388 No power

DuddyGuy

DuddyGuy

No good fer nothin!
Hello Again! Been away from here for some time due to some life changes and general lack of time and ability to pursue my audio interests. Good to see your all up to the same old awesomeness(nice new board beats:)).

I just recently got my setup back in shape and running and am working on a few projects...so naturally the need to continuously acquire more and more gear has come roaring back to life, lol.

Anyways, my question is I've come across a 388 which will not power on. Apparently there is no indication of anything happening whatsoever when started. The current owner has no history on the unit and came into it non working. Asides from the power issue it is supposedly in very good to perfect shape.

Now the price is right, it can probably be had for ~100-150 usd. Is this a no go though? Does the 388 have a master fuse? Asides from obvious signs of overheating and damaged components, What should I look for when I go up there? I know 388 parts are generally rare and fairly expensive so is it likely that the psu would be no good? Or if anyone has any other insights they would be greatly appreciated!

Thanks again I always appreciate all the help I've been given here.
 
First off, if the unit is in nice condition other than the no power issue, is complete (no missing parts) and a visual on the heads and etc says its not total toast, its worth the parts at $100. Meeting the above criteria, I'd low ball him and take it home.

Fuses: under the top cover (above the meters) is a fuse block that should be the first thing to be checked. For the few bucks it will cost, REPLACE ALL the fuses with the correct value fuses. Check the power cord BEFORE you plug it in for not so obvious signs of tramuma like pinched or broken conductors. Power cords have a way of getting abused.

We can get into more detail if this is not the problem.
And if it turns out to be hopeless, you can either part it out or turn it on Craigslist as non-working and get your money back....
 
thanks, I was aware there was a fuse block in the 388 and with a quite a few fuses in the machine, I was thinking it would be unlikely that the unit would be completely dead from a fuse unless there was a master fuse on top of the err shall we say modular fuses... In my experience tascam's psu's are built like tanks so I'm hoping someone might have a possible reason why the unit might be dead if it wasn't completely shot. Especially since coming up on a psu would be difficult and probably pricey, and if the psu went who knows what might have gone with it...

At the moment I'm leaning against because what I really want is a functioning 388, parting it out or reselling wouldn't really be worth my time or effort, so it's only function for me would be as a spare for when I do pick one up and who knows when and if that would be as the value of these machines seems to continually rise and the chances of finding a well maintained one continually sink.

If it was the cord that would be a miracle! Again thanks for the reply!
 
Bring a multimeter and confirm power is getting to the transformer and then confirm that power is coming OFF the transformer secondaries...try reseating the PSU PCB...bad power switch?
 
no go... but i came home with two mackie 1604-vlz pros for 120 so hopefully we can resell those and use the proceeds to purchase a more legit 388
 
More detail...fuses all good? Power getting to the PSU etc, etc?

Nice deal on the Mackies, and good plan...SELL THEM.

I must say though, if you are intent on getting a 388, I'd snap that one up EVEN IF IT DOESN'T POWER UP. A treasure trove of parts. I'm that way, but I think it is more important than the average to have a parts 388 if you have a functioning 388.
 
DuddyGuy said:
unknown, seller flaked on me after i drove 80 miles... i was actually going to buy regardless of the condition, but oh well
Click to expand...

wow big bummer. i was emailing this same gentleman from craigslist.

id be interesting in the machine but i havent heard back from him. i fear the cost of restoring this unit wouldnt be worth it for me. :/
 
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