Can anybody tell me if the DVR-230-S has RGB in?
I'm looking at getting one for archiving my Sky+ films onto DVD.
PRC Direct have it for £99

I've found the answer by downloading the manual.
It doesn't have RGB in. Vid & SVid only.
Shame!

Incorrect.
All Pioneer recorders have RGB in aswell as s-video and composite.
Only the first range of Pioneer recorder that included the 5100 did not have RGB in.
The *20 and *30 range all have RGB.
I know as I have one of each

But the manual that I downloaded from the Panasonic UK website disputes this. It clearly states CVBS & Svideo.
Do you own this exact model player?
If it does have RGB in then £99 is a bargain!

Are we talking about Pioneer(this forum) or Panasonic(your above quote).
Either way,Pioneer have RGB as described above,and Panasonic recorders have had RGB in since their first recorder about 5 years ago.
Having looked at the manual myself I see what you mean.
However,it looks like the manual has been prepared incorrectly maybe using parts of the manual from the US version.
It is highly unlikely that a recorder with component outputs will have an RGB inout missing,especially as the rest of the range have them and Pioneer made a big thing about adding them a couple of years ago.
But your findings give me enough concern to say it may be worth asking the retailer you buy from to confirm RGB input.
If it IS missing,then its very strange.
£99 seems also very cheap for a Pioneer recorder.
I know that a discontinued model would be offered at a similar price,but the *30 range ,that included the 630 that I have all have RGB so it seems to be a current model,yet unusually cheap.
If Pioneer are offering a budget recorder and price cuts have meant removing RGB then its a bad move.
The only other possibility is that its a cheap far Eastern sourced machine that Pioneer have lent their name too,which also seems unlikely.
Best bet is to up your spend and buy one further up the range to guarantee RGB.
Keep us up to date on what you find
Last edited by mongosito : 02-03-2006 at 22:38

Sorry I did mean "Pioneer website". I've also been looking at the Panasonic range (and these definetly have RGB in), hence the typo.
I emailed Pioneer yesterday and had a reply confirming that the unit does not have RGB input. So that means Pioneer do not currently make a DVD recorder (without hard drive) that has RGB in? Such a shame.
I might wait for the new Panasonic range being launched in the next couple of weeks.
I don't need a hard drive in the machine and don't want the extra expense, but I do need a recorder with RGB in as I intend to use it for archiving from Sky+.
Oh and by the way, here's the link to the DVR-230-S at £99

If you are archiving then you most certainly need a HDD.
This allows you to copy over lots of shows overnight or while out to edit at your leisure to perfection before burning to dvd.
Direct dvd recording is messy and generally does not give a good result,and if you intend to edit on the PC you will be limited by dvd capacity.
I can understand the reasons for not splashing out,but you will regret it