First-time poster here on AVS.

I have one of these Panasonic DVD Recorders, the DMR-ES46V.

My issue is with writing information on the disc and finalizing.

I have had quite a few times when after completing what I want to record on disc and then going back and making thumbnails and titling my chapters that the disc drive grunts and grinds, sometimes LOUDLY, and then fails to write and finalize the disc. The recorder is not hot and doesn't feel like it's overheating ...

I recorded a program last night that can't be replaced. It was a 1-time only shot and I put it on 4 discs. I put the first disc in this afternoon and titled my chapters, made thumbnails and then when I went to finalize it, the progress bar went about a third of the way with the recorder making grunting and grinding noises and then it quit. Now it says that the disc can't be finalized.

Why is this happening? Is there anything I can do about it?

This is not the only time this has happened to me as I have been unable to finalize about 10 discs or so now (over the past year).

Sometimes the player is great -- it's nice and quiet and does exactly as it's supposed to. Other times, like today, it's very noisy when reading a disc and I have even had the machine shut off in the middle of writing information and have it say unreadable.

I went to a local Best Buy tonight and bought a "DVD Dr." laser lens cleaner and ran that program and then put the disc that failed to finalize back in the player and I still couldn't get anywhere with it.

Is there anything I can do to get this disc to finish finalizing?

I see that the recorder has a memory card slot in the front ... Would it be possible to take the two chapters on the disc and put them on a memory card and then put a new disc in and transfer from the card onto a new disc?

Any other thoughts/ideas? Please?

-PT[/FONT]

What brand discs are you using? Certain brands of blank media can sometimes cause problems like this.
Perhaps you can unplug it for a few hours, then try again. Since the discs can still play, would you consider dubbing them to vhs in SP mode to preserve your program, and then try dubbing that vhs master to another disc?

I hate making this suggestion, but, if possible, you could buy another Panasonic recorder and use it to finalize those discs...And then return it. Or perhaps a get cheaper dvd recorder, and connect the es46's outputs to it, and copy those to new discs...And then return it. :rolleyes:

I use Fujifilm DVD-R discs all the time for my recordings.

I don't know if there is anything I can do with this disc because the two chapters I had took up 46 minutes and it's telling me that there is 0:00 remaining time. I tried to finalize and it got about 33% done and then quit. I am really stuck because I don't have a copy of the program on DVR eithor ... but I made sure to call DirecTV tonight and order an HD DVR unit ... they tell me since I have never had one before that I have to have it "professionaly installed" and that means waiting for the installer ... and the earliest date is Feb. 27!

I talked to a very nice CSR from Panasonic earlier tonight for an HOUR and one of his suggestions was to play both chapters back and record them in SP speed to a VHS tape, just like your suggestion. Of course it's gonna lose a generation but it seems to be one way, and maybe the only way, to go.

I have had the player/recorder a year and ya know what? ... I still have never tried to record VHS to DVD ... and that was my original intention too! I just never seem to find the time.

I am not sure that buying another recorder would do the trick with this specific disc. It seems like since it tried to finalize once and crapped out that it will never give me that option again. I hope I am wrong on that front. Since this one won't finalize, I am frightened to put in discs 2-3-4 from my recording. I don't want to lose what I have ...

-PT


What brand discs are you using? Certain brands of blank media can sometimes cause problems like this.
Perhaps you can unplug it for a few hours, then try again. Since the discs can still play, would you consider dubbing them to vhs in SP mode to preserve your program, and then try dubbing that vhs master to another disc?

I hate making this suggestion, but, if possible, you could buy another Panasonic recorder and use it to finalize those discs...And then return it. Or perhaps a get cheaper dvd recorder, and connect the es46's outputs to it, and copy those to new discs...And then return it. :rolleyes:

I use Fujifilm DVD-R discs all the time for my recordings.


I am not sure that buying another recorder would do the trick with this specific disc. It seems like since it tried to finalize once and crapped out that it will never give me that option again. I hope I am wrong on that front. Since this one won't finalize, I am frightened to put in discs 2-3-4 from my recording. I don't want to lose what I have ...

-PT
Just want to confirm-that first disc does still play when you put it in the es46? The aborted finalization didn't frak it up?

