ADAT Blackface newbie

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EddieRay

EddieRay

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I just picked up 3 used ADATs and a BRC for $400. Actually, one of the ADATs is not working (error7 ?) and was "thrown" into the deal as a source of spare parts. I've never used ADAT so I'm hoping ya'll can answer some questions:

1) What is considered a lot of hours? Two of them have around 1100 and the inoperable one has just over 400. At how many hours should I have them serviced?

2) How much can I expect to pay for routine head cleaning?

3) Who/where's a trustworthy source of S-VHS tape?

4) I want to use them for remote recording then transfer the tracks to my PC (Cakewalk9) for all other work. What's the best way to do that?
 
Here is a link to ADAT error codes.

Here is the Blackface manual. I think they give servicing guidelines in it, not sure though.

For routine cleaning, you can use a s-vhs head cleaner. Tape Resources has s-vhs head cleaners and s-vhs tapes. I'm not sure if one type of s-vhs tape is better than the other, but try to use the same kind throughout a project.
Here is a page with detailed head cleaning instructions. I'm not sure what the going rate is for servicing them.

To get the tracks from the ADAT to a PC, you'll need a soundcard or interface that has lightpipe connections. Here is an example of just one. You'll need to find one that is compatable with your particular computer and platform.
 
My school won't allow us to use anything but Maxell S-VHS tapes in there machines.

It was said once before that they had allowed students to use any kind of S-VHS tape and they ended up having to service the machines way more often than they have to now.
 
Thanks for the links and tips!

What about hours? Do these things have expected life spans? What happens at 9999?

Is there a big difference between, say, Ampex and Maxell tape? This is digital, so I imagine it's more of a reliability/longevity issue than recording quality, yes?
 
I personally haven't seen a difference betweem manufacturers of tape, but read bigwillz post again. I think the servicing guidlines are in the manual, read it and see.
 
There is definately a difference in tape. The Maxell is about the only consumer brand that I have ever heard reccomended for an ADAT. As far as life expectancy, my ADAT's have over 1500 hours on them and still run fine. They have however been cleaned and aligned every 300 hours and have NEVER had an S-VHS head cleaner tape put into them. Service techs reccomend those only as a last resort. I have never heard of an ADAT that made it to 9999 hours so i do not know what happens after that. ADAT life expectancy is tricky. A bad environment with cheap tapes may need new heads after 2 or 3 hundred hours. A well maintained, aligned, and cleaned machine may get thousands of hours without needing a new head. ADAT's are very finicky machines and really need to be babied.
 
One of the links above had a very good article on head cleaning. It recommended using "CQ" alcohol pads. I was thinking maybe the alcohol pads I use to swab skin for insulin injections might work. They're roughly 1" squares drenched with alcohol. I'd have to get rid of some excess but do you think that would work?
 
Yikes... some misinformation being thrown about in this thread..........

First off -- there's a GREAT difference between ADAT tape formulations and standard VHS tapes.... you should be using ADAT-specific formulations unless you really like seeing the interpolation error on the machine being displayed often. The tolerances are very tight for recording digital signals (much tighter than for analog video), so the tape you use matters.

Also - you NEVER want to use a any sort of VHS cleaning system in ADATs... the ONLY way to maintain them is to learn how to clean them manually (and it's NOT like cleaning a cassette deck).........
 
Blue Bear Sound said:
Also - you NEVER want to use a any sort of VHS cleaning system in ADATs... the ONLY way to maintain them is to learn how to clean them manually (and it's NOT like cleaning a cassette deck).........
Click to expand...

This is from the manual-

If head cleaning is necessary and you are unable to bring your ADAT to a service center, you may try using a DRY VHS head cleaning cassette. We recommend:

3M VHSHC Black Watch Head Cleaner Video Cassette

· Do NOT use any other type of head cleaning cassette. They are abrasive and
will damage or wear out your heads.
· Do NOT use head cleaning cassettes that require any kind of liquid.
· Do not use the Black Watch cassette any more often than necessary. Over-cleaning
the heads wears them down, reducing their life span.
· Do NOT attempt to clean the heads yourself unless you are a skilled technician
experienced in the maintenance of video cassette recorders. Information for
such technicians is available from Alesis Product Support. ADAT head cleaning
requires different materials and procedures from analog head cleaning, similar to
VCR maintenance. Cleaning the heads with a cotton swab, or rubbing in the
 
I tend to trust the thousands of ADAT owners more than the 15 year old Alesis manual. yes you CAN put a cleaner tape in your ADAT, but should you? Every tech will tell you that it is a great way to need more servicing at a higher price and sooner:D
 
ADAT Tape Confusion

I get the impression ADATs are fairly picky about tape quality. So please help me get this right. The manual recommends Maxell XR-S Black S-VHS tape, among others. But the few retail websites I've found don't carry it. Is it no longer made? They do carry Maxell ST-xxxBQ products with varying lengths (xxx). Is that an adequate replacement?

