Topics

16

Tape Tech / Opinions on windage holes?

« on: February 18, 2009, 11:59:21 AM »

  I recently picked up a small lot of 10" metals containing pre-recorded music. The tapes are suprisingly good; properly stored and marked, and the playback quality of the music is excellent. Oddly enough, whomever assembled the reels, put them together with the windage holes "out of phase"....normally you can look right through an empty reel but these have the holes offset.

  Is this even a concern? I've heard several opinions on the holes; one is that they are there to help keep the tape pack even at high speeds, but someone else mentioned that they have little/no real function. Any opinions?

Regards,
Tj

17

Tape Tech / Rewind, or not??

« on: February 01, 2009, 10:18:07 AM »

  Some tape users say they never rewind/FF their tapes, instead they always play them through to avoid the possibility of stretch/breakage. Others say fast winding tape is not an issue if the machine is in well form. My usually gentle 1506 broke a favorite tape while stopping from FF a while back, only time this has happened but it leaves me hesitant to fast spool anymore.

  My 440 (B version) can be rough on tapes unless 'shuttle' the controls, a practice that seems easy on paper but not so much so in practice. Spool speed on this deck is so fast that I've thought about modifying the motor circuits to cut the speed way down...just enough to move between songs at a rate maybe just a bit faster than play speed.

 Is there a general consensus among forum members on fast-winding....is it generally a non-issue, or to be avoided only with certain tapes? Is there a way to do it/not do it?

Should you stop the tape before the end runs off of the spool (insert 'flap flap flap' noise here)...?

 Maybe this can be a topic in the general topic 'beginners guide'.....

 Regards-
Tj

18

Reel to Reel Tape Machines / Adding VU meters to Seduction/modified Technics?

« on: January 26, 2009, 10:46:27 AM »

  I have a Seduction on order and plan on modding my RS1506 for direct-head output to the rear. Not so much a TP playback machine but just trying to better the playback of my pre-recorded collection. Only concern is that with the head mod, I lose the VU meters, which are often helpful when dealing with older or unknown tapes. At least they show whats coming off of each track regardless of what you think should be there.
  Has anyone done the head mod and still kept the meters, or added an outboard set?

Regards,
Tj