Tape Pop//Click Sound wtf?

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caprice

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Hi I have a Tascam 424mkIII and it has been working great since I got it. I've had this problem with 2 tapes recently. I'll use the new tape as an example.
I got one of the Maxell high bias tapes (the XLII's) from my local bookstore which I've used before and which work fine. I'm even recording some spoken word for a buddy of mine and he got the same tapes from the same place and they work fine they do not have this problem.
But ok, I bought a new blank tape from there, brought it home, set it up and laid some tracks. Well when I played it back it recorded fine but there is a pop/click noise every so seconds. It's really annoying and I can't get rid of it. I recorded again, and wiped the tape but it seems like the popping only increases after that.
So I took the tape back and exchanged it brought home the tape and just played it without recording anything and sure enough the pops are still there. every time i rewind and play it back it seems the pops increase.
To make sure it wasn't my portastudio I got some of my other tapes out with other recordings and they played fine with no pop sounds.
It does seem like the pop sounds increase in volume and frequency when the tape is recorded and played back at high speed. still noticeable though at normal speed.

I was thinking maybe the tape film had gone bad or it was a tension issue but not sure. The other tape this happened on was a very old tape from goodwill. but on that one the popping only lasted so much on one side and you could record on the other side with no problem.

Any help with this mystery I would much appreciate it. Thanks!
 
Just a shot in the dark but, did you try to demag the heads and paths? I had that happen on my deck once and after I cleaned and demagnetized the heads everything was fine. Might be signs of other problems.
 
Thanks for the reply! I wasn't familiar with demaging heads until you menitoned it. I did some google searches and learned what it is but not much on how to do it. I haven't cleaned the heads either since I got the machine over a year ago.
I've used this site before which has a lot of good information on it, i found this article on homerecording dot com (can't post URL's yet apparently, it talks about cleaning the heads with lintless swabs and not rubbing alcohol but some other chemical?)

My question, where do I get this lintless swabs? where do i get the chemical to clean the heads?

And how exactly do I demag a head?

sorry for the n00b questions but im still learning.

Thanks!
 
I also found this website usrecordingmedia-store dot stores dot yahoo dot net/cleanwipandm dot html. A head demagnetizer there is like $70 and 19 and 18 for the head cleaner and swabs respectively. Are these good prices?
 
BTW welcome to the forum. You can buy makeup remover pads in the pharmacy section of Wal-Mart ETC You don't have to buy the expensive head cleaners, you can buy isoproply alcohol (get the highest % you can) and clean the heads and tape path side to side (in the direction the tape travels in). After that, make sure the deck is off or unplugged and tape is as far away as you can get it to demag the tape paths. Plug in the demag from a few feet away from the deck and bring the demag slowly to the tape path. Get as close as you can to the heads without touching them. Run the demag back and forth a few times, then when your done slowly move the demag back as far away from the deck as you can and unplug. You can buy demags through Junkbay for about 15 to 20 $$$ Or if you want to spend a few $$ more you can buy a han d mag. I get a lot of stuff from Splicit Reel Audio Products - reel to reel recording supplies You will have to email and ask if they sell the han d mag, if not usrecordingmedia or ATR Magnetics, LLC sells them. Good luck. Let us know how things turn out.
 
Yep, what dodge has said. And also I'm curious about the brand of tape you're using. I see you mentioned Maxell as something you bought earlier, but couldn't tell if the popping tape was also Maxell or something else. There are bad tapes out there and some that are allegedly bulk loaded with name brand tape but don't have good anti-static shells. A bad shell design can cause drop outs and popping... and make itself known about this time of year if your in a cold region with low relative humidity in your recording environment.
 
Thanks dodgeaspen and Beck! This is terrific information! I'll go get the pads and alcohol tomorrow to clean off the head. The technique you were talking about dodgeaspen to demag the head is what i've read through various how to guides online but it always feels so much better reading it from someone who's done it! The tape im using Beck is the Maxell XLII. Not my favorite so far, I like TDK's a lot because the mechanism is normally smoother and the playback is not as hissy. But after reading online after I demag the head it can take away a lot of the hiss (i've used some radioshack tapes, cheap ones, and the hiss was unbelievable). I think you're right also Beck because it doesn't make sense the 4 track works fine with my other tapes and not with this new one. I live in KY so its pretty cold here right now and the studio is in my basement and its decently humid down there. Thank you so much you all, and happy to be in the forums!
 
Have bought any brand new tape yet? If not you should look into RMG. I'd also suggest ATR but I don't know if you need that high output of a tape. I hope things are working more smoothly. Let us know.
 
