sylvania dvr90dea dvd recorder
Buy Cheap Sylvania DVR90DEA DVD Recorder
Sylvania DVD/VCR combination recorder and Player…….
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Technical Details
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2009-10-19
By James Finch (Bradford, PA)
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 $38 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!
2009-10-14
By Yvonne Windchaser
great product improved my fatih in company online.I’m disable and don’t get out.
this machine add to my life.Product worked great.I tried several online has problem getting replacement or getting good quaity product.I have two dvd record from other companies cheat me.I’m glad I have a prodcut that does the job.
2009-05-23
By olympic (wharton,new jersey,usa)
Another great product from one of the better brands being Sylvania.Got what I expected.Very satisfied.
2009-04-12
By Ken HOWE
Before I purchased this DVD recorder I read many reviews all were positive except a small number complaining about the DVD discs to use.Well I am shocked at the easy set up and use-age of this recorder.I am 80 yrs.young and not a geek with electronics buying this unit a challenge I though to my limited electronic techknowledge.Wrong it was a gem to install to my system and works great so far with 12x memorex DVD-r disc.Easy to follow Manuel in all parts of set up connection and use age.
2008-09-25
By Robert Jeanmard (Ville Platte, LA)
Have fun trying to get the answer from the vendor, Amazon.com, Funai or Sylvania on which DVD-RW discs to use with this unit! (But as a “PSA”, I’ll give you the answer below!)
I received item in timely fashion, however trying figure out what brand and speed DVD-RW discs to use has been quite an adventure and costly since I had to order and try different brands and speeds to see what worked and what didn’t work!
I emailed the vendor, Amazon.com, Funai (parent company) and Sylvania to try to find the necessary information on DVD-RW discs to use with this unit!
Well, I never did get a definitive answer from the NUMEROUS emails exchanged.
The only specific answer from one of the Sylvania techs was to stick with Verbatim “since they work the best” in our units. (Which is not true for my unit. See below…)
So, what is the answer as to which DVD-RW discs to use?
Here are the DVD-RW discs that I purchased that I got to work: Verbatim 2X, JVC 2X, and JVC 4x!
Here are the DVD-RW discs that I purchased that did NOT work: MAXELL 2X, Verbatim 4X, Verbatim 6X and Imation 4X.
The unit arrived with an Imation DVD-R 8X disc and that worked great. (Silly me for thinking an Imation 4X DVD-RW would work. It didn’t)
As far as DVD-R discs, I also had success with MAXELL 16X and HP 16X discs.
OK, now that I got the unit to function, how do I rate the unit itself? I give it a strong 4 and perhaps a 5!
Now keep in mind, I primarily bought this unit to function as a VCR — that is, to record, erase, and re-record again TV shows! (Thus my desire to use the -RW discs…)
Even at the slowest recording SEP speed of 10 hours, the picture and audio are pretty clear. However, if I were recording things to keep, I’d probably would go no lower than the EP speed of 6 hours.
All things seem to work great, but there are 2 things that irk me when comparing it to my other DVR!
1) The unit does not give you the remaining time or total time of each recorded segment. (You are shown the total remaining time of the entire disc, though.)
2) You can’t split a recorded segment into 2 or more segments. (Or at least I haven’t figured out how to do it!)
Also, you can’t ERASE an entire disc per se. You can however FORMAT the disc which will, in effect, also erase the disc.
But, overall, now that I can record on -RW discs, I am very pleased with this unit!
