The "Picture of your Reel-To-Reel(s)" thread

Sam is a good guy. But he's a bit cranky and he dislikes anything other than Teac/Tascam from what I can tell.

The main issue with the Technics 1500 series is how their capacitors oxidize. And this forces techs to do full-scale recaps, which again, he does not approve of.

 

He's a great guy.......he also disliked a GX747 he once had. Another supposed best of the best deck........

 

Here is a pic of my Teac reel to reel (also my Panasonic 8-Track). I bought it from a friend about 25 years ago for $30. All I had to do since then is replace the belts and clean and lube the transport. It plays pre-recorded tapes fine (depending on how well they were duped). I like collecting the reels when I can find them.

 

Here is a picture of my other reel to reel, a Tascam 22-2. This deck features half-track recording and playback at 7.5 and 15 ips. The only downside is it only accepts 7 inch reels (no 10 inch).

 

Sam is an excellent tech. But he seems to hate everything which isn't either Teac or Tascam...

 

But what is wrong with a Revox or a Tandberg?

I have one of each ...

 

So do I! And I love them. But Sam doesn't. Go over to tapeheads.net if you want to engage his unhappiness regarding all thing non-Teac.

 

The problem I have is, I have been on the hunt for a current production preamp that has two tape loops ... No luck so far.

 

I hear ya. I recommend just getting a mutiple tape switch-boxes if you want to use multiple machines with a preamp which only has a single tape loop. Either that, or get a vintage preamp with two loops, and recap it.

 

ReVox B77.

 

Maybe Tascam and most early Teac, but he is not a fan of my X2000R. But that comes from a bench repair perspective, he claims they can be difficult to work on and some of the design aspects are suspect.........IIRC he has mentioned the sound quality and performance is very good, he just does not like the design/engineering of some of it.....which is fine.

I am sure there are tons of car mechanics who hate working on BMW, Mercedes or Fords because of some engineering/design issues, but they are still pretty good cars.

 

I have worked on Revox, Pioneer and Sony, and do not consider them difficult to service. Service involves both electronic and mechanical expertise. This includes the lower end, the Sony TC 255, TC-355, TC-366, TC-377 and others which are single motor idler wheel drive... not difficult at all. I consider myself a good tech, although not in the repair business. (have considered it) My experience includes bench tech troubleshoot of test equip circuits for IBM, HiFi stereo service at Dutchess Audio, manufacturing Q/A at Cyberchron, not to mention world class solderer, which counts! Techs with head knowledge without the hands isn't worth much, who can do permanent damage along the way which OTHER techs see and rant against. I do not know Sam, but I am suspicious. Just because a reel to reel works at the hands of a technician (who fails to credit engineering excellence of other brands like Revox) does not mean this tech is good... just good enough to get your business, but not necessarily kind to your machine.,, perhaps a "glorified" back yard hack!

I could be wrong. Maybe everyone is completely satisfied, and their decks are working properly (as new) for many, many, years after service... as they should.

 

Sam is not some backyard hack. He used to be one of the lead techs for Teac's USA service center. And I strongly suspect that this is where his pro-Teac/Tascam biases stems from (although he denies this).

Like you, I have worked on quite a few of these machines, and I don't consider most to be overly difficult to service either. The biggest issue tends to be getting spare parts, since about the only source for spares parts today is donor machines.

 

Better than a picture, here is a video of a friends Akai GX-400D-ss Quad deck I cleaned, and another of the RC-17 remote.

Akai GX-400D-SS Quadraphonic Tape Deck | https://youtu.be/niF6vHog6Pc
Akai RC-17 Tape Deck Remote Control | https://youtu.be/VzBlVVCELSU

 

I need a record mode toggle switch for my A-4300SX and A-6300 which is virtually the same. 3PDT toggle switch type. I don't know where to get the parts for it. Other than that it works and sounds fantastic!