Sony RDR-VXD655 DVD and VHS Recorder Combo Unit
Sony
- RDR-VXD655
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Reviews
(20)
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This product is a solid and reliable DVD recorder. There is no instability as there is with some other DVD recorders;It's a great workhorse. If you want to record television to watch later, or to dub all your old vhs tapes onto DVD, this is a great choice. However, the editing totally, royally sucks. I have another DVD recorder from Toshiba that I can edit stuff on in 1/10 the time it takes on the Sony; However, it doesn't have Sony's stability. It doesn't always record what I ask it to record, it freezes up and so on, but the editing is a breeze. If you want to save one of those TV shows on that DVD, cutting out the commercials...be prepared to spend a long time editing with the Sony. I don't know what Sony is up to with their editing. Another family member has another Sony DVD recorder that is a couple of years older than the one I just bought, and the editing is much easier on the older model. It also doesn't limit the title length the way this unit does. I'm actually baffled
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9 price(s)
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I researched DVD/VCR combos for weeks. My husband wanted a new DVD player for our new digital TV and I wanted something to record our TV shows that could be watched on our other TVs - hence, the VCR. The QAM/digital tuner is also important because we often record when watching another program. We first purchased a Magnavox but just watching a DVD was torture. This Sony was a great improvement in viewing but disappointing in one major aspect: the tuner preset. We have cable without a set top box of any kind so the hookup is simple. However, each time the lengthy auto preset was initiated, the Sony would only add about half of the digital channels available. You cannot manually add channels to the lineup, only delete. The auto preset takes at least 40 minutes for the digital channels (even though I only have 11 available) so it is pretty frustrating when you get a different batch of channels each time. Then, when I decided to record a digital channel (the only one that the unit consistently
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Sony RDR-VXD655 VHS DVD Recorder Combo with Built In HD Tuner
This is an excellent choice for near hi def quality picture and sound, especially for those who want to avoid the additional fees and constraits of TIVO, a cable company hi def recorder or a high cost stand alone hi def recorded if one can currently find one.
I have it linked to my SONY Bravia XBR 720 LCD Set. I can record my favorite shows and view them on my own schedule once again. My old standard VCR recordings when linked to the my Bravia did not even come close in quality. I could not watch the recordings they were so poor. I have recorded and watched on DVD so far, and I like the option to play my VHS tapes.
The set was relatively easy to connect, and it was helpful that I had already set up my Bravia with my home theater ("with a little help from my friends" at SONY).
This is an excellent choice for near hi def quality picture and sound, especially for those who want to avoid the additional fees and constraits of TIVO, a cable company hi def recorder or a high cost stand alone hi def recorded if one can currently find one.
I have it linked to my SONY Bravia XBR 720 LCD Set. I can record my favorite shows and view them on my own schedule once again. My old standard VCR recordings when linked to the my Bravia did not even come close in quality. I could not watch the recordings they were so poor. I have recorded and watched on DVD so far, and I like the option to play my VHS tapes.
The set was relatively easy to connect, and it was helpful that I had already set up my Bravia with my home theater ("with a little help from my friends" at SONY).
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Needed a machine to copy tapes to disks. Bought a brand other then Sony. After following directions (5 times..thinking my fault) there was no way it would copy. I read other reviews on that brand and found out that it wasn't MY fault. Audio Beach accepted this return even though it had been more then 30 days...full return. I ordered the Sony and no frustration. Easy to hook up, easy to follow directions. Spent more money, of course but well worth it. I could use a couple of VCRs with digital but cannot find any. Are they THAT obsolete?
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Everything seems to work well except I found that the closed captioning from the network channels only will not display on my TV (Sony XBR4. It will record CC and display when played on any other VCR connected to this TV. But it will not even display CC on network channels that were recorded on other VCRs. Called Sony and they could not help. Said they often get this complaint on this model but blamed it on the cable provider. This makes no sense as the Sony TV and all other brands of VCRs display CC on these channels. It may be a design fluke that Sony just does not want to recognize.
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I bought this unit to extend the lives of both a 17 year-old TV set and my VHS collection. I watch only broadcast TV provided by rabbit ears. Since good reception is critical in my case, I evaluated this unit's tuner against a brand new Insignia NS-DXA1 DTV converter box purchased from Best Buy.
