1988 MITSUBISHI HS-U80 S-VHS VCR

Joined
May 26, 2011
Messages
410
Location
IRRIGON, OR. U.S.
Tagline
---
#1
i've wanted one of these for years, and this one is now mine. one owner-low usage, damn-near pristine cosmetics,
fresh tune-up/maintenance work in the service shop, and 40 of the better quality late-80's S-VHS cassettes...








 

orange

Veteran and General Yakker
Joined
Jul 6, 2010
Messages
17,704
Tagline
Broken beyond repair but highly affable
#2
I've owned one for a few years now and I love it. Mitsu stuff is COOL.

Even the 3000 GT, although my old Pontiac 6000 could blow the spoilers off them
 
Last edited:

derek92994

Veteran and General Yakker
Joined
May 1, 2013
Messages
7,361
Location
Australia
Tagline
Those who enter the man cave will get WOPLed
#3
Lovely Unit!, well done. Give that Pinch roller a good clean with some iso alcohol to restore its grip a bit better. Then your tapes will be less likely to drift and cause control head/tracking issues.
 

derek92994

Veteran and General Yakker
Joined
May 1, 2013
Messages
7,361
Location
Australia
Tagline
Those who enter the man cave will get WOPLed
#4
I'd like to see a picture of the display lit up and playing a stereo cassette too, just curious as I dig these machines as well.
 

laatsch55

Administrator,
Staff member
Joined
Jan 14, 2011
Messages
74,877
Location
Gillette, Wyo.
Tagline
Halfbiass...Electron Herder and Backass Woof
#5
I've owned one for a few years now and I love it. Mitsu stuff is COOL.

Even the 3000 GT, although my old Pontiac 6000 could blow the spoilers off them :iroc:

Kaleb has a 3000GT and I'm callin bullshit on that Steve!!
 
Joined
May 26, 2011
Messages
410
Location
IRRIGON, OR. U.S.
Tagline
---
#6
Lovely Unit!, well done. Give that Pinch roller a good clean with some iso alcohol to restore its grip a bit better. Then your tapes will be less likely to drift and cause control head/tracking issues.

the seller claims the deck has just had it's rubber replaced all throughout. would that trick even actually be necessary?


I'd like to see a picture of the display lit up and playing a stereo cassette too, just curious as I dig these machines as well.
high-res DSLR photos forthcoming in a week or so...
 

BlazeES

Veteran and General Yakker
Joined
Aug 17, 2011
Messages
6,951
Tagline
---
#7
That is sweet! Never knew Mitsi had such a beast. Looks beautiful.
The display, as depicted in the brochure you posted up, is spot on top-shelf too.


i've wanted one of these for years, and this one is now mine. one owner-low usage, damn-near pristine cosmetics,
fresh tune-up/maintenance work in the service shop, and 40 of the better quality late-80's S-VHS cassettes...








 
Last edited:

orange

Veteran and General Yakker
Joined
Jul 6, 2010
Messages
17,704
Tagline
Broken beyond repair but highly affable
#8
Kaleb has a 3000GT and I'm callin bullshit on that Steve!!
Nobody knows how to drive around here, Lee, they just want to pick up hotties.

And I'm a freakin speed demon.
 
Joined
May 26, 2011
Messages
410
Location
IRRIGON, OR. U.S.
Tagline
---
#10
That is sweet! Never knew Mitsi had such a beast. Looks beautiful.
The display, as depicted in the brochure you posted up, is spot on top-shelf too.
it is indeed a fantastically functional FL display design. i don't believe i've seen one i've liked better.

and, while i'm an a kick; some of the better photos from my vast AUDIO-A/V photo galleries, to whet our collective appetites a bit more. god, this thing is a beauty;

















 

derek92994

Veteran and General Yakker
Joined
May 1, 2013
Messages
7,361
Location
Australia
Tagline
Those who enter the man cave will get WOPLed
#11
the seller claims the deck has just had it's rubber replaced all throughout. would that trick even actually be necessary?
If the pinch roller is brand new, then maybe not necessary. When they are new and have a few tapes played through them, the roller can appear more dirty than it actually is.
 
Joined
May 26, 2011
Messages
410
Location
IRRIGON, OR. U.S.
Tagline
---
#13
here we are!! Sexy beast of a VCR, but alas, the PQ somewhat inferior to the JVC HR-S8000U. i was hoping it would be at a parity, at least. oh well.

anyway, tidied up that rat's nest of internal wiring with a few zip ties;




heavy-gauge "Audiophile" power cable installed at some point by the original owner, has an Audioquest brand ferrite "RF STOPPER"

















 
Last edited:

derek92994

Veteran and General Yakker
Joined
May 1, 2013
Messages
7,361
Location
Australia
Tagline
Those who enter the man cave will get WOPLed
#14
Great Pictures Master Tasuke, a truly brilliant machine! Thanks for posting =).
 

derek92994

Veteran and General Yakker
Joined
May 1, 2013
Messages
7,361
Location
Australia
Tagline
Those who enter the man cave will get WOPLed
#15
I remember the National NV-850 Hi-Fi Stereo VCR that my father bought second hand in 1988. We would rent a new release video from the video shop and because it had maybe been played once or twice, the picture was outstanding as was the sound. No HQ back in those days so any wear on tapes would show a slight line now and again. We had an old Kriesler TV set that did very well over the years, an Akai AA-A1 Amplifier with Glenwood Speakers, was a nice system back in the day.