Yeah, I can still get it to play in the ES46V. After putting it in, I go to Direct Navigator and it has both thumbnails and I can play each chapter. I can even ATTEMPT to alter the chapter name but after I save the changes and it goes back to the navigator screen, the changes don't save. So the it seems like the ONLY place this will play is in my original machine. I have a handfull of discs that are just like this, too.

It's odd because for the hour I was talking to the Panasonic Tech Support man, I put in a Fujifilm disc from the bottom of my most recent spindle and recorded some TV for 3 minutes and 15 seconds and then attempted to finalize it and there was not grinding noises from the drive and even though it took almost 5 minutes to finalize, it still finalized ...

First-time poster here on AVS.

I have one of these Panasonic DVD Recorders, the DMR-ES46V.

My issue is with writing information on the disc and finalizing.

I have had quite a few times when after completing what I want to record on disc and then going back and making thumbnails and titling my chapters that the disc drive grunts and grinds, sometimes LOUDLY, and then fails to write and finalize the disc. The recorder is not hot and doesn't feel like it's overheating ...

I recorded a program last night that can't be replaced. It was a 1-time only shot and I put it on 4 discs. I put the first disc in this afternoon and titled my chapters, made thumbnails and then when I went to finalize it, the progress bar went about a third of the way with the recorder making grunting and grinding noises and then it quit. Now it says that the disc can't be finalized.

Why is this happening? Is there anything I can do about it?

This is not the only time this has happened to me as I have been unable to finalize about 10 discs or so now (over the past year).

Sometimes the player is great -- it's nice and quiet and does exactly as it's supposed to. Other times, like today, it's very noisy when reading a disc and I have even had the machine shut off in the middle of writing information and have it say unreadable.

Any other thoughts/ideas? Please?

-PT[/FONT]

When reading, writing and finalizing errors occur there may also be "grinding" or "scrubbing" noises. The most likely problem is dust, debris or oily residue adhering to the DVD Drive's rubber hub allowing the disc to slip as the spindle rotates during those operations.

With your DMR-ES46V the cleaning procedure takes fifteen minutes or so. Disconnect the power cord, remove the case lid (seven screws) and the DVD Drive lid (four screws near the corners of the lid). With a cotton swab and some isopropyl rubbing alcohol clean the rubber hub that sits atop the spindle. Remove dust from the disc tray. Position the roller/slider mechanism at the rear of the disc tray to the far left, secure the DVD Drive lid and the case lid. That's it.

With a DMR-ES46V, a 2006 model, it's not necessary to remove the front panel. Take care that you do not drop the DVD Drive lid screws into the machine where they may be difficult to retrieve. If dropped into the machine they must be removed and be used to re-secure the drive lid before reconnecting the power cord. Do not use a magnatized tool to remove dropped drive lid screws.

This post and those that follow it have more detail, a link to the procedure itself, and photos:

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?p=14479898#post14479898

I've had a few occasions where a disc that failed to finalize was then dubbed to videotape and that videotape was then dubbed back to a fresh disc. It's time consuming but necessary to preserve unique material from a failed disc.

What Digado said is correct. From your description I'm 99.99% sure cleaning the spindle will correct your problems. AFA your "unfinalizable discs" I've got probably a dozen or more of those too. It happens when the disc slips when the recorder is writing to it. This usually happens when changing the thumbnail, disc title or finalizing the disc. Unfortunately there is nothing you can do to finalize those discs. When I was having failures it failed in a couple ways. One way was it made the disc unfinalizable, the second way was the worst, it wiped out my title to never be seen again.
With unfinalizable discs I play them on my DVDR and then record then on one of my other DVDRs. Note if you don't have 2 DVDRs you cannot do this in which case you could use Digado's option of recording to VHS and then back to DVD. For me this would be a last resort because of the Picture Quality hit of triple recording the title and also involving VHS tape.

Good news is after cleaning your spindle I'm sure you'll be OK for new discs and you'll be praising your DVDR again, instead of cursing it.
If you really don't want to take your machine apart there is a temporary fix which involves saliva which I've been using on one ES-15 for a year? now with no problems, but taking the machine apart and cleaning is really the best fix. Are you comfortable with taking your machine apart? It's really not that bad if you 're at all handy, but I know some people just won't which is why I mentioned the other method.

