Input Monitoring Problems, Help!!

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sjohnson8

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hey i'm brand new to this forum and analog recording in general but i've tried my best to do as much research as i can ahead of time so i don't make too much of a fool of myself!

i recently bought a Fostex G16S 16 track reel to reel with Dolby S and Fostex 820 mixer (just like it's sister the 812 except with 20 input tracks not 12).

when i turn on the g16s it all lights up and the guy i bought it from owns a music store who is selling it for someone else but claims it has barely ever been used is like new. it even came with 3 brand new ampex 456 1/2" tapes. so i assume it should work right?

but when watching the monitor's levels on the g16s, it's claiming sound is going into it in tracks 10, 12, 14, 16, and minimal in the other tracks if any. i've unplugged all the rca's in it and cleaned the heads best i can but i can't make it stop. this makes me think it might be the heads needing recalibration? or realignment? or something?

any help is really appreciated so thank you in advance!! i hope it's a simple fix!!

scott
 
I'd only guess try moving one of the cables from one of the existing working tape inputs over to a track input that wasn't working. (I.e, nothing else changes- a known good mixer out and cable becomes your first 'test source.
I'm not one of the analog deck guys here' but that's not 'alignment. But 'mo betta will follow. :)
 
Yeah...move a cable and see if the problem follows.

If the problem DOESN'T follow the cable then try swapping amp cards. If the problem doesn't follow the amp card then we get more complicated. If it DOES follow the amp card I suspect bad relays.

If you haven't done so already, try reseating all the amp cards.
 
to mixsit - alright yeah thank you!

to sweetbeats - an amp card? alright i'll begin my google searches! thanks!
 
ah major update!!

so i haven't been able to figure out how to record sound until just now because (ready for the biggest n00b moment you'll ever hear) you're supposed to click record and play at the SAME time. wow. so unheard of :RTFM:

SO all of those 'random' levels are actually sounds! really loud annoying ones that sound like f***ed up radio frequencies??? or something? but anyways i recorded them onto the tape on now i'm just wondering how do i make them not be there anymore and eliminate them so i could use those tracks to record on!?

thank you all so much!!!
 
Set your tape deck input (mixer output) levels down to nothing, rewind the tape, arm the tracks that have the "sounds" you don't want....and then record silence over them. :)

Don't forget to hold both REC & PLAY this time. ;)
 
sjohnson8, Welcome to the forum.

Nice setup. I had the exact same one few years back. Fostex 820 & 16GS. I'm still concerned about the noise. You sure those tapes the seller provided are actually new? Is it possible they had previous recordings on them? Maybe those frequency sounds? Some studios actually record a series of sounds at the start of recordings for reference purposes.
 
to miroslav and ron-e-g - i don't think the sounds are on the tape though because even when the tape isn't hooked up it's creating that noise, do i need to make amplifier adjustments? i can't post a link yet because im still new to the forum but if you google "fostex manual" go to the first link and open up the g16s-g24s one it'll show you on page 54 (page 56 of the pdf technically) that you can adjust the recording level setup but i'd need a precision oscilator, a volt meter, and an oxide-based screwdriver i think? or do you not think that this is the problem at all?

ps, i know the tapes are brand new because they were sealed in plastic still haha
 
sjohnson8 said:
to miroslav and ron-e-g - i don't think the sounds are on the tape though because even when the tape isn't hooked up it's creating that noise ..
Click to expand...

If there's no tape....there should be no sounds.
Are you sure they are coming from the deck...and not something from the 820 mixer?

If you disconnect the deck cables from the mixer.....you still getting sounds?
 
yeah i think they're coming from the deck! when the mixer is disconnected the soudns are still there
 
sjohnson8 said:
yeah i think they're coming from the deck! when the mixer is disconnected the sounds are still there
Click to expand...

So with the deck disconnected from the mixer, no tape running....you're seeing the meter's showing some sort of signal activity?

I'm still no quite clear on what you are seeing/hearing when you say "sounds coming from the deck"....?
Are you just looking the meters or are you somehow monitoring the deck (if it's disconnected from the mixer).

If it is what I described above....then that would some sort of electronic malfunction within the deck, and what you are seeing is just electrical hash being registered as "signal" by the meter (or if you are hearing sounds/noises from the deck).

I almost hate to mention it....but the Fostex G16 decks with Dolby S are known to develop terminal issues at some point....and age may be a factor, regardless if the deck was used or just sat in the corner for 20 years unused.
 
Is the 456 in its box? If so there should be a small sticker affixed with some numbers on it.What are those numbers? Generally with 456 if the Ampex label on the front is in the middle (top to bottom) the tape is bad. If the label is across the bottom its usually good. But there is some overlap in that so the numbers on the small sticker are critical.

fstrat76 said:
Maybe not related, but could the Ampex 456 tape be bad?
Click to expand...
 
so i made a quick blog with a video on it so you can see exactly what is happening

weirdsoundsonmytapedeck [dot] tumblr [dot] com

the variations on the noise is me messing with the eq on the mixer but those are the basic sounds it is making

and mdainsd - if i understood you correctly then here are the numbers on the 3 tapes i have:
the first) 456-273111
1/2" X 2500' 94006

the second) 456-273111
1/2" X 2500' 94025

the third) 456-273111
1/2" X 2500' 88279
 
Yes you understood correctly! And unfortunately those are all dated in the bad years. That five digit number is the date code, first two characters are the year, and the other three are the day of the year. Early '94 for two rolls and an old '88. Save the reels!
 
Ok ... just so everyone is clear ... I don't think the tape is the issue.

The tape deck is making these sounds even when no tape is installed, correct?

And you put tape on the record the sounds that the deck is making on its own, correct?

Awesome sounds, by the way! :)
 
famous beagle you are 100% correct

so how do i make the deck stop making these sounds?
 
famous beagle said:
Ok ... just so everyone is clear ... I don't think the tape is the issue.

The tape deck is making these sounds even when no tape is installed, correct?

And you put tape on the record the sounds that the deck is making on its own, correct?

Awesome sounds, by the way! :)
Click to expand...

Everyone is quite clear. I answered a question in the original post, specifically about 456 tape. What I did not do is suggest that the tape was the source of the noise.
 
i think famous beagle was just summarizing the problem thus far!

thank you so much for answering my questions about the tape, too! i really appreciate it!

so now i'm wondering this - how do i make the deck stop making those sounds?
 
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