Please helpFostex E2 no signal input. Help!

G

gd2373

New member
Hi all,
I have a fostex E2 that I purchased not too long ago and it works flawlessly...ALMOST...it was restored by a tech and partially recap but for some reason... maybe I'm doing something wrong...I can't get it to record . Plays perfectly, all the functions work for playback and when I setup for recording...(setting to "INPUT" AND ENGAGING Ready "safe" ) it will Engage The Heads and tape erases, but no new track is laid down. Input signal from my source is fine, (plug same cables into my Akai 636 and records great) but on the fostex it seems like the signal is just not getting in ...the meters do not respond at all!! The input levels (pots) are turned all the way to Max and I even added +6db on my preamp output source going into foster, and still nothing. The meters do not move..I'm thinking itis is either bad input terminals, or possibly a bad connection? Maybe the tech accidentally left something disconnected like a wire harness, because it's odd that everything else works perfectly when it plays back and it engages to record but no signal comes in. Any thoughts?
 
The restore was done before I bought it..about 1 year prior..per the invoice the seller had. No issues were reported at the time of sale... but then I'm talking about a 30+ year old piece of gear w/parts that have ticking expiration dates... even sitting on a shelf, I 'd imagine these things could just work one day and not work the next after being in storage for a year. But it seems like an odd problem, almost as if something is just disconnected because it's dead in recording. No audio signal comes in at all during the recording process, but it plays like a brand new machine ; fast-forward, rewind, play, breaking mechanism, clock w/memory search points work, restore to zero works, tape sensor & bias all work. And the Meters on playback and all pots work as well. So I'm stumped... even more so because the pots and the meters are all part of the same section that also controls the recording.
 
So, when the source is set to INPUT there is no activity on the meters AND no signal at the output jacks? And it is the same whether the input is in CAL mode or not?
 
sweetbeats said:
.So, when the source is set to INPUT there is no activity on the meters AND no signal at the output jacks? And it is the same whether the input is in CAL mode or not?
Click to expand...
Cal mode? Not sure how to set that... I remember seeing that in the manual. But plugged in to xlr L+R inputs and nothing comes out.. No meter or signal outputs. Tried RCA as well... Still nothing. Also plugged audio signal into the calibration input on the back and the calibration meter (3rd meter) didn't move either.
 
No I’m talking about the meter select switch on the front panel next to the speed switch. It makes no difference with meter activity or audio output in INPUT source mode whether the METER switch is in CAL mode or LINE OUT mode?
 
Okay.

Question: has it *ever* worked for you and this is a new problem, or have you never been able to get the input function to work?

Describe for me, in detail, your source and cabling for the tape deck. In other words what device is hooked up to the inputs of the Fostex, and what kind of cabling are you using? Tell me about the cabling both when you are using the XLR inputs and the RCA inputs.

Also, FYI you have an E-22, not an E-2. You mentioned earlier the “CAL input”…no such thing. I think you mean the “CUE” input. Your machine is actually a 3-track machine, two audio tracks and a center “CUE” track typically used for recording timecode for sync applications. It’s an audio track as well but a much more narrow track physically on tape and so doesn’t have as good specifications.
 
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