the tape like a conventional cassette, explains why mine ate prety much every video I put in.
I have the Hitachi version of that same VCR. It's a model VT-8E from 1984. The 4-head version, the VT-7E is from 1983.
Old VRCs are a treasure trove for resistors.
I've got two that were completely broken I've been mining for years. Sure, the leads are short, but there's a certain satisfaction of reusing good resistors rather than having to go and buy new ones.
I used to have that VCR, and the camera. I remember using it to make videos, I got pretty good at the editing features on it. I seriously think my parents have gotten rid of it by now though, unfortunately..
That tape pickup issue is EXACTLY the same problem my thrift-find 80's VCR has. Of course I expected as much when I got it, and would love to fix it, but I'm not about to tear it apart enough to really get that deep into it. Maybe one day though, but not today.
the few seconds of play I can get out of though look great, so I hope I can one day use it like it was intended to be - hooked up to an 87 Trinitron!
We had that convertible VCR when I was a kid. I assume they will mention it later in the video but you could sort of wear it as a purse/backpack and connect it to a camcorder and record video, the removable VCR part contained a battery pack.
I recapped a CS-80 synth, you can recap this! :)
+The Dollar Guy - No! I refuse! :)
*Peter Howell shows up*
DID SOMEONE SAY CS-80???
*doctor who theme starts to play like crazy*
Awe c'mon. Take the number of circuit boards in a CS-80 and divide by 10 and you have one little ol' VCR. How do you know you won't like it until you try it?
Easy to recap...but finding the required values...
Oh I'd recap that thing. I'v recapped a few motherboards and DVD players before, can't be that much worse. I'd also likely replace everything I could with polycaps, so they don't need replacement again for a LONG time. Bet you it's only 10-20 different values, especially with things this complicated they want to make the manufacturing as streamlined as possible. And reducing the number of capacitor types is probably one of them. But I guess that's just my thoughts.
The one thing that's truly breathtaking is the reminder how much circuitry was needed to make this thing work! Now with today's integration it's still the same, but it just canot be seen like this.
Also after seeing the video: OH MY GOODNESS, all the trimpots in there must have been a nightmare to adjust when servicing.
That video in the beginning looks like a demo how more information about your player will do, i was 7 in 1983. Im 48 now.
Reporting video for taking my breath away, couldn't breath and had to reach over with what little energy I had to press the stop button to save myself. I can now see why there were never very many VCRs with this design, a true health hazard. ;)
Haha, nice! Great response.
The TV is so sophisticated they had to put it in a wooden box just to tone things down a bit.
I have a VCR from 1986, and it didn't need new belts, I found it at a thrift store.
I could imagine somebody absolutely losing their shit at the absurdity of ripping your VCR in half to make it portable, and then just slapping it right back together.
Also "marvel of compaction" made me chuckle a bit. Back then portable meant that you could realistically carry it with you, and it didn't weigh over 10 pounds.
Was this branded as Akai in some parts of the world (Europe) back then? The first VCR my parents had in the early 80's was an Akai, and as far as I remember, it was practically identical to this. I have been looking for years for info about it, but can't find ANYTHING. So perhaps RCA and Akai is the same thing, depending on geography...?
Psylicium It wouldn't surprise me if that's where RCA had these made at.
I think RCA's OEM for VCRs was Matsushita, who also built units for many brands. There are a few books about Japanese industrial policy that detail who made what for VCR's.
Fixed many of those back in the day. Idler wheels and belts were common failure items. You should also remove the bottom cover and check to make sure that the four rubber cushions on each screwhole are removed. They were made of a type of material that would actually attack the PCB and eat up the traces. This is an extremely complicated VCR. I believe there also was a Minolta version.
My old Panasonic would not stop during a tape eating binge and would wreck the tape. Its kind of cool that this deck knows to stop.
Hold on,I'm catching my breath! Thanks for this. I got one yesterday. Powers all up and almost tries to play. I do have goo in my player. The giant silver thing spins,but the tape doesn't. I will watch all this and find out what I can maybe do
I'm pretty sure this is a Hitachi built model, it looks a lot like my 1983 Hitachi VT-7A. I got mine from my next door neighbor and I think the belts are also shot on it. It doesn't load and the tape doesn't move at all. It also makes a bad sound when it tries to thread the tape. I would like to try replacing the belts but I will bet money there will be other electronical problems which is beyond repair for me (soldering etc). It also looks like a nightmare to access the belts, so many boards you need to remove.
