As noted above, some caps can be easy to replace, and some not so easy. Issues become finding a suitable replacement (physical size, voltage, capacitance, tolerance, ESR, etc.) and room on the board to work on it. Surface mounted are a bit trickier because it becomes easy to over heat the joint and delaminate the foil from the board. Newer gear tends to provide less working room, and handicams provide no room..

Some components, especially those in power supplies and high voltages circuits may be listed as a safety item with exact replacement called for by the mfgr. Some specialty components may no longer be available.

So buying a beast of unknown condition as a project machine might produce a good end result, or at least provide some fun and amusement during long winter nights and/or COVID-19 isolation.

The irony. The 7800 has aged so much better than the 9800. The 2mb does pass more line errors than the 4mb 9800, due to obvious RAM buffer overrun, but that no longer matters as much, when faced with the fact that the 9800 often won't even accept a tape (and/or shuts down). As much as I like the 9600-9911 units, I no longer get anywhere near those. It's a guaranteed bad unit in need of multiple repairs.

No. eBay is just liars ("tested" but obviously never was), incompetent nincompoops ("works" but image is fubar), etc. Facebook is outright scammers, take the money and run. Aside from the marketplace at this site, the best venues are places where hobbyists gather, such as certain Reddit subs. Not generic marketplaces like eBay, Craigslist, Facebook.

But do you even know what you're looking at? For example, too many people falsely assume an AG-1980 works. But turn on the line TBC, and the image goes darker or lighter, adds chroma noise, or maybe turns completely garbled. Bad caps in action. But as a newbie, you're completely out of your depths, until shown. Far too many users have come here over the years, with a bad buy, seeking to repair. Sadly, some are irreparable, you wasted money on junk best ecycled.

Even non-sketchy listings have telltales. For example, somebody recently opined to me how he'd passed on a SR-V10U. I saw it. I wouldn't have gotten anywhere near that thing. Somebody else contacted me a bit later, irritated by --- can you guess? -- a bad SR-V10U! The main telltale was actually cosmetic, and told me how it had been stored (like junk).

As a test, I recently bought 3 VCRs, all from auctions that seemed okay. And yet, all 3 were bad, all returned. Not even good for parts, at least not for that amount of money. At least one seller outright lied about "tested" (the power cord was dangerously frayed, prongs bent), conveniently hidden in the auction listing. WTF was that person thinking? Like I'd not notice when it got here? Or more likely, attempted shipping insurance scamming, which happens too often with expensive AV gear.

This is to be expected, which is why I pack gear like a vase in a safe. But most goober sellers just throw it in a box, usually flimsy, too small, with no real padding. So you do indeed get a box of parts.

I wouldn't get anywhere near a 25-year-old 9500 deck these days. That DD will be shredded from (even mild) use by now, due to the brittle crappy nature of the materials that comprise it. Assume the 9x00 DD decks must have bypass surgery, using latreche's guide (which BTW, is not 100% foolproof, so still some risk here). Even if it "works" for the seller, climate/elevation changes in shipping may make it arrive DOA, due to the fragile nature of that DD. Been there, done that, twice -- not eBay, either, more reliable.

It's never hassle free, and can sometimes drag out for months. So your funds are tied up. I've come across not just scammers on eBay, but outright foaming-at-the-mouth lunatics (literally Q-anon types, yikes!). I use to buy various hobby goods from eBay, but eventually discovered more direct sellers -- and I met those on hobby sites (as mentioned earlier). If you're curious, Transformers (and TFW2005).

There's no B&M for this gear in 2021. Maybe SA, but you'll pay an excessive amount that really just covers the rent/mortgage of the B&M.

- The video of the playback will be dodgy.
- The chain-of-custody of the unit origins could be completely nonsense. And I've seen that quite frequently in the past 2 years. It used to not be that way, but scummy people figured out that it was a selling point to some buyers. The best times are when auctions are 100% copy/paste (both image and text) from another auction. FYI, this is exactly what the Houston VCR scammers does.

This is why tracking is important. It's affected by head wear. It's not directly corellated, but it can give a good idea to the head condition. This is a primary basis for my own deck grading.

Lots of recyclers have mountains of AV e-crap for sale, so that's also not a real determiner. It can be hard to spot a quality deck.

