3-867-577-13 (1)
SONY
VIDEO CASSETTE PLAYER
Step 3
Video Cassette Player
Operating Instructions
SLV-GA35ME/PS/SG/TH
SLV-GA55ME/MES/PS/SG/TH
SLV-GA65MJ
©1999 by Sony Corporation
Getting Started
Step 1
Unpacking
Check that you have received the following
items with the unit:
• Remote commander
PAL NTSC
PAL NTSC 4.43
PAL NTSC
• Plug adaptor (SLV-GA35ME, GA55ME,
GA55MES and GA65MJ)
Connecting the unit
Connect the aerial to your unit and TV as
shown below to watch TV programmes and
video pictures on your TV. In addition, if
your TV has audio/video (A/V) input
jacks, we recommend you connect the unit
to your TV using an audio/video cable to
get a better picture and sound.
Connecting the aerial
Aerial cable (supplied)
AERIAL OUT
AERIAL IN
AERIAL IN
to mains
2 Connect AERIAL OUT of the unit and
the aerial input of your TV using the
supplied aerial cable.
AERIAL
OUT
IN
3 Connect the mains lead to the mains.
Use the supplied plug adaptor, if
necessary, depending on the design of
the mains (SLV-GA35ME, GA55ME,
GA55MES and GA65MJ).
Additional connections
To a TV that has audio/video input jacks
This additional connection improves picture
and sound quality. Connect the TV as
shown below.
If you want to use the Trinitron TV Synchro
Play function, this connection is necessary.
(If your TV has two or more inputs, connect
the audio/video cable to the VIDEO IN 1
jacks.)
• R6 (Size AA) batteries
• Aerial cable
Step 2
Setting up the
remote commander
Checking your model
name
The instructions in this manual are for
the 10 models: SLV-GA35ME, GA35PS,
GA35SG, GA35TH, GA55ME,
GA55MES, GA55PS, GA55SG,
GA55TH and GA65MJ. Check your
model number by looking at the rear
panel of your unit. The SLV-GA65MJ is
the model used for illustration
purposes. Any difference in operation
is clearly indicated in the text, for
example, “SLV-GA35ME only.”
Remote sensor
: Signal flow
1 Disconnect the aerial cable from your
TV and connect it to AERIAL IN on the
rear panel of the unit.
AERIAL
OUT
IN
Step 4
Tuning your TV to
the unit
If you have connected your unit to the TV
using the audio/video cable, skip this step.
?/1 ON/STANDBY
H PLAY
This unit
AUDIO VIDEO
LINE IN
LINE OUT
TV
IN
VIDEO
AUDIO
Audio/video cable (not supplied)
3 Tune the TV until the video picture
below is clearly displayed on the TV
screen.
Inserting the batteries
Insert two R6 (size AA) batteries by
matching the + and – on the batteries to the
diagram inside the battery compartment.
Insert the negative (–) end first, then push
in and down until the positive (+) end
clicks into position.
Using the remote commander
You can use this remote commander to
operate the unit and a Sony TV. To operate
this unit, point at the remote sensor on the
unit. To operate the TV, point at the remote
sensor on the TV. Buttons in the shaded
area of the remote commander can be used
to operate your Sony TV. If the TV does not
have the g symbol near the remote sensor,
this remote commander will not operate the
TV.
TV/VIDEO
a (TV power)
?/1
(on/standby)
PROG (CH) +/–
VOL +/–
To
Turn the TV to standby
or active mode
Turn on the TV power
Increase (+) or decrease (–)
the TV volume
Change the TV
programme position
Select an input source
of the TV either from aerial
in or from line in
Notes
• With normal use, the batteries should last
about three to six months.
• If you do not use the remote commander for an
extended period of time, remove the batteries
to avoid possible damage from battery leakage.
• Do not use a new battery with an old one.
• Do not use different types of batteries.
Press
?/1 (on/standby)
a (TV power)
VOL +/–
PROG (CH) +/–
TV/VIDEO
1 Press ?/1 ON/STANDBY to turn on
the unit.
2 Turn on your TV and select a
programme position for the video
picture.
This channel will now be referred to as
the video channel.
Some TV has the programme position,
such as 0, that is reserved for a VCR. In
this case, select that programme
position for the video picture. Refer to
the instruction manual of your TV for
details.
Refer to your TV manual for tuning
instructions.
You have now tuned your TV to the
unit. From now on, whenever you want
to play a tape, set the TV to the video
channel.
