Tweet Beware Panasonic DVD recorders!

Because my 3 yr. old LG recorder had begun performing such amusing tricks as turning talkies into silents (for NO reason that I can determine), I bought a Model DMR-EZ48V Panasonic (the only other brand I could find that included a tuner). Several critical functions that displayed on-screen with the LG can only be seen on the Panasonic's control panel in miniscule lights & incomprehensible symbols, but maybe even that major inconvience one might learn, eventually, to master. But I simply CAN'T BELIEVE this "industry leader" would put into production a machine that requires 17 or 18 MINUTES to finalize a disk! The LG required less than 5 min, maybe 3 or 4, to perform the same function. Panasonic has heretofor been a name I trusted utterly (my first Pan. VCR lasted some 25 yrs, & my present Pan. TV is now aged 14 yrs, & going strong), but I'll never touch this brand again.

PS,

Mike--trade you this looser for your bum player; or shall we make a bonfire of our vanities?

Well, maybe the problem is the disc, or the specific player you have and you need to return it. I don't think there is a general problem with all Panasonic recorders. I have DMR-ES15 that I have been working very hard for a few years, and it only takes a couple of minutes to finalize a disc. I especially like the fact that you can record at a flexible recording rate, fit one film exactly at the right bit rate to fill a disc. My only worry about Panasonic recorders is that they are becoming very hard to find, the market is disappearing with DVRs I fear.

My only worry about Panasonic recorders is that they are becoming very hard to find, the market is disappearing with DVRs I fear.

I feared this, too, so I actually purchased it over 6 mos. ago as my "backup." (Thus, it's too late to return it, as I'd like to do.)

However, this ridiculous finalizing time has nothing to do with the particular disk, because the machine's instructions explicitly state that the time required will be "15 minutes." Upon reading this, I assumed it to be some "worst case" exaggeration, but to the contrary, it actually requires a minute or two LONGER.

I assume that the recording you have made has filled up the disc? The more empty space on a disc, the longer it takes to finalize. I'm sure you know this, just didn't see anywhere where you said how much of the disc was recorded on.

Not 100% full, but at least 85%. I reiterate, the machine itself warns you, "finalizing will take 15 min."

If I could solve my "sound" problem with the LG, I'm quite ready to retire the Panasonic. But please don't tell me I've got the cables plugged in incorrectly! When played back on the same LG, the sound IS there, so it has been transmitted from the player to which it's connected for recording, but the sound disappears when played back on any other machine, though the image is unaffected.

[Danny Burk]

It sounds like Panasonic has changed the finalization method. I have a much older Panasonic recorder that I don't use anymore; it would finalize in about 4 minutes.

Check out avsforum.com for their discussion on HDD DVD recorders. The Panasonic DVD recorders with ATSC tuners available on the USA market now are pretty much all garbage. The Magnavox 515 DVD HDD recorder worked fine (I have one) but is now discontinued and only available as a refurbished unit. Funai may be releasing new Magnavox recorders here in the near future. For the past four years, only Funai made quality DVD recorders with USA ATSC tuners. The Panasonic international HDD DVD recorders work fine until they stop working, but those recorders have an overseas tuner. The Magnavox 515s were much cheaper to buy at Walmart when they were on sale there until about 16 months ago. Now that I have gotten used to the Magnavox, I use it only, not my Panasonic EH59 international model. The main problem with the Magnavox is that its edits are unreliable, even when you edit at the point where a black interval shows up during a program with commercial breaks. You can't have everything

Am amazed by how much electronics stuff is now offered on ebay, Amazon, etc., "refurbished"...which can mean absolutely anything, of course. In this case--though I can't believe I'm having to consider buying a THIRD recorder within the span of 3 yrs!--I'm now going to look into one of those refurbished Magnavox 515 units. It won't be fun.

My Panasonic DMR-E85H DVR, about 7 years old, takes 2 minutes to finalize a disc. It takes about 10 minutes per hour of content to copy/dub material to a disc, from the hard drive.

About two months ago I replaced the capacitors in the power supply. The design had called for a rather low voltage tolerance on these caps and I installed ones with a higher voltage rating. The DVR had died when the old ones failed.

Other than that, and some quirks requiring a "reset" once in a while, it's been a great machine. I learned not to rely upon any supposed "Channel Guide" and just program by time and channel, however.

Rick

My Panasonic DMR-E85H DVR, about 7 years old, takes 2 minutes to finalize a disc. It takes about 10 minutes per hour of content to copy/dub material to a disc, from the hard drive.

Care to trade new for old, Rick?

The only prices I found for the Magnavox 515 were 3 at $1300 ea! Walmart's price before dropping them had been about $350, so the price-gougers are taking up the slack. Looks like I'll have to live with 15+ min. finalizing.

Just seen this lot of posts and don't agree with the negative comments. I have the previous model(47) which I got a deal at my local Kmart(Australia) which usually did do much with the brand, in Dec 2007 and no trouble. I also have an earlier HDD500g Panasonic twin tuner recorder, their similar Blu Ray HDD recorder, a Panasonic 46" TV, and a Panasonic NTSC LD player and their old NW-1 All World Systems Video recorder of which the heads are gone along with an old F70 VHS PAL recorder with a head problem. All have given a lot of hard work. The TV did have a warranty repair a few months after I got in Aug 2008 and it was quickly repaired with a new board and as it turned out I also needed another of the three boards replaced at the same time(the middle one with the plugs section in it). I am now looking at their 3-D recorders & TV as I have a few 3-Ds now and some classics soon to come. They are all abut a third of what I paid in 2008 and the HDMI leads are cheaper as well but I never fell foe those huge prices others did.