Vertical rolling of static, tracking issue?
 

As part of a VHS trouble-shoot, I tried another VCR. While it looks like the video quality is pretty good, it has rhythmic vertical scrolling of static. I couldn't get the VCR's manual tracking adjustment to respond (defective remote?).

My question for the floor: is this poor tracking, and if so, would a head-clean help (not that I've ever pulled a VCR apart!).

Thanks for your help.

Al

This is the effect you get if the VCR isn't locking the phase/rotation of the video drum to the control track on the tape at all, e.g if the VCR isn't picking up the control track for whatever reason. It can be something as simple as a dirty control head or dirty ribbon cable contacts, or it can be some more nefarious electronics issue. Does it happen on all tapes on this VCR?

Yes, same effect on all tapes.

Yep, exactly what hodgey said, If you can't fix it yourself or too expensive to have someone fix it get rid of it and move on. What VCR model #'s ?

Umm, an LG GC 990W. I'll pull the top off it and have a fiddle...

-- merged --

Great news! I followed LS's cleaning guide with 100% Isopropanol and some chamois on the head and the black rubber roller and the machine now plays all tapes perfectly, including the one I posted about in the OP. It didn't appear to me to be overly dirty but obviously there was some stuff on the head that was throwing it off.

I'm stoked. I'll now do my other VCRs.

However I felt horrified for the poor tape when I watched the innards working: the head spins against it whenever it's rewinding and fast-forwarding. I thought that only Beta stuff did that.

Excellent news, indeed! :)

BTW, can you post the link to that other thread, to a post here? Even I don't remember where all posts are off-hand.

With pleasure, LS.

Lord Smurf's VCR Heading Cleaning guide thread:

http://www.digitalfaq.com/forum/vide...clean-vcr.html