Hitachi VM-E455LA manual

IMPORTANT SAFETY INFORMAT ION 1 VM-E455LA, VM-H655LA HITACHI Instruction Manual 8mm Video Cam corder VM-E455LA Hi HI 8 Video Camc order VM-H655LA HITACHI A M ERICA , LT D. HOM E ELECTRONICS DIVISIO N 1855 Dornoch Court San Diego, CA 92173 Tel. 1-800- HATACHI (1-800-448-2244) HITACHI (HSC) CA NA DA INC. 6740 Campobello Road Missisauga, O ntario, L5N[...]

IMPORTANT SAFETY INFORMAT ION 2 TA BLE OF CONTENTS IMPORTANT SAFETY INFORMATION ................................................................................................ 3 Important Safeguards ........................................................................................................... ................... 4 Before You Begin....[...]

IMPORTANT SAFETY INFORMAT ION 3 Demonstration Mode ............................................................................................................................. 53 Dubbing from the Camcorder to a VCR ............................................................................................ ... 53 Simple Programmable Edit (Edit rem[...]

IMPORTANT SAFETY INFORMAT ION 4 The liquid c ry s tal display (LCD) panel is made by highly prec ise technology. More than 99.99% of its picture elements (pixels) are ef fective, but s ome (less than 0.01%) may appear as colored bright dots . This does not indicate a fault as the LCD panel stretches the lim its of c urrent technology. Informatio n [...]

IMPORTANT SAFETY INFORMAT ION 5 INSTA LLA TION 1 Read and Fo llow Instruct ions -- All the saf ety and oper ating instructions s hould be read before the video product is oper ated. Follow-all operating and use instruc tions. 2 Retain Instructions -- T he safety and operating instructions s hould be retained for f uture referenc e. 3 Heed Warning s[...]

IMPORTANT SAFETY INFORMAT ION 6 Caution: Maintain electrical s afety . Powerline operated equipm ent or acces sories connected to this unit should bear the UL listing m ark or CSA certific ation mark on the access ory itself and s hould not have been modif ied so as to defeat the s afety featur es. This will help avoid any potential haz ard fr om e[...]

IMPORTANT SAFETY INFORMAT ION 7 16 Lightning -- For added protec tion for this video pr oduct during a lightning storm , or when it its left unattended and unused for long periods of tim e, unplug it from the wall outlet and disconnect the antenna or c able-sy stem . This will prevent damage to the video product due to lightning and power- line sur[...]

IMPORTANT SAFETY INFORMAT ION 8 device m ay be damaged. Dangerous includes : • Inside a car with the windows closed and in direct s unshine. • Near heating appliances.  Do not leave the viewfinder lens and the liquid cr y s tal display (LCD) s creen facing s unlight for a prolonged period, or the phosphor escent surf ace of the cathode ray t[...]

Getting Started 9 • Automatic title recording • Video eff ects • Multi play back (PAL60 convers ion)  Types of differences VM- E455LA VM- H655LA System Hi Getting Sta rted This sec tion guides you through the initial preparation of the c amcorder. None of these pr ocesses are c omplex. Set aside some time, relax , and familiarize yourself [...]

Getting Started 10 Optional RF A daptor If you wi sh to c onnect this cam corder to a television that does not have audio/video input j acks y ou will need to use the optional RF adapter m odel VM-RF86A (R) . Identify ing Control s 1. Lens Door The door will automatically open w hen the CAM/ OFF/VIDEO switch is set to "CAM". Setting the s[...]

Getting Started 11 8. STOP Button Use this button to stop pl ayback, fast forward, or r everse. Also use thi s button to set date and time and create a titl e. ("Creating and Recording a Title", p39) . 9. BA TTERY Release Lev er Releases the battery attached to camcorder. 10. CHA RGE Indicator W hen the battery is being charged, this indi[...]

Getting Started 12 W hen you are viewing play bac k pictures on the LCD monitor with the CAM/OFF/VIDEO switch set to VIDEO, these buttons can be us ed to control the volum e of the built-in speak er 24. DA TE/DISP Button W hen the CAM/OF F/VIDEO switch is set to CAM, this button can be used as the DAT E or DISPLAY button: set the date and time, and[...]

Getting Started 13 Use this button to digitally process the im age y ou are going to rec ord or the play back image. Dur ing recording, y ou can se lect among s ix modes: 16x 9, negative/ positive, X400 digital zoom, half -mirRor , mosaic , or art ("Digital Eff ects Recording", p42). During playback, you can select am ong three modes: 16x[...]