On DVDs that cannot be finalized, there are other solutions rather than copying to another medium. But it involves using a PC to extract the video contents off the unfinalized DVD and rebuilding a new DVD from those video contents.

Its been a long time since I have had to use that method, since DigaDo and jjeff's spindle cleaning method has solved the finalizing problem for me. Thanks, guys!

Well, it did it to me again ...

Tonight I recorded a program for an hour and a half and then later in the night, went back and titled the disc ... titled the chapter ... then went to accept the freeze frame I wanted as a thumbnail and then it froze. The recorder told me that it was going to go through the recovery process and after it restarted, the 30 minutes that should have been left came up 0:00 and I can't finalize the program. :mad:

I am leery of taking the recorder apart but it sounds like this is what I need to do to get past these problems. I will go back and read over the instructions and see what I can do. ... Wondering if I need specific cleaning tools?

-PT


On DVDs that cannot be finalized, there are other solutions rather than copying to another medium. But it involves using a PC to extract the video contents off the unfinalized DVD and rebuilding a new DVD from those video contents.

Its been a long time since I have had to use that method, since DigaDo and jjeff's spindle cleaning method has solved the finalizing problem for me. Thanks, guys!

Tom,

I am interested to know these steps because I don't want to lose the information that is on my two unfinalized discs. It seems as though they will only play in my recorder/player, but what if I discard this machine someday (I feel really close to doing it right now!)? I would still like to play the discs in the future.

Unfortunately, to start, I don't even have a DVD drive on my computer, just a CD drive. I am guessing I need a DVD drive?

-PT


On DVDs that cannot be finalized, there are other solutions rather than copying to another medium. But it involves using a PC to extract the video contents off the unfinalized DVD and rebuilding a new DVD from those video contents.

Its been a long time since I have had to use that method, since DigaDo and jjeff's spindle cleaning method has solved the finalizing problem for me. Thanks, guys!

Yes you would need a DVD drive. Note any Panasonic recorder would play those discs, it doesn't have to be the one it was recorded on.
If you don't have a second Panny DVDR (which it sounds like you don't) I'd use Digado's solution of recording to VHS and then back again.
Digado's link should explain everything you'd need to know about cleaning the spindle. That or do as I have for one of my Pannys, that is moisten your finger with saliva and gently rub it around the bottom clear center of your DVDs(the part that rests against the spindle). Immediately put the disc in your machine and you should be good to go. After doing this with several discs you probably won't have to do it until you hear the grinding again maybe in 4? months.

Well, it did it to me again ... I am leery of taking the recorder apart but it sounds like this is what I need to do to get past these problems. I will go back and read over the instructions and see what I can do. ... Wondering if I need specific cleaning tools?-PT

With the DMR-ES46V you have the best VHS/DVD recorder, a wise purchase, don't let it go. Your ES46 is one of the easiest Panasonics to service, as the Geico commercials say, "so easy even a caveman can do it."

Post #6 (above) describes all that's needed for the cleaning procedure itself. You will also need a Phillips screwdriver (narrow type rather than broad type) to remove the seven case cover screws and four DVD Drive lid screws (these will be tightly secured). Your ES46 has the DVD Drive with the easy-to-open metal case. (2005 and older models with the black plastic DVD Drives are more complicated to service.)

The link in post #6 takes you to photos and such advice as:

1-DON'T DROP THE DRIVE LID SCREWS
2-BE VERY GENTLE IF YOU ALSO CLEAN THE LENS
3-THE ROLLER/SLIDER MUST BE POSITIONED TO THE FAR LEFT BEFORE SECURING THE DVD DRIVE LID
4-THE DRIVE LID SCREWS GO IN THE HOLES NEAREST THE CORNERS, NOT THE HOLES NEAR THE CENTER

If you want a Hard Drive/DVD recorder with analog and digital tuners buy a Philips 3576 or Magnavox 2160. These models do not have a built-in VHS section.

