Panasonic DMR-E75V DVD/VCR Recorder with Super Drive
Written: Aug 12 '04 (Updated Jun 30 '05)
Product Rating:
Sound:
Ease of Use:
Picture Quality:
Durability:
Pros: Low price, excellent performance from both VCR and DVD sections, Super Drive
Cons: No FireWire input, MP3 playback could be better, manual could be written better
The Bottom Line: The Panasonic DMR-E75V is a low-priced device that gives you the best consumer-level VHS VCR, a great DVD recorder and a lot of features for your money.
dkozin's Full Review: Panasonic DMR-E75V DVD Player / VCR Combo
It is strange but the best consumer-level VHS VCR you can get has just recently become available to the US customers, when the VCRs are dying. And even more strange is that it comes together with a DVD recorder in Panasonic DMR-E75V.
The E75V combines a DVD recorder and a VHS VCR that proudly says "Super Drive" on its cassette compartment door. Although Panasonic consumer-level VCRs in the US have not had Super Drive system, their professional models did as did models they sold in Europe.
I had a chance to purchase a Panasonic NV-SD11AM (“SD” stands for Super Drive) in Europe and had used it for several years there. And now, at last, you can buy a VCR that is very responsive and fast in operation here, as well.
Super Drive
The Super Drive system provides you with very fast response to commands. There is virtually no delay between you pushing a button and when the VCR starts executing it. Also, the rewind and fast forward operations are very fast (under a minute).
The fast operation of the VCR section of this machine is unmatched by any other consumer-grade VCR on sale in the US. In addition to fast operation, the Super Drive produces low heat, low vibration, crystal-clear still frame, fast and slow motion and frame-by-frame mode and is very durable.
I draw the conclusion about its durability from the fact that I have used a European model Panasonic NV-SD11AM VCR with Super Drive for video duplication and it worked non-stop 10-12 hours a day for months.
It is strange to see that this professional feature appeared on a US-market VCR so late, but it is a welcome change. And you don’t have to pay professional prices for it either. This VCR/DVD combo sells for $300-400, which is a price I paid for my SD11 (VCR only) in Europe ($340).
VCR Performance
The playback and recording quality of the VCR part of this machine is exemplary. Although it is not an S-VHS VCR and will not provide Super VHS’s level of detail when recording from a high-quality source, the picture is clear, noise-free (if using good quality tape) and colors are superb.
Although a Super VHS VCR would have been better, to use it to its full potential, you have to buy expensive S-VHS tapes. There is no point to invest in the old technology (like S-VHS) by buying S-VHS tape, when blank DVD discs are cheaper and/or provide much better quality.
The VCR section can play Super-VHS tapes (which I have, but most people don’t have), but at VHS resolution. To put it in perspective, the horizontal resolution of VHS is 200 lines, S-VHS is 400, DVD in XP mode is 500, DVD in SP mode is 400.
DVD Section
The DVD section of the E75V lets you record DVD discs of two formats: write-once DVD-R and rewriteable DVD-RAM. The finalized write-once DVD-R discs play in most DVD players, whereas rewritable DVD-RAM discs can be played in newer Panasonic DVD players. In addition to DVD-RAM in caddys, the recorder can record on a DVD-R (no caddy required).
The DVD-RAM discs are claimed to have long life as they can be erased and re-recorded 100,000 times (according to Panasonic). As such, DVD-RAM provides much better investment than a Super-VHS tape for a Super-VHS VCR.
The DVD recorder produces better picture quality than any analog VCR (S-VHS VCRs included) as well as allows you to have more durable media. Media, which needs no rewinding and can be recorded on and played back from at the same time, can be re-used with no loss in picture quality (DVD-RAM). And, of course, you can use the VCR section of this machine to make copies of your VHS tapes to DVD easily.
In addition to recording and playing back DVD Video, the DVD section can also play CD Audio, 2-channel DVD-Audio, MP3 on CD, Video CD, CD-R and CD-RW, DVD-R, DVD-RAM and some DVD+R/W.
Recording Quality
I have to emphasize that you have to use good quality DVD media, otherwise you are bound to experience problems with recording and/or playability. I recommend that you use Panasonic DVD-RAM and good quality DVD-R (e.g. Imation DVD-R)
As with VCRs, the picture quality of recordings depends on the mode (and bit rate) in which the recording is performed and on the source quality.
The recording is performed in one of the following modes/speeds:
XP (High Quality): fits about 1 hour on a single-sided 4.7 Gb DVD-R or DVD-RAM disc. Best picture quality, almost indistinguishable from original. More than 500 lines of horizontal resolution.
SP (Standard Quality): fits about 2 hours (picture quality is comparable to the XP mode). More than 400 lines of horizontal resolution.
LP: fits about 4 hours on a single-sided 4.7 Gb DVD-R or DVD-RAM disc. Picture quality noticeably worse than the XP or SP. More than 200 lines of horizontal resolution.
EP-6H: fits about 6 hours. Quality worse than LP. More than 200 lines of horizontal resolution.
EP-8H: fits about 8 hours. Worst picture quality. More than 200 lines of horizontal resolution. Sound is missing some of the treble (above 12 KHz).
In the SP mode, you can see small artifacts in scenes with fast movement or with lots of detail.
The more you fit on the disc, the worse the picture quality gets. The EP modes have some block noise, which I find even less tolerable than the analogue noise in analog VCRs in EP mode. The colors are less vivid in LP mode as well. I suggest that you use EP modes only when absolutely necessary.
The recorder’s so-called flexible recording mode (FR) selects the bit rate based on the duration of the program being recorded to make the program fit at the best possible quality (this varies the picture quality depending on the program duration).
Video Playback
The DVD video playback performance of this machine is very good. The images are crisp and clear with no discernable video noise and clearly defined object edges. The layer change introduces slight delay, but it is very short and does not annoy me.
