Sylvania DVR90DEA DVD Recorder Review
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The Sylvania DVR90DEA DVD Recorder is an awesome machine and possibly the best refurb electronics deal I have made in a long time. I have the machine hooked directly to my cable box with the RCA's and then out to my little 15.4" Panasonic HDTV. I learned the hard way that recording from the RF cable will only give you a mono signal. Most cable stations, with the exception of many or all of the local Buffalo, NY channels, are broadcasting in stereo. I notice a slight ground hum, but that could be my cable box or my cabling.
I use Ritek 8x and Taiyu-Yuden Premium 8x DVD-Rs and they work fine. I think out of 50 or so discs, I had one coaster. This unit is very touchy with DVD-RW discs. Most DVD-RW brands will not work on this machine, possibly because this unit was made in 2004 and the RW discs made these days just aren't compatible. I'm not that much of a techie, but I suggest you check out some of the other reviews of this unit here regarding what RW discs to use.
The signal quality is excellent at SP and just about as good in LP mode (2 hour and 4 hour respectively). I do not recommend using a slower speed than LP unless you are just recording a game or something you will not want for posterity. Also, I do not recommend an attempt to use two different speeds on the same disc. Some of my favorite movies exceed 2 hours, so having LP speed comes in real handy and the machine does a great job at this speed.
Timer recordings are very handy and the machine works very well. Just be very careful that you set the AM and PM right. I recommend starting 1 minute before the actual program comes on, even if you have set the machines internal clock to atomic time. Some stations are notorious for starting shows a little early. Also, set your end time at least a minute after the show ends. Some shows are actually 61 minutes long. The same is true for movies. Check [...] for exact end times of your favorite movies and keep in mind the times will be longer on channels that insert commercials into movies or shows.
The machine will power up by itself and load the blank disk about a minute or two before the timer recording starts. There is a barely noticeable fan noise in the back of the unit, but it's quiet.
The magazine-style user manual is a big one, but easy to read and very thorough. Tech support at Funai, which is free, is awesome. I called them pretty late in the evening last month to find out about how to get a stereo signal and they were very helpful. I called them another time to ask about DVD-RW issues and while they could not recommend a brand, they did explain about compatibility issues with this recording format with the new disks.
Notes:
Since the unit is 5 years old, it does not have a HDMI connection. You can have up to 3 RCA or component connections to the unit, 2 from the back and 1 in the front. Handy if you want to transfer some video from your camcorder, another DVD player, etc. DO NOT LOSE YOUR REMOTE as you will need it to set your timer recordings and finalize disks.
For those of you who have not recorded with DVDs before, you must "finalize" your disk before you can play it on another machine. It's very easy to do (just a click on the set up disk option) and takes about a minute or so. If you have enough space on your DVD-R, you can record up to whatever is left on the disc. For SP speed, DVD-R's give me 2 hours and 2 minutes worth of content, LP 4 hours and 4 minutes. I usually always double up movies if I am using LP speed.
This machine only has an analog tuner, so you will need to hook it direct to your cable box and then out to TV. Also, you will have to change channels on your cable box before setting your timer recording. You cannot watch another channel while recording as this is only a basic DVR, but it's an awesome machine.
Best I ever spent! I have found that buying refurbs is the best way to go, as then you know the machine has been tested to run at spec. I advise you to buy extra warranty coverage. Look into that as with an older machine, it's always best to be safe than sorry.
I don't see how you can go wrong if you like to record shows or movies to watch later. This machine is a great little workhorse and Sylvania (Funai) stands behind their products, so expect decent quality.
All the best to you!
Sylvania DVR90DEA DVD Recorder Feature
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Sylvania DVR90DEA DVD Recorder Overview
Sylvania DVD/VCR combination recorder and Player
Sylvania DVR90DEA DVD Recorder Specifications
Enjoy the best of both worlds with crisp, vivid movie playback and recording capability with the Sylvania DVR90DEA DVD recorder/player. The recorder's built-in NTSC TV tuner and onscreen user interface permits up to eight timer recordings over a one-year period, with its six DVD recording speeds providing between one and 10 hours of content on a single-sided 4.7 GB recordable DVD (DVD-R/RW discs only). You can even select and compile the best footage to commit to disc: the recorder's handy editing features include auto playlist creation, project titling, title deletion and editing, and scene deletion.
In addition to DVD movie and CD audio playback capabilities, the ZRY-316 is also compatible with playing content from CD-R/RW and DVD-R/RW discs as well as CDs burned with MP3 digital audio files. Content compatibility includes MP3 and WMA digital audio and JPEG digital photos, as well as the ability to view photo slide shows with background music from disc.
You can easily set a recording time as you prefer. Every time the REC button pressed during recording, the recording time will be increased by 30 minutes up to 4 hours. The recording automatically stops when the recording time you set is reached. You can confirm the picture quality for recording in the current recording speed which you set. If you want to change the recording speed, press REC SPEED button to set the desired recording mode.
It offers the following connection options:
- Composite AV (RCA): 2 in, 1 out (1 front)
- S-Video: 2 in, 1 out (1 front)
- Component video (480i/480p): 1 out
- RF: 1 in, 1 out
- Analog audio (RCA, L/R): 1 out
- Coaxial digital audio: 1 out
What's in the Box
DVD player/recorder, remote control (with batteries), composite AV cable, RF cable, printed operating instructions
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*** Product Information and Prices Stored: Jan 27, 2010 05:21:43
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