A Reel Person
It's Too Funky in Here!!!
My friend,...
There is no easy answer to this question.
I don't have the manual in front of me, but...
There are 3 mounting screws on the R/P head. One is relatively "fixed" and is there for primary support, although there could be a small range of adjustment in it's function. The rear-most screw would be for head-tilt or "zenith". This would be the one primarily responsible for proper head/tape contact across all tracks. Of the bottom 2 screws, one is for the pivot point and the other would be adjustable for "azimuth", which... makes sure all 8 tracks have optimum amplitude and phase.
The Zenith may be doable by eyeballing it, (don't quote me on that caus I'm not looking at the manual presently),... you could possibly set proper zenith by comparing it to the fixed tape guides,... but the azimuth is best done with a cal tape and an oscilloscope. There is no way to achieve fine precision without the proper tools. With a calibration tape you may have a longshot at doing it by "ear" and by referencing the VU meters, but keep in mind the adjustment window is very fine.
When a head is relapped, here in the US, it's common for the user to dismount and send off the entire head block with heads attached, and the head technician reworker will dismount and align the heads again after the relap job. JRF Magnetics has in their lit that the heads will be "laser aligned", which to me means they point a laser just above the fixed points of the tape guides, and set azimuth to a fine precision using the laser as a go/no-go guide for physical leveling with regard to the other fixed points in the tape path.
That's my layman's understanding of the issues. Although I'm no expert by any stretch, I've set up a cal tape and scope and adjusted Azimuth on a 388 at least once, as well as several times over the record/repro electronic calibrations of the unit,... all with satisfactory results. Being a homer/weekend warrior, though, no matter how I've taken care to be exact and follow the book (etc.), there's never a true end to wondering if something's "off" or "not quite perfect".
You can do as much as you can do by eye/ear, then find the best tech within a reasonable distance and take it there.
Alt: get an MRL tape, a DVM, an oscilloscope, the manual and set aside a few days of tinkering to DIY.
(Note: the Erase head has 2 mounting screws and is apparently less critical, but is not to be overlooked).
(... ... Once the heads are aligned, a small dab of "Loctite" glue is applied to the screws to prevent them from moving... ... )
There is no easy answer to this question.
I don't have the manual in front of me, but...
There are 3 mounting screws on the R/P head. One is relatively "fixed" and is there for primary support, although there could be a small range of adjustment in it's function. The rear-most screw would be for head-tilt or "zenith". This would be the one primarily responsible for proper head/tape contact across all tracks. Of the bottom 2 screws, one is for the pivot point and the other would be adjustable for "azimuth", which... makes sure all 8 tracks have optimum amplitude and phase.
The Zenith may be doable by eyeballing it, (don't quote me on that caus I'm not looking at the manual presently),... you could possibly set proper zenith by comparing it to the fixed tape guides,... but the azimuth is best done with a cal tape and an oscilloscope. There is no way to achieve fine precision without the proper tools. With a calibration tape you may have a longshot at doing it by "ear" and by referencing the VU meters, but keep in mind the adjustment window is very fine.
When a head is relapped, here in the US, it's common for the user to dismount and send off the entire head block with heads attached, and the head technician reworker will dismount and align the heads again after the relap job. JRF Magnetics has in their lit that the heads will be "laser aligned", which to me means they point a laser just above the fixed points of the tape guides, and set azimuth to a fine precision using the laser as a go/no-go guide for physical leveling with regard to the other fixed points in the tape path.
That's my layman's understanding of the issues. Although I'm no expert by any stretch, I've set up a cal tape and scope and adjusted Azimuth on a 388 at least once, as well as several times over the record/repro electronic calibrations of the unit,... all with satisfactory results. Being a homer/weekend warrior, though, no matter how I've taken care to be exact and follow the book (etc.), there's never a true end to wondering if something's "off" or "not quite perfect".
You can do as much as you can do by eye/ear, then find the best tech within a reasonable distance and take it there.
Alt: get an MRL tape, a DVM, an oscilloscope, the manual and set aside a few days of tinkering to DIY.
(Note: the Erase head has 2 mounting screws and is apparently less critical, but is not to be overlooked).
(... ... Once the heads are aligned, a small dab of "Loctite" glue is applied to the screws to prevent them from moving... ... )
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