I envy you for the fact that you got this at a flea market...I am from Manchester in the uk and i am an avid Betamax collector...What a find you have there as i would only dream of finding this..What did you pay for it?...Great upload by the way.
THe 870-D Super Beta was a top VCR for Sony for 1989. It has the Faroudja Image processor and uses the same transport with tape stabilizer as the more expensive EDV-7500 ED-Bata VCR. It has 300 line horizontal resolution in Super Beta. However, it is also capable of playing back B1s-SHB Super High Band Beta Tapes but not recording them. B1s-SHB was a slightly improved Beta Format with 360 horizontal lines of resolution as recorded by the SLHF-1000 and SLHF-2100 Betamax Sonys.tape.
@hakemon Not bad considering the TV is doing the scaling, from the looks i'd assumed it was fed through an A/V reciever or somesuch. Shame about the player.
I had one of these for the picture quality. I never messed with all the functions so this video is intersting in understanding the functions but I don't understand who or why a person would use many of them. Wouldn't most people just watch the movie? Why did the manufacturer add all the extra stuff?
The "misterbetamax" site mentions ED in the SL-HF870D's description, but upon closer reading I think they're just saying that this model was styled to match the ED models, with the woodgrain sides. So maybe it's just Super Beta, or 300 lines of resolution (better than VHS HQ and comparable to Video CD).
Once again i point out to new technology i have a 1080p plasma with a PVR which records in 720P . It just blows me away what people will pay on E-Bay for a High End Beta machine.
Well yea, paying on ebay is horrible. This thing only cost me double digits, never crawling into triples like eBay does.
But here's a problem... All optical recordable formats will degrade far faster than a magnetic format. Optical recordable formats use ink dye, which fades rather quickly (which can also lead to a not even start condition). Magnetic particles on VHS and Beta/U-Matic last far longer than a recordable optical format.
That is true, but that also depends on the dye and the power level the recorder is set to. Most CDs use crummy dyes, and some US laws are in conflict with sector amplification. I still have the first Phillips and Memorex CDrs from the 90s and they are still readable.
I have everything on LTOs also...just in case....on the subject of EMPs, the optical media beats magnetic...
This is my first time on you tube so i did not even know if it would go on. I am 50 years old still have a old Beta vcr for my old tapes i still have ( bruin fights, concerts etc ). I went through all the Beta format wars with vhs and had to defend beta long after it died. My point is this format is long dead and the new Blue Ray format is 1000 times better than Beta.
You can't record on Bluray. You can only so far get an affordable DVD recordable, but they usually are designed to be as cheap to the manufacturer as possible, and thus fall apart easily to the consumer.
VHS is ok, but not as good as a Super Beta recorder like this. And as in the case I will be using it for, is to record TV shows (as they also demoed when the Betamax was introduced).
Point is, and you should very well know this, to each their own. I prefer to record my TV shows on Beta.
It may be old, but older technology deserves respect and ackoledgement. Without Beta/VHS, there wouldn't be Bluray for your fancy 1080p video (which by the way, a similar 1080 something was out in the 80's also). By that logic, we should be seeing 4k video about now and your 1080p is outdated also.
Err... sorry for double posting, but one thing confuses me after watching the video all the way... It has the Picture-in-Picture function as you demonstrated... so does it have a coaxial in port in the back for your cable box? Then how were you watching TV separately at the same time after briefly turning it off?
The cable box was connected to the VCR by stereo composite video cables. When I hit stop on the VCR, it, like all VCR's, show their tuners selected channel/input, which in this case, was the rear inputs that were connected to the cable box.
I bet you that Beta was worth well over $1,000 when it was new, and mainly used in TV stations. It's surprising, unless you head your HDTV zoomed, to see a movie originally formatted to 1.33:1 would fit 1.78:1 perfectly.
From what I see, it was about $4,000 when it was new, and was used in a TV station. It was previously owned by a certain pornographic channel which I won't mention, which is kinda ironic considering some people say VHS won because beta couldn't have any porn.
