Fostex E16?!

[electrocutioner]

I'm dealing a Fostex E16 and as I'm new with reel to reel, I need some help. The unit is in good condition and on a studio rack. I haven't seen it yet but the seller says that it works great and maybe it'll need a pinch roller but nothing more.
What do you suggest me to do?

First of all, is it a good unit for "newbie" analog recordings?
Please let me know for a fair price if it's really in good condition because I'll have to deal with the price. I don't know if the rack counts on this.
Is there a simple way to check the heads and the motor? I believe it's the most expensive parts if you can find them!
Anything else that I must check before paying?

The seller doesn't have any problem to check it together in his studio. Put some tapes on it, record something etc etc. But my analog recordings are only on some cassette tape recorders and I'm really amateur on this. Please let me know if there's an easy way to be sure if this unit worth it to be mine!

 

[electrocutioner]

Any help, please?

 

[Beck]

This is hard to do if you are new to it. If the seller will let you take your time it would be helpful if you can take photos of the machine and the heads and post them here.

Other than that look for worn flat spots on the guides and other parts of the tape path. It should run smooth and quiet. Listen for whining sounds, which could mean trouble for reel and capstan motors.

The E16 is a good machine, but it all depends on how many hours have been put on it. Pinch rollers are available, so if that's the only problem it would be a nice machine to have.

 

[electrocutioner]

Thank you Beck!

I will take some photos! I'm planning to visit the seller in the next week. I'll follow your advices and hope I'm lucky!

From what I know, one output has a problem. I think I can lower the price with this. How bad can this be. I have done a lot of repairs on guitar amps and studio equipment.

I believe the heads and the motors are the most expensive parts. How much do they cost? And where can you find them?

A fair price on this unit? Is it any good, from $400 to $600?

 

[sweetbeats]

Your forum name would make me scared to repair gear with you...

A fair price on this unit? Is it any good, from $400 to $600?

Hey, you know, it all depends on the heads if you ask me. If the heads are shot it is only worth "Parts Deck" price...bottom dollar. Good luck finding heads for an E16.

If it is in great condition and the tape path has little wear on it then I'd say $400~$600 is definitely a fair price, but beware that there will *always* be something wrong you didn't catch when checking it out. Pessimistic? Yes, but that is because it just usually seems to work out that way.

If you have repaired guitar amps and studio equipment then you likely have the skills to do at least basic to moderate troubleshooting and repair on on open-reel deck. Beware that the user community for Fostex decks is out there but nothing like the size of the Tascam community so user support is not as strong. A Tascam owner (for instance) certainly can and will be able to help, its just when you get into specific issues it may take more time to wade through differences.

First thing to do for that faulty output is get yourself some DeoxIT D5 and reseat the channel cards with some of the contact cleaner applied.

Beck is spot-on.

Another tip: look at the wear on the guides, and then compare to the wear on the lifter posts. If the wear on the lifter posts is more than the guides (like obviously so) but the wear on the guides and heads matches up then it is possible that the guides have been rotated or replaced and that the heads have been relapped. This means there is less life in those heads even though they may look young. Typically on these decks the lifter posts are terrifically hard or unwise to rotate and not as easy to replace so somebody may rotate the guides when they get the heads lapped (perfectly reasonable and adviseable to do this if you get the heads lapped) but will leave the lifters alone, which is good because it leaves a clue behind of the actual wear on the machine.

I believe the heads and the motors are the most expensive parts. How much do they cost? And where can you find them?

Yep. Those are the spendy parts. Best thing to do is to find a parts deck. You're not going to find these parts new anywhere for an E16. Somebody correct me if I'm wrong.

 

[electrocutioner]

sweetbeats, why?!

About the Fostex, I think the best is, or to buy it really cheap or leave it and try to find a Tascam! Am I right?
I'll try to go and check it but you guys disappointed me and I prefer to spend my spare time on searching for something better ie Tascam.

Can you find parts (heads & motors) for Tascams? How much do they cost?

By the way, what about Otari r2rs? Are they like Fostex? With no heads and motors available?

 

[RRuskin]

sweetbeats, why?!

About the Fostex, I think the best is, or to buy it really cheap or leave it and try to find a Tascam! Am I right?
I'll try to go and check it but you guys disappointed me and I prefer to spend my spare time on searching for something better ie Tascam.

Can you find parts (heads & motors) for Tascams? How much do they cost?

By the way, what about Otari r2rs? Are they like Fostex? With no heads and motors available?

These days, it's difficult to find parts for any of the small-format analog multitracks. For what it's worth, I don't think Fostex, TASCAM, or Otari made their own motors. They probably bought them OEM from an outside supplier because some Otari and Tascam capstan motors are interchangeable. I doubt if any of these motors are still being made.

 

[Blue Jinn]

Your forum name would make me scared to repair gear with you...



Hey, you know, it all depends on the heads if you ask me. If the heads are shot it is only worth "Parts Deck" price...bottom dollar. Good luck finding heads for an E16.

If it is in great condition and the tape path has little wear on it then I'd say $400~$600 is definitely a fair price, but beware that there will *always* be something wrong you didn't catch when checking it out. Pessimistic? Yes, but that is because it just usually seems to work out that way.

If you have repaired guitar amps and studio equipment then you likely have the skills to do at least basic to moderate troubleshooting and repair on on open-reel deck. Beware that the user community for Fostex decks is out there but nothing like the size of the Tascam community so user support is not as strong. A Tascam owner (for instance) certainly can and will be able to help, its just when you get into specific issues it may take more time to wade through differences.

First thing to do for that faulty output is get yourself some DeoxIT D5 and reseat the channel cards with some of the contact cleaner applied.

Beck is spot-on.

Another tip: look at the wear on the guides, and then compare to the wear on the lifter posts. If the wear on the lifter posts is more than the guides (like obviously so) but the wear on the guides and heads matches up then it is possible that the guides have been rotated or replaced and that the heads have been relapped. This means there is less life in those heads even though they may look young. Typically on these decks the lifter posts are terrifically hard or unwise to rotate and not as easy to replace so somebody may rotate the guides when they get the heads lapped (perfectly reasonable and adviseable to do this if you get the heads lapped) but will leave the lifters alone, which is good because it leaves a clue behind of the actual wear on the machine.



Yep. Those are the spendy parts. Best thing to do is to find a parts deck. You're not going to find these parts new anywhere for an E16. Somebody correct me if I'm wrong.

---This is good info, especially about the lifters/guides. Thanks

The lack of narrow format heads though does give me a little bit of long term anxiety.

 

[sweetbeats]

About the Fostex, I think the best is, or to buy it really cheap or leave it and try to find a Tascam! Am I right?
I'll try to go and check it but you guys disappointed me and I prefer to spend my spare time on searching for something better ie Tascam.

Can you find parts (heads & motors) for Tascams? How much do they cost?

By the way, what about Otari r2rs? Are they like Fostex? With no heads and motors available?

The truth of the matter is that it doesn't matter what brand you look for, there will be, at some point, some kind of challenge with a repair and/or finding parts for ANY brand.

That's why many around here (and I agree) suggest:

1. Buying local so you can check it out first and avoid shipping damage
2. Select your purchase based on condition rather than brand.

Check out the fostex. If 1/2" 16-track is what you want and the thing works good/looks good then do what feels right. Be prepared that if you plan on maintaining it yourself you'll need several hundred dollars in gear to do so. If you plan on having somebody else repair it make sure you have a trusty/experienced tech on-hand before making the purchase.