hi, new here - been a r2r fan for decades. currently i have a Teac 2200 series, Pioneer 707, reVox B77, Akai GX400D (in need of a belt job and general tuneup), Akai GX270D, Tascam 32 and a grundig portareel that needs unobtanium batteries.
I have outboard dbxI for the revox and Tascam and outboard dolby for the Teac and Pioneer. That's a lot of decks, and it would be great to turn one into a TP machine instead of getting another.
The first option is to build a NAB to IEC equalization box and use it on the reVox. The revox has two sets of outputs - RCA and DIN. I'd connect both the the preamp and run one through the NAB->IEC equalization box. Then I'd just select inputs based on tape equalization. The down side is that the equalization is not a true IEC curve and there might be some ground issues with both the DIN and RCA output connections to the preamp at the same time, although a switch box, or a switch built into the NAB->IEC equalization box would help that. The up side is one less 10" reel in the rack, but is that really an up side?
The second option is to convert the Tascam to IEC as per the manual and just run that as the TP machine. The down side is that I'm losing my secon 10" NAB machine, although i would still have the 400D if I fixed it up. Te upside would be a better IEC curve for TP tapes and the great look of two 10" machines in the rack.
Are there any other up or downs to the two options that I'm overlooking? Given the choice between the two I suspect that the Tascam solution would get the better sound, but what do you think?
Thanks