While the DVD recorder and VCR portions of this unit appear to be top-notch, I simply could not get the ATSC tuner to receive even a majority of signals that I received in analog. One key problem: digital channels can be added *only* by a 5-10 minute auto-scanning process. Once the scan is done, digital stations can only be deleted, not added. That's fine if all your TV signals come from one direction; that is not the case in my area.
Even putting aside the scanning limitation, this Sony's ATSC tuner is not the best available. Using the same antenna in the same location, the Insignia box can receive a number of channels where the Sony shows only a broken picture or nothing at all. The Insignia
While the DVD recorder and VCR portions of this unit appear to be top-notch, I simply could not get the ATSC tuner to receive even a majority of signals that I received in analog. One key problem: digital channels can be added *only* by a 5-10 minute auto-scanning process. Once the scan is done, digital stations can only be deleted, not added. That's fine if all your TV signals come from one direction; that is not the case in my area.
Even putting aside the scanning limitation, this Sony's ATSC tuner is not the best available. Using the same antenna in the same location, the Insignia box can receive a number of channels where the Sony shows only a broken picture or nothing at all. The Insignia
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Very impressed with the quality of the product and the resulting video picture quality. However, I find there to be a major problem with not being able to download video pictures from my camera and then making more copies for others in my dubbing machine. I also think it is unfair not to be able to record movies from the TV. I needed to know this before I made the decision on a new machine.
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I have not tried recording from TV, but I have converted VHS tapes to DVD with excellent results. I like the ease of operation & the recording options given. Overall a good buy for me.
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Getting all the cables connected correctly along with the correct input setting for each device was not easy. I tried to record movies from the satellite receiver 3 times before having success. Once everything was connected and set correctly, the recorder combo was easy to operate.
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I haven't used all the features yet, so I cannot remark on its recording abilities. I had quite a time with the remote. It worked somewhat on analog tv, but when my plasma tv arrived a day later,I had difficulty using the remote. I finally called Sony (they were extremely helpful) and explained the problem.(remote would not work to turn on or off player and and I couldn't use system menu among other things) They showed me how to reprogram the remote and now all is good. Thanks Sony
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I attemped to purchase the Sony RDR-VXD655 VHS DVD Recorder Combo with Built In HD Tuner. Though it was not my first of this type of unit, it was my first Sony. My previous unit had worn out on the VHS side and so I was used to what the product could do. Unfortunately I could not get this product to work. I followed the instructions and literally spent hours on the phone with the manufacturer, but the cord connecting the unit to the television did not seem to work and several other cords were tried but also failled. Sony tech support suspected that the unit was defective and sent another but it also encountered the same difficulty which was no picture on the tv when connected no matter what was done. Fortunately the company was very nice and refunded the money as they could not get it to work at all so I give them a one star for (my attempts to follow the directions and spend time trying to get the thing to work, failling, calling, holding for about 2 hours total and) taking up about 6
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I attemped to purchase the Sony RDR-VXD655 VHS DVD Recorder Combo with Built In HD Tuner. Though it was not my first of this type of unit, it was my first Sony. My previous unit had worn out on the VHS side and so I was used to what the product could do. Unfortunately I could not get this product to work. I followed the instructions and literally spent hours on the phone with the manufacturer, but the cord connecting the unit to the television did not seem to work and several other cords were tried but also failled. Sony tech support suspected that the unit was defective and sent another but it also encountered the same difficulty which was no picture on the tv when connected no matter what was done. Fortunately the company was very nice and refunded the money as they could not get it to work at all so I give them a one star for (my attempts to follow the directions and spend time trying to get the thing to work, failling, calling, holding for about 2 hours total and) taking up about 6
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I bought this for my husband for Christmas. He is in the process of transferring all our tapes to dvd. He really likes it. We have vhs tapes of
the kids from 20 years ago and we want to save them and make copies of them.
You can also record from tv onto dvd and from my video camera which uses
hi-8 tapes. The kids want their old cartoon and movies tapes done now.
the kids from 20 years ago and we want to save them and make copies of them.
You can also record from tv onto dvd and from my video camera which uses
hi-8 tapes. The kids want their old cartoon and movies tapes done now.
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This is the shi&t. Made a copy of an old movie onto DVD and it looks as good as the orginal. Would love to talk more but I've got bunches to convert from VHS to DVD.
Tim
P.S. The HD Tuner is a great bonus. I didn't realize it was included. See it's important to read all information.
