Switching to Sony tapes. How many times to run head cleaner?

J

JJ Alexander

Active member
I am switching to Sony tapes because I was given 20 new tapes as a gift.

As far as running the head cleaner to clean the heads of the Panasonic tapes:

1) Should I run the cleaner more than once to clean the heads very well?

2) The cleaner I was going to buy buy Maxell said 'dry tape cleaner', is this what I want to get? The word 'dry' confused me.
 
jj, i can only answer your #1 question. you don't have to run the cleaner more than once. as you can see the direction on cleaner tape, playback the tape for ONLY 10 seconds. this is also what Noah Kadner said on his 24p/dvx100/fcp callbox DVD. once is enough.

However, after you use up all your 20 new sony tapes and ever going back to panasonic or other brand tapes, THEN use the cleaner tape again.
 
You could perform the cleaning method posted by Barry. If you have to use the cleaning tape then just do it once.
 
If it's not too late (which it probably is) Put those 20 tapes on eBay and stick with Panny tapes.

I'd also recommend the "Barry" method of cleaning the heads over a standard head cleaner.
 
I agree with deepfocus... check barry's tutorial...

http://www.dvxuser.com/V6/showthread.php?t=6888

All different types of tapes contain different types of lubricant on the their surfaces... mixing up the tape's lubes will ultimately result in clogged heads. it would be wise to use barry's method of cleaning heads when switching tape stocks I have roughly 300-400 recording hours on my heads and only needed to clean them once needless to say i utilized barry's method... however, i do not use my camera as a deck nor do i re-record on used tapes.... My images are as they were the first day i rolled tape on my cam.
 
Thanks for the added info. I will go to Barry's cleaning method after I post this.

Whats the deal with the DVX100A self cleaning the heads? Is there instructions in the owners booklet?
 
Using non-panasonic tape (I used SONY tape bought from my SONY rep) can lead to more than clogged heads. I've got the repair bills from Panasonic to prove it. It's more than lubrication. It's the actual tape formulation.
 
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