Dynacord Echocord mini tape echo problem

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junkmanistan

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HELLO!

I just picked up a Dynacord Echocord Mini on eBay but need some help getting this thing to work properly. Anyone have any experience with these things?

After reconnecting the wires to the motor fuse and replacing the power jack with the standard 3-pin computer cord type, I thought I was ready to go. The motor runs, I can get a nice, clean guitar sound thru both inputs and I can here the echo functioning on some level when I turn the echo feedback pot to the right of the power button all the way up; this gives a lot of feedback, the speed of which (time between echoes) can be altered by sliding the playback head along the bar (much like an echoplex I assume?).

HERE'S MY PROBLEM: for some reason the incoming signal from either input is not being sent to the echo effect, as in even when I turn the echo volume up, all I get is increased background noise (I'm guessing this knob works in a 'send signal to echo' type routing?) but no taps or echo of what's being played!? Since I can get echo feedback I'm at a loss as to where the system has broken down...

Lemme just say that I'm not overly technically inclined, I don't have the schematic (though I may order a copy) and I'm not too good with a multi-tester.

Any help would be greatly appreciated!

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what a beautiful device!! It looks wonderful!

Why did you go to IEC type plug?...what did it have before that?

I'd check/replace that tape loop, it's probably got very little ferric left on it.
 
I put the computer plug on there cuz 1. the original was a 2-prong deal and I didn't have any cord that fit and 2. I had an extra jack sitting around and thought 'ytf not'. It fit perfectly so I was happy. You might notice in the pics that I didn't connect the ground on the jack to anything. Do you think I should?

Anyway, what is 'ferric' in relation to magnetic tape? Is this something old tapes lose and need to record signal? I guess I could try and throw another loop on there but I've never spliced tape before. Could you give me a quick primer on how to do that?

The thing was billed on eBay as having new tape but the one on there looks pretty old a warped in places, not to mention the machine is pretty dirty overall with a substantial amount of grime all around the tape area.... :(

Thanks!
 
If you can hear the reverb to the point where you can turn up the gain and it's feeding back... I'm assuming the record and playback heads are reading and writing to tape... sounds like the input signal's not making it to the record head...

But there's also the possiblity that the "new" tape loop was put on "shiny side in"...
 
Thanks for your input. I'll have to check that...

As you can see in the pics, this thing has three tape heads. Would someone be so kind as to tell me which head does what? I guess the sliding head is a playback head, right? :confused:
 
The third head is probably the erase head. In the direction the tape is going they would have to be Record, Playback, Erase.
 
I've made a little headway with this and have run into an issue that I'm hoping someone who's a little more electrically inclined could help with.

After cleaning and demagnetizing the heads AND replacing the tape loop (shiny side out) I realized that the signal from the input IS reaching the record head. THe problem is that the echo is only audible when the input volume for the instrument is jacked up really high. Since this pot acts as a kind a preamp, the signal gets real distorted, which sounds pretty cool, but I'd like to be able to get a clean signal to hit the echo as well.

What I don't know is whether, when the input volume is set low enough to keep the instument signal clean, the signal is actually hitting the tape enough to create an audible echo BECAUSE THERE'S SO MUCH NOISE WHEN i TURN THE ECHO VOLUME UP! With the echo volume all the way down (and even with the instrument volume all the way up) there is very little noise. The overwhelming amount of noise in the echo volume doesn't sound to me like just tape noise; it sounds like there's something amiss in the circuit....

Any idea what this might be? I've heard that in guitar amps failing or 'leaking' capacitors can cause a lot of noise. My noise is crackly and generally pretty nasty....
 
Could you post samples of the audio output in various statuses? I'm a bit confused as to when the problem is most obvious...

Though it does sound like the issue might be on the output side from the play head if the noise increases regardless of your input level. Bad play head.. connection... or output preamp...??
 