No.

You can also get good stories from it. I once started a small fire from a project repair gone sideways. :laugh:

As per RR above, the stench is something you can never forget. Nor scorch marks on the tile.

It's not just about repairing gear, but knowing what to repair, if it can be repaired. That's something you want to know in advance, or at least have a good idea as to the actual issues. Not just a random buy, random issues, random possible bad outcomes (not just failure, but safety).

As always, eBay is good for many things. It's still a great flea market, garage sale, for many items. Video gear is not one of them. You overpay as buyer, overfee'd as seller, and it's often failed crap either way. Buyer doubly, triply, beware! And "I told you so" in advance!

And some "parts only" units may have had the hard to find parts already stripped out and what you are looking at is whats left after the cream is skimmed off.

On a "positive" note I found VCRs at a garage sales that trill had a tape still in them. One was a kiddy cartoon tape in good condition, another some home-made "adult" material,

Replying to everyone. lol

I have to admit, a faked video wasn't something I had considered...

Am a noob? Yes, I would say so. I'm probably not a total noob overall (the overall part is the sticking point,) but still a noob. Old video and the 1000s of different players that were made and how they age isn't my area of expertise.

I'll have to give all this some consideration.

On the one bright side, I did find an old computer in it's case that's from the DDR2 days. It doesn't have an AGP slot, but it does have both PCIE and 2 PCI slots! So I should be able to use an ATI AIW card in it. I think I'll get it up and running with XP (which I still have) and see how she runs. All the necessary parts are already installed except for an AIW card.

So... how do the PCI AIW cards age, and were any made with component audio and an S-Video port, or were they all composite only?

Thanks

Exactly, I have been there, as seller and buyer, I overpaid when buying, and I lost up to 25% on fees when selling (after the eBay managed payment trash).

Speaking of lies, here is a funny one: a seller had a listing for a AVT-8710:
in the listing they said sth among the lines of: "from my own workflow, similar to datavideo tbc-1000, in fact in some cases I found this one to outperform both TV One 1T-TBC and Datavideo TBC-1000"

And later the same seller posted a TV One 1T-TBC and wrote:
"...to outperform both AVT-8710 and Datavideo TBC-1000"

The funny part is not that he just copy=pasted and just swapped names, but in fact AVT-8710 and 1T-TBC are actually the same TBC in different outer chassis...

I can no longer find the listing but it appeared in may/june a bit before the refurbd TBCs started to appear on eBay.

I've been lucky, I guess. I found a 9600, 9800 and 2 9500's That were sold for parts on Ebay for ~$150-200 each (I know, overpriced, but that's Ebay). The only thing wrong with them was the DD, power supply caps and brakes/rollers. I have been able to repair all of them with parts from 3 750DD's that were ~$30 each, and refurbish/ align the tape path. I then sold the repaired VCRs for $450 each. I started doing this as a hobby during COVID, not expecting to make any money at it. I just love the challenge of repairing old electronics.

Adding to the list:

- Keywest BV: https://www.ebay.com/itm/313756119564
"This unit is comparable to the datavideo TBC-1000, AVT-8710, and TvOne TBC in its ability to correct a noisy signal to broadcast quality for capturing. In some instances, it outperforms the other three."

This is a boilerplate sentence I found in several other crap listings. Seems like it is the same old seller I mentioned in a previous comment on this thread, but he is back with a new account just registered this month and 0 reviews. buyer beware.

Yep. :screwy:

And I'm 99% sure I know where these came from. This know-nothing lying seller probably acquired the units from a recycler I know -- something I was offered early on. It was "lights tested" gear. So he has 4 BVTBC units, from the Voodoo rack. But that model is crap. So even it it "works", it doesn't work whatsoever. The base model BVTBC has horrible noise, especially on the s-video, and chipset flaws that makes a black Cypress/AVT-8710 look likes it's behaving. It's seriously so miserable that you're better off taking your chances without a TBC -- that's bad! :mad4:

The seller is just an opportunist that is a complete video know-nothing.

Odds are (1) the seller gets returns, or (2) the buyer doesn't realize the problem until after 30 days has passed, an extreme problem with eBay video gear buying when you're a newbie to video. So you're stuck with an expensive paperweight.

