Sony HDL-2000 Hi-Vision Info (1 Viewer)

[audisnlasers]

Is anyone out there familiar with the Sony HDL-2000 professional videodisc player? These were broadband HDVS Hi-Vision players used in tv studios and the like. I understand that they are not MUSE compatable, but can they play regular laserdiscs? If so, do they use a similar laser to the MUSE players? I'm wondering if, like a MUSE player, these might be able to play rotted or damaged discs better than US spec home laserdisc players.

 

[ChristopherDAC]

What do you want to know? I have a certain amount of technical information on this type unit.

To answer what seems to be your principal question, you can not play standard LaserVision discs on an HDVS videodisc deck. With a MUSE player, it is possible to incorporate NTSC signal-processing circuitry because the parameters of the system, other than the signal, are fundamentally similar to standard LaserDisc {see this thread of mine for some details}. This is not the case for the HDL series, which use a fundamentally different recording system.

To be more specific, in order to hold the rotational speed of the HDVS disc down to 1800 RPM [CAV], Sony recorded the signal on two parallel tracks. This means that, instead of data being read by the central spot of the three-beam pickup system, as in LaserDisc players, where the tracking is taken from the two side spots, which are thrown to left and right of the pit-track onto the land areas, the signal is taken from the peripheral spots and the tracking from the land between them. While the pickup is actually based on a standard LD pickup, the differences are such that it cannot play a single-channel disc, be it NTSC, MUSE, or PAL.

Why do you ask? Have you come into possession of one of these monsters?

 

[audisnlasers]

Thanks, that does answer my question. There's an ebay seller in Canada who's been trying to practically give one of these away for several weeks now with no takers (seller id richgator) but I guess I don't have any use for it if it won't play NTSC or PAL laserdiscs. I don't know where I'd find broadband HD discs to play on it.

 

[JoeKewl1971]

I would like to hear much more about these videodisc players. Did they record? What did they play back? Where are the discs? Is the aspect ratio really 5:3? What actual use did they get? Was the format ever considered a standard, perhaps in broadcasting? Please tell me these things, and just about anything you might know about them. Thanks in advance.

 

[ChristopherDAC]

I have the service manual for the HDL-2000 now. Unfortunately, unlike the typical Sony professional service manual, it does not include an extensive "theory of operation" section.


I'd really love to have a player, & a disc or two, though.

 

[RobertCastle]

Hi! This is my first time viewing of your site! I appreciate your sharing, I always enjoy reading quality articles by an author who is obviously knowledgeable on their chosen subject. I’ll be following this thread with great interest. I love your blog, and am a regular follower. Embroidery design

 

[Dave at Doron]

I'm looking for a working Sony HDL-2000 high def disc player. Anyone have one?

 

[ChristopherDAC]

There's a 5800 (the recording model) on eBay right now, but the seller wants a lot of money, & you would need to find the caddy to insert pre-recorded discs into for playback in that model.


What do you need it for? Do you have media for the unit? I've been looking for one, desultorily, for a long time -- actually bought one on eBay once, only to be told by the seller that he'd let his little brother take it apart for fun.


I now have both the service manual & the operator's manual for the 2000, although I had to buy the latter from Sony, which wasn't cheap. This unit conforms to the original BTA-S001/SMPTE-240M standard, with 1125 lines scanned with 2:1 interlace at exactly 60 fields per second, & 1035 active lines. Most HDTV equipment today expects 1080 active lines & a field rate based on the NTSC 59.94 Hz. (It also has luminance bandwidth of 20 MHz & chrominance of 6 MHz, line alternated, as opposed to 30/15, but that has very little effect on intercompatibility.) Of course, I want one partly to feed my proposed home-built MUSE encoder, which would require the old-style input. Also partly just because the old Hi-Vision technology is just amazingly cool to me.