And yup, you're right about the VHS portables, they are cursed with bad caps everywhere. I just gave up on trying to find one working and got a Betamax portable (SL-2000) from 1981, it works great and there's no leaky caps. Sony's stuff was amazing and still holds up today. I also have an older industrial Betamax portable, an SLO-340 from 1978. Still works.
Anyone know how to find the replacement belts for this? I'm working on the same model
My dad had this. Probably the reason I work in IT.
The Tape Take-up problem is prompting the Syscon to stop operation. Fix your FF/REW Idler, and the unit will probably stay in PLAY.
Realy nice Porta-Pack. My old JVC has few functions and wieghs a ton.
nice edit job I have a Magnavox version of one like that I traded and paid money for back in the day just because it was stereo and portable;)
Is the power button a latched style or momentary? I have to hold the power button down to keep the power on. This would really help me in diagnosis. Thanks!
It probably has 5 video heads, one of them might be a flying-erase head not the normal erase head.
Gordon Freeman It has 2 heads for SP, 2 heads for EP and 1 head for perfect slow motion effects.
i have had several of these apart, what a nightmare! thanks for sharing your experience.
You're welcome!
I picked up a VKP-950T. Thanks to your video I was able to take it apart without breaking it and replace the belts. However, it's pretty slow to thread tape, and it's incapable of actually getting a tape to move. I just ordered a new pinch roller and idle assembly in hopes that'll fix it, as an old VCR repair video demonstrated the exact issue I was having as a result of a bad idler. However, when watching said VCR repair video, they're able to put it into some kind of service mode where it doesn't need a tape (so you can actually see the mechanism working.) Unfortunately the followup videos that show you _how_ to do it are missing. I looked everywhere for a service manual and couldn't find one that didn't cost $20,000 from some sketchy website. Do you have any idea how to put it into service mode so I can inspect the mechanism without having a tape in it?
I have a Panasonic top-loader from 1984 that tries to play tapes but then just spits them out after pulling some of the tape out, would that be a take-up issue?
1:12 "What you see here are the latest RCA video components. They represent some of the most sophisticated technology and video system design concepts available today!" Lol
This 1984 VCR put my 2004 jvc expensive VCR to shame
I think there is a missing spring that pulls the idler wheel (that you call tire) against the motor shaft.
I had 2 VCRs like them. They were nice machines!
My brother had another RCA portable that was a Hitachi built one.
Didn’t jvc have a similar vcr?
Totally had this or something very close to it in the house as a kid. I remember that remote.
Pretty cool teardown!
Here I am thinking, where can I get one?
Soooo many trimmer pots @10:29
Was it just me or did the brand new showcase Selectavision VCR in the promotional video already show paint wearing off the fast forward button?
Actually, that footage was inserted by me. :)
Try this to fix the idler tire, remove the tire from the white plastic, wrap dental floss around the plastic to thicken the outer diameter, then put the tire back on. Trial and error to get it working right. This works I've done this, and no cost
What was the owner of this fast forwarding more than anything else?
the inside of that thing looks like an engineering nightmare.
It's an engineering masterpiece!
What's the polarity of the 12v of the machine? I have a similar RCA Selectavision VCR that's a full portable unit and have no idea what the polarity of the plug is. I obviously don't want to blow it up by using the wrong polarity power supply.
If you open it up, it's easy to see inside which side of the power connector goes to ground.
Just pick up one of these at few weeks ago at a thrift store and it also has the same issue the belts went to jello.
This is incredible, HOW DO YOU GET THEM
my ant had this VCR thanks for uploading this video good to see this VCR again
The only other VCR I've seen with 5 video heads was the RCA VMT-590 which had amazing pause/scanning. And this definitely has 5, you can see them 16:09 (the head facing bottom left of the screen has the extra special effects head)
We solved quite a few odd problems by cleaning the mode switch.
0:15
HD-DVD? What kind of dinosaur are you? :p
(I still have my X360 HD-DVD drive, and some sealed disks. I actually preferred it to Blu Ray tbh. The menus seemed faster on similarly-priced hardware / software players at the time, and the video quality was awesome.)