Don't be a sucker.

Just as a point of reference, AVT-8710 (actually CTB-100G), and 1T-TBC (and variants), are not 100% identical. Both are Cypress, and based on the same core chipsets. So both good and bad units exist -- and the bad are far more prevalent. But for basic usage (in/out TBC + proc amp), yes, functionally identical. The 1T board is a bit more complex, more chips, more (useless) features, more I/O.

Something to point out now, in case some snarky SOB eBayer wants to scream "NOT THE SAME!" Because it's very obvious that eBay sellers see the info at this site. (NOTE: I'm all for selling good units. What I'm against is selling crap, lying, and return hassles. It's anti-consumer. Unfortunately, for video gear, that's essentially what eBay has become. Junk swap meet, but at non-junk prices.)

https://www.ebay.com/itm/353871466869
Oh god...

Speaking of the CTB-100G, are these fine to use without using the genlock? (i.e do they behave identical to a ctb-100 without genlock)?

Made an offer on that TBC3000 lol. He told me he declined a $2200 offer. No thanks.

Seems like people see those refurb 1000s listed at $2700 and think that's the new standard.

Actually it is a good thing your offer was declined. It was for the best :) I don't know how badly you need it, but this unit is not even worth that $2200.

These are listed, not sold. The reason you still see them is because even a refurbed unit at 2.7K is overpriced.

I made a $1500 offer. I'd probably go $2k on it. But not higher considering i'd be immediately sending out for refurb. But, someone will buy it. So might just have to accept these inflated prices.

You don't want that unit. It's not simply a matter of price, but of the 3000 gen. That's extremely likely not a desired unit. And so it won't perform at all like your existing.

Can you elaborate? You're saying this TBC3000 is different than the TBC3000 you were trying to get ahold of?

It's primarily a transparency issue, but not just. From our conversations over the years, I know you want the best final lower-production 4th gen 3000. (I used to refer to it as 3rd, but it's actually 4th, new information in the last 6 months.) So that's what I was trying to procure for your, via buyback, one of my previous refurbs, but he dithered, didn't finish his projects yet. Those are what I use for myself. Earlier versions can be quite decent, but not as often, and still transparency concerns.

What you see on eBay is a recycler idiot reselling some dodgy old unit that looks like it was used to hold up a table. A scratched-up unit is a bad tell-tale sign. Cosmetics "don't matter", but cosmetics also tell you how it was treated over time. That unit isn't in good shape. As I often say, most eBay sellers wouldn't know a TBC from a toaster, and this is not any different in this exact situation. All the seller knows is that Google show him I sold a refurb'd unit for $4K some months ago, so his must be the same, right? (Of course not. Hell no.)

All of those items that seller has are random crap from estate sales, storage locker auctions, etc. Have you ever seem how dumb the people on Storage Wars are? That's not an act. I've dealt with many of these folks, often from them contacting me. (The google the item, finding me -- aka "asking the experts" like they do on Storage Wars, or "asking a buddy" like Pawn Stars. On Pawn Stars, they act smart, but it's clearly after crash-course research before filming, they're not that wise on all things they sell.)

Many of these people are money-grubbing a-holes that don't care about your video capture well-being. A member here was recently ripped off by a lying eBay seller. I shared some info with him, as I knew the true lineage of that exact unit, and how it was always known to be bad. The sellers involved were shysters, not pleasant folks to deal with after initial contacts.

That's who you're dealing with on eBay 95%+ of the time for this sort of gear. It's not like when I go there to buy an action figure, and the seller is often somebody from within that community.

It's sad reality that we have to deal with as analog video capturers. Be careful.

Are you saying you can tell from this listing that this unit is in an undesirable serial number range? Damn. Your TBC guide can't come soon enough. Seriously.

I operate under the assumption that any equipment I buy from ebay or anywhere now is estate sale junk. So I know if I buy this, it's going to need testing and probably a full rebuild.

That being said, even if the unit is beat up and not perfect, if i'm going to find someone to recap/rebuild/test, does it matter that much, assuming I can get a deal?

Unfortunately this is literally the only rack datavideo unit with proc amp for sale right now. They show up on ebay maybe once a year, and double the price each time.