You sound like Matthew Broderick.
BetaWolf47 6 days ago
i used to have one of these, except it kept eating my tapes, so i got pissed and threw it out
Thurston8533 2 months ago
Has anyone ever told you that you sound alot like Matthew Br
oderick?
gerryf84 8 months ago
Has anyone ever told you that you sound alot like Matthew Br
oderick?
gerryf84 8 months ago
Has anyone ever told you that you sound alot like Matthew Broderick?
gerryf84 8 months ago
They will live forever
earlovesgod 9 months ago
the features on this deck are very surprising , its picture stability is on par with sp and digibeta machines.
the digital freeze frame and related features are amazing, these are things usually found on separate units such as a noise reducer.
for something made twenty years ago it was well ahead of its time
allboutk 11 months ago
How much?
weeowey 1 year ago
I envy you for the fact that you got this at a flea market...I am from Manchester in the uk and i am an avid Betamax collector...What a find you have there as i would only dream of finding this..What did you pay for it?...Great upload by the way.
azshaw123 1 year ago
Have you fixed this machine?
3y3tiger 1 year ago
Comment removed
MRLOL785 1 year ago
@MRLOL785 Porno stations would be using VHS to get the 6 hours on the poorly produced tapes
DvdXploitr 1 year ago
@DvdXploitr true, I guess.
MRLOL785 1 year ago
THe 870-D Super Beta was a top VCR for Sony for 1989. It has the Faroudja Image processor and uses the same transport with tape stabilizer as the more expensive EDV-7500 ED-Bata VCR. It has 300 line horizontal resolution in Super Beta. However, it is also capable of playing back B1s-SHB Super High Band Beta Tapes but not recording them. B1s-SHB was a slightly improved Beta Format with 360 horizontal lines of resolution as recorded by the SLHF-1000 and SLHF-2100 Betamax Sonys.tape.
BJSTV 2 years ago
@BJSTV How does the transport on this compare with the SLHF-1000?
schuchnet 1 week ago
Picture quality looks very good, are you putting it through an upscaler at all?
Baseley09 2 years ago
Technically yes, because since the TV is 1080p and the Beta outputs 480i, the TV has to deinterlace and upscale.
Sadly this player has died.. Capstan motor failure.
hakemon 2 years ago
@hakemon Not bad considering the TV is doing the scaling, from the looks i'd assumed it was fed through an A/V reciever or somesuch. Shame about the player.
Baseley09 2 years ago
@hakemon
It probably could be repaired; it may be bad caps in the motor. Kind of a common problem, especially considering the age of the deck.
Watcher3223 1 year ago
@hakemon Yes on sony models c6-c7-c5 etc in the uk..Has anyone mentioned sanyo...No capstan problems there
azshaw123 1 year ago
@Baseley09 ? was thear ever any hd tape vhs our beta max i rember seeing tec demo in hd on tape
couldkill420 4 months ago
@couldkill420 Yes indeed there was D-Theater VHS from JVC which was a digital hi-def tape format
Baseley09 4 months ago
Cool VCR!
commodore256 2 years ago
I had one of these for the picture quality. I never messed with all the functions so this video is intersting in understanding the functions but I don't understand who or why a person would use many of them. Wouldn't most people just watch the movie? Why did the manufacturer add all the extra stuff?
Saguaro24 2 years ago
Very nice. Alot of options.
FrosChannel 2 years ago
i have a canon vhs vcr that can do digital effects like the sony beta does i think yours has more features than mine
it's a canon VR-HF800
stereomann83 2 years ago
Comment removed
vwestlife 2 years ago
Wait, my model has Enhanced Definition? I didn't know that.
hakemon 2 years ago
The "misterbetamax" site mentions ED in the SL-HF870D's description, but upon closer reading I think they're just saying that this model was styled to match the ED models, with the woodgrain sides. So maybe it's just Super Beta, or 300 lines of resolution (better than VHS HQ and comparable to Video CD).
vwestlife 2 years ago
Yea, I'm sure this model is only Super Beta, considering that's what it says on the front.
