[smithduke]

My Panasonic E80H still works great except for the problem of the tray not ejecting. I've tried all the fixes but the only thing that seems to work is pressing the open/close button on the remote for about 3 minutes and it will eventually open.


My question is, which unit would you recommend to replace it? I've been looking at the Philips DVDR3576H, especially because is has a hardrive. What are the major differences and is it worth getting compared to getting my E80H fixed. I mainly like to record either from TIVO to HDD or record directly on HDD from cable and archive onto DVD-RAM. Unfortunately I have a huge archive of DVD-RAM's which I'll have to transfer back to the hardrive and put them DVD-R, before the unit dies. I guess I never thought that Panasonic would be getting rid of HDD models.

Thanks for any advice you could give me.

 

[Rammitinski]

You can get the Panny fixed for the $130.00 flat fee from the facility at Elk Grove Village, IL.


Or, you could buy an EH57 or EH67 International model Panny from www.world-import.com . It only has a PAL tuner, but if you don't need the internal tuner, it'd be fine. A few people here have bought them, and are completely satisfied with them.


If you want something with at least an NTSC tuner, the Canadian and International Pioneers have that (the Canadian ones are much more preferable, if you can get one). There's also the Canadian Sony, which is basically a Pioneer, but less expensive (except that it doesn't do DVD-RAM like the Pio's and Panny's).


There also currently a couple of new Panasonic EH-55's on eBay, but they are quite a bit more expensive.


With those reasons that you want and need it for, though, I don't think the Philips/Magnavox would really be the best choice - unless having that built-in QAM/ATSC/NTSC tuner is of the utmost importance. They don't do RAM, and they don't really have the editing complexities of the others.

 

[smithduke]

Thanks Rammitinski. I love my E80H and it's been good to me. Since I'm heavily into editing, I think I'm going to just get it repaired. Kind of what I thought all along.

 

[DigaDo]



Quote:
Originally Posted by smithduke /forum/post/15471873


Thanks Rammitinski. I love my E80H and it's been good to me. Since I'm heavily into editing, I think I'm going to just get it repaired. Kind of what I thought all along.

The ONLY place to repair a Panasonic is discussed in this thread:

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=1056657

 

[CitiBear]

In these tough economic times, the answer partly depends on what you can afford. The E80H is getting a bit long in the tooth, even if you repair it sooner rather than later you will run into difficulty finding DVD-R media that will burn properly in it (the formulas in media are changing every couple months now).


The Panasonic flat-fee $130 repair program is hands down the best in the industry, and they will do everything possible to restore your E80H. With careful choice of media, you should get another year or so use out of it for your $130. But if you can possibly afford it, consider replacing it with a new "international" EH67. A new recorder will have slightly more flexible editing, better power supply system and will burn more brands of current blank media. The EH67 has so far proved to be an "extra-nice" Panasonic variation and is a good bet even at the going $400. Or, if you can stall until March, wait and see what happens to the price floor of "new old stock" EH55s. The Panasonic EH-55 is the most popular recorder ever made, but a large portion of the current price inflation is due to its superior implementation of the TVGOS timer feature. There is at least a 60/40 chance this feature will become useless for 9 out of 10 potential buyers after the February shutdown of analog TV broadcasts. When and if that happens, demand for the EH55 will ease considerably and prices may drop quite a bit.

 

[Breyean]



Quote:
Originally Posted by Rammitinski /forum/post/15471023



Or, you could buy an EH57 or EH67 International model Panny from www.world-import.com . It only has a PAL tuner, but if you don't need the internal tuner, it'd be fine. A few people here have bought them, and are completely satisfied with them.

Can you use the line inputs to record if I use another device as a tuner? I currently have a Panny EZ48 that I use for OTA HD broadcasts but it w/b nice to feed those onto a hard drive to avoid flipping disks.

 

[Rammitinski]



Quote:
Originally Posted by Breyean /forum/post/15475822


Can you use the line inputs to record if I use another device as a tuner?

Absolutely. But it doesn't have an IR blaster, so if you want to be able to record from different channels, the tuner must be capable of changing them on it's own.


The international Pannies are more USA-compatible than the international Pio's are (although the Pio's have an NTSC tuner and can still be used here). So if you really wanted a Pio, I'd go for a Canadian one first, as it's perfectly suited for here.


I completely forgot about the media angle that CitiBear mentioned, so I would agree that it's just better to go ahead and get one of the newer international ones if you can afford it.


Make sure they supply the voltage adapter for US use if you order one. They usually give you one for free, but it's good to bring it up to make sure.

 

[Rammitinski]



Quote:
Originally Posted by CitiBear /forum/post/15475768


The Panasonic EH-55 is the most popular recorder ever made, but a large portion of the current price inflation is due to its superior implementation of the TVGOS timer feature. There is at least a 60/40 chance this feature will become useless for 9 out of 10 potential buyers after the February shutdown of analog TV broadcasts. When and if that happens, demand for the EH55 will ease considerably and prices may drop quite a bit.

