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Home: Video University Forums: Sony DV and DVCAM Forum:
Should I run a tape cleaner?

Steven D
User

Feb 1, 2005, 12:01 AM

Post #1 of 6 (1376 views)
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Should I run a tape cleaner?	Can't Post

Should I run a cleaning tape through the cam, Sony VX2000. I have never run one through and I am not sure how many hours I have on it. I would maybe guess with record and playback, I may have anywhere from 30-100 hours. I have been using only sony tapes, premium and excellence, I have not noticed any real drop outs. I have read that some will run a cleaning tape after so many hours. I have also heard that running a cleaning tape can cause damage to the heads.
I was thinking a may just run the tape for about 5 seconds. Do I need to run it in record or play?

Thanks

Bob A
Veteran

Feb 1, 2005, 9:38 AM

Post #2 of 6 (1362 views)
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Re: [Steven D] Should I run a tape cleaner? [In reply to]	Can't Post

A 10 second pass with a cleaning tape may or may not help head off any problems. If the cam is working fine most would say leave it alone. A complete manual tape path cleaning is a good idea every 100 to 200 hours of operation. DV tape runs pretty clean when you stick with a single brand. I keep a cleaning tape in every cam bag just in case. I run a cleaning tape once a year or so if the cam has not been opened for any other service.

Shawn Lam
User

Feb 9, 2005, 12:45 PM

Post #3 of 6 (1277 views)
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Re: [Steven D] Should I run a tape cleaner? [In reply to]	Can't Post

You can find the camera hours somewhere on the camcorder menu if you are interested in finding that out. This is a good place to start if you are looking to purchase a used camera, by the way.

If it ain't broke and you aren't changing tape brands then leave it be.

Just out of curiosity, why are you using Excellence tapes? Do you actually take advantage of the chip?

Shawn

Shawn Lam, MPV

Shawn Lam Video
Vancouver BC
BCPVA President
EventDV Columnist
2008 WEVA CEA silver award winner - Theatrical Productions

Steven D
User

Feb 10, 2005, 12:57 AM

Post #4 of 6 (1254 views)
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Re: [Shawn Lam] Should I run a tape cleaner? [In reply to]	Can't Post

I did not know if you could check the hours on a VX2000. If you know how to, let me know.

I only have only used the excellence tapes a few times. Just to be safe and maybe to keep down the risk of getting dropouts. I usually use the premium tapes. The excellence tapes are the ones without the chip. I had purchased them from tape resources for $7 - $8 a tape. Not sure of exact price.

Steven

Shawn Lam
User

Feb 10, 2005, 1:04 AM

Post #5 of 6 (1251 views)
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Re: [Steven D] Should I run a tape cleaner? [In reply to]	Can't Post

Hi Steven,
I can only speak about the PD-170 as that is what I use. Here is how I find the hours meter.

Menu
The ETC Icon (Others Menu)
Hrs Meter

It displays Operation, Drum Run, Tape Run, and Threading hours.

I'm not too sure what some of them mean but Tape Run is how many hours of tape you have gone through. Mine seems to indicate 140 tapes in 1 year.

Shawn

Shawn Lam, MPV

Shawn Lam Video
Vancouver BC
BCPVA President
EventDV Columnist
2008 WEVA CEA silver award winner - Theatrical Productions

Bob A
Veteran

Feb 10, 2005, 8:49 AM

Post #6 of 6 (1237 views)
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Re: [Shawn Lam] Should I run a tape cleaner? [In reply to]	Can't Post

In Reply To

You can not find the camera hours in the menus of the VX series of cameras, you need an RM-95 to extract the hours readings.

Excellence tapes do not normally contain the chip, only tape with the "Mem" designation do.