Nice Fostex R8 deal

[WarmJetGuitar]

A few days ago I picked up a Fostex R8 in nearly perfect condition for just £150 including lots of cables, service manual and a couple of Ampex 457's. The guy was also selling a Fostex 450 mixing desk and my bandmate asked me to buy it if it was in good condition. A great deal it seems as I've been out looking for a cheap but reasonable 8-track for some time and my Tascam 38 still havn't been fixed and will be expensive in tape cost.

Anything in particular I should be aware of with these units? Are they direct drive or belt driven?
Which year are they from? From how it looks and the model name I'd guess 1987.
Any tips and fact that is not included in the manual would be just great.

They both went straight into action recording some friends and after a good cleaning and some confusion about how to handle the controls most things went pretty smooth. Despite the R8's reputation among some for being a unreliable I've been positively surprised so far.

Now I just need to understand the 450 desk - subgroups can be quite confusing especially when working all night being stoned and tired

Only bad sign I noticed during recording was a squeeling sound from the mechanics in FF and RW mode but it stopped - maybe the machine just needed to run a bit to get back to its prime. The reel hubs is slightly loose, could they be the reason?

 

[jpmorris]

The R8 uses toothed belts for the spools and a regular belt for the capstan AFAIK. It has a lot of problems where the drive wheels become loose on the shaft, but glue seems to fix that.

EDIT: I think they launched in 1990 or 1991. Prior to that was the Model 80 which looks very similar but doesn't have the pop-out control panel.

 

[WarmJetGuitar]

The drive wheels for the capstain? Alright, I'll be aware of that. Thanks mate.

1990? So this is probably from the last run of Fostex R2R?

 

[jpmorris]

The drive wheels for the capstain? Alright, I'll be aware of that. Thanks mate.
1990? So this is probably from the last run of Fostex R2R?

Probably one of the first. This is just an estimate, but I think the production years were something like:
A8: 1982-1986
M80: 1986-1989
R8: 1989-1996(?)

I dearly wanted an R8 when I was about 14. Long before I could have done anything useful with it.

EDIT: SOS reviewed the R8 in 1989 EDIT: And the M80 in 1986

 

[WarmJetGuitar]

The production years probably explain why it is close to being too clean sounding when not pushing it. The 90's was a decade where treble was really in high fashion. Luckily some telephone engineers invented the EQ long ago

 

[James K]

I used an R8 until recently. It did have quite a few problems but I managed to get around them all reasonably well. It needed a new capstan belt when I got it, the pulley on the right hand hub kept slipping off, it stopped erasing on track two, the buttons wore out on the remote and it used to take about a second or two to get up to speed. Apart from that, it was a great machine.

 

[WarmJetGuitar]

Yeah, it's a great machine! At first I thought it was a bit thin sounding but it seems to be solved by EQing the drums a bit bassier in the submix.

However it sometimes squeeling while rewinding or FF'ing. Do you think there's a disaster waiting to happen? It doesn't happen with all tapes.

 

[jpmorris]

Is it new tape? Old Ampex stock sometimes does this, which yes, may presage disaster. Otherwise, it may simply the transport marginally out of kilter, e.g. not everything is the same height.

Do you know where the sound is coming from?

 

[WarmJetGuitar]

It's worst with previously unusued but old cheap acetate tape but it'll sometimes squeel even with new RMGI. Everything runs smooth with Ampex 457 which is the tape the machine is calibrated for by default. Could it be due to the machine being made for thin long play type tapes?

When the problem is worst it seems to be caused by flanges not being completely straight. Maybe I should find some metal flanges for the tapes and check if it solves the problem?

It's coming from the left hand side of the machine, probably the tension arm (name?) but its hard to say for sure. The transport seems a little shitty compared to the A4.