Panasonic DMR EH69 - Page 2

The EH69 does NOT have an HDMI input. If it did, they could not keep them in stock, well maybe not... You will have to go from the Comcast STB to the EH69 using either S-Video or composite. There are no other types of input. You can then go from the EH69 to the television using HDMI.

No, just HDMI output. The HDMI output seems to work with the CD playback. It does not want to work with the TV output. That is when I use the cable box RF in the HDMI output does not work. Maybe it is not supposed to work with RF in????

No, just HDMI output. The HDMI output seems to work with the CD playback. The HDMI does not want to work with the TV output. That is when I use the cable box RF input the HDMI output does not work. Maybe it is not supposed to work with RF input????

That is extremely odd. Mine works fine when I have an input like L2 or L4 selected, and I'm using the HDMI output.

Would you please walk me through the setup. I have a cable box. Cable in from cable source and cable out to EH69. HDMI from EH69 to TV. No picture using this setup. I can play DVD's using this setup. What is L2 or L4?

The EH-69/59 has no usable tuner for N. American use, everything you record to the EH-59/69 needs to be through the line inputs, L2 or L4.
If your cable box only has RF(channel 3 or 4) output the EH-69/59 will not work for you, recording is only available from composite or S-video inputs.
The HDMI is for output only, run HDMI TV or AVR if using one.

Thank you. I was afraid it was something like what you have described.

If your cable box only has RF output and you don't want to get another, it would be possible using a VCR(need not work but does need to power up) and use the VCR as a RF to composite converter. The VCR would tune channel 3 or 4 from your cable box and hook the line outputs of your VCR to your EH-69's line input(L2 or L4). In this scenario you would need to do a channel scan on the VCR while your cable box was on.
Note the above workaround will not give you stereo audio and the picture quality will not be nearly as good as using direct connect S-video or even composite, but it is an option

Thank you. The cable box has the yellow, red, white RCA plug outputs. Will this work? I will ask Comcast if their newer boxes are configured any differently. Thank you. John DiLoreto

Like jjeff has said, the tuner in the EH59/69 will not work with signals in North America. You will need to take the composite or S-Video output from your Comcast cable box and connect it to a line input on your EH69. This is normally L2, L3, or L4. L2 is the back panel SCART input and you would need an adapter for that, available here. L3 is the front panel input. L4 is the back panel input. (L1 is really reserved for an output only.) You woud then select your input as whichever line input you are using and you are good to go. You would use the HDMI as your output to the television. You change channels using the STB. The dvd recorder has no way to change channels.

Yes! If the STB does not have an S-Video output, then those are the ones to use.

Just a comment on Luke's excellent and lucid explanation of the input/output terminals on the EH59/69. From the explanation, it sounds like the L1 is output from the EH59. From the description on page 6 of the manual describing the "Input Select" on the remote, the manual shows "AV1, AV2, AV3, AV4 or DV". The AV3 and AV4 are printed on the recorder itself.

I've been a defender of the manuals, but I must confess, I've not yet discovered where the inputs AV1 and AV2 (L1 & L2?) are defined. Presumably the Scarts? The DV is a 4-pin firewire input from a device (camcorder), but not a computer. DV transmits audio as well as video, so only the one cable is needed.

A scary note on page 23, just above the Manual Recording bar: "If video is copied from another piece of equipment to this unit, then the video quality will be degraded."

Okay, at the risk of becoming too pedantic, something I have long been accused of, if you look in the manual on pages 8 or 9, it shows the back of the recorder. The two SCART connectors are shown, and in dim print on the page, the top SCART connector is labeled AV1 (TV), as in an output to the television. (It can be selected as an input, but it doesn't work properly*.) The lower SCART connector is labeled AV2 (EXT), as in external input. I use all of these inputs and outputs and they all work as I have described. AV1 is an output, as is the composite, S-Video, component (without the SCART adapter, there is only one set of audio outputs for the composite/S-Video/component outputs) and HDMI connections. They all function simultaneously. The AV2, AV3, and AV4 are inputs, and the all work properly using either S-Video or composite. There are no component or HDMI inputs.

The statement about degraded video quality is correct, but it isn't a BIG deal. It will be degraded as a normal generation copy will be degraded, and this depends a lot on the quality you choose for the recording.

* Whenever I have attempted to use the AV1 as an input, I got a picture that is black and white, and very noisy. Nothing I have tried has made any improvement, so I have decided that it is intended for an output only which works great, and the fact that it works as an inputat all, in a degraded manner, is only a oddity.

If pedantic it be, then keep on being pedantic. That's what you have long been admired and appreciated for, at least by me. Pretty tough to argue with experience. I'd like to print it out and file with the manual, but my printout truncates the right-hand 1/3 of the pages.

Well thanks Richard. The only thing I can suggest is you cut the text you want to print out, and paste it into a word processing document for printing.

Finally got them printed and copied, 3 copies! Thanks for your suggestion. Wasn't quite straight forward, but I got there.

I see your link to the Scart adapter leads to a male Scart to three female RCA adapter. What are your thoughts on that for output? It wouln't give a second S-video out, but we would still have the one to use where it matters most.

Thanks so much, "Pedant Man"; keep it that way.

