SONY Betamax SL-20 Beta VCR w/ Manual & Test Tape REFURBISHED > Transfer to DVD w/ confidence Start Price USD 250.00 Current Price USD 250.00 Time Left - Bid Count 0 Buy It Now Price - Reserve Price - Start Time Tuesday, July 22, 2008 End Time Saturday, July 26, 2008 Location FLORIDA See more about 'SONY Betamax SL-20 Beta VCR w/ Manual & Test Tape ' Description  Hello, I exclusively sell working Betamax VCR's on e-Bay. I don't sell a Betamax VCR one day and then the rest of my sales consist of  Dolls, antique dishes, welcome mats, used clothing etc. There are many Betamax VCR's being sold on e-Bay. These sellers seem to know nothing about these superb VCR's, other than they sell for a lot of money if you can convince everyone that they are "great". By the way, here are some actual statements from Betamax auctions>>> "Used only 3 times in 1984, was a little dusty but played a few minutes of the tape 'Staying Alive' perfect" NO DOA. " Found it in my grandparent's closet, plugged it in and after 25 years had a sharp picture..much better than VHS but sold AS-IS" "Don't have a tape to check, should work."         "Appears or seems to work??"..."Works Great/REFURBISHED but as with all electronics it is SOLD AS-IS" ...... "All light are lit and was able to set clock, but never had a chance to hook it to a TV."    "Used 10 years ago and worked perfect the last time I used it, but I don't have the time to hook it up."  "Nice picture..but may need a good head cleaning and a lube."  "Bought it at a estate sale and was told by the former owner that it was perfect."  and so on. I wonder why they can't state it will work when you receive it? Maybe one reason is that they themselves are not really sure that they function as they should or possibly the way they cut corners on packing these units will be a factor? Only they know the reason. Since I am aware of the many problems that can occur to these units by being out-of-service for many years, I find it quite odd that all of a sudden these dusty old Betas that have been stored in closets, moist basements, estate sales, flea markets and only g-d knows where else, are suddenly popping up as great working VCR's. I find these auction descriptions to be very amusing and what will not be funny is when your PRECIOUS beta tape collections are inserted in these so called "working great" units and get chewed up and destroyed.   The bottom line is if you see AS IS or no DOA, Run DON'T WALK to another Betamax auction........                               I notice some sellers are finally starting to replace belts and pinch rollers in their units and maybe a couple of leaking electrolytics in the power supply, a great start and I commend them on taking that first step to a complete refurbish procedure.  It is disturbing, however, when these same sellers claim that is all that needs to be done on these close to 25 year old units. I'd like to believe their claim is heart-felt, but I just feel that it is as far as their knowledge of the workings of these Betas can take them. Dried out and out-of-tolerance capacitors critical to the tracking and picture quality are equally important and must be addressed.  This problem became apparent to us in the late 1980's. Now, 20 years later, it is still being ignored and glossed over.  Since replacement of these components requires mastery of the servo alignment techniques, and of course possession of the correct (for the model & brand you are servicing) factory authorized alignment tape, it is obvious why they are being ignored. If these components are not replaced, the purchaser will know why in short order. Tracking knob at one end of rotation, intermittent color, warbling audio and pulsating video are a few symptoms of this negligence.                                                                                                                                  Hours have to be spent getting these VCR's back to factory specifications. Only changing parts that are known to fail, even if they look good, and doing a full service on these units is the definitive way to honestly be able to state that a Betamax will perform as it did when new. Do anything less on these complicated, vintage Betamax VCR's and you have bought a very heavy paper weight. If you are weary of the tap dancing and parsing of words then here is an opportunity to purchase a working Beta, that when you receive it and plug it in there will be no surprises.   NOW for  is a Sony SL-20 Betamax This is the second generation of the Slimline EZ beta series and the improvements are quite obvious. Specifically, the transport was re-designed for more gentler tape handling and the drop-out compensation circuitry was much improved. What this has done is allow for a cleaner look to older tapes that may not have kept their original clean video. Any "dropouts" (streaks, black dots, etc.) are eliminated in the composite video section of the vcr, rather than in the rf section. These two factors are considered to be very important by me when copying older, delicate tapes.  APPEARANCE WISE,  the unit  has a few scuffs on the top cover. Because of the color of the Betamax they are difficult to see. Other than this minor cosmetic, the unit is clean and has been well maintained. The styling on this Silver Sony SL-20 is modern and presents a very distinguished look.. A perfect vcr to copy or watch your BETA collection in that it is simple to operate and is practically mistake proof. Mechanically, it operates 100%. Record (B11 and B111), play (B1, B11 and B111), fast forward, fast forward review, rewind, reverse review, sharpness control, pause, timer record, clock operation and channel selection have all been tested and found to operate flawlessly. No sluggish rewind or fast forward as is so common on these older Vcr's. This unit will produce a crisp and brilliant BETA quality video and clear audio as well. A perfect Vcr to copy or watch your BETA collection. There are convenient RCA type jacks for video and audio outputs on the rear panel to make copying to DVD an easy task. NO REMOTE Those Betamax pioneers still saving those original K-60 cassettes that were originally recorded in B1 will be glad to know that this unit will play those tapes as well. (I know because I have an extensive collection of those!)  An  SL-20 Owner's Manual will be provided to assist the purchaser in the use, familiarity and hook-up. (This is a must item. Despite the fact that this model is simple to operate, it is always nice to have the manual for any type of electronic equipment.) I will also provide a NOS (new, old stock) Memorex L-750 (Test Tape) Beta video cassette that I used to verify the unit's operation as described above. To summarize, the winning bidder will receive a working Sony SL-20, the SL-20 Owner's Manual and the Beta Test Tape just mentioned. Packaging technique will be meticulous to prevent any damage to the Betamax during transit. A New Double-Walled shipping carton, Hard Foam & large bubble wrap packing materials are all employed in order to assure that your unit will arrive in perfect condition Shipping Includes>>shipping to the confirmed PayPal address, tracking number and applicable insurance. Nothing else is stated or implied.  Payment will be by "PayPal" only. LOWER 48 STATES U.S. bidders only, please!  In order to protect the seller and buyer under the PayPal protection plan, I will ONLY ship the Betamax to the "Confirmed" address on your PayPal account. Please take this into consideration before placing a bid. IMPORTANT NOTE: Unlike your other possibly frustrating buying experiences ....when your payment is received you will be notified immediately and your Betamax will be shipped either on the day of purchase or the next business day. That very evening you will know your tracking number and all the shipping details. I will not keep you in the dark or wondering about any aspect of the transaction. I have gone through this myself and can understand the agony and then, eventually, the sheer anger of a buyer who wonders when and how the item will be sent. Sorry for the long and possibly tedious narrative...but I feel, considering what I see and read on eBay, that this is all very important information for the prospective Betamax purchaser. Thank you very much for looking.   Place a Bid!