Messages

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General Discussion / Re: Where do you go to buy machines?

« on: February 06, 2015, 04:08:44 PM »

Thanks Doc, good advice. I used to unload trucks in college for a certain well-known package delivery service. It was MUCH faster to unload a truck if the "walls" of boxes had fallen down. Sometimes... for some individuals, they just fell... that's all I'm sayin'.

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General Discussion / Re: Where do you go to buy machines?

« on: February 06, 2015, 02:18:21 PM »

Thanks gentlemen! I'm actually selling a machine, but forum rules are specific about not advertising so that's all I'll say. However, your comments are very useful and timely because I've been contemplating how to pack it properly. The best boxes I could find are a heavy-duty 24" square double-walled (which is huge) and a 20x18x12 (a good fit, but just using that box alone would be risky).

So far my plan is to wrap the deck in a layer or two of bubble wrap and pack it snugly into the smaller box. The small box will go in the 24" box. I'm just not sure how to fill the dead spaces. You've talked me out of popcorn (although I think you're talking about the deck just floating in popcorn in one box). Foam sounds like my best bet. Not cheap, but I want it to arrive in perfect condition. Lucky for me there's actually a store called Foam Mart near me!

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General Discussion / Where do you go to buy machines?

« on: January 21, 2015, 03:15:48 PM »

Hi all, searching for this broad subject hasn't been fruitful:

Where do you / would you go to look for a used reel-to-reel machine? Is eBay the favored route?

Thanks!

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Reel to Reel Tape Machines / Re: Teac 2300S / Technics RS-1500US

« on: January 26, 2009, 11:29:52 PM »

Steve K - I removed the heads and cleaned the 2-track/4-track switch w/ DeoxIt... worked great and now the tracks play as they should. Thanks. Now if I could get these tapes to stop shedding...

I used "cotton rounds" -- which are thick cotton pads mainly used for cleaning your face -- to clean the tape while I ran it in FF and REWIND, going directly from reel to reel bypassing the head path. Seems to have worked.

When I used to do mag transfers (35mm "film"), if we had a tape that was shedding, we would spray Silicone onto a cloth and run the tape through it. The Silicone would help bond the emulsion. I haven't read a lot of posts yet on this board, so this may be old news.

P.S. The articles you guys wrote in the Beginners Guide are excellent.

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Reel to Reel Tape Machines / Re: Teac 2300S / Technics RS-1500US

« on: January 23, 2009, 05:49:35 PM »

Thank you both for the excellent replies. Steve K -- I appreciate the cleaning tips, I'll be sure to do that.

And Steve W., appreciate the clarification on all the variations! It kinda throws me off because in my world 4-track, 8-track etc. usually refers to multitrack tape, going in one direction.

I imagine 20 years from now some kid will aquire some "vintage gear", and he'll be scratching his head wondering why they made HDMI, component, DVI. etc. etc. -- all to accomplish the same thing.

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Reel to Reel Tape Machines / Re: Teac 2300S / Technics RS-1500US

« on: January 23, 2009, 01:21:29 PM »

Looking at the tech specs again, the only difference I can see is that the 1500 RECORDS 2-track but not 4-track, and vice-versa for the 1506. They can both PLAY 4-track... if I'm reading this right. When I switched the 1500 to 4-track mode I expected correct playback of my stereo quarter-track tapes, but it wasn't right. The switching was a little funky, so maybe it needs to be cleaned.

I guess the 4-track head would have to be configured as:

Track 1 = Left Side 1
Track 2 = Right Side 2
Track 3 = Right Side 1
Track 4 = Left Side 2

Anyone know if this is the case, or does it expect to play all 4 tracks simultaneously in one direction?

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Reel to Reel Tape Machines / Teac 2300S / Technics RS-1500US

« on: January 23, 2009, 01:45:27 AM »

Hi all, new here and looking for you guidance. I have a Teac 2300S, which is a quarter-track / 2-track machine that I used to record bands, up until about 1995 when I suspect the heads wore out. One channel sounds fine, and the other is muddy (lacks High Frequencies) and has a little lower output level. I guess it could be electronic, but I'm not a tech.

A friend, who knows I want to transfer and archive all these recordings, gave me a beautiful Technics RS-1500US. Of course I quickly discovered that this is a half-track machine... I hear tracks from the other side of the tape playing too -- backwards.

My question is, does anyone know if it's a reasonable option to find a 1506 head for the Technics? From what I've been reading, this is a quater-track head (or at least it has that option) and could play my tapes. If this would be too hard to find or ridiculously expensive, I could try buying a 2300S on eBay just for the head. They can be had for under $150, and much cheaper if everything isn't working right, but this Technics is such a beautiful machine I'd love to be able to use it!

Thanks for any insight!
-Curt

Re-recording Mixer
Warner Bros. Pictures
(forum rules stated I had to include my industry affiliationa)