Quote:
Originally Posted by ARC Tech-109
Power supply was the problem with the Hitachi decks, three pass regulators on one bent aluminum heat sink wrapped around the board and they ran hot even in standby. Ours was the VT-??? HiFi from early 1985 that looked similar to the VT-33 and it survived 20+years of rental tapes and 3 teenagers fighting over the remote. They're well built otherwise and have a good reputation for tracking really bad tapes.
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Hitachi VCRs under the Hitachi name weren't very common here from what I remember. But RCA VCRs made by Hitachi were everywhere, and they were pretty solid.
Both VCRs we had in the house when I was a kid were made by Panasonic. My parents had a Sylvania VC-2225SL01 from 1983 (I still have it), and I had an RCA VGT-200 from 1982 I bought used for $10. Affordable for an 11 year old because it only worked in black and white... but I only had a black and white TV in my bedroom anyway.
We also had a sort-of working Panasonic PV-1220 at the cabin. It worked just enough to play - recording didn't work, and neither did the tuner. Perfect for a rental movie
Anyway, I've about exhausted every avenue of finding this VCR... definitely not a lot of info out there for early 1980s Hitachi VCRs. At least not for ones in the North American market.