Panasonic PV-GS83 Digital Video Camcorder - Page 63

Others Cautions for Use ª About condensation If you turn the Camcorder on when condensation occurs on the head or the tape, condensation indication [3] (yellow or red) is displayed on the viewfinder or the LCD monitor and the messages [3DEW DETECT] or [3EJECT TAPE] (only when the tape is inserted) appear. If so, follow the procedure below. 1 Remove the tape if it is inserted. ≥It takes about 20 seconds to open the cassette holder. This is not a malfunction. 2 Leave the Camcorder with the cassette cover closed and the battery attached, to cool or warm it to the ambient temperature ≥The status indicator blinks for about 1 minute and then the Camcorder automatically turns off. Leave it for about 1.5 to 2 hours. 3 Turn the Camcorder on again, set it to the Tape Recording/Playback Mode and then check if the condensation indication disappears. Especially in cold areas, moisture may be frozen. If so, it may take more time before the condensation indication disappears. Watch for condensation even before the condensation indication is displayed. ≥If the indicator of the condensation does not display on the LCD screen and/or EVF and you notice condensation on the lens or the main unit, do not open the cassette cover otherwise condensation may be formed on the heads or the cassette tape. When the lens is fogged: Set the [OFF/ON] switch to [OFF] and leave the Camcorder in this condition for about 1 hour. When the lens temperature becomes close to the ambient temperature, the fogging disappears naturally. ª About dirty heads If video heads (the parts that closely contact with the tape) become dirty, normal recording and playback are not properly performed. Clean the heads with the digital video head cleaner. ≥Insert the head cleaner into the Camcorder, set it to the Tape Playback Mode and play it back for about 10 seconds. (If you do not stop the playback, it automatically stops about 15 seconds later.) ≥We recommend cleaning the heads periodically. If the heads become dirty, "NEED HEAD CLEANING" appears during recording. During playback, moreover, the following symptoms appear. ≥Mosaic-like noise appears partially or the sound is interrupted. ≥Black or blue mosaic-like horizontal stripes appear. ≥The whole screen becomes blue and there is no picture or sound. When normal playback cannot be performed even after the head cleaning One possible cause is that normal recording could not be performed because the heads were dirty at the time of recording. Clean the heads and perform recording and playback again. If normal playback can be performed, the heads are clean. Before an important recording, be sure to conduct a test recording to make sure that normal recording can be performed. ≥If the heads become dirty soon after cleaning, the problem may be the tape. If so, try another cassette. ≥During playback, the picture or sound may be interrupted momentarily, but this is not a malfunction of the Camcorder. (One possible cause is that the playback is interrupted by dirt or dust that momentarily adheres to the heads.) 63 LSQT1181