Obviously, I am referring to the store-bought DVDs. For DVDs recorder on this machine, picture quality depends on the mode in which they were recorded as well as on the quality of the source material, as described above.
The sound quality is also solely dependent on the receiver, and it is worth repeating that the worst picture quality mode (EP-8H) also limits the sound dynamic range to 20 Hz - 12 KHz; the 12 KHz - 20 KHz range is not recorded and thus will not be played back.
DVD-Audio (Stereo)
The recorder can play DVD-Audio discs, but only in stereo. I have not tried DVD-Audio playback and cannot comment on that. But I am sure anybody interested in DVD-Audio playback would get a DVD-Audio player that provides multi-channel playback.
MP3 Playback
Of course, the E75V can play CD-R and CD-RW discs with MP3 files. However, I have to say that unfortunately I am disappointed in the MP3 performance of this DVD recorder. Although the menus and overall MP3 playback interface is convenient and easy to use, the MP3 playback quality is far from great.
As with some other models, I have tried a CD with MP3 or Star Wars Soundtrack by John Williams. Being classical music it definitely needed more than your standard 128 kbps of bandwidth (at 128 kbps CBR some instruments were missing), so I downloaded it encoded at 256 kbps VBR (variable bit rate).
Disclaimer: I pay to get good quality MP3s encoded at 256 kbps VBR.
After that, I listened to it using the recorder’s analog audio out, connected to my Panasonic HE70K receiver. I also listened to it through the recorder’s digital audio out, having my receiver do the digital-to-analog conversion. For comparison purposes, I burned and audio CD using the same MP3 files and then played it through the receiver’s digital audio out to my receiver.
In both cases of MP3 playback, the sound seemed “softer” and lacking dynamic range comparing to the audio CD. Since the audio CD was made using Roxio Easy CD and DVD Creator 6.2 from the same MP3 files, it means that the recorder’s MP3 decoding is not on par with what you can get from better software-based decoders on your PC.
I tried the same experiment with some rock music and the results were similar. Direct MP3 playback produced softer guitars, which is unacceptable to me. Perhaps for somebody who is happy using 128 kbps bit rate the MP3 playback on this machine will suffice. I will have to stick with audio CDs and, in case of MP3s downloaded from the web (256 kbps VBR), to making audio CDs and then playing them. I am not willing to sacrifice sound quality for convenience.
Audio CD Playback
I use the recorder’s optical digital output and it produced excellent result, since the decoding was done by my receiver. This way, the sound quality does not depend on the DVD recorder’s DAC at all. I have not used the analog stereo connection the E75V has (since I see no point in doing so).
Connectivity
The E75V has an RF (antenna/analog cable) in and out, 3 A/V/S-Video inputs (including one on the front panel) and an A/V/S-Video out as well as a component video out (switchable between progressive scan and interlaced “standard” operation). An optical digital audio out is provided as well. The lid that covers the front A/V/S-Video input feels very sturdy even though it is made of plastic. Under that lid you will also find controls for FF/REW for both DVD and VCR decks, which is a little strange.
Features
The device has familiar VCR Plus , timer recording and manual recording. A built-in 181-channel tuner lets you record programs off the air or analog cable. The tuner lets the unit set the clock automatically as well as features auto tuning. There is no digital audio input, however, so you can only record from analog audio inputs, so you have no 5.1 digital sound recording capability (e.g. if you have digital output equipped satellite box).
The E75V’s DVD player/recorder features progressive scan (for TVs that support it), and 3D digital noise reduction.
The "standard" DVD features are also provided: slow and fast scan, angle select, subtitle select, soundtrack select, parental control, resume, repeat play, virtual surround sound, etc.
Keep in mind that the DVD-R discs have to be finalized (it takes 10-15 minutes) before they can be played in a standard DVD player. And unlike the DVD-RAM disc, where you set the chapters yourself, the DVD-R discs get chapters automatically when finalized and sometimes not in the places where you want them.
Recording on DVD-RAM lets you watch the beginning of the show while it is being recorded and perform instant replays (Time Slip) while the program is still being recorded and do other tricks, normally associated with hard disc recorders. And you can also erase some programs from the DVD-RAM disc and record over the reclaimed space (cannot be done with DVD-R).
With DVD-RAM, you can record and play the same disc at the same time. The “Chasing Playback” mode allows you watch the show from the beginning (or any other point) while the rest of it is being recorded. This way, you don’t have to be afraid to miss the beginning of the show and have to wait for recording to finish. And you can somewhat easily skip over commercials using the appropriate button.
You can easily copy your VHS tapes to DVD (by pushing one button), unless they are Macrovision copy protected. This means that you can copy tapes you recorded yourself (most TV shows or your own video footage), but not store-bought tapes. The resulting DVD will contain chapters created where the index marks of the original tape were.
You can also copy from DVD to VHS in the similar manner. Unfortunately, the E75V doesn’t have a FireWire (iLink) input, so if you have a digital camcorder you can either use an analog input (A/V/S-Video) in the front or use your computer to burn a DVD.
Remote Control
The supplied remote control can control some televisions in addition to the recorder itself. It features two distinct power buttons, channel and volume control buttons and TV/Video button. Unlike some other DVD recorders from Panasonic, this remote does not have a flip-open cover or sliding door, which is a good thing.
The menu control buttons are in the lower part of the remote (although not as low as some Sony remotes) – it would have been better to have them higher for one-handed operation.
The Manual
The 75-page manual is not written well, but is organized in a way that makes it easy to find a section you are looking for in the table of contents.
Bottom Line
The Panasonic DMR-E75V is a low-priced device that gives you the best consumer-level VHS VCR, a great DVD recorder and a lot of features for your money.
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