3-868-320-11 (1) Video Camera Recorder Operating Instructions Before operating the unit, please read this manual thoroughly, and retain it for future reference. Owner's Record The model and serial numbers are located on the bottom. Record the serial number in the space provided below. Refer to these numbers whenever you call upon your Sony dealer regarding this product. Model No. CCD-TR517 Serial No. Model No. AC-L Serial No. CCD-TR517 ©1999 Sony Corporation Welcome! Congratulations on your purchase of this Sony Handycam® camcorder. With your Handycam, you can capture life's precious moments with superior picture and sound quality. Your Handycam is loaded with advanced features, but at the same time it is very easy to use. You will soon be producing home video that you can enjoy for years to come. WARNING To prevent fire or shock hazard, do not expose the unit to rain or moisture. DISPOSAL OF LITHIUM ION BATTERY. LITHIUM ION BATTERY. DISPOSE OF PROPERLY. You can return your unwanted lithium ion batteries to your nearest Sony Service Center or Factory Service Center. Note: In some areas the disposal of lithium ion batteries in household or business trash may be prohibited. For the Sony Service Center nearest you call 1-800-222-SONY (United States only) For the Sony Factory Service Center nearest you call 416-499-SONY (Canada only) Caution: Do not handle damaged or leaking lithium ion battery. For customers in the U.S.A. CAUTION This symbol is intended to alert the user to the presence of uninsulated "dangerous voltage" within the product's enclosure that may be of sufficient magnitude to constitute a risk of electric shock to persons. This symbol is intended to alert the user to the presence of important operating and maintenance (servicing) instructions in the literature accompanying the appliance. You are cautioned that any changes or modifications not expressly approved in this manual could void your authority to operate this equipment. Note: This equipment has been tested and found to comply with the limits for a Class B digital device, pursuant to Part 15 of the FCC Rules. These limits are designed to provide reasonable protection against harmful interference in a residential installation. This equipment generates, uses, and can radiate radio frequency energy and, if not installed and used in accordance with the instructions, may cause harmful interference to radio communications. However, there is no guarantee that interference will not occur in a particular installation. If this equipment does cause harmful interference to radio or television reception, which can be determined by turning the equipment off and on, the user is encouraged to try to correct the interference by one or more of the following measures: -- Reorient or relocate the receiving antenna. -- Increase the separation between the equipment and receiver. -- Connect the equipment into an outlet on a circuit different from that to which the receiver is connected. -- Consult the dealer or an experienced radio/TV technician for help. Never expose the battery pack to temperatures above 140 °F (60°C), such as in a car parked in the sun or under direct sunlight. For customers in CANADA CAUTION TO PREVENT ELECTRIC SHOCK, MATCH WIDE BLADE OF PLUG TO WIDE SLOT, FULLY INSERT. 2 Table of contents Quick Start Guide ............................. 4 Getting started Using this manual ................................... 6 Checking supplied accessories .............. 7 Step 1 Preparing the power supply ..... 8 Installing the battery pack .............. 8 Charging the battery pack ............... 9 Connecting to a wall outlet ........... 13 Step 2 Inserting a cassette ................... 14 Editing Dubbing a tape ...................................... 38 Getting started Customizing Your Camcorder Changing the menu settings ................ 39 Resetting the date and time ................. 43 Additional Information Playback modes ..................................... 45 Changing the lithium battery in your camcorder ........................................ 46 Troubleshooting .................................... 48 Self-diagnosis display ........................... 51 Warning indicators and messages ...... 52 Using your camcorder abroad ............ 53 Maintenance information and precautions ...................................... 54 Specifications ......................................... 58 Recording ­ Basics Recording a picture ............................... 15 Shooting backlit subjects (BACK LIGHT) ........................ 18 Shooting in the dark (NightShot) ............................... 19 Superimposing the date and time on pictures ................................ 20 Checking the recording ­ EDITSEARCH / Rec Review ..... 21 Quick Reference Identifying the parts and controls ...... 59 Quick Function Guide .......................... 65 Index ....................................................... 66 Playback ­ Basics Connections for playback .................... 22 Playing back a tape ............................... 23 Advanced Recording Operations Using the wide mode ........................... 25 Using the fader function ...................... 27 Using special effects ­ Picture effect ................................. 29 Using the PROGRAM AE function .... 30 Adjusting the exposure manually ...... 32 Focusing manually ................................ 33 Superimposing a title ........................... 34 Making your own titles ........................ 36 3 Quick Start Guide This chapter introduces you to the basic features of your camcorder. See the page in parentheses "( )" for more information. Connecting the power cord (p. 13) Use the battery pack when using your camcorder outdoors (p. 8). Open the DC IN jack cover. Quick Start Guide AC power adaptor (supplied) Connect the plug with its v mark facing up. Inserting a cassette (p. 14) 1 Slide EJECT in the direction of the arrow while pressing the small blue button. EJECT 2 Insert a cassette into the cassette compartment with its window facing out. 3 Close the cassette compartment by mark pressing the on the cassette compartment. The cassette compartment automatically goes down. 4 Recording a picture 1 Set the POWER switch to CAMERA POWER CAMERA OFF (CHARGE) PLAYER (p. 15) 2 Turn STANDBY to STANDBY. The picture appears in the viewfinder. CK LO while pressing the small green button. START/STOP 3 Press the red button. Your camcorder starts recording. To stop recording, press the red button again. CK LO START/STOP Viewfinder Use the viewfinder placing your eye against its eyecup. Monitoring the playback picture in the viewfinder (p. 23) 1 Set the POWER switch to PLAYER POWER CAMERA OFF (CHARGE) PLAYER 2 Press m to rewind the tape. REW STA ND BY STA ND BY Quick Start Guide while pressing the small green button. 