388 troubles....help?

[rucarlso]

My 388 had been running fine until....

Last night I was just doing some simple tracking and I noticed that the tape counter wasn't counting backwards when I would rewind tape. It will count forward as I play the tape, however. That I could deal with, I guess, but then the thing wouldn't stop when it was fast-forwarding. I'd hit FFWD, and then hit STOP, and it would keep on going. The only way to stop it was to cut the power off.

At one point, after coming back from getting a beer from the kitchen, the counter was flickering in a sort of "ghost in the machine" kind of way. I turned the 388 off and it appeared fine. (but i was still having the same problem described above).

My session ended when all of a sudden none of the transport functions worked. I couldn't play tape, rewind it, ffwd it---nothing.

This morning I plugged it in and was able to play tape, but it still has that counter problem and the FFWD problem.

Anybody know what I can do besides throw it out the window?

 

[A Reel Person]

Check & replaced the fuses.

I've seen 388 fuses "break" and go intermittent, while not being blown, outright. I'd replace the fuses, whether or not they tested okay. The fuses can become faulty with old age!

 

[rucarlso]

Thanks Davemania! I will try that and hope it cures the problem. I'd hate to see my 388 become a paperweight.

 

[rucarlso]

For anyone who might stumble across this thread in the future when they're 388 exhibits similar problems....

I replaced the fuses in my 388. The fusesection is located beneath the top panel, right underneath the panel's vent holes. You also have to remove a couple of support pieces once the panel is off, but it all just takes a phillips head screwdriver and it's painless work.

After replacing the fuses I turned the machine on and it was still giving problems with the counter and fast-forwarding, as mentioned previously. I powered it down and din't touch the thing for a few days.

Later I turned it on again and all of a sudden I was back to owning a fully functional 388. Problems solved.

Was it the fuses? Or was it just a temporary gremlin in the works? Who knows.

 

[Quantagee]

For anyone who might stumble across this thread in the future when they're 388 exhibits similar problems....

I replaced the fuses in my 388. The fusesection is located beneath the top panel, right underneath the panel's vent holes. You also have to remove a couple of support pieces once the panel is off, but it all just takes a phillips head screwdriver and it's painless work.

After replacing the fuses I turned the machine on and it was still giving problems with the counter and fast-forwarding, as mentioned previously. I powered it down and din't touch the thing for a few days.

Later I turned it on again and all of a sudden I was back to owning a fully functional 388. Problems solved.

Was it the fuses? Or was it just a temporary gremlin in the works? Who knows.

One thing that comes up from time to time is a broken solder joint somewhere (most times at a connector), The solder joint becomes intermittent. I would look around the counter and it's cables/connectors going from it and the PC board. Look at the joints very carefully. I usually re-solder all connections to be sure. If it is this, then it will work fine and not work fine depending on if it was moved or if the temperature is hotter/colder.

It was most likely not the fuses as the counter is a +5v low current device running off of a semiconductor voltage regulator. If a fuse was "going away" then it would be anything that takes substantial current that would suffer (unless the meter and any high-current device on the PC board shared the same +5V buss). The counter takes probably 20-50 mA and would work fine, but anything that takes 200mA and up would practically shut down. It is a good idea to replace fuses anyway as fuses do become 1/2 open and measure fine with an ohmmeter, but act like a current limiter.