Teac A3340S with no transport action

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patchworkkid

New member
I recently came upon a Teac A3340S and found that it powers up and see the capstan spinning but the transport doesn't seem to engage. No rew, ff, play... nothing. I checked this thread, whose user seemed to face identical problems, but the difference between me and dawntodon is that my unit has its dummy plug firmly seated, as far as I can tell.

I'm sorry if this has been asked numerous times but my search only yielded this one thread and I'm excited about the prospects of recording in analog and feel as if I'm so close to it. Thanks!
 
Is the tape treaded properly, if the tension arm is not tensioned nothing will move.

Cheers

alan.
 
hi alan. I believe the tape is threaded properly. The right tension is raised which then sets the capstan into a spinning motion. From what I've read, it seems that should be the most critical part about tape threading for the purposes of engaging the transport anyway. Unfortunately, I'm without my camera at the moment, but once I get it, I will post pictures.
 
Have you asked the person you bought it from if there were any issues with the deck before you bought it? Or if it was sitting in storage for years and years, rotting away or exposed to the elements?

Do you have the owner's and service manuals? Are you prepared to do repairs yourself? What level is your technical proficiency at?

Cheers! :)
 
I knew going in that I was buying this machine that may be not fully functional as it was described as being sold "as-is" and "untested." But the price fit my budget when considering the reels of tape and the power cord I ended up buying.

As to the machine's history, I know nothing of it and I don't know what to look for when checking for whether it was in storage or not.

The machine didn't come with manuals, so I'm now relying on my history of having done some soldering and general ability to follow instructions pretty well as long as it doesn't get into reading schematics. For example, the instructions in the thread I linked were super easy to follow as have been a number of the other instructions I've peeped in some other threads. One thing I've noticed about the machine is that when pressing down the rewind button, the record button right below gets depressed too, just a little. I don't know if there's much significance with that. I'm praying for an easy fix but won't be afraid to roll my sleeves up for a little DIY repairs.
 
take that dummy plug out and check pins of the plug for Continuity between them. The connection should be only between pins 1 and 11. Especially test between pins 9 and 8 ...should be NO connection. Just to make sure that you have the right plug and not a plug from a diffrent machine.
If the plug is fine, then you'd need to open up the machine and at least visually check all wires on the other side of the plug socket and to where they "go", make sure that there's no broken wire there.
Then I'd test the power transformer/supply ...but that's a bit more "complicated"... if you feel comfortable doing that, go for it.
I have some schematics for a similar deck , can post a scan if you need.
I personally never had to deal with such specific situation, so I am just guessing what to look at...
 
patchworkkid said:
I knew going in that I was buying this machine that may be not fully functional as it was described as being sold "as-is" and "untested." But the price fit my budget when considering the reels of tape and the power cord I ended up buying.

As to the machine's history, I know nothing of it and I don't know what to look for when checking for whether it was in storage or not.

The machine didn't come with manuals, so I'm now relying on my history of having done some soldering and general ability to follow instructions pretty well as long as it doesn't get into reading schematics. For example, the instructions in the thread I linked were super easy to follow as have been a number of the other instructions I've peeped in some other threads. One thing I've noticed about the machine is that when pressing down the rewind button, the record button right below gets depressed too, just a little. I don't know if there's much significance with that. I'm praying for an easy fix but won't be afraid to roll my sleeves up for a little DIY repairs.
Click to expand...
OK, so...basic things I'd look for are the fuses to the reel motors and check the brake solenoid to see if it's seized in the locked position. Do the reel tables turn freely in at least one direction? If not, the solenoid may be seized.

If after those items check out OK, it may escalate to a situation where you will need to bring it to a service shop.

When a seller advertises a deck as is and unknown condition, it's really just a fancy way of really saying; "this machine has issues but we're too chicken-shit to admit what they are, lest it impede the sale."

Cheers! :)
 
patchworkkid said:
I knew going in that I was buying this machine that may be not fully functional as it was described as being sold "as-is" and "untested." But the price fit my budget when considering the reels of tape and the power cord I ended up buying.

As to the machine's history, I know nothing of it and I don't know what to look for when checking for whether it was in storage or not.

The machine didn't come with manuals, so I'm now relying on my history of having done some soldering and general ability to follow instructions pretty well as long as it doesn't get into reading schematics. For example, the instructions in the thread I linked were super easy to follow as have been a number of the other instructions I've peeped in some other threads. One thing I've noticed about the machine is that when pressing down the rewind button, the record button right below gets depressed too, just a little. I don't know if there's much significance with that. I'm praying for an easy fix but won't be afraid to roll my sleeves up for a little DIY repairs.
Click to expand...
Hi. Did you ever get this sorted out? I have the exact same problem.
 
Why does everyone look for a fuse solution or something simple? If the right dummy plug is in then most likely the next thing is the stop transport switch on the tension arm is defective. After that it can be bad filter caps on the power supply which is why I change them right off. Have I resolved this problem in the thousands of machines I worked on most likely. The dummy plug on A3340S is 1-11 only.
Brake solenoids do NOT seize in the locked position- I have not seen that for 47 years.
 
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