3 Press N to start playback. PLAY NOTE Do not pick up your camcorder by holding the viewfinder or the battery pack. 5 -- Getting started -- Using this manual As you read through this manual, buttons and settings on your camcorder are shown in capital letters. e.g. Set the POWER switch to CAMERA. When you carry out an operation, you can hear a beep sound to indicate that the operation is being carried out. Note on TV color systems TV color systems differ from country to country. To view your recordings on a TV, you need an NTSC system-based TV. Copyright precautions Television programs, films, video tapes, and other materials may be copyrighted. Unauthorized recording of such materials may be contrary to the provision of the copyright laws. Precautions on camcorder care ·The viewfinder is manufactured using high-precision technology. However, there may be some tiny black points and/or bright points (red, blue, green or white) that constantly appear in the viewfinder. These points occur normally in the manufacturing process and do not affect the recorded picture in any way. Effective ratio of pixels and/or screen are 99.99% or more. ·Do not let your camcorder get wet. Keep your camcorder away from rain and sea water. Letting your camcorder get wet may cause your camcorder to malfunction. Sometimes this malfunction cannot be repaired [a]. ·Never leave your camcorder exposed to temperatures above 140°F (60°C ), such as in a car parked in the sun or under direct sunlight [b]. ·Do not place your camcorder so as to point the viewfinder toward the sun. The inside of the viewfinder may be damaged [c]. [a] [b] [c] 6 Checking supplied accessories Make sure that the following accessories are supplied with your camcorder. 1 2 3 Getting started 4 5 1 AC-L10A/L10B/L10C AC power adaptor (1), Power cord (1) (p. 9) 2 NP-F330 battery pack (1) (p. 8, 9) 3 CR2025 lithium battery (1) (p. 46) The lithium battery is already installed in your camcorder. 4 A/V connecting cable (1) (p. 22) 5 Shoulder strap (1) (p. 61) Contents of the recording cannot be compensated if recording or playback is not made due to a malfunction of the camcorder, video tape, etc. 7 Step 1 Preparing the power supply Installing the battery pack Install the battery pack to use your camcorder outdoors. Slide the battery pack down until it clicks. To remove the battery pack Slide the battery pack out in the direction of the arrow while pressing RELEASE down. BATT BATT RELEASE After installing the battery pack Do not carry your camcorder by holding the battery pack. If you do so, the battery pack may slide off your camcorder unintentionally, damaging your camcorder. 8 Step 1 Preparing the power supply Charging the battery pack Use the battery pack after charging it for your camcorder. Your camcorder operates only with the "InfoLITHIUM" battery pack (L series). Getting started (1) Open the DC IN jack cover and connect the AC power adaptor supplied with your camcorder to the DC IN jack with the plug's v mark facing up. (2) Connect the power cord to the AC power adaptor. (3) Connect the power cord to a wall outlet. (4) Set the POWER switch to OFF (CHARGE). Charging begins. The remaining battery time is indicated in minutes on the display window. When the remaining battery indicator changes to u, normal chargeis completed. To fully charge the battery (full charge) leave the battery pack attached for about 1 hour , after normal charge is completed until FULL appears in the display window. Fully charging the battery allows you to use the battery longer than usual. POWER CAMERA OFF (CHARGE) PLAYER 4 1 2 9 Step 1 Preparing the power supply Notes ·Prevent metallic objects from coming into contact with the metal parts of the DC plug of the AC power adaptor. This may cause a short-circuit, damaging the AC power adaptor. ·Keep the battery pack dry. ·When the battery pack is not to be used for a long time, charge the battery pack once fully and then use it until it fully discharges again. Keep the battery pack in a cool place. Remaining battery time indicator The remaining battery time indicator in the display window roughly indicates the recording time. Battery pack The battery pack is charged a little before it leaves the factory. Until your camcorder calculates the actual remaining battery time "­ ­ ­ ­ min" appears in the display window. 10 Step 1 Preparing the power supply Charging time Battery pack NP-F330 (supplied) NP-F530/F550 NP-F730/F730H/F750 NP-F930/F950 NP-F960 Full charge (Normal charge) 150 (90) 210 (150) 300 (240) 390 (330) 420 (360) Getting started Approximate number of minutes to charge an empty battery pack Recording time Battery pack NP-F330 (supplied) NP-F530 NP-F550 NP-F730 NP-F730H/F750 NP-F930 NP-F950 NP-F960 Continuous* 170 (160) 305 (275) 340 (305) 625 (560) 710 (640) 975 (875) 1080 (970) 1260 (1135) Typical** 95 (90) 165 (150) 185 (165) 345 (310) 390 (350) 535 (480) 595 (535) 695 (625) Approximate number of minutes when you use a fully charged battery Numbers in parentheses "( )" indicate the time using a normally charged battery. * Approximate continuous recording time at 77°F (25°C). The battery life will be shorter if you use your camcorder in a cold environment. * *Approximate number of minutes when recording while you repeat recording start/ stop, zooming and turning the power on/off. The actual battery life may be shorter. Playing time Battery pack NP-F330 (supplied) NP-F530 NP-F550 NP-F730 NP-F730H/F750 NP-F930 NP-F950 NP-F960 180 (160) 325 (295) 360 (325) 665 (600) 750 (680) 1035 (930) 1140 (1030) 1330 (1195) Approximate number of minutes when you use a fully charged battery Numbers in parentheses "( )" indicate the time using a normally charged battery. The battery life will be shorter if you use your camcorder in a cold environment. After charging the battery pack Disconnect the AC power adaptor from the DC IN jack on your camcorder. 11 Step 1 Preparing the power supply Note on the remaining battery time indicator during recording The indicator may not be corr ...