The problem you are having will not go away with cleaning and demagnetizing. Something is failing or already failed somewhere in the electronics.
 
The problem you are having will not go away with cleaning and demagnetizing. Something is failing or already failed somewhere in the electronics.

Bingo, nailed it.


If it were an older porta, I would have said Demag. However you have one of those later series, They're NOT very robust. It could possibly be a bad solder joint making that random pop noise. Prehaps something intermitent in the mixer section. Do you happen to use one input more than the others? That can cause excessive wear and tear on the moveable parts. You mention: " rewind and play it back it seems the pops increase." The vibration from the deck may possibly be aggravating a loose joint? sounds plauseable.


I don't wanna whiz on yer parade, "it" played great... However the last built Tascam 4 tracks from the late 90's early 00's are cheapest ones they ever made. ( Well, those and the porta07) I own many portastudios from all vintages, I have more problems with "MK blue" series, 414 424MKII, etc... constantly having to open them up and repair something. Recently, I even had to epoxy all the RCA jacks down on my 424MKIII due to the being so loose. Prior to, The solder joints were the ONLY thing holding them in. Very bad designs. As they're are aging, I find it's getting even worse. IMO The older portas rule, plus they sound far better.
 
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Bingo, nailed it.


If it were an older porta, I would have said Demag. However you have one of those later series, They're NOT very robust. It could possibly be a bad solder joint making that random pop noise. Prehaps something intermitent in the mixer section. Do you happen to use one input more than the others? That can cause excessive wear and tear on the moveable parts. You mention: " rewind and play it back it seems the pops increase." The vibration from the deck may possibly be aggravating a loose joint? sounds plauseable.


I don't wanna whiz on yer parade, "it" played great... However the last built Tascam 4 tracks from the late 90's early 00's are cheapest ones they ever made. ( Well, those and the porta07) I own many portastudios from all vintages, I have more problems with "MK blue" series, 414 424MKII, etc... constantly having to open them up and repair something. Recently, I even had to epoxy all the RCA jacks down on my 424MKIII due to the being so loose. Prior to, The solder joints were the ONLY thing holding them in. Very bad designs. As they're are aging, I find it's getting even worse. IMO The older portas rule, plus they sound far better.

I'm not sure if it's mechanical or not. FYI I'm in a big rush to get my demo finished so I'm recording everything digital for now until I get enough money together to demag it and clean it. I knew I should've got the MKII!!!!!

Anyway, about the RCA outputs on the back of the 424MKIII, yes, they are shit. When I got mine you had to jangle them just right to make a good connection. One of my friends worked on electronics in the Coast Guard and studied them at Sullivan so I took it to him. Basically the outputs are soldered directly to the board, and any movement weakens the solder. He said when he opened mine up there was barely anything holding them on. Another FYI, if you want to re-solder them yourself, he said they're the type you want to make a perfect drop shape for the solder, kind of like a hershey kiss.

But again I'm not sure if it's mechanical because I just got done recording my friend's radio show with some new tapes he brought me, the same exact kind because we bought them at the same place, and his tapes don't have this problem. I'm almost certain it's the tape, if bad tapes exist. I just find it strange that I bought 2 and they both were this way. Maybe the tape tension is too tight, or they sat in the shop for too long. I don't know. But I'm going to clean it and demag it in January when I will have the means to do so. Then try recording some stuff, if it goes well I'll get some of those RMG or ATR tapes and see how it sounds.
the MKIII isn't a total piece of shit though. I've done some acoustic recordings with a good mic and decent pre-amp and the tone was pretty thick, sounded much thicker than digital even with the hiss from god knows how long without a demag session on the head.

Thanks though you all and I'll let you know once I get the demagnetizer and clean the head. Happy Holidays!
 
I'm not sure if it's mechanical or not. FYI I'm in a big rush to get my demo finished so I'm recording everything digital for now until I get enough money together to demag it and clean it. I knew I should've got the MKII!!!!!

Anyway, about the RCA outputs on the back of the 424MKIII, yes, they are shit. When I got mine you had to jangle them just right to make a good connection. One of my friends worked on electronics in the Coast Guard and studied them at Sullivan so I took it to him. Basically the outputs are soldered directly to the board, and any movement weakens the solder. He said when he opened mine up there was barely anything holding them on. Another FYI, if you want to re-solder them yourself, he said they're the type you want to make a perfect drop shape for the solder, kind of like a hershey kiss.

