Help with Teac 80-8 Purchase....Good Buy??

J

jdonati17

New member
Hey guys, I'm brand new to the forum and possibly brand new to the Reel to Reel world. I have a guy that's offering to sell his Teac 80-8 with DX-8 Noise Reduction for $450. Here is his ad

"TEAC 80-8 1/2" 8 track with (8 channel) TEAC DX-8 DBX noise reduction unit & manual. I haven't used this tape machine in some time, but was in working order when last used (I had it serviced, calibrated, aligned, etc, several years ago). Heads are in good shape with plenty of life left. Has the optional rack rails mounted, rather than the wood sides."

Here are some pictures he sent me..

close up body.jpgFull Body Shot.jpgTAPE HEADS.jpg


What do yall think? I told him I'd be able to pick it up next Tuesday. Any sage advice would be appreciated!

Thanks guys! I'm stoked to start learning troves of knowledge from this forum.
 
I haven't used this tape machine in some time, but was in working order when last used
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This is the classic disclaimer statement which warns you that there may be issues with the deck that the seller is unwilling to clearly disclose.

Here's the problem. Electronics and mechanisms are not designed to sit idle for years on end and then work perfectly once used again.

Capacitors can dry out.

Rubber can dry out and crack or break.

Lubricants can turn gooey and sticky.

Contact points can oxidize and rust due to exposure to moisture and temp. extremes causing all kinds of signal flow issues.

So unless the seller is willing to plug it in himself, run some tape on it and come up with a clearer statement of fitness, he's basically just being deceptive and the price of $450 is probably too high for a crap shoot like that.

The heads and lifter arms also do show a fair degree of wear and that wear looks un-even so a head alignment and calibration would probably also be required which requires expensive calibration test tape and specialized tools to perform which require the full service manual as well.

Think of it like an old car with some serious mileage on it. Would you expect it to be in full working shape, ready to go? Or would you budget for and expect to pay additional money to get it road ready?

Cheers! :)
 
Don't buy it.Those heads are worn out.Look at how wide the flat spot on the heads are-that's from the tape wearing down the heads.There are two relays on each channel card.Those go bad.If you're getting into the 8 track 1/2 in. format the best choice is a Tascam Tsr-8 followed by the Tascam 38.
 
Untested, I would not pay more than $100 ... you can basically assume that something untested does not work. $450 is an okay (not great) price for a fully working unit. Ask the guy to test it out, and then offer $300 if it appears to be working alright.

I like the 80-8 much more than the decks that followed ... it has way more mojo than the 38 for instance. It has a '70s-type sound instead of an '80s vibe.
 
Those heads look pretty worn. +the "disclaimer" of the seller, i think the writing is on the wall. Even if you get it for $200, that machine doesnt look good and you will spend probably a significant amount of time and money on it. Replacement heads for that are also very hard to find. The heads and other parts for the TSR-8, 38, 48 & 58 are easy to find. You can do better with any of those other machines, here's my take in priority order.

TSR-8: Good machine, newer unit (last one made) you can get a good one for ~$500 or a little less in very good shape. Parts are relatively easy to find.

48: Solid and very feature complete, excellent transport and electronics. Harder to find thatn the TSR-8, they will ask you ~$700-800 for a unit in good condition. Parts are relatively hard to find. This is a heavy duty machine

58: Top of the line machine. Harder to find and when found in good shape can go up to ~$1000. Parts hard to find. heavy duty machine.

38: A lot of them in the market, most of them in bad shape, it was the entry level deck for 8 channels in the 80s. The design is simple and is prone to many issues given its low cost design. Needs probably more maintenance than the others, one in proven good shape will go for ~$400-$500, there are worn ones that you can buy for $200 or $300 usually in very bad shape. A lot of people dissassemble and part out these machines as they are worth more in parts than complete and not working. Parts are easy to find.

80-8: People that have units in very good shape dont let them go, it is an early design from 35 years ago, electronics show its age and the transport is basic. Parts are very hard to find and performance is not the best. Depends on what you want to do with it.

I've researched and owned the TSR8 and 48 and also own a 32 which is basically the same design as the 38 in a 2 channel version and it leaves a lot to be desired.