It already is happening. The prices on eBay for the new ones have gone down quite a bit recently. In fact, I just bought one myself yesterday.

Still considerably cheaper for the international ones, though. I think W-I wants about $449.99 for a 250GB EH67 Panny right now.


(I use it with SD Dish, so there's no problem with the TVGOS if it doesn't work with OTA or cable after the cutoff in my situation. I checked the international ones, and even though they have a similar feature, it won't work here with Dish.

 

[ernie6]

I previously owned two E80's and I gave them to my son and brother and purchased 2 Pioneer recorders with 80G hard drives. They were purchased from World-Import and are terrific recorders with great editing features. I stuck with the 80G size because the drive on the E80 was plenty big for the recording and editing I do. I normally delete a recording after dubbing the edited program onto a DVD-R.


The Pioneers record on all media DVD-R+R, RW and RAM. They include several menus that allow you to insert a thumbnail. Besides the Pioneer recorders I also own a Panny E50 and Philips with the 160G hard drive. I like them all but the Pioneers are the best.

 

[glangford]

I went through some of the same thought processes while I was fixing my EH-85. After some review on this forum I thought the best choice for me and editing would be the Panny EH57. One seller had it for less than 400. Do a google search. If it had cost me 130 dollars to fix my EH85, I would have replaced. i was eventually able to replace a couple of capacitors myself for about 10 bucks. I have a panny no HDD recorder that does dual layer, and I'd love to have panny that has a HDD and does DL discs, with increased media flexibility. The EH57 has a 160 HDD and the EH67 has a 250 HDD, I figured the 160 was enough for me as I burn it off to dvd anyway and the HDD is temporary storage. I also have no need for the tuner so that wasn't important. I saw reference to a EH68 doing a google search with at 360 HDD, but no sellers that I can find. For now I'll live with my EH85 and EZ27.

 

[smithduke]

Thanks for all your suggestions. Based on the advise I'm looking into the EH57. I'm a bit of a novice at all this and I don't completely understand about the different types of tuners. I know PAL is European and NTSC is used in the US and that's about it. I would like a tuner because I can record on my TIVO and HDD at the same time. Is there a converter that I can use?

 

[jjeff]

Are you OTA or Cable?

 

[Coolwater7795]

I am looking for a new dvd recorder too. There's absolutley nothing wrong with my E 80-- I just want a Hi def recorder

I am looking at the Philips DVDR3576H 160GB DVD Recorder , but after spending $700+ for my E80 about 4 years ago, I think the price is too high

Overstock had some refurbished units for $219.00, but they're all gone

 

[smithduke]

Ok, I'm a little embarrassed that I don't know what OTA is and I don't feel like figuring it out. I have cable but disconnected my cable box because the IR was very inconsistent changing channels on my Tivo. I've heard it has something to do with Comcast (which is horrible) but I'm not certain. My cable is connected directly to my TIVO at the moment.


Nancy

 

[Kelson]



Quote:
Originally Posted by Coolwater7795 /forum/post/15491694


I am looking for a new dvd recorder too. There's absolutley nothing wrong with my E 80-- I just want a Hi def recorder

I am looking at the Philips DVDR3576H 160GB DVD Recorder , but after spending $700+ for my E80 about 4 years ago, I think the price is too high

Overstock had some refurbished units for $219.00, but they're all gone

No DVD recorders are hi-def. They all down-convert any HD content to 480i before output or recording. The only HD recorders are the DVRs you can rent from cable/sat/FIOS or the DTVPal DVR you can buy for OTA HD-recording. Also TiVo HD for cable or OTA.


P.S. smithduke, OTA = over the air. IOW broadcast TV received using an antenna.

 

[jjeff]



Quote:
Originally Posted by smithduke /forum/post/15488688


I would like a tuner because I can record on my TIVO and HDD at the same time. Is there a converter that I can use?

Quote:
Originally Posted by smithduke /forum/post/15491703


I have cable


Nancy

Yes as Kelson said OTA is over the air, or an antenna.

Since you have cable then you'd probably want a DVDR with a NTSC analog tuner at the least. The international Pannys won't have a NTSC tuner so you would need a external tuner of some type to tune your cable stations.

I'm not sure your tolerance for jury rigging things but some people use an old VCR with a tuner to use for the tuner. You could also buy a old cable ready tuner although analog ones are probably getting harder to find new.

In your case I'd really just think about getting your EH80 fixed, it sounds like the best option, to me anyway.

 

[smithduke]

Actually, I'm pretty good at setting things up. I do have an old VCR with a tuner so I may go that route and get the new recorder. B&H Photo has the EH57 as well as world-import.com. Isn't amazing how hard it is to find an E80H under $600.00! I'm lucky I got one of the best as my first DVD recorder!