gwargantua
New member
I've been working on my Tascam 38 for a while now attempting to get it working. I bought it a couple years ago and had it shipped to me. However it's only been in recent months that I"ve got around to actually testing/working on it. I've been having some problems but I've been able to repair many of them. However the latest one has got me stumped. First, here's what I've done so far:
- I had to reset the height of one of the take-up reel deck as it was hitting the screw heads has the reel turned. Looks like it took a blow or fall during shipping, the back of the case has a crack. The reel now rotates without scraping.
- I had to reseat all the channels cards as some would not pass signal. I also had to resolder the inputs on a couple of the PC boards of the DBX 150 units, as they would not pass signal either. Now I get signal/VU on all 8 channels.
- I've replaced both the drive belt and pinch roller with parts ordered from Tascam.
- I've throughly cleaned the heads, guides and rollers (which were pretty gunky) with S-721h. I checked the heads with a magnifiying glass and can dectect no signs of grooving or excessive wear.
Over all the unit is very clean, except for the small crack in the back of the case incurred in shipping. I also have a copy of the owners manual.
Here's the problem I'm having: I mounted a used reel of Ampex GM and threaded it correctly (according to users manual). I pressed play and it seemed to behave as though it was in fast forward. The heads didn't engage and the tape speed kept increasing. I tried a number of other operations, ff, rew, rec, and I'm not sure what did it, but it started working. The heads engaged and it played, but the speed seemed inconsistant. I then tried to record. Everything seemed to start properly, but after a short time the tape speed decreased and slowed to a dead stop. I noted that the take up reel tensioner arm was near the very top of it's travel. Pulling down on it, caused the tape to begin moving again. Is this tensioner arm supposed to behave like the one on the supply reel side? The tensioner arm on the supply side naturally falls to the bottom of its travel when no tape is present. The tensioner on the take-up side does not. It seems to stay where its left and won't drop unless I move it with my hand, though it doesn't seem to take much effort. It appears as though there's too much tension on the tape when in operation? The tape doesn't seem "sticky" or anything. There's also a slight squeaking from the supply reel as it plays. My best guess is that perhaps the brake on the drum is dragging and requires adjustment of some kind?
Sorry for long post, I'm just trying to provide as much detail as possible. I'd like to know if anyone's had this or a similar problem, knows the likely cause, and perhaps the cure? I've done lots of research and found some of the common problems people have (ie loose channel cards, sticky pinch roller), but haven't seen this one yet.
I'm REALLY looking forward to recording with this unit if I can just get it up and functioning reliably.
Thanks in advance.
- I had to reset the height of one of the take-up reel deck as it was hitting the screw heads has the reel turned. Looks like it took a blow or fall during shipping, the back of the case has a crack. The reel now rotates without scraping.
- I had to reseat all the channels cards as some would not pass signal. I also had to resolder the inputs on a couple of the PC boards of the DBX 150 units, as they would not pass signal either. Now I get signal/VU on all 8 channels.
- I've replaced both the drive belt and pinch roller with parts ordered from Tascam.
- I've throughly cleaned the heads, guides and rollers (which were pretty gunky) with S-721h. I checked the heads with a magnifiying glass and can dectect no signs of grooving or excessive wear.
Over all the unit is very clean, except for the small crack in the back of the case incurred in shipping. I also have a copy of the owners manual.
Here's the problem I'm having: I mounted a used reel of Ampex GM and threaded it correctly (according to users manual). I pressed play and it seemed to behave as though it was in fast forward. The heads didn't engage and the tape speed kept increasing. I tried a number of other operations, ff, rew, rec, and I'm not sure what did it, but it started working. The heads engaged and it played, but the speed seemed inconsistant. I then tried to record. Everything seemed to start properly, but after a short time the tape speed decreased and slowed to a dead stop. I noted that the take up reel tensioner arm was near the very top of it's travel. Pulling down on it, caused the tape to begin moving again. Is this tensioner arm supposed to behave like the one on the supply reel side? The tensioner arm on the supply side naturally falls to the bottom of its travel when no tape is present. The tensioner on the take-up side does not. It seems to stay where its left and won't drop unless I move it with my hand, though it doesn't seem to take much effort. It appears as though there's too much tension on the tape when in operation? The tape doesn't seem "sticky" or anything. There's also a slight squeaking from the supply reel as it plays. My best guess is that perhaps the brake on the drum is dragging and requires adjustment of some kind?
Sorry for long post, I'm just trying to provide as much detail as possible. I'd like to know if anyone's had this or a similar problem, knows the likely cause, and perhaps the cure? I've done lots of research and found some of the common problems people have (ie loose channel cards, sticky pinch roller), but haven't seen this one yet.
I'm REALLY looking forward to recording with this unit if I can just get it up and functioning reliably.
Thanks in advance.