Not at all. The noise floor will be raised, but absolutely will not clip.

I also don't hear significant distortion, but it's there. Such distortion will react differently to the varying parts of the audio waveform: lows, highs, mid, etc. So while the speech may not sound too bad, the non-speech didn't fair as well. This is a significant issue with capturing VHS tapes, especially as you get into older and more damage media. A lot of my custom Sound Forge filter presets are essentially frequency carving for this reason. There's just no way to fix the audio otherwise.

The "converter" has almost zero control over VHS audio quality, in regards to S/N.

Audio can be too high, and still without any clipping. As I wrote, there is a Goldilocks zone.

It needs to be mentioned here that Teefer has never captured to those specs, either with this USB capture card, or whatever fiddling he did with mixers/etc. So I have no idea how this VCR actually sounds, under proper/ideal capturing condition. You cannot just do whatever you want when it comes to some aspect of video (and audio) capture. It won't end well for you (or rather the quality of your captures).

And I think this is part of the problem here. When people play the "I'm an audio pro" card, I'm just not impressed whatsoever. I've been in that world, I know what goes on. For whatever reason, there is a bad habit of fiddling with knobs/sliders/settings, and too often not in a good way. More KISS (keep it simple) is needed.

As with timtape, I agree, I don't hear anything overly overdone. And yet, it's still enough to cause problems, namely the raising of the linear noise floor. This is a push-pull scenario. You have two very different concepts, and yet these tug on one another. It's a delicate balance, and walking that tightrope can be difficult.

Simplistic questions, not-simple answers.

#1

Some years ago, I noticed that the gear we need for this community/hobby was disappearing, and often in disrepair (or way out of maintenance) when found. Rather than surrender to the likes of Funai and Easycap, I began to refurb decks and TBCs (and complete incomplete capture cards). And I did all I could in recent years to add this good gear back into circulation. But it's taken a toll on me health-wise, especially in the past year.

When I finish refurb'ing gear, it's in the best condition possible. My goal is to stretch the lifespans of these items for another decade. I also grade the VCRs. Deck grading is mostly based on tracking ability, which is related to head wear. Any time decks have uncorrectable mechanical issues (usually due to parts scarcity), yet still passably working, such as a weak motor that is limping along, then it's noted, and the deck sold for less.

I want for you to not only have a quality VCR (and TBC and capture card), but the best deck for your situation. So, for example, I often ask these sorts of questions:
- How many tapes?
- What recording mode are your VHS tapes? SP, LP, EP/SLP, or a mix? If mix, % of each? If not known, guestimate. (What you don't want to do is put these tapes in a ratty old VCR, and have the tapes get damaged.)
- What % of your VHS collection is from a camcorder, a VCR, and retail?
- What era are your tapes from, % of each? 70s, 80s, 90s, 00s?
- Are you aware of any problems with the tapes? Either with the signal, or physical? (mold, etc)
* I don't always ask everybody all of those questions, and I take cues from the buyer as to what needs to be asked.

In communication, this (or a variation) is always mentioned: "It's sent tracked, insured, with signature required. I pack this gear carefully, and use specific packing materials so it's not damaged in transit. I want it to arrive to you as perfect as it was for me." This is because I know (we all know?) that most UPS/Fedex/USPS/etc workers are goons. Not all, just most. While I hope my packing prevents any damage, that's also what insurance is for.

So is this "as-is" gear? No. (As-is as how I bought the gear. After weeks, sometimes months, it's refurbished.) If something arrives damaged, we'll sort the insurance claim together. If something arrives with issues, I'll help troubleshoot. In most cases, self-repair is possible, and easy with my guidance. You're never left to figure it out on your own. I want my hard work, my refurbs, to be used by the new owner (several owner, hopefully!). I enjoy reading feedback on how well my gear works, which has been 99%+ of the time. The only other time I had a major VCR issue was when it arrived damaged by USPS. We both got the run-around from that insurer, and we decided that a good alternative was for him to buy another deck at a discount (and his new deck was a SR-V101, and he liked it).

But "as is" also doesn't mean what you're implying here. Unless gear is listed as modified in some way, I'm not going to change/repair intrinsic issues. For example, the well-known JVC performance with linear audio. That's nothing I did, not my fault, I will not be blamed for it. As another example, TBCs process video, and sometimes the byproduct of processing can be harmful. There's nothing that can be done about it in those cases, aside from use another model/brand TBC. That's why my questions above, and others, in PM conversation, will matter. I do the best I can to pair you with the gear you need.

The OP here is more interested in blaming me for JVC's engineering/component choices, than blaming himself for not researching JVC decks more thoroughly, and not knowing more about his own sources. He outright stated that I should provide more details on gear to buyers. I guess posting about gear online for 25 years isn't enough? So no, at most, that burden is shared. You don't buy a Windows computer, then complain that Final Cut Pro can't be installed. And if you open that copy of FCP, you can't return it. This situation isn't really all that different.

However, again, I do want my refurb'd decks to be used by new owners. So, to that end, I tried to help make that happen. Nothing bad was said about the deck other than the linear audio, and so it should still be in excellent refurb'd shape as graded. Due to my current situation, that meant pairing buyer to seller. And I gave Teefer advice on what he does need instead of a JVC deck.

Do note that Teefer also acquired a TBC and capture card, as this was a workflow, and nothing bad was said about either.

#2

Teefer wrote an email that he will not be seeking a refund, and will resell the deck on his own.

And I responded that I wish him well -- and that he needs to get himself a Panasonic AG-1980, which is know for decent (yet still not perfect) linear performance.

For that reason, this thread is closed. :lock:

This needs to amicably end right there.