As the 48 & 58 are so hard to find and with budget in mind I will go with the TSR-8, i know that machine very very well and i think it is a solid performer with some compromises (like only one head) but the impact on that is mainly on calibration, taking that longer, but also simplifying it. You also need to think what you will be using this for, how foten and for how long you want to keep it, these machines are getting harder to find by the day (the ones in good shape) that is probably why you dont find some of them as people dont let them go. As for the prices, those are realistic amounts, some will say $100 for a 38 or $400 for a 48 in good shape, maybe 5 years ago or so, but nowadays the prices above are what they are going on ebay. Local deals and hidden gems still exist but rare as people are not stupid and go to ebay to research. Buying from a forum member is also a good idea as usually it's people that knows the machines and can give you an honest assessment on condition. I have bought parts from people in this forum and others over the years that otherwise would have been impossible to find or very expensive/risky on ebay or somewhere else. Hope that helps.

Felipe
 
I have one in perfect-working condition, recently serviced before I bought it, and the seller sent me a dead 80-8 to rip parts from as well. I paid about 700 for all that not including shipping. Pristine 80-8 plus a parts machine is the only deal Id ever go for regarding this deck and Id only ever pay 450 for all of that. I really wanted that deck,so I didnt mind getting screwed.
 
I've owned my 80-8 for 8 years now. Bought it in 2005 for $600 shipped with a Model 5 mixer. The 80-8 went kaput once (in 2008), had it serviced for about $400, and it's been working fine ever since. I don't use it too much these days but recorded 5 albums on it, so I'm keeping it around since I have an archive of 1/2" 8-track tape masters. The transport is a good combination of rugged durability and gentle handling. One old-school engineer I've corresponded with (who worked for Scully in the '70s) called the 80-8 a 'baby Ampex'. You really can't say that about any of their other decks, particularly the flimsy models that followed.
 
lonewhitefly said:
I've owned my 80-8 for 8 years now. Bought it in 2005 for $600 shipped with a Model 5 mixer. The 80-8 went kaput once (in 2008), had it serviced for about $400, and it's been working fine ever since. I don't use it too much these days but recorded 5 albums on it, so I'm keeping it around since I have an archive of 1/2" 8-track tape masters. The transport is a good combination of rugged durability and gentle handling. One old-school engineer I've corresponded with (who worked for Scully in the '70s) called the 80-8 a 'baby Ampex'. You really can't say that about any of their other decks, particularly the flimsy models that followed.
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I agree with the baby Ampex i terms of the basics of the features. By the time electronics advanced enough to allow microporcessor controlled transports Ampex was well out of the picture in terms of tape recorder machine production. i agree with the flimsy comment for the 38. The rest of the decks 48, 58 and even the TSR8 i think are solid.
 
fgonza2 said:
I agree with the baby Ampex i terms of the basics of the features. By the time electronics advanced enough to allow microporcessor controlled transports Ampex was well out of the picture in terms of tape recorder machine production. i agree with the flimsy comment for the 38. The rest of the decks 48, 58 and even the TSR8 i think are solid.
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Fair point. I've not used the 48, 58 or TSR-8 personally, but I was referring more to the materials used compared to the older stuff, not the performance. They used more plastic parts and lots of smaller, delicate controls compared to the more basic and rugged 80-8.
 
As for tape handling and sound the TSR-8 is the best of these medium-frame machines. The 80-8 is one of the earlier models and the head design improved significantly with the 38, 48, 58 and TSR-8. However, the 80-8 was a good machine in its day and can still be put to good use.

Here's the bottom line when buying any machine: If the seller can't put forth a little effort to figure out if the machine works now, then consider it a parts machine and you should assume you'll be putting a lot of money in it restoring it to working condition. The seller's price is too much, unless he can test it and assure you it works well.
 
THANKS GUYS!

This is all killer information....with a crazy turn of events I ended up going to Memphis for Thanksgiving and bought a Tascam 48 while I was there. I ended up in a bar watching a band and when all the smoke settled there was a Tascam 48 sitting in a closet near the soundboard. I checked it out and the heads looks new, it functions great and it looks great. There was a little cosmetic damage but nothing serious. I bought it off him for $200 with the Manual and Remote.

What's yall's opinion of the 48OB? Good Machine?


Thanks again for all the help! I update with some pics of the new toy!
 
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