Richard

I'm glad you got the printout you needed, and again, thanks for the kind comments.

That SCART adapter has a switch for input/output, so you can use it in either SCART connector on the DVD recorder. It has three RCA connectors, as well as an S-Video connector, so yes, it will a secons S-Video out. I use it that way most of the time, aty least in my "permanent" setup.

Flexibility increases complexity. That EH59 AV1, what determines whether it is input or output? Is it the adapter that determines, or does the adapter merely "support" the decision made in the EH59 Input Select? If AV1 is selected, doesn't that preclude any of the external inputs?(L2, L3, L4).

I'm not sure exactly what you are asking here. When I select AV1 as an input, and I plug in the SCART adapter, switch it to input, and put in a clean signal, what the recorder sees, and outputs, is a grainy black and white picture. When I set the switch to output and plug the S-Video/composite/audio into a television, it looks great. I therefore have concluded, that the internal wiring for AV1 is faulty when it's used as an input. As an output, it works fine. When I plug the SCART connector into AV2, and set it to input, the signal the recorder sees is perfect, or at least as good as when I use the other AV inputs. My conclusion is that AV1 is, or shoud be, a dedicated output, and AV 2/3/4 are inputs. The rear panel dedicated composite/S-Video/component/HDMI connectors are also outputs.

I suspect the internal wiring, as I said. I am doing the same thing with both connectors, and one works as an input, the other as an output, and they are labeled (out to) TV and EXT (input). This would suggest you use them as they are intended. Someone earlier said he was tring to get AV1 to work as a proper input, but I never heard back to see if he was successful. There are three other inputs, so I really think a fourth one is unnecessary.

So you can have AV1 output with Av2 (L2), L3 or L4 as input? AV1 is hot all the time, same as the other output, except when Scart 1 adapter is set to input?

Yes--exactly! I currently am using in one of my stacks of hardware, a setup where I am using AV1 as oiutput, and AV2 as input simultaneously with no problems at all.

Wow! Thank you. Manual page 60 seems to reinforce what you've been saying, AV1 Output, AV2 Input.

I haven't started using my EH59 yet. I have an E100H recording thru a converter box, E85H recording from a sat receiver, a Mag 515 recording Public tv (tuner for the 4 sub-channels is great). Two EH55's are used for miscellaneous and special projects. Looking for an excuse to check out that EH59, looks like a real sweet dish, long phrase save, refresh recording, 5, 6, or 7-day week, and DON'T HAVE to DISABLE TVGOS. Thanks again.

Ha... I never actually saw that in the manual. It's nice to know that the intended use matches my experience. I *THINK* that there are a few legacy selections in the EH59/69 that are no longer valid for operation, but they left them there because it was easier to just leave them than to actually go into the firmware and remove them. One of these is the ability to select AV1 as an INPUT even though it does not function as one. Another LONG standing legacy issue is that when selecting FR recording, when you enter a recording time (duration), it chooses a compression that fits the time into ~4000Mb, and not the 4409Mb that is really on a disk. That is a loss of 10% of the disk capacity! They COULD have fixed that at almost any time, but it persists at ~4000.

Oh, one other thing. I only listed Amazon as a source for SCART connectors. There are many other places, and a search will show lots of them. I merely used Amazon as an example, not an endorcement of their product. I in fact HAVE purchased some of the ones I have from Amazon, but not exclusively. The Amazon ones do work though, and are a pretty good price.

I was kind of figuring on just ignoring the SCART connections on my EH59..... Now all this talk has made me curious. Thinking of getting a couple of adapters, just to play with them. Never hurts to have some extra inputs/outputs.....

You can get inexpensive ones like I liked to, or you can get some with gold plated connectors and specially made connecotr shells, etc. I bet there is no difference in picture quality. Like those extremely expensive hollow copper power cords.

Question will the AV2 SCART input on a EH 69 support a Component to SCART adapter? I have a suspicion that there would be no discernible improvement in picture quality. Component to SCART adapters are not as readily available as the SVideo composite adapters.

I have wondered that myself. The manual does not say component is supported. I never found a component SCART adapter to test. To be more precise, every SCART<->component adapter/cable was always for an OUTPUT, never for an input, and inputs ARE witred differently that outputs. I suppose I never looked too far into it because all the other inputs are composite/S-Video. If you do test it, please let us all know. I am sure that jjeff and I would really like to know, probably others as well.
Edited by Church AV Guy - 1/12/13 at 11:28pm

Just for interest sake, B&H has an EH69 used for sale for $299. The condition is "8" though, which could be an issue. A friend of mine bought a condition "8" item from B&H a while back and there was a big dent in the case. It worked, but it was definitely damaged.

While doing some research recently, I "discovered" that Panasonic, in some markets, is selling (or at any rate, sold) something called en EH49. This is the same as the EH59/69 except with an even smaller HDD. I'm not sure about any other differences. I have never seen one of these for sale anywhere--just the EH59/69 models.

I have also heard of the EH-49 but due to lack of information I've not included it in my Panasonic DVDR Models thread. I think it was mainly sold in the British market, very rare model indeed.

I don't think it was sold in the Brtitish market, though I could be wrong. I think it was sold in the far east market. At any rate, I've never seen it for sale in any American market, even gray.