Lubricated tape anyone??

gentlejohn

gentlejohn

New member
Tapes are dead in both Space Echos I'm trying out (crinkled, worn, ... just completely shot basically!) As a result (at least, I hope it's just the tape!) the echos emitting from both units are weak & neither machine self oscillates - the motor speeds up and slows down but no audible oscillation when manipultating the rpeat & intensity dials.

I think the first place to start would be to replace the tapes in the hope that this will cure the problems. I've read that lubricated 1/4" tape is the best stuff to use were I to 'roll my own' as it were. Apparently lubricated tape was used for 8 track cartridges and Ampex 457 is supposed to be lubricated too. Having never even heard of 'lubricated tape' until today I was just wondering if anybody may care to chip in with any thoughts/insights?
 
KY jelly......or some of that Nu Finish. :) ;)


First off....remove the old tape. Clean all the guides, pinch roller(s), capstan, and if there are any self-cleaning pads that "pinch" the tape as it travels, (my Multivox tape echo has it) clean off the oxide that is built up on those pads.

On my Multivox...the two little pads look like the green dish scrub pads....but they are much softer, and have never worn out over the years. There's a very light spring that keeps them pinched around the tape as it travels so that it's always being cleaned of any dust and loose oxide. I found that when the crud builds up too much on those pads, they tend to tug at the tape a bit...though it takes awhile for them to get that bad, and it depends on the tape quality that is used for the loop.

Once you have it all clean....load some new tape. I make my own endless loops, and I use NOS EMTEC 468 or 911 as the back-coating on them is very good, and makes for very smooth tape travel. I've not seen any issues with these tapes....but I'm sure you can use other types. I would opt for back-coated tape.

Once all that is done....then try them. You may also need to clean switches/connections.
 
As far as I know 8-track cartridge tape is lubricated and works in tape echo machines. It's lubricated because of the insane way it is pulled from the inside of the spool and is constantly slipping to compensate. Find a cartridge with music so bad it was never played.
 
He! He! That made me chuckle. Thanks guys, that's exactly the type of info I was needing. PS: Props to Miroslav for the detailed cleaning advice - I'll get on it! :guitar:
 
I used to go to garage sales and buy 8-tracks for that exact purpose. It works well.
 
Not sure why a piece off a 1/4" reel of tape isn't your first choice....?

Even if you use 8-track tape....you have to first remove it from the cartrige, and then still cut/splice it for the correct length loop.

There's really no need for any kind of "lubricated tape", which may screw up the pinch roller capstan operation. The Space Echo units don't call for "lubricated tape" AFAIK.

Here you go, if you don't want to make your own.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/2-TAPE-LOOP...?pt=Guitar&hash=item58b20adccf#ht_3576wt_1366
 
I'd never even heard of it until today to be honest (lubricated tape that is). I'm really just going off info in a few threads over at GearSlutz where there appears to be a school of thought that one should use lubricated tape for Space Echos but hey, what do I know?
 
Unlike some tape echo units (Univox made some) that used an actual tape cartridge similar (maybe identical in some cases) to old 8-track tape cartriges.....the Space Echo units, like my Multivox (which was a Space Echo knock-off) use an endless tape loop in a tray (as you know already)....and for that, IMO, your best bet is a nice back-coated tape off a 1/4" reel.

Not sure the exact OEM length of the Space Echo tapes, but I use 16' loops in my Multivox, and the tray size is the same as in the Space Echo units....so that should work. If you can pull the old OEM loop out of them in on piece...then measure it.
Length is not critical....but you can't go too much longer, as the tray will get too full of tape and could cause some packing issues. Shorter is OK, but much shorter only means that the loop cycles around that much faster, and wears quicker and the splice points hits the heads sooner, which could have a slight audible effect on your audio.
The longer loop minimizes those things...of course, you still have to be neat when you splice any length loop.

Feeding the new loop is pretty easy, and you probably have directions on the units...though they assume that the new loop is in some kind of box.
With a homemade loop...you just want to have to loose and untangled on the table, and then once you thread it around the heads/guides and out the small gap in the tray meant for loading....close the tray cover, and start the machine with its speed on the slowest setting, and one finger on the power button and the other hand free to guide/untangle the tape as it gets fed. If you see a tangle forming...power it off, untangle, and then power up again until all the tape is sucked into the tray.
It's actually pretty easy....and I just opened mine up and let the tape fall out so I could check the lenght, and then I powered it up and the tape loaded itself right back in without a hitch. The loop in mine right now is EMTEC 468....smooth as silk.

Here's the thing....if those units are having transport issues (unrelated to the old tape that in there)....going with some "lubricated tape" isn't going to fix those problems.
I don't know what the guys on Gearslutz are taking about....but I've owned my Multivox for 35 years now, and still works fine....and I always used regular 1/4" R-to-R tape. I think the only OEM loop was the one that came with the unit....everything after that, I rolled my own. :)
 
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