Getting Started 14 29. Star t/Stop Button W hen the CAM/OF F/VIDEO switch is in CAM pres s this button to start re cording. W hen pres sed a second tim e the cam era pauses. During playback use this button to s top the tape temporar ily . Pres sing a second tim e resum es norm al play bac k. 30. Hand Str ap Refer to page 21. 31. Clock Battery Compa[...]

Getting Started 15 Charging the Batter y The first s tep is to set the battery for c harging. To charge the battery, attac h it to the camcorder, and connec t the VM-ACE5A AC adaptor. Charge the battery at a temperatur e range of 50°F (10°C) - 86°F ( 3O°C) to prevent damage to the battery. Note: This camc order operates with a lithium ion batte[...]

Getting Started 16 accessory . 4 Connect the AC adaptor DC plug to the DC IN jac k of the cam corder. Charging will start within five sec onds. During charging, the CHARGE indic ator of the cam corder will flas h or light to give y ou a ref erence of the char ged level. Note: If the CHARGE Indicator f lashes once every two seconds, the battery coul[...]

Getting Started 17 Mo re than 75% charge Flashes three tim es at approx . one-second intervals. Full charge Steady light Charging Ti me Pack Charging 130 . 230 min. 260 min. 460 min. 70 min. 140 min. 160 min. 320 min. Battery Charging VM-B PL13 VM -BPL 27 VM-BPL 30 VM-BPL 60 Full Charge 170 min 300 min 330 m in 590 m in 75% Charge 100 min 190 m in [...]

Getting Started 18 • Do not operate the battery at temperature below 14°F (- 10°C) or above 113°F (45°C). At extr emely low temper atures operation tim e decreases, while at high tem perature the battery may be damaged, • Do not attach a hot battery to the camcorder. Allow it to cool. THERE ARE NO USER-SERVICEA BLE PARTS INSIDE THE BATTERY [...]

Getting Started 19 Note: If y ou connec t the VM-BPL30 battery with the remaining batter y tim e of 5 m inutes or less , the time will not be displayed. Note: If the correc t remaining tim e does not appear, use up the batter y attac hed to the camcor der, and then fully charge it. Note: If y ou repeat char ging and discharging the battery before u[...]

Getting Started 20 1 Plug the AC adaptor power cord into an AC outlet. Mak e sure that the wide blade fits into the wide slot. If it doesn't f it try r eversing it. If you still cannot m ake fit the blades f ully into the outlet either contact an elec trician to replace your obsolete outlet, or use a polarized cord or outlet accessory. 2 Conne[...]

Getting Started 21 3 Place the cass ette in the cassette holder so that the tr ansparent window faces away from the body of the cam corder and the spry toward the body of the camc order. 4 Push the cas sette door, which is em bossed PUSH, until it "clic ks" into place. T he cam corder autom atically closes. Note: The cam corder will autom[...]

Getting Started 22 When us ing the LCD monitor during recording and play back, you can adjus t the brightness of its sc reen and the angle of the monitor. Opening the LCD M onitor 1 Press the O PEN button to open the LCD monitor. Note: Opening or closing the LCD m onitor switches the pictur e to appear on the LCD monitor or In the viewfinder. A dju[...]

Getting Started 23 • If the LCD m onitor is turned 90° so that it f aces the sam e direction as the lens when the camera s ignal is being recorded dur ing recording, recor ding pause, instant review, editing, A/V dubbing or A/V dubbing pause, the im age on the monitor screen will becom e a mirr or image and the viewfinder will turn on. The on-sc[...]

Getting Started 24 CA UT ION: Do not hold the unit by the electronic viewfinder when carrying as this could cause a m alfunc tion. Ey epiece A djustment To us e the electronic viewfinder, gras p the knobs on both sides of the ey e cup stem and pull the eye cup all the way , then turn the diopter control for y our optimum focus adj ustment. Since th[...]

Getting Started 25 2 Insert the battery with the "+" terminal f acing up. 3 Fully insert the battery holder into the cam corder. WARNING: KEEP THE BA TT ERY A WAY FROM CHILDREN AND PETS. IF SWA LLOWED CONSULT A PHYSICIA N IM MEDIA TELY FOR EM ERGENCY TR EA T MENT . Note: Replace the battery wi th 3V m icro lithium cells such as Maxell CR2[...]

Getting Started 26 The tape remaining display shows the remaining tape that can be us ed for recording and playbac k, using seven dashes. This feature is handy when recor ding since it lets you know how long y ou can record on the loaded tape. Insert a cas sette into the cam corder and star t recording or playback; 10 sec onds later, the rem aining[...]

