388 help

A

attila_strat

New member
hi. i just bought a 388 and it's got problems. all the record functions seem to work, but when i play it back i can barely hear the recording. first i thought it didn't register at all, but if the master fader and phones levels are way up i can hear it. the recording is drowned in noise. i'm using 456 tape- 1200' length. the manual says to use 1800', but the store didn't have it and i wanted to try it out before ordering any online. could this be the problem? seems unlikely, but i don't know. otherwise i'm guessing it's the head, which would suck. i cleaned and de-magged them without much difference.
any help at all would be much appreciated.
thanks!
 
Just FYI,...

You cannot press the (red) Stereo L/R-Assign button at the same time as the (white) Track-Assign button, or the unit will auto-mute to prevent an internal feedback loop.:eek:;)
 
thanks for responding! i only had the white assign button down while recording, which i think is what the manual says. same with playback, but i did push the red one down just to see, and it didn't make much difference.
 
The obvious stuff first. Which side of the tape is touching the heads? Is it the black area or brown? The brown is the oxide (on which you record) and the black side is the back coating.
 
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It's possible the heads are simply clogged with oxide... I've seen a few second-hand machines come in that state. It might be an idea to post a photo of them if that's possible...

**EDIT**
You say you've cleaned them, so that may not be the case. A photo might be handy anyway though.
 
...

Are you listening back thru the Monitor (white knob) section?
Is the Stereo L/R select button near the headphone section depressed?
Is the headphone level turned up?

Does your recorded signal show up on the meters on playback?:eek:;)

(More questions than answers!)
 
i appreciate the responses. let's see. i don't have a digital camera yet so i can't post photos of the heads now, but i'm in the process of getting one for ebaying and will soon. i will say the heads probably look more worn than some of the ones in pictures on here.
as for reel persons response;
1- yes
2- yes
3- yes
4- no; there's no movement in the vu meters for playback. the track meters on the left move normally for the recording process but there's no movement in any on playback. what does this mean?
thanks again.
 
...

As you're recording, the (red) Rec-Funct buttons should be down (Rec-Ready) for selected tracks.

For playback, are the Rec-Funct switches placed back in the up (Safe) position?:eek:;)
 
new heads?

hi. yes, i had the rec function button down for recording and up for playback. i'm wondering if i should just get new heads. right now i have the opportunity to get a head assembly, and even though it's hit or miss, they'd probably be better than mine. what's the going rate for a rec head anyway?
any thoughts?
thanks!
 
Well,...

Though I think it's been addressed, a thorough cleaning of the heads is recommended. The head should shine like a mirror. I've also seen a tough smudge of oxide prevent proper recording. A firm but gentle scrubbing with alcohol/swab in the direction of tape travel would be needed to remove the toughest oxide.

Before I'd consider replacing the heads, I'd pop the top cover and have a look at the cards to make sure they're all seated in the backplane. If any cards are not fully seated, I'd remove & inspect the backplane pins before placing them back in their slots.:eek:;)

You gotta cover the simplest stuff thoroughly, like tape loading, tape threading, orientation of the tape, condition of the tape. Though it may seem redundant,....:eek:;)
 
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