TV recording /DVD playing

[admin_exported]

Can someone help and advise me ? It's probably a common dilemma - how to update my tv system (for a secondary reception room )a bit more into the modern age.

I am still recording onto VHS video and have thought the time is at last right to finally buy that DVD recorder. I have an old style big boxy analogue tv, which I have no intention of changing for a year or two. The 2 options I'm considering are :-

1. Buy a DVD recorder with built in Freeview tuner. OR

2. Buy a good quality DVD player, and also a HDD recorder with Freeview, such as the recently launched Goodmans product.

As I record from TV fairly frequently, I am concerned about the reliability of DVD recorders - does anyone know if lasers & discs are as reliable in the long term as recording heads & video tapes have been? Leading on from this, is a HDD recorder a better long term bet.

Can anyone vouch for the quality & performance of the Goodmans HDD recorder ? I see there is still no review of it in the February edition of What Hi-Fi mag, could we have one as soon as possible please. Presumably it is the only one of it's type on the market, as I coudn't see anything similar listed. Ideally the purchase needs to be compatible if I buy a HD tv in a couple of years. Oh & I guess the price should be a max of £170 . Anyone ?!

 

[Anonymous]

I think you may have missed out on an option. You could buy a DVD recorder with a HDD built in. There are models in the price range you mention and you (kind of) get the best of both worlds. You can record shows onto HDD for every day viewing (like recording something on late at night and watching later) and you can also record live TV so that you can pause and rewind - nice if you are watching a sports event or if the phone rings during your favourite soap. With a DVD/HDD unit you can then record the show onto a DVD if you decide you want to keep it longer term. With a single combined unit the copy to DVD is very fast. If you had a separate systems you could only record in real time (i.e. a 2 hour movie would need to run for two hours on the HDD to record onto the DVD recorder).

I recently bought a Sony DVD/HDD unit and it works well as a DVD player (nice upscaling etc) and it has a good size hard drive to record stuff. Backing up from HDD to DVD is really quick and you can edit out commercials etc.

However I also use a Humax PVR9200. That is a twin digital tuner which allows me to record two shows simultaneously and then watch a third channel or something else previously recorded. In theory the Sony should be able to offer similar functionality (albeit only one channel at a time) - but having had a Humax for a couple of years I can say that I wouldn't watch TV without one. It is constantly storing the channel you are watching on it's HDD and rewinding or whatever is easily done on the fly. On the Sony I have to "plan" to want to rewind live TV by telling the recorder to store the channel I am watching. Sounds ok - but once you are used to the convenience of a PVR like the Humax, it's hard to go back. The Humax is unusual in having twin digital tuners. Again - once you've had that - it's hard to go back. I think the PVR from Topfield also has twin tuners.

The only drawback I now have is that copying from the Humax to a DVD is slow as I mentioned before - but if I think I'm going to want to keep the recording on DVD I would set it up to record on the DVD recorder - not the Humax.

Lastly I would say that the number of times I want to backup onto DVD is not as much as I expected. I watch most things then delete them. Programs are repeated so often you know you'll see it again soon enough..

 

[Anonymous]

Simonpaul,

Many thanks for your detailed reply, I am mulling it all over with further research.

 

[Anonymous]

Hi,

I have owned two Panasonic DVD recorders. Both have failed due to the DVD drive ceasing to work. The repair shop says a replacement RAM drive cost around £100.

The oldest Panasonic DVD recorder is around 3 years and has given excellent service. The second one I bought only a year or so ago and has had very little use. It expired after about 13 months.

I did expect these to last as long as my Panasonic VCR which I bought in 1994! I am very disappointed in the short life of these products. I have bought many Panasonic products and been very happy with them in the past.

I am planning to buy a PVR with a hard drive. Probably the Humax which is well reviewed.

 

[antant]

Hi

I have a sony hxd910 which I have had for over 3 years now ( has hdd and dvd recorder) have been very pleased with the picture and the recording quality. Was a lot of money at the time but well worth it. I know that there are smaller models out now and I think that they have twin tuners. Go with the all in one.