Mitsubishi HS-HD2000U won't play SP mode?

AreGeeBee · #1 07-26-2025, 10:08 AM

Hi,

I have an Mitsubishi HS-HD2000U that plays tapes great in EP and LP (6 and 4 hour) modes. But when I put in a 2 hour SP mode tape, the picture is very bad. Very jumbled looking.

I recapped the TBC board and the two longer playing modes look great. So it would appear that the unit is mostly working well.

I have another perfectly working Mitsubishi HS-HD2000U and I have swapped out the head amp board and TBC board and the board next to the TCB board, but the problem still remained. So I'm starting to think it is a failed head that only is used for SP mode? Is that possible?

So my question is this- what should I be looking at as is causing ONLY SP 2 hour mode to not play correctly? Could it be a broken head? Or is there a specific circuit area I can look at that only affects SP mode? Are some heads only used in SP mode?

What is unique to only SP mode in a VCR?

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

radiokom · #2 07-27-2025, 02:52 AM

Simply swap heads (3 screws) and look what happens. Wear medical powder free gloves before.

latreche34 · #3 07-27-2025, 02:52 AM

Things you can do in the troubleshooting procedure before swapping parts is to try to gently clean the heads, look closer with a magnifying lens to see the physical condition of the heads, try to record in SP mode on a spare tape to see if it records and plays back its own SP recordings.

radiokom · #4 07-27-2025, 03:05 AM

I believe, if he started to swap parts, is to let him make a last swap and then, if all works, send a ling with instructions how to clean heads

aramkolt · #5 07-27-2025, 10:44 AM

Agree, most likely one of the SP heads is damaged or dirty.

AreGeeBee · #6 07-30-2025, 02:06 PM

Thank you everyone for your responses.

So in general, am I correct to say that there are heads on a VCR head mechanism that are dedicated to ONLY SP mode playback and recording? Are there any areas in the electronics that are also dedicated ONLY to SP mode? If so, what areas should I look into?

Knowing this will greatly help me in my efforts.

Thanks again.

radiokom · #7 07-30-2025, 03:24 PM

Swap heads if you started "trial and error" method! Remove mechanism and simply swap complete drum. 3 screws from bottom. DO NOT touch electronics and/or any adjustments. Because you can repair/adjust something only if you know what you are doing but it is not this case.