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VHS Hi-Fi instead of R2R or Cassette

Copa1934

Copa1934

My ears are bleeding
Back in the day I learned from a friend how nice VHS HiFi truly was. Incredible frequency range, amazing dynamic range and up to 6 hours of music. Less fuss than R2R and hands down superior to Cassette.

So, how many out there tried using, or even knew about this?
 
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I used to have a 6 head Hitachi I used just for that. It's all gone now. I got the idea from Infinity decades ago at a Hi Fi show. That is what they were using for their source on their TOTL QLS speakers at the time.
 
I dabbled with that in the mid 90's, but because I had a DAT machine, I didn't really use the format. The sound was very good and could store many hours of music, tapes were cheap too.
 
VHS HiFi

I made & listened to many VHS HiFi tapes back in the late 80s to early 90s.
The problem with this format is the damn hardware! Those VHS recorders frequently self destruct within 1 to 3 years of normal use. So the tapes now gather dust.
 
You'll hate me for this but my RS HiFi lasted 10 years, and mind you we had three children and Disney movies, as well as rentals, were played with great regularity. I used to remember who the original manufacturer was but it escapes me now.
 
If you run the tape speed at standard speed you will get better sound quality then
the long play setting, this is because of what they call tape to head ratio and on
standard play setting you get the fastest tape to head ratio, you get about 120
minutes of audio playback.
Because these VCRs had such a high tape to head ratio even better then the reel
to reel tape machines they were found to be excellent audio recorders, then came
the DAT recorder's.
Some HiFi VCRs are better then others when it comes to audio, I have a
Mitsubishi HS-410UR that I have had since 1987 it's a four head unit, I can't
find the manual right now but if I remember correctly two of the heads were for
audio only, I used to use it all the time to record just audio and I always thought it
sounded excellent.
They're are some units that the had stationary audio heads and they were not that
good on audio reproduction and they faded away quickly.

So yes you can get some outstanding results with the right HiFi VCR.

Now I just tried to put a tape in my Mitsubishi and it appears it has to serviced,:sigh:
it's been sitting a few years since I last used it and needs a new replacement rubber
kit, but I can't complain to much it's been very reliable and I have had a least a
couple of decades of service from it.:)
 
I have a small library of VHS(HiFi) recordings going way back and listen to them relatively regularly. So far so good as sound quality is wonderful and if I have to playback on a machine that the tape wasnt recorded on, a simple tracking adjustment makes everything nice,
I just picked up a Panasonic AG-1970, "professional grade" 4 head unit, very heavy duty and sounds great, for very little dollars.
 
nitrous said:
I made & listened to many VHS HiFi tapes back in the late 80s to early 90s.
The problem with this format is the damn hardware! Those VHS recorders frequently self destruct within 1 to 3 years of normal use. So the tapes now gather dust.
Click to expand...

My old Sony SLV-494HF hi-fi is still working like new :thmbsp:
 
The tapes don't fit so good in my truck's in-dash cassette player.

Tried it, it worked fine. That's all I have to say about that. It's much easier to drag-n-drop a compilation these days.
 
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I used to use my Beta and VHS Hi-Fi to record off the radio and I made music compilations on some tapes. Now I use my music server.
 
Made a couple mix tapes in the 90s with my Panasonic, and as mentioned already the Hi-Fi format sounds very good (IMO when the SP mode is used, as good as the CD itself), but found the lack of easy track accessiblity could be kinda irritating.

Btw my deck had no recording level controls like some of the really nice Hi-Fi decks, so am not sure how much the dynamic range was affected by the built-in auto level controller.

I've made some tapes of sporting events I recorded & replaced the original soundtrack using music from the CD player - lots of fun to watch the action while the music plays in such high quality. :thmbsp:
 
In 1985 I bought a Sharp stereo VHS, specifically for this duty (and to tape broadcast performances). It sounded incredibly tight and had superb dynamic range. Ideal for parties as well. The VCR lasted no less than 15 years(!) and was replaced by two Sony units which I still have today. I don't use them for audio much anymore, that duty has been taken up by the computer and digital media. That Sharp was really nice, you could choose recording speed, it had recording level sliders and ran on half speed for audio only. Wish it was still working, I really loved that unit.
 