To obtain a clear playback picture
If the video picture does not appear clearly
in step 3 above, turn the RF CHANNEL
screw on the rear panel of the unit with a
screwdriver to a position where the TV
clearly displays the playback picture.
To select the TV system
For your TV to receive the correct signal
from your unit, you must set the TV
SYSTEM switch on the rear panel of the
unit to either G (for system B/G) or K (for
system D/K). If this switch is set to the
wrong position, the sound will be distorted.
RF CHANNEL
TV SYSTEM
G
K
Operations
Playing/searching
at various speeds
H PLAY
m 3 REW
x STOP
A EJECT
M # FF
X PAUSE
NTSC PB
COLOR
SYSTEM
Z EJECT
DISPLAY
3/# SEARCH
y SLOW
X PAUSE
M FF
H PLAY
x STOP
m REW
1 Turn on your TV and set it to the video
channel.
2 Insert a tape.
(SLV-GA35ME/PS/SG/TH)
The unit turns on, and starts playing
automatically.
(SLV-GA55ME/MES/PS/SG/TH and
GA65MJ)
The unit turns on, and starts playing
automatically if you insert a tape with
its safety tab removed.
3 Press H PLAY (if playback did not
start in step 2).
PLAY
When the tape reaches the end, it will
rewind automatically.
Additional tasks
Playback options
Stop play
Pause play
Resume play after
pause
Fast-forward the tape
Rewind the tape
View the picture
during fast-forward
or rewind
Play at high speed
Play in slow motion
Rewind and start play
Eject the tape
Resume normal
playback
Operation
Press x STOP.
Press X PAUSE.
Press X PAUSE or
H PLAY.
Press M FF (M # FF
on the unit) during stop.
Press m REW
(m 3 REW on the unit)
during stop.
During fast-forward, hold
M FF (M # FF on the
unit) down.
During rewind, hold
m REW (m 3 REW on
the unit) down.
• During playback or
pause, press
# SEARCH or
3 SEARCH.
• During playback or
pause, hold down
M FF (M # FF on
the unit) or m REW
(m 3 REW on the
unit).
When you release the
button, normal
playback resumes.
During playback or
pause, press y SLOW .
During stop, press H
PLAY on the unit while
holding down
m 3 REW on the unit.
Press Z EJECT.
Press H PLAY.
To set the colour system
If streaks appear during playback, set
COLOR SYSTEM on the unit to conform to
the system that the tape was recorded in.
(Normally set the switch to AUTO.)
If your tape was
recorded in
PAL
NTSC
MESECAM
Set COLOR SYSTEM to
PAL/MESECAM
NTSC
PAL/MESECAM
To play an NTSC-recorded tape
Set NTSC PB on the unit according to the
colour system of your TV.
If your TV is
PAL
NTSC 4.43
NTSC 3.58
Set NTSC PB to
ON PAL TV
NTSC 4.43
NTSC 3.58
(SLV-GA55ME/MES/PS/
SG/TH and GA65MJ only)
To view the tape status on the screen
Press DISPLAY.
The following information appears on the
TV screen.
LINE 1
STEREO
Remaining
tape length
–
SE
::
SP
000
Tape speed*
* Appears for a few seconds when the DISPLAY
button is pressed and when the mode is
changed.
Time counter
22
To turn the display off, press DISPLAY
again.
Notes
• The sound is muted during playback at various
speeds and pause.
• You can eject a tape even when the power is
off. When you press Z EJECT, the unit turns on
automatically. After ejecting the tape, the unit
turns off again.
• When the pause mode lasts for more than
approximately five minutes, the unit will
automatically enter the playback mode.
• Tapes recorded in the LP mode of NTSC system
on other VCRs can be played back on this unit,
but the picture quality cannot be guaranteed.
• The counter resets to “0:00:00” whenever a tape
is inserted.
• The counter stops counting when it comes to a
portion with no recording.
• If a tape has portions recorded in both PAL and
NTSC systems, the time counter reading will
not be correct. This is due to the difference
between the counting cycles of the two colour
systems.
• Streaks or snow cannot be eliminated
completely in the various playback operations,
especially in the slow motion mode.
• On screen symbols may shake while playing or
searching at various speeds.
• Depending on your TV, the following may
occur while playing an NTSC-recorded tape:
– the picture is black and white,
– the picture shakes,
– no picture appears on the TV screen,
– black streaks appear horizontally on the TV
screen, and
– the colour density increases or decreases.
