Synchronizer head wear?

[Victory Pete]

I just got a Tascam MTS-1000. I have a few Tascam machines I might want to synchronize. Here is the question: Are the tape lifters bypassed on both machines while they are locked up? That would mean while the transports are FF and RWing the heads are getting a nice polish. I would be hesitant to do alot of unnecassary synchronizing.
VP

[jpmorris]

If they are, it's gone wrong. The ATS-500 does not need to do this.

[Muckelroy]

Shouldn't most tape sync systems rely on the transport's tape counter for the sync during fast forward and rewind operations?

Then I suppose that once you begin normal playback it will lock up more directly by reading the timecode on the tape itself. Is that correct?

[sweetbeats]

In fast wind the synchronizer should be relying on tach pulses, not sync tone. Obviously while the transport is scrubbing the lifters should be retracted and the synchronizer should be "listening" to the sync code on tape, but once the transport reaches a certain speed in fast wind the lifters should extend and the synchronizer should be relying on tach pulses to get to a general location and then zero in using the sync code on tape once the lifters retract.

[Victory Pete]

Well that is good to know, I thought the machines always needed the sync tone to follow each other. So they read the counter roller to get to a general location and then the sync tone makes the adjustments for lockup?
VP

[jpmorris]

Originally Posted by Victory Pete

Well that is good to know, I thought the machines always needed the sync tone to follow each other. So they read the counter roller to get to a general location and then the sync tone makes the adjustments for lockup?VP

Yes. Having said that, I have heard that some 24-track machines have wide-band amp cards available for the last track so that they can pass the code to the synchroniszer in full wind mode, but I imagine that they probably use the induced audio from the lifted tape rather than actual full-head contact during wind as that would kill the heads pretty quickly.