So i'm at the point where i'm saying fuck it and doing what i have to do to get the gear, knowing i'll need to spend more to have it rebuilt.

Really hoping this "better generation" kind of info on the runs of the datavideo units is in your upcoming guide. Gonna save us all a lot of headache.

not really, I saw one sold for 150$ (yes 150!) 4 months ago. another one from a UK seller for 1500GBP (might be PAL only? can't tell) but was sold for lower (best offer accepted). So they do more or less appear, not frequently, but not once a year neither.

Please link me to the $150 sale lol, I need to see it for myself so I can feel worse.

I don't want you to feel worse :( I felt that already, I kept opening the link few times with poker face.
The link is dead anyway.

If you really want to feel worse I still have a link for a green avt sold for 40$ on ebay :D

That 3000 sold for $2500 lol. So, next one will probably be listed for $3500. :(

I didn't state anything about the serial number. That's a very basic (and often wrong) novice understanding of manufacturing production. Serials rarely mean what consumer think they do. My issue with this unit is multiple tell-tales. For example, the fonts, or a specific material used to construct a certain area. It's not a 100% guarantee the unit is bad, but very concerning. If you've not seen dozens on TBCs, you'd never know these things. :wink2:

99% correct now. Junk. Abandoned storage units, estate sales, etc. The buyer of the junk wants to resell it for bricks of gold, without understand or caring if it even has value.

You assume wrong, the TBC-3000 is almost never caps related. So recap won't do anything. I don't where this idea came from in recent years that every problem that ails video gear is caps. It's a silly as cleaning the VCR heads, regardless of the issue. Certain specific issues are caps related, but (aside from AG-1980 decks) never a general issue.

Not true. I have some single-high rack mount units with racks. The DataVideo are double-high. Not that height makes a difference, just stating the main difference. These specific units are almost equal to the specific TBC you have.

That statement reminds me of new young novice investors, who have only been doing it for 1-2 years, and think the market only goes up. Take a macro view, 10, 20, etc years, and get back to me. Just within the last 7 years, there have been dry spells when you didn't see various DataVideo TBCs whatsoever for 6-18 months. Very often, TBCs happen in spurts, 2-3 units at once, then gone again for a long stretch. So don't have an attitude of "there will be more later" because that may not happen. I've not seen certain TBCs in years now. There's two TBCs that elude me entirely, been looking for one for about 4 years now, the other 6 years.

eBay sold porn. :laugh:

What both of you are failing to understand here is that eBay "sold" listings may not be sold after all. It doesn't take into account returns, and there's a pretty high return rate on VCRs, TBCs, and capture cards. The buyer either doesn't read, or doesn't know warning signs in advance. The seller usually knows even less. A main reason that sales stay sold is because the buyer doesn't realize he/she bought crap until after that 30th day, and is SOL. Even if you do get in before the 30th day, you can have a fight on your hands, and you may lose it. Why? Because the eBay rep doesn't know any more than the seller (nothing), and has to use a mix of strict policy (including lots of gotchas) and gut feelings. The Houston VCR scammer is really savvy at this, a real SOB. I've helped a few forum members get their return, when it was starting to look like they'd lose the case. I've had PMs from frantic buyers about to cry, and equally near-crying thrilled when I helped them get their money back. And yet, those BS situation were "sold" (NOT SOLD!) listing in the sold searches. Don't do this to yourself if the gear is available elsewhere, from a more reputable sources (and yes, I'm one, but so are several others).

So no. It's not what you think it is. :2cents:

So can these units be repaired or not?

You're making it sound as if some units, when identified by you as bad, are not worth a penny and cannot be fixed. Is that the case here?

Speaking of ebay, Idk if I mentioned that before, but avoid lydea-7650

I have seen several red flags in their listings, but here is 2 more recent:

here is an example:
(see attachement 1)

see the bad reviews in the 2nd attachment .

So, obviously don't believe eBay sellers.
(the french review is saying: item sold as new, but 2 buttons do not work!)