I have disconnected the recorder from my TV system and it will now wait for me to remove the top and try the gentle cleaning. I am going on the advice of a post that said to let it cool down a few hours before opening the machine -- static electricity? ... anyway, I am an evening worker so it will be plenty cool when I return home later tonight (after 11 p.m. EST). That's when I will attempt the operation.

It just seems really odd to me that the machine has no problems recording but then simple functions like titling and thumbnailing it locks up. Finalizing is the most important part and I hope the cleaning works. What is different about the disc in the machine when it records as to when its being finalized that we think it moves in the tray, causing it to fail?

As for other models, I don't need one with a hard drive because even though I don't presently have a DVR, I am getting one from DirecTV at the end of the month and will program that to save the one-time type showings that I occasionally record. I don't need one with a digital tuner eithor because I have that with my HDTV & DTV receivers.

Thanks for all the responses so far and I will report back later tonight.

-PT

What is different about the disc in the machine when it records as to when its being finalized that we think it moves in the tray, causing it to fail?


I've thought about this and why it fails at those times and this is what I've deduced.
During regular straight recording the disc spins constant and smoothly. During finalizing and for whatever reason changing the thumbnail the disc needs to make sudden changes in speed(for whatever reason) it's those sudden changes in speed that will cause the disc to slip if the spindle isn't holding it firmly.
If you listen closely to a correctly working unit you will hear those sudden changes in speed(as groaning but not grinding) but if the spindle is able to hold the disc firmly it won't be a problem. If the spindle is dirty and slips you will hear grinding as it tries and tries to write the information.
What I can't figure is what Panasonic does different from other DVDR mfgs. We hear about this ALL the time on Pannys but very little on other brands. Possibly they use a different spindle assembly that is able to hold the disc firmly even though it's dusty or dirty.
Whatever the reason at least it's easy to clean. Sounds like on other brands(that may not need the spindle cleaned, or as often) it's much harder to gain access to the spindle.
Kind of like grease zerks on cars, is it better to have have them or not? If you do the regular maintenance it probably is, if you don't you're probably better off with sealed ones;) I'm a maintenance guy, so give me the one that requires a little maintenance if it will extend the life of the product.

I have disconnected the recorder from my TV system and it will now wait for me to remove the top and try the gentle cleaning. I am going on the advice of a post that said to let it cool down a few hours before opening the machine -- static electricity? ...

It just seems really odd to me that the machine has no problems recording but then simple functions like titling and thumbnailing it locks up. Finalizing is the most important part and I hope the cleaning works. What is different about the disc in the machine when it records as to when its being finalized that we think it moves in the tray, causing it to fail?

Thanks for all the responses so far and I will report back later tonight.

-PT

Static electricity discharge is a concern whenever the machine is opened. Be sure to ground yourself to the Panasonic's metal case just before touching internal parts.

The reason for the "cool down" is that capacitors store an electronic charge. The "cool down" will allow some of that charge to dissapate. Capacitors are of the disc type standing on two legs or the jacketed cannisters with aluminum tops. Avoid touching capacitors and other parts.

The disc does not spin in the disc tray. The spindle lifts the disc off the tray, clamping the disc between the rubber hub and the guide wheel on the underside of the DVD Drive lid. If the rubber hub has dust, debris or oily residue the disc may slip during operation. That's why regular cleaning of the rubber hub keeps the DVD Drive functional.

Some operations make extra or intensive demands upon the DVD Drive or other resources. Finalizing is perhaps the most intense operation of all. Any irregularity during finalizing becomes a problem.

That's why I also suggest checking power supply capacitors for bloating or leakage. Power supply problems, while less often the problem, are one cause of operational problems/failures. Some of the photos I posted in the "Whither the Capacitors" thread show what I thought was capacitor leakage when it was the resin used to secure the capacitor to the circuit board prior to the soldering process. Capacitor problems may sometimes take experience to spot.

Well, it's definitely frakked up now. I got the lid off and cleaned it nice and easy just like the instructions said to. after putting it back together, the tray would only pop out half way and the machine kept wanting to reset itself. I took it apart again and the black flap in the very back was loose and off the track. after that, I noticed that the tray itself was loose. then it came out completely. I am really up the creek now. I tried to get it back into place ... and I see a LOT of little plastic black grooves ... and closed the machine back up again. Plugged it in and now it wont eject at all.

