What's wrong with my reel-to-reel?

October 8, 2007 2:08 PM

I recently acquired an older reel-to-reel tape recorder, and it works fine except for inconsistent tape speed. I recorded a test tone and it plays back at a varying pitch. Can this be fixed, or should I put it out with the trash tomorrow?

The machine came from a university auction and had previously lived in the library. It looks like it's in good shape, and there are no obvious problems under the hood. It came with a box of blank tapes, probably a decade or two old, that I've been using. Could the tape be slipping or stretching? Or is this more likely to be a problem with the drive system, like a bad motor?

posted by waxboy to Technology (13 answers total)

Depends on how valuable this machine is to you. If it's great, and worth up to a few hundred dollars to you, it can be sent out for repair.

I would do this for my kickass 1/2" Tascam recorder, but not for a consumer-grade, garden-variety 1/4" machine. You'd likely come across one just as good on eBay for less than what it would cost to repair.

But it IS possible to fix.
posted by Rykey at 2:18 PM on October 8, 2007

What is the make & model? I agree with Rykey -- something pro may be worth investing in the repair.
posted by omnidrew at 2:29 PM on October 8, 2007

Or just ebay it as-is, and reinvest in a working unit - it all depends on the model.
posted by Chuckles at 2:37 PM on October 8, 2007

Is it belt drive? An old rubber belt could be stiffened and glazed, which would make it slip and cause the speed to vary.
posted by Good Brain at 2:44 PM on October 8, 2007

Response by poster: It's a 1/4" consumer model, sony TC-666D. I thought it would be a step up from my cassette deck since it runs at a faster speed. All I'll use it for is adding tape compression to a couple tracks every now and again. A few hundred bucks just to reduce tape hiss isn't worth it to me.

Good Brain, it is indeed belt driven, although I doubt the belt is slipping because I can stop the wheel opposite the motor with my finger and everything stops. I can get the belt to slip when helping the motor wheel with the other hand but not with the motor's force alone.
posted by waxboy at 3:10 PM on October 8, 2007

How wildly does the speed vary? If it's a slight warble, it may not be running smoothly past the heads. Have a look at the pinch wheel (the wheel that presses the tape against the spinning capstan), is the rubber glazed?
posted by popcassady at 3:44 PM on October 8, 2007

I had a TC-666D in my college "recorder" mania until 2002 when I got a good mic and a copy of Frooty Loops. It's a good unit for introductory projects with tape, but pretty out-of-date. Although you can repair the unit, I don't really recommend putting a lot of money into a consumer model unless you plan to use it a lot. I like Rykey's note about the Tascam. They made some fucking excellent units at the height of their production. I should note there are plenty of software packages that will replicate the sound of various reel-to-reels without the frustration of cutting tape. If you call your local public radio station, they may in fact a working pro reel-to-reel hidden away in storage. That's how I found my Sony APR5003, which I picked up from KQED about four years ago (sold for $3,800 in 2005). You can occasionally find them on Ebay. I picked up mine after a lot of haggling for $1,200. But they tend to be more. My advice is if a reel-to-reel did not cost more than $600, don't invest in fixing it.
posted by parmanparman at 3:48 PM on October 8, 2007

I am a current reel-to-reel owner, and if your machine is like my first one, the pinch wheel (the big one by the head) needs replacing. Maybe some other rubber parts, too, but the main pinch wheel on mine was from the 60s and so the rubber "tire" was hard plastic shiny with tape residue. There are people out on the internet who make refurb'ed wheels for just this purpose, but it'll depend on which model you have.
posted by rhizome at 4:59 PM on October 8, 2007

It is highly unlikely to be the motor. Check the rubber parts, belts, pinch wheels etc. You can probably find replacements. If you are set on throwing this in the trash, please email me, I will pay you shipping and handling.
posted by caddis at 5:03 PM on October 8, 2007

Best answer: if it is dead, you could make it into a coffee table.
posted by jimw at 5:06 PM on October 8, 2007 [1 favorite]

Here are a couple of guys (aren't electronics repairers always guys?) who do repairs or can point you to someone who repairs R2R recorders. The first one (www.angelfire.com/electronic2/vintagetx/) actually does repairs. The second (www.audiovillage.org/repair.html) says: "For World Class vintage equipment repairs or suggestions on how you might repair a pesky problem yourself, e-mail us at: audiovlg@ gte.net. We can fly a tech out for repairs or recommend someone we know in your local area." Good luck. I'm still kicking Mr. Smalltown Girl for selling our R2R at a garage sale 20 years ago! (He doesn't bruise easily, and I kick gently.)
posted by Smalltown Girl at 6:21 PM on October 8, 2007

Are the latches for the wheels firm, or does it have some play when you lock the reel on it? If it is wobbling a small amount on the reel, it might be just enough to pull, then release. causing it to jump just a bit.

As an alternative question, check the reel position when the tone rises and drops. If the wheel is in the same position when there is a lot of tape on the wheel and when there is a little tape on the wheel when the tone rises or drops, that means it is a problem with the wheel, otherwise it would not synch with the spinning.
posted by slavlin at 6:27 PM on October 8, 2007

Another repair service is Analogique in New York City.
posted by JimN2TAW at 9:14 PM on October 8, 2007