Almost from the beginning of home video, we have been able to view the picture while the tape was in pause (called freeze frame). At first the still picture had lots of white lines in it (picture noise), but it steadily improved over the life of Beta. Adding a third video head or using a special DA (dual azimuth) video head produced an almost clear picture. Having multiple heads does require some special control by the VCR. Some models searched for the control track pulse and lined up a single frame to scan. This worked well, but better yet was having four heads working the tape, or two DA heads (a system called DA4). This four head design showed up in only the highest end Betas. In many models, the clear picture can be stepped forward or backward. This was commonly called Step-motion. It can be pulsed by, at x1/5, x1/10, and even x1/20 frames per second (see list of features list of this VCR for the exact details). Beta VCRs that have digital special effects have their freeze-frame video recalled from a special processor that keeps it memory. This method produces pictures that are rock steady and crystal clear. The ability to produce a clear picture in pause and step varies depending on the model and the speed of the tape when recorded. For example, it might not be able to produce as good a picture with a tape recorded in as it does for one in . Some models do not offer both. ©Misterßetamax go to homepage