I know that. But the person who bought the green avt for 40, it was listed for 40, the person made on offer for 38. I know the seller, and he later told me it was not returned. Also why on earth would a crazy person return a TBC they got for 40€?
Same for the tbc-3000, it was working, sold by the direct owner who was not aware of the price hike. Ofc there is no guarantee after all this years it was working correctly, but even if, most likely the buyer would think it is okay, the issue might not be visible to they buyer's eyes.

You are right. Sorry about that. I meant more as : don't lose hope, who knows, maybe there will be more, just did not want him to feel bad, did not mean it in the sense: "feel free to miss deals cuz more are surely coming"

Some units cannot be repaired, no. If you get issues that cascade into the chips, it can be game over for those units. Many also have inherent quirks that can make them unusable (all PAL bad, all NTSC bad, noise patterning, etc).

I don't 100% know that for certain. But I can make some pretty accurate educated guesses. It's about tell-tales, using wisdom based on experience. This unit has warning signs, period. Odds are against it being a good unit (no intrinsic issues, good transparency) like you're wanting. You didn't win/buy it anyway. You're having a moment of FOMO.

Agreed. This person is a confirmed recycler that lies in listings. In recent times, this person bought known-bad BVTBCs units, and resold with the false statement of "This unit is comparable to the datavideo TBC-1000, AVT-8710, and TvOne TBC in its ability to correct a noisy signal to broadcast quality for capturing. In some instances, it outperforms the other three."

What an a-hole. :protest:

Because it didn't work? (Not the case here it seems, but this case is atypical.) If I buy something for $1 on eBay, and it's not functioning as it should, I'm returning it. If you want to give away money, there are several very reputable multiple sclerosis charities that could use the funds. Don't gift it to bad eBay sellers.

You are right :yes: , I agree with you that charity deserves the money instead of ebay scammers, and yes I was wrong to generalize, sorry, not everyone is willing to waste money on things that don't work. But personally, if it is a very cheap deal, I think my curiosity will make me prefer to keep the item and try to fix it if I can, use it to learn, etc. Even if I don't fix it, I consider it the price of learning. But yes, in general I agree with you, I return the item if it is does not work as intended, and no one would want invest in an "expensive paperweight", just in rare occasions I prefer to keep the paperweight and study it instead of returning it. But yeah, probably not everyone is willing to do this.

Thanks for the info smurf.

I think one of the hardest things i'm dealing with right now is the testing process for these units. Aside from hooking them up and checking to see if they screw with the brightness/contrast/colors compared to a clean signal, I don't know what else to be checking on them before I put it into my workflow.

Really hoping your upcoming guide includes your process for testing these.

Can you give us a teaser on this info? As I mentioned I have a few units and I want to put them through the wringer before I go throw some tapes through them.

Just want to reiterate the importance of everyone refusing to purchase anything from lydea-7650. At one point I questioned the bad info in some of their listings -- instead of getting any answers to the questions I just got a long rant about how I must be reading that evil website digitalfaq and how His Royal Smurfness sucks and is wrong about everything and why do I need to know anything about the history of anything just buy it and you'll find out ... :laugh::laugh::huh1::screwy:

Thankfully I figured it out prior to finding this thread and without purchasing anything. Speaking of tell-tale red flags, the answers you get to probing questions are always my favorite method of exposing them.

I think lydea-7650 acquired someone's stash of old equipment and some various new old-stock electronic items from somewhere local and is selling them off. There have been some NIB VCRs and other items that all point to that, as well as them currently unloading a hoard of Dewalt bluetooth headphones :laugh:

And there's nothing wrong with that -- IF you're completely honest about what you're selling.

A quick read online and some clever lies and suddenly you can paint yourself as a pro in your listings.

That seller is a lying sack of shit.

Below is one of my favorite BS moves by shady eBay sellers.

Look at this auction: https://www.ebay.com/itm/304402045250
Title: "JVC Super S-VHS ET VCR Plus Hi-Fi HR-S3902U Tested W/ Original Remote & Manual"
Now look closely at all the auction images. Do you see something wrong?
No?
How about now:

Attachment 14931

"tested"
Without electricity? :screwy: :rolleyes:

Dumbass.

Update with a small bit of good news on the scammer front.

https://www.ebay.com/usr/lydea-7650

Large red horizontal band with white lettering which reads:

"No longer a registered user."

