R2R typical repair costs?

[WhinyLittleRunt]

I still have a Tascam 38 that's been sitting for a while in need of repair for an erase issue plus a good calibration... I know it's impossible to know how much that's going to cost me as all service centers will differ but can anyone ballpark a repair estimate if I was to, say, need the entire unit overhauled, calibrated etc?

Anyone know of any good techs in the Connecticut area? I did call one a while back who told me it wouldn't be worth the cost of the repair to have him work on it... Don't really want to dump this unit if I can help it but if it is significantly costly, it may have to happen.

 

[miroslav]

Man....it's been like over 20 years since I paid someone to calibrate my Fostex G-16...and I only did that 'cuz I didn't have the calibration tape or the necessary tools, plus, it was getting a new upgraded system board, which I think was a freebie from Fostex, but the new board forced the re-cal.
Anyway....I think back then I might have spent around $200 for all that.

Basic calibration for a tech that has the gear and experience on an 8 track....shouldn't be anything crazy.
That said, if a bunch of things first need to be fixed before the calibration can be done.....then it's anyone's guess.
Can you not take it in for an estimate, or just call ask the repair center what their ballpark fees are?
Usually, if they charge for an estimate, if you go ahead with the repair, the estimate fee goes toward that.

What do you mean by "erase issue"...?

 

[radardoug]

As a serviceman who works on old gear a lot, I do not give estimates. The problem is that you often cannot tell how much a repair will cost until you have done the repair. Sometimes the smallest things can take a long time. Often gear is built in such a way that the mechanical problems of dismantling the gear can greatly increase the time needed to work on it. I was working on a Philips amp recently where I could not just pull it apart and work on it, and the mechanical design was appalling. It took me four hours to basically change the power i.c. and test it. So please, think about this. If its an old tape recorder, parts may be unobtainable or very expensive. I am currently restoring a 3M 79 8 track, so far I've spent $2000 on it for bearings, guides, and connectors. If you don't want to repair it, give it to someone that does.

 

[witzendoz]

One of the problems that we now get is that the original calibration tapes have become old and no longer play.

Alan.

 

[LToro]

I payed $200 for my Teac 80-8 and spend about 650$ getting my Teac 80-8 back to factory specs (somewhat) that included: Calibration, new pinch roller, counter belt, break, calibration and new record head by JFR. Done at New Jersey Teac/Tascam.

On the flip side, I payed $600 for my Scully 280 and so far I've spend about $1000 getting it running good.No head replacement.
You can expect to pay about $250-350 for a good calibration.

 

[WhinyLittleRunt]

What do you mean by "erase issue"...?

Well, it's somewhat complicated, and honestly I haven't re-tested it since last time I just packed it up and said I'll deal with it later... but - I had done a reflow of the solder joints across the entire mainboard a few years back, and it seemed to help with getting a card or two working again or working at a normal signal, but around the same time the machine developed a problem erasing any of the tracks. you would go back to erase a section and when you played it back it was still there but a little softer, so my first assumption was that I did something to the board. I took it all apart and re-checked my work meticulously, and found nothing bridged or burnt out... I tried the trick where you lift the tape against the head, none of that made a difference. So I was reading the manual and came across something about how the master oscillator controls the erase function, so me being impatient, went and screwed around with the trimpot on it and it made no difference, but now I have a master oscillator that is out of spec and if it were just a matter of putting it back to the spot I marked, it would be one thing, but even though I marked it the trim made several revolutions and I didn't even realize it until I'd gone too far. So, I probably caused more grief and ended up just putting it aside and when a minty-388 came along I got that and pushed the 38 under the rug for the time being.

So now I just have an overabundance of gear that I wanted at one time and it all broke or little mundane things went wrong with it all and so I want to start looking into getting this stuff fixed, either so I can sell, or enjoy for myself for once. The problem with the 38 is from the start, it needed work, and it did work after I got some things fixed on it, but I never bought a test tape for it to actually do any kind of bias or calibration (I equate what I did to buying a BMW and even though I might afford it at the moment, didn't factor in the costly service). But then there's the part of me that figures a deck like the 38 is kind of a lower-end consumer 8-track and even though they're still cool, they're probably not worth dumping a real lot of money into, because at the end of the day, it's still a 1/2" deck and not quite the mojo machine an 80-8 might be in comparison or whatever...

LToro
I payed $200 for my Teac 80-8 and spend about 650$ getting my Teac 80-8 back to factory specs (somewhat) that included: Calibration, new pinch roller, counter belt, break, calibration and new record head by JFR. Done at New Jersey Teac/Tascam.

Yeah, I emailed him and he got back to me with a ballpark of $175 to $225 plus the cost of parts. Which I think is probably worth it in the long run, even if it's redundant to the 388 in a lot of ways... If I ever did decide to sell it I would feel better knowing it's working anyway. So there we go.

 

[miroslav]

....I have a master oscillator that is out of spec and if it were just a matter of putting it back to the spot I marked, it would be one thing, but even though I marked it the trim made several revolutions and I didn't even realize it until I'd gone too far.

I know it's too late now....but you mark the spot, and then you count the revolutions!

I always try to leave myself an "out"...of being able to put things back the way I found them so at least that way I'm not adding to any of the issues that I'm trying to troubleshoot.
Also, I try to make one change at a time, test....then move on to the next. It's tedious shit, but it saves your ass, otherwise you end up in a maze of "unknowns"...and then you're..........

 

[WhinyLittleRunt]

I know it's too late now....but you mark the spot, and then you count the revolutions!

I always try to leave myself an "out"...of being able to put things back the way I found them so at least that way I'm not adding to any of the issues that I'm trying to troubleshoot.
Also, I try to make one change at a time, test....then move on to the next. It's tedious shit, but it saves your ass, otherwise you end up in a maze of "unknowns"...and then you're..........

No I know.. trust me, I usually know better than to just haphazardly start turning things not knowing what they do. But I'm also easily stressed out and short on time for myself, so I end up in a panic when I want to just get something done that moment and end up making it worse. It's the reason I could never own and restore a classic car, because my OCD wouldn't allow me to work on it a year!

I successfully repaired a synthesizer of mine recently, something that I never thought I'd be able to trace out and find, but I just persevered and kept trying to make logical sense of things and eventually found the problem. After replacing a $0.50 op-amp chip, I thought about how I may have just saved myself a few hundred bucks... but then again, I'm totally cool paying someone a few hundred bucks who has the skill to know where to replace that $0.50 op amp and then calibrate everything or whatever else is part of the service which I consider to be added value.

 

[skywaveTDR]

I work on these all the time and the repair cost at my shop is not usually as much as people guess it is. I think they have been exposed to the crooks for too long. The true cost like other have said can not really be determined by a single symptom. There an be all kinds of hidden stuff in there but the decks are repairable and I get a lot of request for that model from people wanting a good one. You need to take it or ship it to a good Technician. I can suggest a Tech in you area but there are not that many of them.
Most of the Teac work goes to Russ in New Jersey (New Jersey Factory Service) or me in Chicago- we were both factory Service employees and at the top levels.