Annoying background sound on JVC S-VHS VCR?
 

I recently bought a S-VHS JVC SR-V10U for the first time, which is a very top model according to this guide's info:

https://www.digitalfaq.com/forum/vid...ing-guide.html

Everything seems fine, except for one little problem: there's a very annoying background sound when playing any tape :smack:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZoBYTNDFLAI

Is there any way to fix this? :depressed: I really want to try to fix this VHS player, since it's very hard to find nowadays and it was very expensive.

I'll really appreciate any piece of advice!🙏

I won’t ask where you purchased the unit…
Are you using a UPS?
Did you try the different audio settings on the VCR?
Different capture dongle (if USB).
Shut off nearby electrical equipment.
Try another room/office with a different power supply.
Does the audio interference get picked up during capture?

I'm not using a UPS.

I can't access the menu through the front buttons and didn't come with a remote controller. However, I tried turning ON and OFF the TBC in the front panel but nothing changes.

I have others VCRs that work fine, the problem is not the USB capture dongle.

There are no others electrical equipment near (just the VCR and the PC). Turning off the PC doesn't change anything.

Tried with a different power supply. Still the same problem with the noise.

And yes, I can hear the audio interference both while playing and in the recording.

A look at the noise waveform, about 10 pulses per second. Very regular. Is it in the linear or HiFi output only or in both?

Attachment 16482

I have the same background noise in both Hifi and normal linear audio :(

a cap may need a replacement i believe. But have you tried to hook it on the tv directly and tried other audio cables by any chance ?

Check this video:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MaLZCopEbwo

By this do you mean you can actually hear it in the room, like a physical ticking, not just through speakers?

Does it change if you use EP/SLP vs SP speed tapes?

If the machine will record is it the same in recordings you make at SP and EP speeds?

Yes I tried that too. Plus, I have other VCRs that work perfectly fine. I tried different methods and devices and the problem is definitely this VCR.

No no, I can only hear the sound through the TV and on the recordings.

I can't change the speed, the front panel is very limited. The only thing I can change is the TBC ON/OFF but nothing changes in the sound.

I don't have a blank VHS to try recording something :depressed:

I don't know your VCR, but Playback speed is normally determined by the recording on the tape, so testing at EP would require using an EP-recorded tape, LP a LP-recorded tape, and SP a SP-recorded tape. (Some cheap copies of movies were EP speed. An indicator of this is seeing a part full reel in the cassette window for a feature length movie.)

Typically the remote control and/or panel speed setting is for making a recording, not a playback selection. (Some VCR's did offer a slo-mo and/or high sped playback option.)

Does the interference audio change when you switch lights or other nearby electronics off or on? Even the heat/ac?

Sorry, I misunderstood. Yes, I tried many different kind of types. Recorded in SP, LP and EP, but nothing. Still the same noise.

Nope, but this gave me an idea. I bought the VCR there but I'm not from the States, so I'm using an electric transformer (from 220v to 110v so the VCR doesn't explode :D)

Maybe that's failing? I'll try with a most expensive one.

EDIT: Nothing changed. This sucks:depressed: Plus, the VCR can't eject tapes properly, I have to try many times.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0vvupXzi5V8

I'm giving up��

What happens if you hold the front dust flap open during the eject process?

Nothing changes. Sometimes it ejects the tape correctly but most of the time doesn't.

I'm not that concerned for that anyway. I'd like to fix that audio problem, but it's pretty obvious that this VCR is kind of faulty :depressed:

You have a few options, before you go nuts.
Contact the seller for a return or pro-rated price.
Find a worthy repair tech, I have had 3 machines thoroughly refurbished and they’re great.
Caps, the whole deal. JVC S7800, S4800, Philips 960B.
Find another unit, donate or sell yours.

The movie audio seems to be from the linear track and quite low and muffled.

It's from a Hi-Fi VHS (Disney) and in other VCR sounds perfect. I think this is a dead end...

My point is that for whatever reason, your VCR may not be able to play the HiFi track so it defaults to the linear (normal) track.

It looks lik your VCR needs some serious servicing, Cleaning, lubrication, cleaning of the mode switch, belts check, caps check, voltages ...etc. Did you know that VCR's back in the day are serviced just like cars, lube change, belts check, tires check...etc. There is no exceptions now, especially when they sat for 3 decades unused.

It is one of the best models ... but condition matter.

If you got the deck from eBay, no surprise. "Tested" and "working" are BS descriptions. Seeing LED lights means it "works", and seeing any image/audio (even if bad) means it was "tested".

The deck sounds hosed.

Refurb'ing decks is not an easy task, as you often have to overcome decades of neglect. I just finished refurb'ing about six JVC VCRs (for my marketplace listings, mostly for the workflows), and it took me about 3 weeks of daily (even weekends) attention. It was supremely frustrating, and I'll probably quit again for a while. Prior to that, I'd spent weeks refurb'ing/modding DataVideo TBCs, and I'm definitely done with DataVideo for a while. Next is some Cypress, and I enjoy those more. Plus everything else I do daily.

Acquiring quality hardware is not as easy as running to eBay, forking over your cash to the first liar seller you encounter. So many people get screwed over there on hardware.