I have never used mine for that. I got the highest end Fisher when it came out. do believe I bought it in 87 maybe? Has all the bells and whistles. Audio LED meters in the front. You can adjust the audio record. I do love the clarity of sound when it is used. I have replaced many belts in it. Replaced the video head a few years back. I am going to try recording music on it. The thought never crossed my mind to do this. I always thought music video was cool.
 
I've owned one (a Zenith "VHS HiFi Audio-Video Recorder" by name) and used it since 1986.
The ones designed for audio recording (i.e., with variable audio input level controls instead of always-on ALC) are actually quite good (benefiting from the use of high-quality tape).

attachment.php


In the photo, the VCR is in action, dubbing more holiday favorites from licorice pizza to VHS HiFi Audio videotape (December 2009).
 
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BrokenHill said:
If you run the tape speed at standard speed you will get better sound quality then
the long play setting, this is because of what they call tape to head ratio and on
standard play setting you get the fastest tape to head ratio...
Click to expand...
Actually the exact opposite happens. You get faster head velocity at the slower (LP, SLP-EP) speeds. The heads on the cylinder are rotating in the same direction as tape movement. If the tape moves faster in the same direction as the rotating heads, the faster the tape movement the slower the effective write-read speed of the heads. If you moved the tape fast enough you would be at the same speed as the spinning heads! The sound quality is determined by the FM record-playback process and electronics. VHS HiFi records two FM carriers, one at 1.3 mHz and the other at 1.7 mHz for the L and R audio channels. Also uses a compression-expansion noise reduction similar to DBX to get a decent signal to noise ratio. Sometimes you can hear the noise reduction working on certain types of music with pure tones like flutes, piano etc.
 
Ed in Tx said:
Actually the exact opposite happens. You get faster head velocity at the slower (LP, SLP-EP) speeds. The heads on the cylinder are rotating in the same direction as tape movement. If the tape moves faster in the same direction as the rotating heads, the faster the tape movement the slower the effective write-read speed of the heads. If you moved the tape fast enough you would be at the same speed as the spinning heads! The sound quality is determined by the FM record-playback process and electronics. VHS HiFi records two FM carriers, one at 1.3 mHz and the other at 1.7 mHz for the L and R audio channels. Also uses a compression-expansion noise reduction similar to DBX to get a decent signal to noise ratio. Sometimes you can hear the noise reduction working on certain types of music with pure tones like flutes, piano etc.
Click to expand...

Ed, this is correct, but at the SP speed, the signal is spread out over more area of the tape than at the slower speeds, and you get fewer dropouts.Some decks muted the audio when there was a dropout, others gave you popping or static.
 
dr*audio said:
Ed, this is correct, but at the SP speed, the signal is spread out over more area of the tape than at the slower speeds, and you get fewer dropouts.Some decks muted the audio when there was a dropout, others gave you popping or static.
Click to expand...
Would be valid if you had different width hifi heads to write wider tracks onto the tape at the higher speeds. In a multihead machine at SP speed, 58 micron video heads utilize all the tape oxide coating, but the single pair of hifi heads still write the same track width as at a slower speed.
 
My baby..

I wish I knew more about electronics at the time (when it stopped working) as I'm guessing I might have been able to salvage it. I wish I could remember who made them. It was heavy and solid.

Mine had the level controls, which worked like any audio recorder, which meant you could under/over saturate a tape. There was no way I could afford a DAT at the time and I don't believe my receiver at the time would have been ablt to take advantage of DAT. Oh, working for the Shack and taking advantage of discounts during sales made buying this stuff infinitely easier on the pocket book.
 
Ed in Tx said:
Would be valid if you had different width hifi heads to write wider tracks onto the tape at the higher speeds. In a multihead machine at SP speed, 58 micron video heads utilize all the tape oxide coating, but the single pair of hifi heads still write the same track width as at a slower speed.
Click to expand...

The head spins at the same speed no matter what, but the linear speed changes with the record speed. Since the head is tilted, the rotating head lays down a diagonal track on the tape, and if the linear speed increases, the track gets spread out over a greater distance on the tape.
 
"I just picked up a Panasonic AG-1970"

I have a 1980, used to have 4 1970's. (same thing)
The best thing for audio is that they have level controls and meters.
Also the flying erase head for seamless ( nearly) editing.
Fun deck to use.

When you guys use the video decks to make a "mix tape" do you also supply it with a random
video signal ? Or does it turn out not to be necessary ?
 
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