Problem with TEAC A-3440

J

johndrake66

New member
Recently inherited a TEAC A-3440 in good shape, all lamps still seem to be working, some scratches on the wood side panels, AC cord is slightly frayed.

It seems to work perfectly except for the fact that any tape I put in, even if I select small/large reel or low/high speed, the tape plays at least 4X-8X slower than what is normal! The guys I got it from claimed that it might have been modified to do some data recording or by someone who really wanted to get the most for their money. Can anyone give any advice? Is there something I can adjust internally to speed it up to normal?

A friend mentioned the capstan had to be replaced but when I checked it against photos on eBay, the capstan is the same size!

Thanks in advance..
 
The capstan shaft that is visible from the outside of the deck may appear the same in size to what you see on ebay photos of other unmodified decks but you have to keep in mind that your deck is a belt drive design for driving the capstan so the internal flywheel or the pulley spindle on the motor itself may have been changed for ones with smaller diameters and thus why the speed is so slow.

There are also internal speed pots for adjusting the speed of the capstan motor itself but you would need the service manual for the deck to find the correct pot to adjust...I assume that even once you find it, it may turn out to be a fine adjustment only which couldn't account for such a radical speed change but, I might be wrong on that as I don't have the documentation to verify that.

Perhaps someone in a charitable mood with the manual will chime in here for you?

Cheers! :)
 
Belt slippage

First thing I would check is if the capstan drive belt is slipping. Put a good FRESH tape on and in play, watch to see if there is any slippage. With that radical a change in speed, it should be obvious. If it does you need a new belt. As far as modifications go, measure the diameter of your capstan flywheel and also your drive motor wheel and post them here. I will check them with mine. I will check my manual for the location of the speed control pots later today. My studio is down at my shop. I'll report back later.

Snipeguy

Hey Ghost....what's with the new avatar! :p :D
 
snipeguy said:
Hey Ghost....what's with the new avatar! :p :D
Click to expand...
I am in disguise actually...In reality, I am a 16 year old native of China and I am hiding from my government which is holding my uncle hostage in a yo-yo factory! :eek:

cyanora! :)
 
A more recent pic perhaps? I do miss the old 'Desperado'. Nice to see that I'm not the only one with a 'touch of grey'.LOL :D :D

Snipeguy
 
I have the same machine and the same speed problem. It's eithier too slow or too fast, depending on the spped button adjustment. If this is a belt problem, does anyone know where to get a belt?
 
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