Gee, I wonder what happened. :hmm::laugh:

Update with a small bit of good news on the scammer front.

https://www.ebay.com/usr/lydea-7650

Large red horizontal band with white lettering which reads:

"No longer a registered user."

Gee, I wonder what happened. :hmm: :laugh:

Brand new! But also covered in filth and buttons broken off lol

https://www.ebay.com/itm/404129276443

reviving a relatively old thread, because well, ebay shit never stops.

US-based sellers to avoid:


zoeriley listed a TBC-3000 and a TBC-5000, screenshots of listing attached also.
- First red flag to me, in 5000 listing " Note: the unit's fans are louder than the Datavideo TBC-1000 or TBC-3000 models, but this is normal." 1000 and 3000 have no fans...
- Second red flag, he sold a TBC-3000 (on JUL 6), and now he has one listed, which means they have some stock of tbc-3000 that god only knows where it came from. EDIT:See LS' comment below
- Third red flag, "The proc amp controls were not tested.", the seller experienced enough to test the items, but not experienced enough to test the proc amp? :huh1:

Edit: She is the original owner, but the units are not in a very sure condition as they have been stored for years
________________________________________

Another seller that I would advise against:

https://www.ebay.com/usr/monkey-ohki
monkey-ohki, he has no problems hiding defects with the items he lists.

Nope, not zoeriley. She was the original owner for most of her gear. The issue there is it's been in storage for years, which is why she isn't entirely sure. 99%+ of sellers are crap, but she's part of the 1%.

- The 5000 needs mod work.
- She has/had several TBC-3000, but those need a deep inspection, possible repair. And no, it's true, she never used the proc amp. She treated them like 2x TBC-1000 units, to an ADVC setup, about 20 years ago. Unknown what gen those are, what issues may be lurking.

EU-based sellers to avoid:

AVOID heeening on ebay and his 3DW Pro that was discussed here
His name on ebay-kleinanzeigen is henning from "26605 Lower Saxony - Aurich"

I feel bad for the poor soul who paid 289€ for something that is not really comparable to TBC-1000
https://www.ebay.de/itm/194480168651
https://www.ebay.de/itm/194396172844
https://www.ebay.de/itm/194445669272

He explicitly mentions in the ad that it is similar to Datavideo TBC-1000, but IT IS NOT. Aside from he fact that it may be flawed, it is actually a line TBC. I may later post samples of instances my TBC-1000 fixed issues but the 3dw pro did not, because it is not a frame TBC!

This scammer had been given the benefit of the doubt and ignorance and has been told what he is selling is not similar. But he kept listing them.

It all started by him looking for TBC and wanting to pay less than fair value and later he discovered those pannaosnic external line TBC.

He imported a couple of them and flipped them for a quick buch. He is been listing them like crazy for the last 2 years.

Part of the mistake is on the buyer, for not thinking rationally and for being desperate, the price is too good to be true, if it really similar to datavideo TBC-1000, ask yourself, why would he sell it for this price? the answer: because it is not.

He also Found some other Japanese devices, grabbed some, bam advertising them as Datavideo TBC equivalent

If they are datavideo equivalent (a 2000$ device) he would not be selling them for this low price.

https://www.ebay-kleinanzeigen.de/s-...86820-175-3033
https://www.ebay-kleinanzeigen.de/s-...58170-175-3033
https://www.ebay-kleinanzeigen.de/s-...54779-175-3033

It seems he figured out a way to trick people and make some money. nasty

3 Sold in last 3 months

https://www.ebay.de/sch/i.html?_from...&LH_Complete=1

I own all of these, and I am telling you, yes, they may be useful sometimes, and yet you can buy them if you want, but they are not equivalent to TBC-1000, he is lying!

--------------------------------------------

Another lowballer that you should not buy from is

leatherman5 from Palma de Mallorca, Spain
https://www.ebay.com/usr/leatherman5...75.m3561.l2559

not really knowledgeable, claims to be

He Sold blue flawed cypress (a 2014 model) as non-flawed one and gave his guarantee "tested non flawed like black", but it was flawed.
Claims to be selling good tevion clones of ati 600, I can't comment on that, maybe they are good.