I'll try and get some audio for you to hear. After playing with it today, the effect is actually working fine even at low instrument volume levels. It's just that when I turn the echo level knob up (or 'echo send', I guess you could call it) there's tons of noise; a really harsh wooshing sound that has a regular rhythm like part of it is tape nosie, but it's just so loud and overpowering of the audio signal that it seems to me to be something else as well.... It's got new tape and clean heads, so I can't understand what's making that much noise besides a problem in the circuit.
 
This thing is really starting to piss me off, cuz here I am about ready to record this awful noise when something strange started to happen: the noise started to vanish in slow, weak waves. The only problem was that the echo effect went with it! So now I'm back to where I started: little to no audible echo no matter how high I jack the instrument input level and the echo level, and no matter what I do with the little "level control for echo" pot on the back. The only echo effect I get at all will be described below....

First, just to reiterate, I just thoroughly cleaned the heads and tape path the other night and demagnetized the heads. I also replaced the tape loop with a barely used piece of tape. After doing all this I was actually able to hear the echo for the first time, but it was buried under a large amount of whooshing noise that got louder as I turned the echo volume up (the knob to the left of the power and motor buttons).

One thing I notice, now that the noise is gone, that might be relevant to this mystery is the effect that the connecting tape that holds the splice together is having on the echo signal. Because it's not a perfect splice, every time it runs over the head on the far left (when looking down on the machine a la the pic) it gives off an audible bump sounds that gets the echo treatment. This is all pretty quiet even with the echo volume jacked all the way up. The echo time can be changed by sliding the other head (the one on the slider of course), and you can get the sound to feed back by turning the feedback knob up. Also, if you crank the echo feedback knob (to the right of the buttons) you can get tons of feedback that can be changed by sliding the head. :confused:
 
Well, if anyone's still paying attention, here's a link to me chopping at my guitar at different settings on the Echocord:

download

It starts out with the instument level and the echo volume all the way up, hence the guitar is distorted. You can hear the echo very faintly in the background. I change the echo times around a little bit here. I had to keep the recording level pretty low here due to the high instrument level.

Next, I turned the instrument level down to around '2' so the guitar was still clean and I turned the echo volume all the way up. The echo pot inroduces all the hum. I turned the recording level up a good deal for this. As you can hear, there's no audible echo effect. I turned the echo volume on and off so you can hear the amount of noise it introduces.

Then, I turned the echo feed back all the way up and the echo volume down (not fast enough, as you can hear the clips) and played with the echo time slider so you could hear the feedback.

Lastly, I turn the feedback off and take the echo volume up and down in a sullen reprise of that crappy echoless hum.... :(

SOOOOOOOooooooo, any ideas?
 
junkmanistan said:
Well, if anyone's still paying attention, here's a link to me chopping at my guitar at different settings on the Echocord:

download

It starts out with the instument level and the echo volume all the way up, hence the guitar is distorted. You can hear the echo very faintly in the background. I change the echo times around a little bit here. I had to keep the recording level pretty low here due to the high instrument level.

Next, I turned the instrument level down to around '2' so the guitar was still clean and I turned the echo volume all the way up. The echo pot inroduces all the hum. I turned the recording level up a good deal for this. As you can hear, there's no audible echo effect. I turned the echo volume on and off so you can hear the amount of noise it introduces.

Then, I turned the echo feed back all the way up and the echo volume down (not fast enough, as you can hear the clips) and played with the echo time slider so you could hear the feedback.

Lastly, I turn the feedback off and take the echo volume up and down in a sullen reprise of that crappy echoless hum.... :(

SOOOOOOOooooooo, any ideas?
Click to expand...
Hi,
hey man...that echo feedback you were pulling around there sounded just like my old LocoBox pedal!!
Bad that it doesn't seem to be doing much else, I ran out of ideas on the first post i sent you.

SSpit
 
Hi, any success with your echocord?
I recently bought one, I have to wait the shipment arrive anyway...
 
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