But again I'm not sure if it's mechanical because I just got done recording my friend's radio show with some new tapes he brought me, the same exact kind because we bought them at the same place, and his tapes don't have this problem. I'm almost certain it's the tape, if bad tapes exist. I just find it strange that I bought 2 and they both were this way. Maybe the tape tension is too tight, or they sat in the shop for too long. I don't know. But I'm going to clean it and demag it in January when I will have the means to do so. Then try recording some stuff, if it goes well I'll get some of those RMG or ATR tapes and see how it sounds.
the MKIII isn't a total piece of shit though. I've done some acoustic recordings with a good mic and decent pre-amp and the tone was pretty thick, sounded much thicker than digital even with the hiss from god knows how long without a demag session on the head.

Thanks though you all and I'll let you know once I get the demagnetizer and clean the head. Happy Holidays!

Hi Caprice,

First off, I hope yer demo comes out Excellent! Secondly, I want you to know tht I'm not "panning" on the 424 MKIII ( no pun), overall, it's a good machine. I actually like the "sweepable mid function on each channel, it's a handy feature. I totally agree, you can get some thick tones from the unit. You can also squeeze out a little more High Freq content if you run the pitch wheel at full blast. However, what does it for me is the "Build Quality", it's not there. Do realize that the MK series came out right at the time of "afforadable digital" for the masses. While they may of packed in the features on that unit, they also cut on the Q. That's also how it usually goes with "Modern Electronics."

I don't know how old you are, but I was a young adult during the home recording "Craze" of the 1980's. That was the time when Cassette was the only "budget" format available. Low end R2R was the next choice, and that could be pricey. The 4 track machines of yore had more thought put into them and they really pushed the limits with the technology, the build quality was there.( alot went into them) That's why you still see alot of those older machines floating around.

Lots of them are out of calibration now from being banged around, loose belts, bad pinch wheel, etc... However, even with that said, great sounds can still be had out of many of them. It just goes to show you what a good 4 track & cassette format can actually do potential wise. ( just think of what one that's in 100% serviceable condition can do)

IMPO, I can't help but get a kick out of people who knock the 4 track cassette, saying you cannot do nothing with it, just prehaps it's the user.<--- Garbage in, Garbage out. Best of all, it's STILL a full waveform being recorded, not chopped up and sampled. To me, that's the fatal flaw of all digital audio, some of the wave is missing and "guessed in". ( Regardless how clean it may sound, audio is missing & always will.)

PS- Just thought of something, don't know if you have a bulk eraser, try wiping those tapes and re-record over them. If it pops again in the same areas, I'd say you have dropout on the tape. ( anything is possible.) Off topic---> Also, keeping the tape path clean at all times is the key to getting great sound off a 4 track. It's also the most overlooked & neglected.

Happy Holidays to you as well;)
 
Hi I have a Tascam 424mkIII and it has been working great since I got it. I've had this problem with 2 tapes recently. I'll use the new tape as an example.
I got one of the Maxell high bias tapes (the XLII's) from my local bookstore which I've used before and which work fine. I'm even recording some spoken word for a buddy of mine and he got the same tapes from the same place and they work fine they do not have this problem.
But ok, I bought a new blank tape from there, brought it home, set it up and laid some tracks. Well when I played it back it recorded fine but there is a pop/click noise every so seconds. It's really annoying and I can't get rid of it. I recorded again, and wiped the tape but it seems like the popping only increases after that.
So I took the tape back and exchanged it brought home the tape and just played it without recording anything and sure enough the pops are still there. every time i rewind and play it back it seems the pops increase.
To make sure it wasn't my portastudio I got some of my other tapes out with other recordings and they played fine with no pop sounds.
It does seem like the pop sounds increase in volume and frequency when the tape is recorded and played back at high speed. still noticeable though at normal speed.

I was thinking maybe the tape film had gone bad or it was a tension issue but not sure. The other tape this happened on was a very old tape from goodwill. but on that one the popping only lasted so much on one side and you could record on the other side with no problem.

Any help with this mystery I would much appreciate it. Thanks!
I had this issue and I was frantically looking for any help…. I noticed this strange problem with a crackle and a pop.

On a new reel I would record a piece of music and about one minute or so into the recording on playback I would hear a crack Sound and pops
I couldn’t for the life of me work this out and I found this page

THE SOLUTION THAT I FIGURED OUT
The metle nab Reel sometimes is buckled and the tape rub against the Reel as it’s spinning round causing a static buildup. And using a thin card. Or reel adjusting disks from Amazon this will make the tape clear the gap on the metal reels stopping it from rubbing against nab reels . No longer causing a static buildup.. I hope this all help somebody

It took me weeks and weeks to figure this out
 
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