I have taken the drive lid off and tried time after time to realign the tray, put the lid back on and have the drive eject the tray and it still won't eject. Like it's jammed or off the track. How can this be? it can only go in a certain place and only go so far?

I'm afraid I really did it now :(

Anyone want to buy this for parts?

I am officially calling it dead. I knew I shouldnt have taken it apart to inspect it. Sad & pissed at the same time!

The following information and photos depict a 2006 Panasonic DVD Drive. Interior views of later Panasonic DVD Drives will be similar.

When the DVD Drive disc tray roller/slider has been dislodged from its platform it must be correctly repositioned on that platform as seen in photo 3.

In order to reinstall a DVD Drive disc tray that has been removed from the DVD Drive, see the five photos for the correct positioning and alignments. The photos are keyed to these instructions:

1-This photo shows the “Slide Cam” (the white part) positioned to the right where the spindle is in the high position for clamping a disc to the guide wheel on the underside of the DVD Drive lid in order to spin the disc on the black rubber hub for read, write and finalizing operations. The disc tray can not be correctly aligned and reinserted when the spindle is in the high position. (Notice at the upper right of the photo the roller/slider’s positioning at the far left and its relationship to the white guide rail on the underside of the DVD drive lid.)

2-With a small, flat-bladed screwdriver placed through the disc tray manual release access hole drift the slide cam to the left until it stops. Do not force the slide cam beyond the stop position.

3-With the slide cam in the left-most position extend the disc tray side rails and place the disc tray in the EXACT position seen in the photo. Notice the disc tray’s position in relation to the slide cam (seen just beyond the back edge of the disc tray) and the belt wheel (seen through the opening in the disc tray floor). This EXACT position allows the left and right flanges at the lower edge of the front half of the disc tray to align with the guide pegs on the side of the DVD Drive case (as seen in photo 4).

4-Slide the disc tray back into the DVD Drive. If clicking is heard while sliding the tray into the DVD Drive, the disc tray has not been correctly aligned. Go back through the above instructions and repeat the procedure. Notice that the pencil points at the guide posts correctly aligned with the disc tray’s lower flange.

5-This photo shows the disc tray locked into its place in the DVD Drive.

You may want to confirm the correct operation of the disc tray before reinstalling the DVD Drive lid. To do this reinsert the screwdriver in the disc tray manual release access hole and unlock the disc tray. With your hand, steady the disc tray in its position and move it outward an inch or two. If whirring is heard the disc tray is correctly reinstalled. Slide the disc tray back into the DVD Drive until it is in the locked position. If clicking is heard while sliding the disc tray outward, the disc tray has not been correctly aligned. Again, it will be necessary to repeat the procedure.

Once the disc tray has been correctly aligned and reinstalled take care that the roller/slider mechanism is positioned to the far left and place the DVD Drive lid in position. Take care that the DVD Drive lid cut outs at the front side edges correctly engage the posts at the front sides of the DVD Drive case, place the screws in their positions nearest the drive lid corners and tighten the screws.

The . . . information and photos depict a 2006 Panasonic DVD Drive. Interior views of later Panasonic DVD Drives will be similar.

When the DVD Drive disc tray roller/slider has been dislodged from its platform it must be correctly repositioned on that platform . . .

In order to reinstall a DVD Drive disc tray that has been removed from the DVD Drive, see the five photos for the correct positioning and alignments. . .

The photos attached to the above post depict a DVD Drive that had been removed from its machine.

To the question “Is it necessary to remove the DVD Drive from the machine in order to realign/reinstall a DVD Drive disc tray?” the answer is no, removal of the DVD Drive is not necessary.

Rather than finding and opening a machine set aside for standby service, and in order to promptly respond to PsychoT’s immediate problem, I found it more expeditious to open a boxed “parts” DVD Drive, remove the disc tray, take a series of photos of the realignment/reinstallation procedure, select and name the photos, write the narrative to accompany the photos, and submit the post.

I generally discourage removing a DVD Drive from a Panasonic due to the likelihood of damage to the ribbon cable contact strip(s) and other complications.

