Hello, for 7-1/2 years I have exclusively sold working Betamax VCR's on e-Bay. In fact, you are guaranteed to receive it in perfect working condition as I describe in my auction narrative. My sole concern is with their performance and compatibility with your valuable Betamax cassette tapes. This is what I believe is most important to an individual who is contemplating a transfer to DVD.
I don't sell a Betamax VCR one day and then the rest of my sales consist of dolls, antique dishes, welcome mats, used clothing, automotive parts etc. There are many Betamax VCR's being sold on e-Bay. These sellers seem to know nothing about these superb VCR's, other than they sell for a lot of money if you can convince everyone that they are "great".
By the way, here are some actual statements from Betamax auctions >>> "Used only 3 times in 1984, was a little dusty but played a few minutes of the tape 'Star Wars' perfect" NO DOA. " Found it in my grandparent's closet, plugged it in and after 25 years had a sharp picture..much better than VHS but sold AS-IS" "Don't have a tape to check, should work." 
"Appears or seems to work??"..."Works Great/REFURBISHED but as with all electronics it is SOLD AS-IS" ...... "All light are lit and was able to set clock, but never had a chance to hook it to a TV." "Used 10 years ago and worked perfect the last time I used it, but I don't have the time to hook it up." "I PURCHASED THIS UNIT BRAND NEW. It still PLAYs TAPE CLEARLY, BUT OCCASIONALLY FLASHES AND LOSES PICTURE FOR A SPLIT SECOND. Told IT NEEDS good CLEANING OF Heads & lube and then it will play fine. UNIT SOLD AS IS. Ask Questions before bidding..sale is final" "Bought it at a estate sale and was told by the former owner that it was perfect >>had no tape to check but it has no scratches and no scuffs." and so on.
Since I am aware of the many problems that can occur to these units by being out-of-service for many years, it seems to me quite odd that all of a sudden these dusty Betamax VCR's that have been in the back of closets, moist basements, discovered at estate sales & flea markets are suddenly popping up as "great & working" VCR's.
I find these auction descriptions to be very amusing and what will not be funny is when your PRECIOUS beta tape collections are inserted in these so called "working great" units and get chewed up and destroyed.
The bottom line is if you see AS IS or no DOA, Run DON'T WALK to another Betamax auction..
One more recent observation. I notice some sellers (some of whom have contacted me via eBay for refurbishing advice) are finally starting to replace belts and pinch rollers in their units and maybe a couple of leaking electrolytics in the power supply, a great start and I commend them on taking that first step to a complete refurbish procedure. It is disturbing, however, when these same sellers claim that is all that needs to be done on these close to 25 year old units. I'd like to believe their claim is heart-felt, but I just feel that it is as far as their knowledge of the workings of these Betas can take them. Dried out and out-of-tolerance capacitors critical to the tracking and picture quality are equally important and must be addressed.
This problem became apparent to us in the late 1980's. Now, 20 years later, it is still being ignored and glossed over.
Since replacement of these components requires mastery of the servo alignment techniques and, of course, possession of the correct (for the model & brand you are servicing: KR5-1Z for mono audio models & KR5-1M for Beta Hi-Fi 400 HZ +and-25KHZ deviation) factory authorized alignment tape, it is obvious why they are being ignored. If these components are not replaced, the purchaser will know why in short order.
>>>Tracking knob at one end of rotation, intermittent color, warbling audio and pulsating video are a few symptoms of this negligence.
Hours have to be spent getting these VCR's back to factory specifications. Only changing parts that are known to fail, even if they look good, and doing a full service on these units is the definitive way to honestly be able to state that a Betamax will perform as it did when new.
NOW for 
is a Sony SL-HF400 Super Beta HiFi Betamax VCR.
This is the second generation of the Slimline EZ beta series and the improvements are quite obvious. Specifically, the transport was re-designed for more gentler tape handling and the drop-out compensation circuitry was much improved. What this has done is allow for a cleaner look to older tapes that may not have kept their original clean video. Any "dropouts" (streaks, black dots, etc.) are eliminated in the composite video section of the vcr, rather than in the rf section. These two factors are considered to be very important by me when copying older, delicate tapes.