Getting Started 27 CA M mode: Press the DAT E/DISP. button on the camc order to switch the display. VIDEO mode: Press the DATE/ DISP. button on the cam corder or DISPLAY AY button on the remote c ontrol to swi tch the displ ay . • W hen a rec orded tape is in the cam corder during the VIDEO mode, "SEARCH" appears in the viewf inder or o[...]

Basic T echniques 28 2 Press the r ed button on the CAM/OFF/VIDEO switch as y ou s lide it to CAM. 3 Press the DAT E/DISP. button and look into the viewfinder or LCD monitor. T he date and time should appear in the lower right with the " 1" flashing. 12:00 AM 1/ 1/1999 4 Pressing the F .FW D button gives you higher numbers while the REW /[...]

Basic T echniques 29 1 Connect the cam corder to a power sour ce (See pages p16 - p17). 2 Open the LCD m onitor and insert a cass ette ("Inserting and Rem oving Cassettes", p20). If you want to view the picture being rec orded on the LCD monitor , leave the monitor open. If y ou want to view the picture in the viewfinder, c lose the LCD m[...]

Basic T echniques 30 Using Instant Review Use this feature to v iew the last few seconds of the tape you s hot. 1 Set the cam corder to recor d/pause mode and tap the REW /REVIEW button. The las t few seconds of the tape play back in reverse and then in norm al playback m ode. Note: Sound is heard from the speak er during norm al play back . 2 The [...]

Basic T echniques 31 Object s behind water dappled or dusty glass Objec ts with little differenc e in light reflection suc h as a white wall Rapidly m oving objects Dark obj ects Note: W ith the T zoom control y ou can use the auto f ocus with subjects that ar e 3.3 feet (100 cm ) away from the lens and fur ther away to inf inity . W ith the W zoom[...]

Basic T echniques 32 The power zoom W contr ol widens the picture, moving the subjec t farther away, while the power zoom T control brings the subjec t closer, narrowing the pic ture. If "ZOOM" appears at the left of the viewfinder or LCD monitor, the digital zoom function shown below has been engaged. The zoom speed varies depending on h[...]

Basic T echniques 33 Note: To return to the original zoom position, press the INST . ZOOM button so that "I. Z OOM' disappears f rom the viewfinder or LCD m onitor. Note: This instant zoom has cer tain limitations and m ay degrade at extr eme magnif ication and amplif y cam corder's m ovem ent. Using M acro This function allows you t[...]

Basic T echniques 34 will automatic ally dis appear. 5 Press the ST OP button when y ou have finished. Note: Decrease the sound volum e of the cam corder w hen you play back a recording by connecting the cam corder to your TV, If the volum e of the cam corder is set to maxim um , the play ed bac k picture m ay be distorted. Mak e sure that the volu[...]

Basic T echniques 35 less noise when you open the monitor. Using Forw ar d and Reverse Sear ch W hen look ing for a partic ular point in y our videotape use the F.FW D button and REW /REVIEW button to f ind the scoot quic kly. When th e LCD monitor is closed: • Press the F .FW D button during playback to play the tape forward at approxim ately 9 [...]

Basic T echniques 36 1. Connect the provided audio/video output cable to the AUDIO IN and VIDEO IN jack s of your VCR. Note: If your VCR has two (stereo) AUDIO IN j acks, c onnect the audio plug to the left-channel AUDIO IN jack. 2. Connect the other ends of the cable to the AUDIO OUT and VIDEO OUT j acks of the cam corder. 3. Insert a previous ly [...]

Basic T echniques 37 Note: If your television has two (stereo) AUDIO IN jacks , connect the audio plug to the left-c hannel AUDIO IN jack. 2. Connect the other ends of the cable to the AUDIO OUT and VIDEO OUT j acks of the cam corder. 3. Insert a previous ly r ecorded cassette into the c amcor der. 4. Turn on your television and set to the cam cord[...]

Basic T echniques 38 4. Connect the RF output adapter c able to the Audio/Video Output jack of y our cam corder. 5. Turn your television on and selec t channel 3 (channel 4 if c hannel 3 is a channel used in your area). 6. Select the CH3 or CH4 on the RF output adapter matching the channel s elected on y our television. 7. Insert the previous ly r [...]

Basic T echniques 39 "SEPIA ": Sepia M ode The entir e picture will be sepia. Note: To switch the m ode of return to the nor mal pictur e during tape dubbing, temporar ily s top the dubbing and press the EF FECTS button. Note: W hen tape stops, the nor mal pictur e will be restored. Multi Play back This camc order can conv ert on NTSC rec[...]

