I have a Panasonic PV-GS14 Mini DV camcorder, it's about two years old. It used to work fine, but suddenly, there is something wrong with the playback function: whenever a tape is played, there are several wide blue horizontal lines on the screen. Sometimes, the sound is there, sometimes not. I also tried to capture the video to computer, same thing. Can anybody give some advice on how to deal with it? Many thanks!
Did you ever resolve this? I have the same exact problem with my GS14. All of the old tapes that I recorded previously produce the blue bars.
Any info would be appreciated.
Thanks
The blue bars are a result of digital dropout. There is data missing. This is usually due to dirty or misaligned heads. This is not a repair that can be attempted without proper test equipment. Bring the unit to an authorized service center for an alignment.
Dan
I cleaned the heads a few times with a "dry" cleaner tape made by Dynex. It didn't seem to make any difference at all.
I'm guessing that the tracking is off. Maybe I'll try to have it fixed when I'm in the Phillipines later this month as the cost will proably be 1/4 of what it would be in the 'States.
Thanks much for the information Dan
I have the same issue - with this one and then too with one by Sony! Panasonic wants $150 to be sent in with camcorder to be fixed. UGH! Anyone find a resolution. Sounds to me like a common problem for a possible recall issue?
This is not a recall issue at all. The quality of the tapes may play a factor or environmental issues can contribute to this problem. Basically, the heads need to be professionally cleaned using a liquid cleaner. This must be done inside the unit and not with a cleaning tape. $150 seems a bit high, but because of the nature of camcorders (these included), this equates to about $30 per hour of effort to resolve the problem. (This assumes that the cleming and alignment check is all that is needed.)
Dan