 
Joined
May 26, 2011
Messages
410
Location
IRRIGON, OR. U.S.
Tagline
---
#16
I remember the National NV-850 Hi-Fi Stereo VCR that my father bought second hand in 1988. We would rent a new release video from the video shop and because it had maybe been played once or twice, the picture was outstanding as was the sound. No HQ back in those days so any wear on tapes would show a slight line now and again. We had an old Kriesler TV set that did very well over the years, an Akai AA-A1 Amplifier with Glenwood Speakers, was a nice system back in the day.


that was a JPN market VCR. NATIONAL was the Japanese-market brand label for PANASONIC products. this one looks like it was a 1985 model, perhaps 1986, but no newer than that...
 

derek92994

Veteran and General Yakker
Joined
May 1, 2013
Messages
7,361
Location
Australia
Tagline
Those who enter the man cave will get WOPLed
#17
that was a JPN market VCR. NATIONAL was the Japanese-market brand label for PANASONIC products. this one looks like it was a 1985 model, perhaps 1986, but no newer than that...
1984 to be exact. My friend from the UK brought it over to australia then sold it to my father in 1988. Great machine. The main things that needed replacing were the belts and idlers (3 times over 20 years), I replaced the head cylinder once (Hi-Fi heads wore out) and the mechanism mode switch.
 

BlazeES

Veteran and General Yakker
Joined
Aug 17, 2011
Messages
6,951
Tagline
---
#18
Inferior to a S8000U? I'm shocked. When you first posted up info about this model, I was certain that is was a rival to the HR-S10000U - which is a pro-sumer [tuner added] config of a broadcast grade engine - JVC BR S378U. This beast looks like the same type of arrangement.

here we are!! Sexy beast of a VCR, but alas, the PQ somewhat inferior to the JVC HR-S8000U. i was hoping it would be at a parity, at least. oh well.


 
Joined
May 26, 2011
Messages
410
Location
IRRIGON, OR. U.S.
Tagline
---
#19
this HS-U80 is a pretty good basic performer, but just merely "Average" among high-end VHS VCRs, since it supposedly lacks the digital TBC and DNR
that the HR-S8000U and many others supposedly boast. head to head, the 8000U clearly has a cleaner picture, but it is something that does not
really show to well anywhere but in actual playback seen by the naked eye.

all the same, mechanically this machine seems a workhorse, and i just love the styling, so i think i can live with the admittedly slight (IMO)
drop in overall video PB performance.

there is a fellow over on AVS Forum that seems to be a long-time expert on these sort of things, this is what he had to say about the HS-U80;


Great pics! Looks like you got a very well-preserved HS-U80. Very attractive VCR: thanks for sharing!

The old Mitsubishi HS-U80 is a fun "antique" toy to play with, because of the superficial high build quality and obviously high original retail price. But as a VHS player, it was/is average at best and not in the same league as the JVC models you are comparing it to (because it lacks the internal TBC and DNR circuits that distinguish the high-end JVCs and Panasonic AG1980). In 1988, many VCRs sported a "noise reduction licensed by Faroudja" label on their back panels, but it is deceptive: that 'noise reduction' was of minimal impact and simply part of the early "VHS HQ" and "SVHS" specs.

I impulsively spent a large sum of money ($400!!!) in 2003 to acquire a second-hand "medical grade" Mitsubishi BV-1000, which was the basis for the consumer HS-U80 (they are identical aside from the prettier black lacquer and rosewood cosmetics on the HS-U80 version). At the time, this big beast of a Mitsubishi seemed a bargain compared to the $600-$900 people were still asking for a "classic" JVC DigiPure or Panasonic AG1980. But I soon learned the Mitsubishi was not comparable at all: it is an average-quality VCR in a heavy-duty cabinet. Nothing more, nothing less. Worse, I also discovered it used some custom circuitry in its failing power supply that was/is very expensive to replace ($150 for a rebuilt PSU + labor). Ouch.

My misadventure with that Mitsu proved the first (and last) time I was ever suckered badly by an eBay seller: it taught me to do better research on any item (and seller) before bidding. Looks can be deceiving: several VCRs of the late 80s-90s give the appearance of being far more capable than they actually are, particularly the Mitsu HS-U80 and the Sony SL-VR1000 / 2000 twins. Most consumer VCRs sold after 1996 had approx the same mediocre playback performance, so there is no point in overpaying for a fancy cabinet today unless you enjoy displaying it in your rack.

The only VCRs with notable playback advantages were the JVC SVHS and DVHS with "DigiPure" TBC/DNR, the Mitsubishi HS-HD2000U DVHS (which copied the JVC DigiPure system), and the Panasonic AG1980 / AG5710 twins which employ their own variation of TBC/DNR. Depending on overall condition, these VCRs can work wonders with some poorly recorded VHS (esp color noise). But age has caught up with them: the Panasonics are horrendously expensive to repair/restore, and the JVCs can be dismally unreliable. The heyday of these VCRs has long since passed: caveat emptor. Don't spend more than you can afford to lose, esp if you live far from any VCR repair techs (shipping cost for the 30-lb HS-U80 can be astronomical).
 

derek92994

Veteran and General Yakker
Joined
May 1, 2013
Messages
7,361
Location
Australia
Tagline
Those who enter the man cave will get WOPLed
#20
One of the best VCRs I came across which is semi modern is the Toshiba VW96. It has the DNR and HQ capabilities and is very reliable. The Hi-FI sound on it is fantastic on it as is the Picture with the assistance of DNR. I don't know what "German Stereo" means but the machine has a lot more weight to it than any other 6 head model I have here. Its also handy to be able to play any video system (e.g. NTSC) from other countries in it as Australia uses the PAL system.







 
Top