At the time I was pro HD-DVD but BluRay ended up having more compatibility and storage space and was more malleable for higher resolutions
Any chance that you can post the whole CED?
The entire CED is available on TH-cam, just search the title.
Found it, thanks.
Our Salvation Army store had an RCA CED player with a bunch of discs, but I remember how crappy they were when they were new so I passed on it.
9,9k views, and only 73 comments? Shameful. But here's comment # 74, databits. 👍😊
that is a very cool VCR and it's shame it doesn't work
Why is not taking the tape, the belt goes to a dedicated motor to do that ? or it is done by the tire in the middle. I would check is the 5V are fine since you get garbage on the LCD probably the other logic funtions are messed up as well.
Could connect a camera with this unit
Hey man, I have the same vcr that i'm tryna revive. Before I tried anything I could hear the motor turn and all fhe mecanism trying to work when I pressed play. I replaced all the belts and now when I try press "power" I can only hear a "click". Do you know what my problem is? Btw, you made a very nice video!!
Thanks for your comments! I believe this machine needs all the capacitors replaced.
@@databits Cool, thanks for the advice!
@@databits But have you an idea why it worked before I opened it to change the belts? And I really need to change ALL the capacitors? There are so many of them hahah
Maybe not all, but checking each one before replacement could take even longer!
@@databits Oh yeah you're right hahaha
Can I buy it of you?
Guess what? I picked it today and it came with a Sylvania that goes along. I have no remote tho
Sounds like a power supply problem.
I have this promo also have some hifi vcr promos from rca too I sold and serviced RCA for many years
hi ADAT is kind of the same pulley's there are a fix for them as well
excellent
Thank you! Cheers!
RCA abandoned the CED.......RIP CED!
what's the significance of 'da' as ascii binary?
Scott Lawrence That Soylent Green is people. 😆
The Future!
I don't care what anybody else says. That is a sexy machine.
My breath is taken away. I'm going to need it back. Oxygen is important. ;)
Oh, you gotta get that brown goo off the boards! That stuff becomes conductive with age as it dries out! I would take a little chisel to it to get it off. But yeah, that brown gunk will definitely cause electrical issues. For sure!
Rubber seal renew should fix that dry tire.
1. Ive never seen a 5 head vcr. even in the 90s there was just 4 head hi-fi ones.
2. Just what is that in the beginning that loads from a case then spits it out? Is there a laser disc in that it removes and plays?
Basically yea, that plastic shell just holds the giant disc, which gets removed and put into the machine while the case itself is ejected ;)
Its the Nintendo Switch of VCRs
smcelectronics.com have a bunch of replacement idler wheels for vcr's. what you refer to as the tire. Also, if it's not totally hard, you can try a rubber restorer product, just be sure it's safe for plastic. I use CaiKleen RBR. Also, get yourself a can of Deoxit instead of using sandpaper to clean contacts.
"Only 17" wide"
WHY IN THE 80S WERE SO MANY CONVERTIBLE KIND OF THINGS????
we have a qasar vcr similar to this with tha video camera
mmm. Love the classics
5 head? My Sony has 6 heads
5 head system 4 heads on the picture drum for LP & SP 1 head for sound the 6th one is not a head its a magnet
those rubber idlear wheels are no fun and the one thing I have with rubber idlear is a panosonic caseett recorder from the arely 80s. the belt and rubber idlear are the original ones from the factory and still do the job. this tape recorder wasn't used very much
the binary in the intro says "da"
Correct, I couldn't fit the entire name databits...lol. Later I realized DB would have been more fun. Good catch!
Presented by Dr. Benton Quest.
What are RCA doing now? Make some garbage tablet? Or just a name？
Probably the latter. It still has some popularity in selected places, like in Argentina, for example.
Sun James It's merely a brand name used by a foreign company to sell cheap, inferior products these days, the company died in the mid 80's.
Sun James Just a name. The remnants of RCA were bought by Thomson, the French TV manufacturer. I am not sure off the top of my head whether Thomson still exists or was itself bought by some Asian company...
Zenith is better!!!!!!!! RCA sucks 👎👎👎👎
How well did the selectavision sell?