Panasonic NV-HS960 flashing screen during playback?

[fleX]

Hi,

I just bought a Panasonic NV-HS960 for super cheap from a local seller. I service my VCRs myself, so I took it apart right away to check if there are any bulged caps, or something broken mechanically, since I was expecting that for the price.

It all seemed fine, so I just cleaned the heads, removed the auto head cleaning foam thingy, and hooked it up to my setup which is the following:

VCR -> Panasonic DMR-EX795 -> GV-USB2

While it does work fine mechanically, the image quality during playback is questionable. The whites are a little blown out, and these white lines keep flashing up on the screen randomly, which seems to mess with the overall brightness as well. I tried it without TBC and the 3D DNR feature, but it doesn't make a difference.

For comparison, I recorded a sample of the same clip from my NV-HV60, and that looks fine.

I hope someone could help me with this, as it was such a bargain deal, I would be so sad, if it turns out that it was just too good to be true.

Thanks in advance!

[Quasipal]

The clips are not showing up any problems for me as they are changing lighting so quickly. However with used equipment components and mechanical parts do wear. If the head is worn down a little you will find that tapes that are also a little worn wont play so well. Honestly there are so many variables.

Personally I look at the heads first - worn head chips just don't give the best output as the contact against the tape is lower plus self cleaning is also reduced. How dirty was the cleaning roller? If dark it is a sign the machine has had some hours. Using a high power hand magnifier (an old 50mm camera lens looked through front to back is good) and a bright small light, you can check the heads in detail. Look closely and you will see the wear profile - its tricky but a good start if you have a unknown picture problem. Look for dirt around them too baked onto the drum.

[latreche34]

That looks like AGC issues, hard to troubleshoot to be honest, Get the service manual and look up the video boards capacitors and voltages. But before you do that make sure the sockets on the back of the VCR all have firm soldier joints. If you are using S-Video try composite to see if the issue persists.

[fleX]

@Quasipal

I attached some problematic frames from this VCR.

@latreche34

I tried all the outputs, but it does the same thing sadly. Looks like I'll have to do a recap on the whole thing to see if that makes any difference. Caps usually go bad on these Panasonics anyway, so it wouldn't be a surprise if that fixes the issue.