The contacts in Digital PCB connector(s) have a tendency to drift forward as the ribbon cable is removed. When that happens the Digital PCB contact may damage the ribbon cable contact strip(s). The remedy is drifting the connector contact back into its proper position and trimming off the damaged portion of the ribbon cable’s contact strip. One of my DVD Drives/Digital PCB "modules" had this problem upon removing a ribbon cable.

Two other DVD Drive problems may occur if the DVD Drive is turned upside down with the drive lid removed. The roller/slider may become dislodged from its platform and the lens assembly mounting panel front edge post may be dislodged from the slide cam’s guide channel. The remedy for the former is to reposition the roller slider as shown in the photos in the earlier post. See the remedy for the latter described and illustrated in this Service Clinic DMR-EZ47 post:

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?p=15746105#post15746105

It may be somewhat difficult to have sufficient clearance to realign/reinstall the DVD Drive disc tray with the machine's front panel in place. That’s why I suggest removing the machine’s front panel to gain better access to the DVD Drive. Most combo recorders have a single front panel anchoring screw at top center. The attached photo shows my little yellow gripper tool for final screw removal and initial screw threading being used on the front panel anchoring screw on a DMR-ES35V combo recorder. DVD recorders do not usually have a front panel anchoring screw. Panasonic front panels have clips that release by lifting just a little with a fingernail or lifting/pressing with a flat-bladed screw driver. These clips, some of which are delicate, may be found on the front panel's top, sides and bottom. Loosen these and remove the front panel for access to the front of the DVD Drive.

After disc tray realignment/reinstallation fit the front panel back to the case. On models with a VHS mechanism be sure to hold the VHS door open to correctly align the VHS door lifting mechanism. The front panel clips should snap back into place easily, as long as there has been no damage to the case.

If the case has been damaged there may be difficulty realigning the front panel circuit board contacts (if so equipped) with their guided connections on the chassis motherboard(s). If the case has been “bowed” it may need straightening before these contacts may be realigned. One of my combo recorders (purchased used) required case straightening before the front panel buttons would function correctly.

I appreciate all the step-by-steps and the replies. I couldn't have gotten as far as I did without reading you guys first. Like I put in a previous post, I got to the spindle, cleaned it gently and good and then when I went to put everything back together, the disc tray moved on me and I never recovered from that.

I had a 2-year warranty on it and made contact with the warranty company and sent the recorder back to them with a prepaid UPS label. They said in an e-mail that I was eligible for a full refund so I hope that comes true. In the meantime, I picked up another recorder off of eBay for $20 cheaper than I paid for the first one and slapped a 2-year warranty on that as well. It arrived on the 10th and being so familiar with that model, I had it hooked up in a flash. I then used it to finalize a few discs that I didn't dare try with the old machine. Lord knows it screwed up enough discs as it was. No issues reported with the new player after a few hours.

I do have a question for all though ... If I wanted to record from VHS to DVD in the same player, is there any way possible to PLAY the tape and be able to pause it, stop it and say, cut commercials out of the past recording so that they aren't in the DVD copy? And I like to record plenty of games, so if it's a football game, and I want the best quality possible ... I will break it into quarters in XP speed and make it a 4-disc recording. So is there any way to make that transfer possible with the same recorder/player that I have? The instructions don't read like that is possible, but then again, they read like they are in Japanese. Maybe I am just not understanding them ... Suggestions?

I do have a question for all though ... If I wanted to record from VHS to DVD in the same player, is there any way possible to PLAY the tape and be able to pause it, stop it and say, cut commercials out of the past recording so that they aren't in the DVD copy?

Nope, not with a Panny. Once the dubbing starts, you can't pause vhs playback in the newer combo models.

I do have a question for all though ... If I wanted to record from VHS to DVD in the same player, is there any way possible to PLAY the tape and be able to pause it, stop it and say, cut commercials out of the past recording so that they aren't in the DVD copy? Suggestions?

To do this you must attach an external VCR to an input and record/edit manually.

That's what I thought, Westly & Diga. And that's what I did last night when I re-recorded a game from an old VHS tape to DVD. The sound was off though because the VCRs that I have in the house only support coax in/out (not needed here) and Yellow (visual) and White (audio) jacks. None of them had a Red (audio) jack to have the sound go from Mono to Stereo. Other than that, I did the best I could do.

