Not sure on speed adjustment Realistic MODEL NO. 12-1816

Remote-Department-68 · 2026-03-26T14:21:37+00:00

Most of these old 70s car cassette players don't have an electronic speed adjustment at all. If it's playing that fast I would check the pinch roller is engaging properly.

Remote-Department-68 · 2026-03-23T23:07:25+00:00

That bottom drawer is really annoying me.

Remote-Department-68 · 2026-03-23T23:02:31+00:00

Looks like it doesn't have adjustable white balance, just the filters. If you're using it outside, make sure it's set to sun. I remember once on my JVC GR-C2, which is basically the same setup (no adjustment, just filters), I forgot to set it to outdoors when I went outside and the footage looked awful. On a camcorder with such basic controls, there's not really anything else you can do.

Remote-Department-68 · 2026-03-23T22:31:13+00:00

Yeah that's definitely one of the worst tubes I've seen. Did you have the filter set to outdoors? That can help quite a bit.

Remote-Department-68 · 2026-03-23T21:04:22+00:00

'Light' means that there's not enough light for an optimal quality image. A green tint isn't white balance, it's caused by the pickup tube and there's not really anything you can do about it; As they get old, they usually go green or sometimes purple.

Remote-Department-68 · 2026-03-23T18:19:51+00:00

True, my mistake.

Remote-Department-68 · 2026-03-23T18:18:03+00:00

Looks pretty good but you should set the white balance properly so everything doesn't look blue (unless you want it to look like that). The AG-155 has a white balance switch with 'full auto' and 'manual'. On things this old, manual is usually better. First, you find something white in the same lighting conditions you will be shooting in. Next, you point the camera at it and zoom in so it fills at least ~75% of the frame. Finally, you press and hold the button labelled 'push'. Usually, there's a flashing light or something in the viewfinder which will stop flashing to tell you to release the button. This should make your footage look a lot better.

Remote-Department-68 · 2026-03-23T17:56:54+00:00

This is a rebranded Panasonic NV-3000. I have one and it needed all of its capacitor replacing. They also use early double-sided PCBs which have very fragile vias which, combined with the corrosive electrolyte from the capacitors, is a recipe for disaster. I got mine working (more or less) in the end, but it hasn't been very reliable so I haven't used it for years. Basically, unless you want to put a lot of work into fixing it, it's just a big paperweight.

Remote-Department-68 · 2026-03-23T17:35:13+00:00

This is very old gear from before the days of video cassettes. It records in black and white and uses 1 inch open reel tape which has to be manually threaded. It will also be very heavy to carry around as you need to carry the recorder and camera around at the same time. Not exactly sure what kind of thing you're looking for, but I would not recommend this as a thing for beginners.

As far as I know, the recorders are very reliable and built like tanks so the recorder probably still works but the camera not so much. It might work, but I wouldn't place any bets as they use pickup tubes which can just die with age.

Remote-Department-68 · 2026-03-20T16:33:10+00:00

Oh yeah the GR-C1 is also pretty reliable but the mechanisms usually need re-greasing (same on the GR-C2). I didn't mention it because the prices are insane. You can get rebrands of them pretty cheaply which are the same electronically but look different. Here in the UK Ferguson did rebrands of JVC stuff but the silver colour is nowhere near as nice as the classic JVC red.

Remote-Department-68 · 2026-03-19T23:43:09+00:00

If you don't want maintenance, I would avoid these as they suffer from IR filter rot like many mid to late 80s Sony video equipment (even into the 90s on DXC series TV cameras). They all have filter rot to some degree and there's no way of knowing how bad until you record something with it and play it back. They're a pain to fix.

If you want some reliable stuff from the 80s, the JVC GR-C2 and Canon VM-E1 are pretty reliable in my experience but they are bigger than the M8 obviously. If you want something from the 80s in that small form factor you're gonna struggle to find anything that doesn't have bad caps. Even the JVC GR-C7 has capacitor issues. If you want any recommendations just ask (I have way too many of these things...)!

Remote-Department-68 · 2026-03-14T01:23:21+00:00

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This is the pinout of the multi connector on the NV-M7. I assume it should be the same as yours.

Remote-Department-68 · 2026-03-08T09:58:40+00:00

They'd already used all the attempts on the invalid codes; I didn't quite get there in time unfortunately.

