List VHS players with SP, LP, SLP and EP modes?

[Mister Brot]

First of all Hello from Germany...been looking for a Vhs rec. to buy so I can watch all the tapes I recorded from Tv....I know that in the States format is NSTC and in Germany is PAL......My problem is I looking for a list of Vhs players that tells me which ones have sp,lp,and slp.....looking in the internet there are always diferent explanations on What the difference is. some say EP is the same as SLP but some recorders say SP; EP; AND SLP.....what ever the case I need a list for those recorders with 3 different speeds.....in E_bay there are lots of recorders with "extended Play" but am yet to find one with Slp....so I figured if I had a list of recorders with the names that I can give in to Google I will know for sure that that player has SLP. Rob.. PS: sorry for the book

[lordsmurf]

This is an easy one.

SP = Standard Play
LP = Long Play
SLP = Super Long play (sometimes Slow Play)
EP = Extended Play

SP was first, when VHS debuted in the 1970s. I still have Japanese-made tapes from 1977, one of which was used to record the Star Wars Holiday Special when it aired in 1978.

LP was added not long after SP, though I don't remember the exact date.

SLP was added in the early/mid 80s. I still have the manual, warranty card, and the receipt from a Panasonic we bought in 1986 at Highlands, to the tune of $370! That manual refers to SLP mode, with 8 hours recording available on T160 tapes.

EP is indeed the same as SLP. I don't remember exactly when, or why, but SLP was renamed in the early 1990s. It was probably due to confusion with the same letters being used to distinguish the mode. SP+LP=SLP? And if I'm not mistaken, some models actually did accomplish SLP/EP by adding a set of heads to the standard SP recording. The SP was 2-head, while LP/SLP/EP was 4-head. But I'm going from memory here, and that was 30 years ago!

I've also read claims that SLP vs. EP was a Matsushita (JVC and Panasonic) thing. And since JVC invented the VHS format, that would mean that SLP was the official name of the mode. However, again, that eventually changed. Everything has been EP for decades now, Panasonic/JVC or otherwise.

In summary:

Anything you read about "SLP and EP" is either wrong or bad semantics/grammar. EP is SLP. SLP is EP.

PAL doesn't have SLP/EP. PAL has 3-hour SP, and 6-hour LP. And most of that is to due to the 25fps vs 29.97fps running time. Supposedly, some odd EP/SLP PAL machines existed, but I've never seen one. It's usually the ramblings of a person misremembering something from several decades ago.

[Mister Brot]

@lordsmurf: Thanks for that very precise list. sorry to say my question was not as precise. What I needed if possable is a list of the vhs players that have slp..I mean Ep ...whatever.....I recorded series as a hobby between the years 2007 and 2013......around 2011.. my vhs player which only had SP/LP bit the bullet and ended up getting a vhs from family (German made) and was sort of borrowing it .....and continued recording....I then was getting on a e-240 tape which I was getting ,6 hours on older player.....with the borrowed player I was getting 8+ hours which was fine by me because I just used it to rec shows when I was not at home. would record over 4 or 5 time and then throw the tape out.....the problem is I got a new vhs player and gave the other one back which has by the way has been thrown out .....I realized my misstake when I tried watching a tape that I had recorded on the borrowd player on my new player....tape was running fast.....dont know the name of the borrowed player (full name) I just know it was a sharp......and it had SLP or EP.....(It had three speeds)I just know my combie vhs/dvd player "Funai" only has SP and LP mode I need the names of players with slp/EP mode for just the reason you explained...."Anything you read about "SLP and EP" is either wrong or bad semantics/grammar" Most used vhs players you can buy says no return...so if I shelled out a couple of hundred bucks for a player that doesn't have SLP then I right back at square one...again sorry for this book that I just wrote......If you can't help then thats all right.....I'l just have to buy the origanal series from amazon one season at a time till I've seen all the shows I recorded......

[sanlyn]

The spec sheet on every Funai DVD/VHS combo player I could find claims that all of the Funai units have SP and SLP.

I could not find a list of any of the thousands of VCR players that have all three playing speeds. Have you ever heard of finding a player and checking its specifications from the maker's website or web documents? If you like, one could spend the next few weeks checking specs on a vast number of players, for which they would likely would charge a very healthy sum for the time and work. That's a jest, of course, but no such list exists.

Or if you prefer, find an auction site selling mainstream 4-head Panasonic VCR's from the last several years up to about 2004, all of which supported playback of SP, LP,. and SLP/EP. One high-end Panasonic I would recommend as the best available for slow-speed tapes would be a rebuilt Panasonic AG-1980 or other AG-19xx series, the best known available players to date for 6-hour and 8-hour tapes. They play SP, LP, and SLP/EP.

[Mister Brot]

just wanted to know if anybody new exactly what recorders had slp mode on in..... it didn't even have to be a large list 2 to 4 players would of been ok too....... any way here is the player I have and it only has SP AND LP ..... https://www.amazon.de/dp/B004MOF1XG/...4&sr=1-1-fkmr0 http://www.produktinfo.conrad.com/da...S_RECORDER.pdf

[sanlyn]

You are never going to find a PAL machine that plays "SLP" mode. SLP was used by NTSC tapes, not PAL. On some NTSC machines the slowest speed was called SLP, on some other NTSC machines the SLP mode was called EP. The SLP/EP mode on NTSC machines was 1/2 the speed of LP, and 1/4 the speed of NTSC "SP".

A very few PAL machines used an EP mode called "PAL EP", which was 1/3 the speed of LP. no PAL player I ever heard of would use the term "SLP", which is an NTSC playback and record mode.

One PAL series known for the special "PAL EP" mode was the Sharp VC-MH705, MH715, or MH722 series. These were 6-head machines. Another Sharp series I've heard about was the 4-head Sharp VC-H725X and VC-H720X series, which I believe were Australian. These played PAL modes Sp, LP, and PAL-EP, and NTSC SP and EP modes (they would not play NTSC "LP"). Or try the expensive JVC HR_S5980 PAL/NTSC multi-system 6-head VCR. A similar 6-hjead multi-system PAL/NTSC machine with PAL-EP mode is the Sharp VC-AA560. You can likely find more PAL-EP machines thru Google.

Most standard PAL machines didn't support PAL-EP, which offered 12 hours on E240 tape and was an atrociously poor image.

[Mister Brot]

Thks...believe it was EP mode.....will look into the players you listed...maybe when I see it I will reconize the borrowed player......

[Quasipal]

To add, Panasonic HS960, HS930, FJ760 and FJ630 have EP record and play. HS930 is the best of the range for EP.

[Mister Brot]

....Vhs search is on hold ....more important maters going on....still havn't looked for vhr for the above list but thks to you and the others who replied....someday...........