He wanted to get my datavideo tbc for 600€ and was rude in his communication, but now, when it is his turn to sell, he wants to be paid well for his AVT-8710.
https://www.ebay.com/itm/155710920298

He already has a negative review for an AVT-8710 sold for 1700, then he got greedy, canceled the order, and relisted for 1900 to compensate for ebay fees. Maybe this unit is good, but I still would not deal with him since he advertised his flawed cypress as non-flawed.

Oh thanks for sharing the info!

It is a bit funny how the 99% percent do a better job at making "plausible" and legit-looking ads, while her legit ads seem to me a bit fishy. I mean stating that the 5000's fan is louder... well 1000 and 3000 have no fans... this is not something someone with knowledge of the 2 models would say...

Keep in mind there are various levels and areas of knowledge; some is technical in technician/engineering sense, some in an editing/story telling sense, some in a shooting and lighting sense, some in a staging sense, and so on. What it might mean is she could hear the 5000's fan and identify it as a fan, while the others were silent (couldn't tell whether or not there was a fan - just couldn't hear it.

In this case, that's not it.

The "normal" fan is a cheap Chinese POS, and it was flawed in design and quality. These now all sound like mini jet engines on a model airplane.

100% of the fans are now bad, and must be removed. Some are just pin connectors, but many are soldered in, sometimes even on the bottom of the board (ie, must fully dismantle to gain access). DataVideo had zero consistency in internals or assembly.

After that's done, some units have a fit that the fan is missing -- not that it was ever needed. You then have to re-wire it, just without the fan spinning (bypass it, or break the fan).

FYI: The airflow is non-existent, so dirt gets trapped around certain chips, under certain jutting boards. See also: why so many units failed, aka hot chips got covered in dust/dirt. The entire case design is crap. Yes, that means the DVK suffers the same issues, and should not be bought "in the wild" and unmodded. (The DVK also have alternate signal pathing issues, likely due to different firmware, which is why I block certain I/O on the units I put in the marketplace. KISS, "keep it simple stupid", for both myself, and the new user.)

Best of all, this unit had variations, some "strong" (still weaker than TBC-1000), some essentially did nothing. Thus making it a gamble not worth pursuing.

These units had such a low production run that I've never been able to peg down dates and model generations, as can be done with the black-cased units.

In other words, this is what separates true video gear sellers from random eBay goobers.
"I gots one of them to sells too! Gimme $1k, m'kay?"

(Noting that this specific seller here is not a goober, just sitting on near-NOS, like-new old gear that needs some work to be put back into service.)

Yep, total assclown.
I was asked about that auction/listing, saved a few would-be buyers from making a big mistake.

We see a lot of that with random units, and even random "TBCs" intended for non-consumer-non-VHS sources (and thus work badly, or not at all). Even claiming the ES10/15 is a TBC is ridiculous, it is not.

For TBCs, this cheapskate mentality goes back to the 2000s, back when DataVideo/Cypress were about $500, and the rackmount junk was $50. Then you had "clarifiers" and "Macrovision removers" in the $100-200 range, none of which were TBCs, or even did the job claimed. A great example is the Israeli Grex, which is a total POS for any analog work (but work perfectly for digital, such as cable to DVD).

It's really not much different from buying a random junker car off eBay, Craigslist, back of the local newspaper, wherever, and expecting to get a quality anything. Near-zero chance of that. You're just a low-knowledge suckers that is buying somebody else's crap. You'll learn the hard way soon enough, Mr/Mrs Cheapskate.

That specific Japanese unit, using the Panasonic chips, has known issues with rainbow effects, etc. It uses the same family of chips found in the ES10/15, but earlier and different (in a bad way).

I am 99%+ positive this is a member of this site, and he knows better.

My issue is Spain, specifically outbound mail, especially Correos. Anything you buy from Spain, good luck getting it anytime soon (2-3 months not uncommon), or lost, or damaged, or "inspected" (rifled through, put back together like it's garbage, then it really will arrive damaged). I've been buying and selling items online for 25 years, and all of my worst experiences are to/from Spain. I'm willing to put up with this, and people within Spain/España have no choice. But other buyers in USA, Europe, etc, will not have the patience for it. Yo hablo español, which has helped, pero me olvido palabras porque no uso.