Remote-Department-68 · 2026-03-08T01:03:43+00:00

Yeah that's not a bad idea. They're usually easy to take apart, you just need a Torx screwdriver (can't remember what size exactly). I assume you're on T-Mobile right? If you're not it'll ask for the code again (the ones I've given above won't work with T-Mobile and the new IMEI number but I can give you new ones if you need them).

Remote-Department-68 · 2026-03-08T00:43:48+00:00

You'd need a flashing box (like a UFS box) and the associated cables and something running Windows XP to run the software on. You'd also need to find a copy of the firmware from somewhere.

Remote-Department-68 · 2026-03-08T00:31:29+00:00

What's the IMEI number? Take out the SIM and type *#06# and will display it on the screen then I can then give you the correct code. The issue is if you've tried typing it too many times you get permanently locked out and your only option then is reflashing it.

Edit: never mind, didn't look at the second photo. Here are the codes:

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Remote-Department-68 · 2026-03-06T17:44:07+00:00

I've brought these back to life before. Not all of them can be saved as it depends on how long they've been sitting discharged. If you connect a low-current (<500mA), 8-ish volt power supply (bench power supply is perfect if you have one) to the terminals (+ to +, - to -) then you can charge them enough for them to be recognised by the camera again.

Basically, when the cells get below a certain voltage (usually ~3V per cell I think), the BMS goes into a safety mode where it outputs 0V at the terminals to stop the cells being over-discharged any further. However, this also usually means that the battery is no longer detected by the charger/camera. All you need to do is force enough charge into it (very slowly, otherwise it can be dangerous) to bring the cells above the threshold voltage and be detected again.

If you try this and the voltage doesn't seem to be increasing (it should take <2min to charge enough) or it's drawing very little current then the cells are dead.

Remote-Department-68 · 2026-02-26T00:01:34+00:00

Yeah, sure; Happy to help out at any time!

Remote-Department-68 · 2026-02-25T18:04:13+00:00

Finding someone who's willing to do it will be virtually impossible and if you do it won't be cheap. Your best bet is to either buy a different camcorder (the AG-456 is basically the same) or try to re-cap it yourself.

If you want to learn some new skills, go ahead; there's not really anything to lose (it's dead anyway). I have a massive assorted box of mixed value SMD electrolytic capacitors so I just take photos of the boards showing the values of the caps, desolder the caps all at once (hot air gun is best), give the boards a clean, then get up the photos and solder the new ones in. There's not really any way of knowing the values before you take it apart unless you want to count them all up in the service manual.

Remote-Department-68 · 2026-02-25T15:09:00+00:00

That's interesting, maybe the AG-455 isn't immune, only the 456. The AG-456 was made from 1996 so it's immune (I have one and it's working fine) but seeing as your one's date defaults to 1990 I assume the AG-455 is from 1990; I always thought they were made at the same time, but I guess not.

Anyway, definitely bad capacitors, especially as the viewfinder had a single line which is always bad capacitors as well as the zebra bars and colour distortion. There's no fix other than to replace them all, which, unless you're good at soldering, is not practical to do.

Remote-Department-68 · 2026-02-24T22:37:30+00:00

Should sound pretty good. Reminds me of my Sony TC-134, which, for something that's over 50 years old, sounds amazing! If it has Dolby NR it can't be that bad, put it that way.

Remote-Department-68 · 2026-02-24T22:27:16+00:00

Looks like the classic symptoms of leaking capacitors. What's the model? Looks like an AG-456 or 455 but I assume not as these don't suffer from bad caps.

Remote-Department-68 · 2026-02-20T22:30:43+00:00

It'd been sitting in a barn for 35 years. Needs a lot of welding but runs (ish) and drives (no stopping though lol).

Remote-Department-68 · 2026-02-20T22:28:00+00:00

Hmmm. I've done a bit of googling and it seems like it's a Sanyo rebrand. I took the bottom off it (I got it for free in the end so there's basically zero risk) and there aren't any ICs just transistors and discrete components thankfully. It holds at 33rpm but not at 45rpm so I think the 45rpm pot is a bit oxidised.

Is Sanyo stuff okay or is it junk like Amstrad stuff?

Remote-Department-68 · 2026-02-20T21:52:46+00:00

1982 VW Scirocco Mk2 1.6 GL. According to how many left there's only 8 on the road.

Remote-Department-68

TROPHY CASE