Advanced T echniques 40 Note: The PAL60 button is ef fective during playback only. Note: Depending on the state of the tape rec orded, the PAL60 button may not operate normally. Note: The RF conver ter unit cannot be used during m ulti play back (PAL60 output). Note: The PAL60 m ode will be released when the camc order is turned of f. A d vanced Te[...]

Advanced T echniques 41 Note: W hen "  T ITLE" is displayed in the viewfinder of on the LCD m onitor, the title cannot be turned on or off using the rem ote control. Date - Date Recor ding The c amcorder records the date with the picture all the tim e. 11/ 5/2000 No Display - No Date Recording The cam corder does not record the date. D[...]

Advanced T echniques 42 or create a title and per sonalize your recordings, while at the s ome time keeping a permanent visual rec ord of what is contained on a tape. The selected or created title can be recor ded with the date automatically. Selecting Stored Title (Prememo) Note: Be sure to insert the c lock battery before selecting a title, Altho[...]

Advanced T echniques 43 Title creat ion mode FELIZ CUMPLEAÑOS Spanish 5 Use the F.FW D or REW button to selec t a desired title. MERRY CHRISTMAS Stored tit les (Prememo) available <English> HAPPY BIRTHDAY MERRY CHRISTMAS CONGRATULAT IONS THE SUPERST AR VACATION F UN THANKSG IVING HAPPY EASTER ANNIVERSARY HAPPY NEW YEAR <Frenc h> BON AN[...]

Advanced T echniques 44 FELIZ AÑO NUEVO SEMANA SANTA FIEST A 6 After you have selected the title, pres s the TIT LE ON/OFF button. T he selected title will be stored in m em ory and then disappear. Creating a Title A title contains two lines of up to 16 characters per line. The cam corder contains 79 different c haracters f or creating a title. No[...]

Advanced T echniques 45 J  TIT LE 11/ 5/2000 6 Once you've selected a character press the ST OP button to set it. J  TIT LE 11/ 5/2000 7 Complete the title by repeating steps 5 and 6. JANE'S BIRTHDAY  TIT LE 11/ 5/2000 8 W hen you complete your title, press the T ITLE ON /OFF button on the rem ote control to store the title in m [...]

Advanced T echniques 46 3 Use the STO P button to select the character to be corrected. 4 Use the F.FW D and REW /REVIEW buttons to correct the char acter. 5 Repeatedly press the DATE/DISP. button to store the c orrected title in m emory. Digital Effects Recording The digital proces sor in this camc order allows you to rec ord the picture and add s[...]

Advanced T echniques 47  MIRROR Half-M irror M ode  MOSAIC Mo saic Mode  ART A rt M ode  Normal Mode  A ctivating Digital Effects Recording 1. Place the cam corder in the rec ord pause m ode. 2. Press the EF FECTS button to select the digital ef fects mode you w ant.[...]

Advanced T echniques 48 16x9: 16x9 Mode The pic ture form at can be switched from the 4:3 (the pictur e form at of an ordinary TV set) to 16x9. T he top and bottom of the picture in the viewfinder bec ome black bars. NEGPOS: N egativ e/Positive Mode The im age in the viewfinder or on the LCD m onitor will becom e negative. ZM:2: x400 Digi tal Zoom [...]

Advanced T echniques 49 3. Press the Star t/Stop button to start recording. • To releas e digital effec ts mode, repeatedly press the EF FECTS button in recor d pause mode until the norm al mode is restored. Using Digi tal Fade Use the fade feature to add a profes sional touch to your recor dings. Use the FADE button to select one of the four fad[...]

Advanced T echniques 50 • A rt fade: Fades in f rom, or f ades out to a picture with the feel of an oil painting. "ART.F" appears in the upper left cor ner of the view finder of LCD m onitor. • Zoom fade: Fades in while zooming fr om a white screen or fades out while zooming to a white screen. " " appears in the upper lef t [...]

Advanced T echniques 51 attempting to put the c amcor der into the record m ode again. Date Search The date searc h function memorizes the start and end positions of rec ordings you made on a spec ific day so you can easily loc ate those positions later as long as the cassette is left in the camcorder . Note: Be sure that the date and tim e are set[...]

Advanced T echniques 52 4. Press the DAT E/DISP. button . "M" appears next to the counter . 5. Press the REW /REVIEW button and the tape stops at approximately where y ou reset the linear tim e counter. This feature works in F.FW D as well. Using Qu ick Edit Use quick edit to search f or the end of previously recorded m aterial, find a pa[...]