Turning on the unit
and TV to start
playback (Trinitron
TV Synchro Play)
You can only use this function if your TV is
made by Sony (Trinitron TV).
How to connect to use this function
Connect the unit and TV with the audio/
video cable. Be sure to connect the audio/
video cable to the VIDEO IN 1 jacks on the
TV if the TV has two inputs or more. The
TV must be placed where it will respond to
the remote commander while you are
pointing it at the unit.
Operation
Make sure that the TV’s power is in standby
mode.
Adjusting the
picture
Although the unit automatically adjusts the
picture when playing a tape, distortions or
noise may occur if the tape was recorded in
poor condition. If so, manually adjust the
resolution, colour and tracking.
RESOLUTION CONTROL II
buttons
STD PICT
AUTO/MANU
V/v NORMAL/
SLOW/STILL ADJUST
M/m/</,
Resolution
Control II
STANDARD
PICTURE
Adjusting the resolution and
colour
1 While playing a tape, press M/m/</
, RESOLUTION CONTROL II (up/
down/left/right button on the unit) to
display the RESOLUTION CONTROL
II menu.
The RESOLUTION CONTROL II
buttons light up.
RESOLUTION CONTROL II
C
•••••
O
••••
•••
+
L
O
••••••
•••••
RESOLUTION
R
2 Press </, RESOLUTION
CONTROL II (left/right button on the
unit) to get a clearer picture.
3 Press M/m RESOLUTION CONTROL
II (up/down button on the unit) to get
the best picture colour.
Wait for several seconds until the
RESOLUTION CONTROL II menu
disappears.
To resume the automatic adjustment
Press STANDARD PICTURE on the remote
commander (STD PICT on the unit) so that
the RESOLUTION CONTROL II buttons
turn off.
Press TRINITRON TV SYNCHRO PLAY
and hold the remote commander in place
for about two seconds.
The unit and TV turn on, and the TV is set
to the video channel. If there is a tape in the
unit, playback starts automatically.
Notes
• If the Trinitron TV Synchro Play function does
not work properly:
– Wait a few moments, and press the button
again.
– Replace both of the batteries in the remote
commander with new ones, and press the
button again.
Note that this function may not operate some
Sony TVs because of the remote commander’s
signal limitations.
• Do not press TRINITRON TV SYNCHRO
PLAY while playing back a video tape. If you
do so, the TV’s input source will momentarily
switch to the TV’s tuner.
Adjusting the tracking
Press V/v TRACKING NORMAL/SLOW/
STILL ADJUST to obtain the best possible
picture. The distortion should disappear as
you press one of the two buttons. If you
cannot get a clear picture with manual
adjustment, press TRACKING AUTO/
MANU to return to automatic adjustment.
About Optimum Picture
Control (OPC) (SLV-GA35ME/PS/
SG/TH only)
Optimum Picture Control (OPC)
automatically improves playback quality by
adjusting the unit to the condition of the
video heads and tape.
The OPC function automatically works on
all types of tapes, including rental tapes and
the tapes that were not recorded with OPC.
About Adaptive Picture
Control (APC) (SLV-GA55ME/
MES/PS/SG/TH and SLV-GA65MJ
only)
Adaptive Picture Control (APC)
automatically improves recording and
playback quality by adjusting the unit to the
condition of the video heads and tape.
APC playback
The APC function automatically works on
all types of tapes, including rental tapes and
tapes that were not recorded with APC.
APC recording
Whenever you insert a tape and first start
recording, the unit adjusts to the tape using
the APC function. This adjustment is
retained until the tape is ejected.
Tip
• Adjust the picture using V/v NORMAL/
SLOW/STILL ADJUST if:
– streaks appear while playing in slow motion
– the picture shakes while pausing
Notes
• The auto tracking function works
automatically when you play back a tape just
after inserting it.
• There is a delay of a few seconds before the
unit actually starts recording while the unit
analyses the tape. To avoid the delay, first set
the unit to recording pause and press z REC to
have the unit analyse the tape. After ten
seconds, press X PAUSE to start recording
immediately. If you press X PAUSE before ten
seconds, the APC function is cancelled.
• While playing a MESECAM recorded tape,
you cannot adjust the colour using the
RESOLUTION CONTROL II function.
• Sufficient picture quality may not be obtained
when playing back tapes recorded on another
VCR or tapes in poor condition.
• When a tape recorded with the copyguard
system is played back, intermittent distortion
may appear in the upper portion of the picture.
However, this is not a malfunction of the unit.