Also, at TapeResources.com, I get one list when clicking on S-VHS and a shorter one for ADAT. What's up wit that? Can some S-VHS tape not be used for ADAT recording?

What is the Quantegy equivalent to Ampex 489?
 
I have used many, many different s-vhs tape brands and never had a problem. That being said, I would take Blue Bear and bigwillz advice over mine any day of the week. Your ADAT won't explode if you use something other than Maxell XR-S Blacks, but the heads may get dirtier quicker. Google 'Maxell XR-S Black', you will get plenty of retailers who want to sell you that particular tape.
 
I would reccomend tape designed for ADAT use. The maxells are not. They are just a high quality consumer SVHS. Personally, look into the preformatted BASF tapes. Guitar center still has loads of them and they are much cheaper now than when I used them. I actually had more problems with the Ampex and the Alesis branded Ampex tapes than any other. Apogee and HHB also made ADAT tapes. Using on off brand is not a guaranteed problem, but is likely to directly affect how many errors you get and how often the heads and capstans etc... will need maintenance.
 
Here are a few options from the manual, go with whatever you want, it's not that big of a deal. I'm done now.

adat manual said:
1.5 A WORD ON ADAT’s S-VHS CASSETTE TAPE

· Use only premium quality, name brand S-VHS cassette tape in the ST-120 length.Alesis cannot overstress the importance of this. We recommend using AMPEX 489 DM Digital Mastering Audio Tape, or Alesis ADAT Mastering Audio Cassettes. Other acceptable brands include Maxell XR-S Black, JVC XZ, 3M Master Broadcast and ASD 40+, and TDK SP Super Pro.
Click to expand...
 
I recently went to a Guitar Center and they had a stock pile of 16 bit BASF preformated ADAT tapes tucked in a box in the back marked down to a buck a piece. Might not hurt to call around and see if some stores by you have a couple floating around. I have always found those tapes to be the most reliable.

FYI : If you want to hear a recent recording done on ADAT's go to http://www.thefray.net/. This band just got signed to Epic, and tracks Vienna and Oceans Away were both recorded on XT's in 16 bit mode. One of my good friends did the recording I think he did a good job.
 
Those quotes form the Alesis manual can be a bit misleading. They were written before ADAT's hit the market. As a consequence, many of the pro tapes had not been made yet, because the technology did not exist yet:) Many a repair tech has told me to avoid the Alesis brand, which is actually the Ampex tape with Alesis's name on it.
 
Service

I called Alesis and they in turn gave me a 1-800 Number that was a service center of sorts. I asked them for a service manual. In three days I had a service manual that was given to Alesis service centers. In it describes How to clean and align your adats. It is very indepth. But if you are not trained in repair take your manual and your adats to a TRUSTED service place and have them do it.

Also in this manual it will tell you how to do a self test on the machines and how to read the results.

Very important for troubleshooting error codes. And how to fix them.
They did not charge me for the manual either.

I went to school for it and have been doing it for years and I still refer to the service manual when I do a cleaning and allignment.

Good luck and Please Be Careful.
 
I managed to find some ADAT tape at Guitar Center. I'm trying to format one following the manual. I don't think it's working.

I pop in the tape and the display says noFO and the FORMAT button blinks. I press the FORMAT button and all 8 track record lights go solid on. I press RECORD and then PLAY and about 10 seconds later the display once again says noFO, the FORMAT button blinks, and the track records lights go off.

I tried again on another machine and I can hear a whirring sound so I leave it go for a while. After about 5 mins: noFO appears and FORMAT button blinks. Only a few inches of tape are on the take-up spool. I rewind and the display says LEAd.

Does anyone know exactly what is supposed to happen during formatting? How long does it take? Will it automatically rewind when done? The manual does not answer these questions.
 
Did you check the write protect tab on the tape? Also, how did you manage to find an unformatted tape at Guitar Center. It seems to me that for the last three years they only carried the BASF preformatted tapes:D
 
EddieRay said:
I managed to find some ADAT tape at Guitar Center. I'm trying to format one following the manual. I don't think it's working.

I pop in the tape and the display says noFO and the FORMAT button blinks. I press the FORMAT button and all 8 track record lights go solid on. I press RECORD and then PLAY and about 10 seconds later the display once again says noFO, the FORMAT button blinks, and the track records lights go off.

I tried again on another machine and I can hear a whirring sound so I leave it go for a while. After about 5 mins: noFO appears and FORMAT button blinks. Only a few inches of tape are on the take-up spool. I rewind and the display says LEAd.

Does anyone know exactly what is supposed to happen during formatting? How long does it take? Will it automatically rewind when done? The manual does not answer these questions.
Click to expand...


If the tape is not at the very beginning, the 'format' function will be disabled.

The best thing to do is put the tape in, press 'stop' to disengage the heads, then 'fast-forward' to the end. Then 'rewind' to the very beginning. This exercises the tape, and ensures that you are at the very beginning when starting to format the tape.
 
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