As for the same player/recorder combo transfer, how long does that take to complete? I have never tried it before ... does it ZIP quickly though the tape (that's how the manual makes it sound) or does it play normally ... say if you are transferring a 3-hour game, does it take the full 3 hours or does it have some kind of ludicrous speed in which it's done in like 30 minutes? Hey, I dunno, I am just asking.



To do this you must attach an external VCR to an input and record/edit manually.

That's what I thought, Westly & Diga. And that's what I did last night when I re-recorded a game from an old VHS tape to DVD. The sound was off though because the VCRs that I have in the house only support coax in/out (not needed here) and Yellow (visual) and White (audio) jacks. None of them had a Red (audio) jack to have the sound go from Mono to Stereo. Other than that, I did the best I could do.

As for the same player/recorder combo transfer, how long does that take to complete? I have never tried it before ... does it ZIP quickly though the tape (that's how the manual makes it sound) or does it play normally ... say if you are transferring a 3-hour game, does it take the full 3 hours or does it have some kind of ludicrous speed in which it's done in like 30 minutes? Hey, I dunno, I am just asking.

Copying from VHS is real-time, i.e., three hours is three hours.

VCRs with a single audio output are only capable of outputting the (linear) soundtrack mixed down to mono. Connect the VCR's yellow (video) output to the Panasonic yellow (video) input and the VCR's single white (audio) output to the Panasonic white (left channel) input to distribute the mono audio to the left and right soundtracks on the DVD. Record from the input (IN1 or IN2) that's fed by the VCR.

Copying from VHS is real-time, i.e., three hours is three hours.

VCRs with a single audio output are only capable of outputting the (linear) soundtrack mixed down to mono. Connect the VCR's yellow (video) output to the Panasonic yellow (video) input and the VCR's single white (audio) output to the Panasonic white (left channel) input to distribute the mono audio to the left and right soundtracks on the DVD. Record from the input (IN1 or IN2) that's fed by the VCR.

Yep. That's what I did. Thanks big guy!

With the DMR-ES46V you have the best VHS/DVD recorder, a wise purchase, don't let it go. Your ES46 is one of the easiest Panasonics to service, as the Geico commercials say, "so easy even a caveman can do it."

Post #6 (above) describes all that's needed for the cleaning procedure itself. You will also need a Phillips screwdriver (narrow type rather than broad type) to remove the seven case cover screws and four DVD Drive lid screws (these will be tightly secured). Your ES46 has the DVD Drive with the easy-to-open metal case.

Some features distinctive to the DMR-ES45V/46V combo recorder models are their HDMI connectivity, upconverting and SD Card slot.

I am attaching photos that show the hardware variations unique to the DMR-ES45V/46V models:

Photo one shows the DVD Drive marked "45," common between the DMR-ES45V and DMR-ES46V models. Notice the HDMI ribbon cable extending below the DVD Drive at the left.

Photo two shows the Digital PCB. The pencil points to the HDMI ribbon cable connection for the HDMI board. The ribbon cable connection at the left (above the thumb) is for the SD Card/DVI board.

Photo three shows the HDMI board and ribbon cable connection to the Digital PCB. The HDMI board is mounted on the power supply board.

Photo four shows the SD Card/DVI board.

Some features distinctive to the DMR-ES45V/46V combo recorder models are their HDMI connectivity, upconverting and SD Card slot.

I am attaching photos that show the hardware variations unique to the DMR-ES45V/46V models:

Photo one shows the DVD Drive marked "45," common between the DMR-ES45V and DMR-ES46V models. Notice the HDMI ribbon cable extending below the DVD Drive at the left.

Photo two shows the Digital PCB. The pencil points to the HDMI ribbon cable connection for the HDMI board. The ribbon cable connection at the left (above the thumb) is for the SD Card/DVI board.

Photo three shows the HDMI board and ribbon cable connection to the Digital PCB. The HDMI board is mounted on the power supply board.

Photo four shows the SD Card/DVI board.
I have Panasonic DMR-EH50. Was loud and fails to finalize. When I clean the rubber, is working like brand new. Thanks DigaDo!!!!!!