Permanently Damaged Heads?

  • Thread starter Thread starter dfgh11
  • Start date Start date
This probably does more to expose the shortcomings of a photo for judging head wear.

From what I can tell it appears to be a very low-mileage tape path. The only problems I see are the tape oxide buildup, especially on the guides, and some more persistent contamination on individual tracks. Whether these are remnants of sticky tape or surface oxidation, I can’t tell.

The wear pattern appears reasonably narrow on the head itself as seen in this negative pic. More telling is the minimal wear on the tape guide to the right of the head – not as obscured by glare from the photo.

Many older machines need an application of non-abrasive metal polish to tackle surface buildup that alcohol won’t fix.
 

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This is what it sounds like when I record on tracks 1-4



Just save target as.


I can get some better pictres if you wish?
 
dfgh11 said:
This is what it sounds like when I record on tracks 1-4

Click to expand...

The only time I have ever heard popping and rumbling close to that bad was on an old neglected cassette multitrack (not mine). It sounds to me like symptoms typical of severely magnetized heads – about as bad as it gets.
 
Beck said:
The only time I have ever heard popping and rumbling close to that bad was on an old neglected cassette multitrack (not mine). It sounds to me like symptoms typical of severely magnetized heads – about as bad as it gets.
Click to expand...

Damn, I thought so
 
dfgh11 said:
Damn, I thought so
Click to expand...

I have no idea if it's possible to recover the heads, but you might want to ask these people:

http://www.phi-magnetronics.co.uk/

They might also be able to make a compatible head for you but it would be pretty expensive I'd guess.

I think I'll get a UPS for my demagnetizer now.
 
jpmorris said:
I have no idea if it's possible to recover the heads, but you might want to ask these people:

http://www.phi-magnetronics.co.uk/

They might also be able to make a compatible head for you but it would be pretty expensive I'd guess.

I think I'll get a UPS for my demagnetizer now.
Click to expand...

I looked into it last year, and someone quoted me £800
 
dfgh11 said:
I looked into it last year, and someone quoted me £800
Click to expand...
Ouch. That was for a complete new head, I suppose. I'd still ask Phi if they have any way to degauss the existing one.
 
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