Besides, ED Beta was an obscure format and not backwards compatible with older players, this one is.
hakemon 2 years ago
Thats true no sense arguing watch what ever format you want .....Later
jhaughia 2 years ago
Once again i point out to new technology i have a 1080p plasma with a PVR which records in 720P . It just blows me away what people will pay on E-Bay for a High End Beta machine.
jhaughia 2 years ago
Well yea, paying on ebay is horrible. This thing only cost me double digits, never crawling into triples like eBay does.
But here's a problem... All optical recordable formats will degrade far faster than a magnetic format. Optical recordable formats use ink dye, which fades rather quickly (which can also lead to a not even start condition). Magnetic particles on VHS and Beta/U-Matic last far longer than a recordable optical format.
But I'm done arguing this. Take it or leave it.
hakemon 2 years ago
That is true, but that also depends on the dye and the power level the recorder is set to. Most CDs use crummy dyes, and some US laws are in conflict with sector amplification. I still have the first Phillips and Memorex CDrs from the 90s and they are still readable.
I have everything on LTOs also...just in case....on the subject of EMPs, the optical media beats magnetic...
shdwsclan2 2 years ago
This is my first time on you tube so i did not even know if it would go on. I am 50 years old still have a old Beta vcr for my old tapes i still have ( bruin fights, concerts etc ). I went through all the Beta format wars with vhs and had to defend beta long after it died. My point is this format is long dead and the new Blue Ray format is 1000 times better than Beta.
jhaughia 2 years ago
You can't record on Bluray. You can only so far get an affordable DVD recordable, but they usually are designed to be as cheap to the manufacturer as possible, and thus fall apart easily to the consumer.
VHS is ok, but not as good as a Super Beta recorder like this. And as in the case I will be using it for, is to record TV shows (as they also demoed when the Betamax was introduced).
Point is, and you should very well know this, to each their own. I prefer to record my TV shows on Beta.
hakemon 2 years ago
I don't mean to be crude or ignorant but this tecnology is 20 years old. Hasn't anyone heard of 1080P High Definion?
jhaughia 2 years ago
You were ignorant.
It may be old, but older technology deserves respect and ackoledgement. Without Beta/VHS, there wouldn't be Bluray for your fancy 1080p video (which by the way, a similar 1080 something was out in the 80's also). By that logic, we should be seeing 4k video about now and your 1080p is outdated also.
Yea, I like that last one better.
hakemon 2 years ago
i am truly amazed. this is something that should not have failed. that has to be the best beta player ever made. how much did it cost you? 5*
Sephy69 2 years ago
I don't know much about Beta, but this is the most impressive over any VHS !
bythebytheway 2 years ago
This is amazing... I'm assuming cheaper Betamax players couldn't do half of this?
SCSNSE 2 years ago
Err... sorry for double posting, but one thing confuses me after watching the video all the way... It has the Picture-in-Picture function as you demonstrated... so does it have a coaxial in port in the back for your cable box? Then how were you watching TV separately at the same time after briefly turning it off?
SCSNSE 2 years ago
The cable box was connected to the VCR by stereo composite video cables. When I hit stop on the VCR, it, like all VCR's, show their tuners selected channel/input, which in this case, was the rear inputs that were connected to the cable box.
hakemon 2 years ago
how much did you pay for it?
tommylambert 2 years ago
I bet you that Beta was worth well over $1,000 when it was new, and mainly used in TV stations. It's surprising, unless you head your HDTV zoomed, to see a movie originally formatted to 1.33:1 would fit 1.78:1 perfectly.
JBlair1982 2 years ago
From what I see, it was about $4,000 when it was new, and was used in a TV station. It was previously owned by a certain pornographic channel which I won't mention, which is kinda ironic considering some people say VHS won because beta couldn't have any porn.
hakemon 2 years ago
Wow, that's some history! LOL
JBlair1982 2 years ago
very nice VCR :)
longlivemacs 2 years ago