Advanced T echniques 53 Demonstration M ode This camc order is equipped with a demonstration mode. If y ou leave the powered camcorder for 10 minutes without a cassette ins erted when the date has not been set or the cloc k battery is dead, the camc order demonstration mode will star t. To cancel the demonstr ation mode • Disconnect power f rom c[...]

Advanced T echniques 54 Programmi ng the Remote Contr ol for the VCR It is necess ary to program the edit rem ote control to matc h the VCR before starting editing. 1. Turn the VCR on. 2. Aim the r emote contr ol at the infrared receiver on the VCR and press the VCR SET button on the remote control and hold it, then pres s the button corresponding [...]

Advanced T echniques 55 Hitachi REVERSE Sony PROGRAM Panasonic FORW ARD Tos hiba IN Mitsubishi COPY START Sany o OUT Sharp NEC JVC Akai A/V DUB Gold S tar PHILIPS RCA DISPLAY Zenith CO UNTER RESET Magnavox TIT LE O N/OFF Note: The r emote control c ode is held in mem ory until it is changed or the batteries ar e replaced. Note: Point the rem ote co[...]

Advanced T echniques 56 1 Connect the edit rem ote control to the cam corder, and then c onnect the audio/video output cable as illustrated above. Note: If y our VCR has two (s tereo) AUDIO IN jack s, connect the audio plug to the lef t-channel AUDIO IN lack . 2 Insert a rec orded tape into the camc order. 3 Set the CAM/OFF/VIDEO switch of the cam [...]

Advanced T echniques 57 7 Press the button to search f or the end of the segm ent y ou want to copy. Press and then to set the cam corder to the play pause mode. Use the F ORW ARD or REVERSE button as requir ed to fine adjust the tape position. 8 Press the O UT button to store the c ounter reading at the end of the sc ene. PROG. 2 0: 20 : 15 IN - :[...]

Advanced T echniques 58 mar ked * in the figur e below . Note: The edit rem ote control cannot be us ed unless it is connected to the c amcor der. (1) ( Play ) Button Use to playback recor ded tape. (2) (Rewind) Button Use this button to f ast rewind tapes or for vis ual search. (3) A/V DUB Button Use this button to record new audio and video over [...]

General Maintenance 59 previously recorded tape in the camc order. 1 Hold down the red button on the CAM/ OFF/VIDEO s witch while sliding the switch to VIDEO. 2 Insert a previous ly r ecorded tape in the cam corder. 3 use the wireless rem ote control and pr ess the PLAY button. Us e the PLAY, F.FW D, and REW buttons to find the plac e w here y ou w[...]

General Maintenance 60 If af ter cleaning the heads the picture does not c lear up consult your nearest dealer or VCR ser vice center for profes sional head cleaning. Cleaning the Lens and Pi ctur e Tube of the El ectr onic View finder The lens of the electr onic viewfinder can be user- cleaned if dust, dirt, or other for eign matter adheres to it.[...]

General Maintenance 61 A precision elec tromec hanical device, the Hitachi VM-E455LA/VM- H755LA/VM-H655LA requires m aintenance after a per iod of norm al use. W e expec t that no other maintenance other than head cleaning will be required during the period of warranty unles s the cam corder is used either heavily or seldom. Def ective parts are c [...]

General Maintenance 62 PLA YBA CK OF P RE-RECORDED CA S S ETTE Symptom Check Point & Correct ion The PLAY button cannot be engaged. • Set the CAM/OFF/VIDEO switch to VIDEO. No picture appears on television screen when The PLAY is pressed. (T V is connected to the c amcor der by using RF c onverter unit.) • Set the television to the cam cord[...]

General Maintenance 63 LCD monitor . cassette and s et the CAM/OFF/VIDEO switch to OF F, then wait for about one hour. • Remove the c assette and then try to reinsert: rem ove it several tim es. If the indication is still shown in the viewfinder or on the LCD m onitor, use a c leaning tape to clean the heads and replace the c assette. CA M CORDER[...]

General Maintenance 64 Lens F1.6 - 3.8 (4 - 88 mm ) 22:1 power zoom lens with auto focus and auto iris func tions Lens diameter 46 m m For U.S.A. only HITACHI Service Hotline To loc ate an authorized HIT ACHI service f acility in the continental U.S.A. DIA L TOLL FREE 7 day s a week , 24 hours a day 800 HITACHI 1-800-448-2244 Hitachi Home Electro n[...]

General Maintenance 65 FOR A UTHORI ZED HITA CHI SERVICE FA CILITY I N CA NADA Please consult the f ollowing telephone numbers: 1-800-HIT A CHI 1-800-995-4500[...]