Please take Note: This later model Sony SL-HF400 (as well as others in this model line) displays remarkably tight tracking characteristics and is noted for doing so when aligned to Sony factory specifications. What this means is if you have older, perhaps unstable video tapes to transfer to DVD, this Betamax can do the job where others may fail. This is especially important when playing tapes recorded in the B111 speed. That speed is notorious for tracking problems when played on non-refurbished machines or machines that are not true to specifications as just described.
>>>> I only offer for sale select Betamax VCR's that conform to this criteria. Models that inherently have problems with tracking are models I refuse to offer for auction.
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Appearance wise:
1) The SL-HF400 has some scratches on the top cover.
Apart from this minor cosmetic, the unit is clean and has been well maintained. A very nice unit both in looks, performance, durability and ability to handle the tracking demands of older, sometimes unstable video cassettes..
Mechanically, it operates 100%. Record (B11 and B111), play (B1, B11 and B111), fast forward, fast forward review, rewind, reverse review, sharpness control, MTS stereo audio, HiFi audio spectrum and channel seperation, pause & clock operation have all been tested and found to operate flawlessly. No sluggish rewind or fast forward that is so common and annoying on all vcr's that have not been refurbished. Throw away your rewinder! This unit will produce crisp and brilliant BETA quality video and clear, full audio High Fidelity spectrum sound as well.
There are convenient RCA type jacks for video and stereo audio outputs on the rear panel to make the transfer to DVD an easy task.
An ideal VCR to transfer or view your STANDARD BETA or SUPERBETA collection in that it is simple to operate and is practically mistake proof.
NO REMOTE >>>>Sony designed this unit so that all functions and special features are user accessible from the front panel and not dependent on remote access.
Those Betamax pioneers still saving those original K-60 & K-30 cassettes from the late 1970's that were recorded in the B1 speed will be glad to know that this unit will play those tapes as well. (I know because I have an extensive collection of those!)
An SL-HF400 Owner's Manual will be provided to assist the purchaser in the use, familiarity and hook-up. (This is a must item. Despite the fact that this model is simple to operate, it is always nice to have the manual for any type of electronic equipment because questions invariably arise during the user's initial set-up.)
I will also provide a NOS (new, old stock) Sony High Grade LS-250D industrial "duplicator" (Test Tape) Betamax video cassette that I employed to verify the unit's operation as described above.
Also, a classic Betamax cassette from the Paramount Home Video Star Trek Series entitled "Court Martial" will be included with the package to confirm tracking compatibility and for the purchaser to experience the true Hi-Fi sound this instrument is capable of reproducing.
To summarize, the winning bidder will receive and is guaranteed to receive a working, professionally refurbished Sony SL-HF400 SuperBeta HiFI, the SL-HF400 Owner's Manual, the Paramount Video Betamax Hi-Fi Star Trek cassette entitled "Court Martial" and the new Sony High Grade LS-250D industrial "duplicator" (Test Tape) previously mentioned.
Packaging technique will be meticulous to prevent any damage to the Betamax during transit. A New Double-Walled 18" X 18" X 21" Dish shipping carton, Hard Foam & large bubble wrap packing materials are all employed in order to assure that your unit will arrive at your home or business in perfect condition.
Shipping Includes>>shipping to the confirmed PayPal address, tracking number and applicable insurance. Nothing else is stated or implied.
Payment will be by "PayPal" only. LOWER 48 STATES U.S. bidders only, please!
In order to protect the seller and buyer under the PayPal protection plan, I will ONLY ship the Betamax to the "Confirmed" address on your PayPal account. Please take this into consideration before placing a bid.
IMPORTANT NOTE: Unlike your other possibly frustrating buying experiences ....when your payment is received you will be notified immediately and your Betamax will be shipped either on the day of purchase or the next business day
. That very evening you will know your tracking number and all the shipping details. I will not keep you in the dark or wondering about any aspect of the transaction. My wife and I have gone through this ourselves with purchases on eBay and we can understand the agony and then, eventually, the sheer anger of a buyer who wonders when and how the item will be sent.
It's a shame these sellers are unwilling or unable to state in the auction description exactly when, after payment is received, they will be able to package and ship your purchase.
Be very wary of the terms "fast shipping" "quick shipping" "prompt shipping" & etc. These are open ended phrases and could cause long delays....I know this from personal experience.
Sorry for the long and possibly tedious narrative...but I feel, considering what I see and read on eBay, that this is all very important information for the prospective Betamax purchaser. Thank you very much for looking.
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