OTHER TECH

In addition to D-VHS, the JVC can record in both S-VHS (Super VHS) and standard VHS modes. It also features an S-VHS ET mode, which lets you make higher-resolution S-VHS recordings using lower-cost VHS tapes. The S-VHS ET tapes I made for this review looked considerably better than standard VHS recordings, but what really struck me was how much better my existing VHS tapes looked on this VCR.

When I pressed the front-panel button for 3-D digital noise reduction, the fuzziness surrounding the players in an old tape of an NFL game disappeared. The VCR also cleaned up streaks of noise running through flat patches of color in onscreen graphics. And its selectable digital time-base corrector proved very effective in stabilizing the jittery images on the VHS tapes, which were nearly unwatchable without it - especially compared with the rock-solid D-VHS recordings.

JVC sent its entire library of prerecorded D-Theater tapes - all three of 'em - along with the HM-DH30000. It was tough to choose which to watch first: a scenery demo consisting mainly of footage from Japan, New York City, and the Southwestern American desert or recent concert tapes by Yes and Mötley Crüe, groups whose music and band members haven't aged all that well.

After settling on the demo tape, I tried to play it, only to find that in four out of five attempts, the JVC deck produced the kind of churning and shuttling noises you never want to hear from your VCR before unceremoniously ejecting the tape and powering down. A second sample from JVC had no such problems, however, and played all three of the D-Theater tapes and other tapes without a hitch.