HV20 Broken??

[marioman38]

So I took my HV20 to Hawaii in mid feb, and halfway through the trip, it flashes an icon, and says remove the cassette. I take it out, and re insert it. After ~30 sec of recording it happened again *repeat tape removal*... happens again. I was thinking it was only from humidity, but now that I am back, I tried it, does the same thing. I played back the tape, the video was choppy, and sound cuts in and out. Any thoughts? I always use the same Sony Premium Mini-DV cassettes. I have the blank warranty card, but no receipt as I got it a month old from E-bay. It can't be over a year old though, as the model hasn't been out that long.

Any fixes to try?
Can I still get access to my warranty w/o the receipt? (I do have the blank warranty card.)

Thanks MacRumors:Forums Cr3w

 

[-DH]

Why ask here? Your issue is with Canon. Contact them regarding any warranty concerns.

-DH

 

[marioman38]

Just wondering if anyone knew of a possible fix? Tape head clean or something? I don't want to send it in if I don't have to...

 

[pdpfilms]

Your heads are probably dirty. Try buying a CANON BRAND head cleaner (they look like MiniDV tapes, only... head cleaners.) Record onto it for 10 seconds, then play it for 10 seconds. Then put in a new tape, try to record and then try to play. If it doesn't work, repeat only once or twice, as excessive head cleaner usage results in undue wear on your heads.

Somewhere around 90% of problems exhibiting symptoms you describe are caused by dirty heads. To avoid this, try using only one brand of tape (in particular, stay away from Sony, as last I heard they still used wet lube). The problem is that using a tape with wet lube leaves a residue on your heads. This is fine, until you use a tape with dry lube- the two don't mix well at all. Picture flour and oil. Not so bueno. I personally only use Panasonic 63min Master Quality tapes in my XH-A1, and they work quite well.

Good luck!