Tim
P.S. The HD Tuner is a great bonus. I didn't realize it was included. See it's important to read all information.
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This is the shi&t. Made a copy of an old movie onto DVD and it looks as good as the orginal. Would love to talk more but I've got bunches to convert from VHS to DVD.
Tim
P.S. The HD Tuner is a great bonus. I didn't realize it was included. See it's important to read all information.
Tim
P.S. The HD Tuner is a great bonus. I didn't realize it was included. See it's important to read all information.
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I am completely delighted with the RDR-VXD655.
This is a complex piece of equipment, but the manual is very thorough and complete.
Attaching the recorder to my SONY Bravia HDTV was no problem. I was able to record and playback with both DVDs and tapes immediately.
It takes patience to learn the myriad of things this recorder can do.
NOTE: For some reason, the RDR-VXD655 is not yet generally available.
This is a complex piece of equipment, but the manual is very thorough and complete.
Attaching the recorder to my SONY Bravia HDTV was no problem. I was able to record and playback with both DVDs and tapes immediately.
It takes patience to learn the myriad of things this recorder can do.
NOTE: For some reason, the RDR-VXD655 is not yet generally available.
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Because I have HDMI capability, I had absolutely NO problem with my purchase. It was easy to hook up and thank god for the tuner!!! I had a tunerless unit and I thought I was going to have to call Firedog or the Geek Squad to hook it up. This is much better. I can now record DVD and VCR just the way I used to and it's compatible with my home theater. I am totally satisfied!!!
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With the conversion from analog to digital TV signals to be completed by 2009, I wanted to extend the life of my 5-year old analog set. I had read that some of the newer digital recorders have tuners in them, enabling them to function as the converter box that will eventually be required when the signal switch is complete. Moreover, the recorder will still be useful when the analog TV is replaced with a HDTV. Since I did not have a digital recorder, that would be another benefit.
The VXD655 turned up during my search. Since my TV is a Sony, I thought it would be a good match. This DVD/VCR recorder combo also would enable me to get rid of my old tape player and save space.
The unit has exceeded my expectations. I had been receiving a very good quality picture with a modest roof-top antenna, but going digital really kicked the quality up a notch or two it terms of more accurate colors and picture sharpness. I am fortunate in that all of the local over-the-air signals come from the
The VXD655 turned up during my search. Since my TV is a Sony, I thought it would be a good match. This DVD/VCR recorder combo also would enable me to get rid of my old tape player and save space.
The unit has exceeded my expectations. I had been receiving a very good quality picture with a modest roof-top antenna, but going digital really kicked the quality up a notch or two it terms of more accurate colors and picture sharpness. I am fortunate in that all of the local over-the-air signals come from the
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I agree with the prior post; the unit does not have provisions to connect to an NTSC TV via the coax output. However, all the other outputs (HDMI, component video, S-video, and composite video) work fine. If your TV has only an RF-coax input and no others, route it through equipment that does, such as a VCR which can output its line in RCA jacks through the RF coax.Five days ago, I purchased the RDR-VXD655 from B&H. When I had the chance to set it up this weekend, I discovered a defect in the DVD-playback circuitry. ALL DVDs, whether bought (studio movies) or self-recorded showed A LOT of digital artifacts--black dots, green and yellow pixels in the screen. Indeed, on one of my DVD-RAMs, during a black screen, it looked like I was watching the opening of The Matrix with the green pixels all over the screen! This was evident no matter which output I used (HDMI, component, etc.) I am returning this unit to a Sony service center since B&H is closed for Sukkot this week. This is a MAJOR
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I dont know if the item has a factory flaw. Or maybe my unit is defective. But I purchased the unit from B&H Photo in NYC, and I've been unable to use it through the basic cable tv output. The only way I can use the unit is by connecting the HDMI cable, and that would be the video 4 output of my flat screen HD TV. My cable box has an audio/video output. The unit will not work with the basic hookup through the channel 3 output, even when the audio/video cable is connected to the cable box. If I didn't have a tv with HDMI output, I would not have been able to use this VCR. I hooked up the unit exactly as instructed on the Quick Start Guide, which is exactly the way I had a similar unit from Panasonic connected. The previous unit worked excellent with the basic connection. I will be contacting B&H Photo and Sony for some help on this issue. Other than that, the unit works fine, but only through the HDMI output.
