TASCAM 388 now rewinding at a snail's pace! Any thoughts?

  • Thread starter Thread starter gentlejohn
  • Start date Start date
gentlejohn

gentlejohn

New member
Hi, went out to have my last session of the year on my newly acquired TASCAM 388 but didn't get very far. The problem is with the Rewind function. It's rewinding in REAL time (as opposed to 'reel' time!) ie: it takes the length of my latest 3 minute composition to get it back to the start of the track making it VERY difficult to get going. Any thoughts folks? I'm guessing a belt has finally given up the ghost and (seemingly overnight!) become too slack to function properly? Ideally I need to get back up'n'running as soon as possible with this. Any help/advice on this matter would be much appreciated!
 
What kind of tape are you running in it? Brand, model, old or new tape, length, etc.
 
Ok, that is very likely the problem. Can you post a picture of the box? Or is there a date of manufacture on the box?
 
Thanks Beck! I can't find my camera but I'd say the tape is circa. 1980s. I sourced 1/4" Ampex 456 as, from some research, I'd read it was compatible. So, in your opinion, the problem's not a slack belt but the wrong tape right?
 
gentlejohn said:
Thanks Beck! I can't find my camera but I'd say the tape is circa. 1980s. I sourced 1/4" Ampex 456 as, from some research, I'd read it was compatible. So, in your opinion, the problem's not a slack belt but the wrong tape right?
Click to expand...

Yeah... most Ampex 456 from before they moved the factory setup to Alabama is fucked and got sticky shed syndrome really badly. Most late run 456 is perfectly fine and almost all Quantegy is perfectly fine. I've learned that from Beck and experienced IRL too.

Try BASF/EMTEC/RMGI LPR35, they won't need no calibration. Or even "wrong" tapes like old AGFA PE36 would be nice or at least they sound great on a Fostex though slightly noisier than the 456/457/SM911 your 388 is likely to be set up for.
 
I'd go for RMGI LPR35. I just trust it more than others 'cause it's new and It works just fine with the 388.
 
Oh, right. It's working fine no problem in PLAY mode & F-FWD - it's just REWIND. In light of this I thought it might have been a belt issue. Another thing I've noticed is that most of the time (but not ALL the time!) when I press RTZ (Return To Zero) it'll will stop approx. 30 secs in advance of the mark - kinda weird. So, just to get this straight in my head, to do a proper control test here I need to source some unused, completely brand new 1mm thick 1/4" tape to determine that the problem is indeed an incompatible tape issue?
 
The TASCAM decks are usually direct-drive for the reel motors. If only rewind is acting funny that may indicate a drive electronics or motor problem. But definitely eliminate the tape first.
If you only wound it 3 minutes in, it's quite likely that a sticky tape issue is only affecting rewind because the left reel is still very full and heavy and the added stress of the dodgy tape is pushing it over the edge.
 
You might just need to adjust the tension arms. I have found if one is set a little higher or lower than the other it affects rew/ffw speed.
 
gentlejohn said:
Thanks Beck! I can't find my camera but I'd say the tape is circa. 1980s. I sourced 1/4" Ampex 456 as, from some research, I'd read it was compatible. So, in your opinion, the problem's not a slack belt but the wrong tape right?
Click to expand...

Yes that tape is absolutely 100% the problem if its pre-1995 456. There may be other problems, but you'll need to get new tape to properly run your 388 through its paces. Sticky-Shed Syndrome is one of the most important things you can get familiar with in the analog tape world. Tape machine issues are very often tape issues, and many people spend big money before they figure it out. In fact many of the parts machines you see on eBay were perfectly good, but the owners were clueless about sticky-shed syndrome.

Also 456 is not recommend for the 388, but rather 457, which is the 1-mil (thinner version). In combination with sticky-shed the thicker 456 will make things worse. The 388 transport is not the most robust. Tascam officially recommends 1-mil tape for the 388, like 457, 407, BASF LPR-35, Scotch 207, etc. Tascam original product literature for the 388 recommended Maxell 35-90.

Be careful with your research. Music recording forums on the web are rife with error and misconceptions. I rarely see anyone who fully understands the sticky-shed tape issue anywhere else but this forum. Well-respected members on gearslutz, Tapeheads, Tape-Op, etc are dead wrong about many things concerning different tapes and their properties. Even wikipedia is full of misinformation about sticky-shed.

Dump that old Ampex tape and get at least one unopened reel of known good tape to test your 388. It does not have to be brand new as long as its sealed. Any of the following will work:

Quantegy 457 or 407
3M/Scotch 207
Maxell UD 35-90 or XL 35-90B
Radio Shack "Supertape" 1800
BASF, EMTEC or RMGI LPR-35

When it comes to tape ask here first! And see my Sticky-Shed Tape Thread at the top of this forum.

Slow rewind/fast forward is the most common Sticky-shed tape symptom. Before you run new tape you'll want to thoroughly clean your tape path, heads, guides, rollers, etc. You'll need to get all the sticky-shed residue off before you continue.
 
Thanks for all the great info folks! OK, I'll definitely need to source me some decent tape for test purposes then. Getting back to this REWIND problem ... thinking further about this, I wasn't having any transport issues from approx. a third into the tape right through to the end. It is only since I rewound the tape back to the beginning and started recording from the beginning of the tape again (after activating the LOAD function). It's like the take up spool can't cope with the weight of the full tape. Thing is, I clean my heads meticulously before each session and the swab always comes back clean. There's no visible 'shed' 'tape flaking' or 'stickyness' anywhere to be seen - it all looks tip top. Weird!
 
It could be due to what Beck mentioned. The brand you have is a little thicker tape. Could be putting just a little extra weight
on the transport.
Also,like I mentioned in an earlier post,it could have something to do with your tension arms being out of line.
With the tape loaded are they level with each other? Are they up too high or down too low? This will affest the speed at which your transport will rew/ffw. There are two adjustment points on the reel servo board that you can tweak to get the arms at the right level.
 
Cheers Harv! I'll look into that. Looking at the tension arms they do both look rather low I have to say. I'll source some more tape first but, if I do need to adjust the tension I hope it's not a big job! Thanks for the heads up my friend.
 
gentlejohn said:
I clean my heads meticulously before each session and the swab always comes back clean. There's no visible 'shed' 'tape flaking' or 'stickyness' anywhere to be seen - it all looks tip top. Weird!
Click to expand...

Often there will not be any stickiness or flaking at all. Sticky-shed manifests in many different ways... there are levels, with shedding being the worst and last stage. Early stages of sticky-shed simply cause increased friction, thus slowing down the tape as it passes over heads and guides. You can't feel stickiness with your fingers either. The binder in the tape absorbs moisture causing the tape to swell. So you get more friction and the swelling pushes the oxide further away from the tape heads, which causes poor high frequency response.
 
Thanks for clearing that up! Looks like I need to source me some (preferably new!) tape for a control test. Any trusted UK-based sellers you know of or will I need to be looking further a field for some quality stuff?

PS: Apologies, I provided misinformation on the test tape I've been using! The one I thought was Ampex all along is actually BASF (I don't know what type but comparing it to the used Maxell UD35/90 - the other tape that came with the unit) it does look very similar with the dark brown matte finish on the outside of the tape. I'm going off out now to wipe then try this Maxell tape and will report back. (That said, I still won't have conclusive results until I get to try the unit with a compatible NEW tape methinks!)

PPS: While I'm on again, does anyone know of any UK-based (preferably Scotland) trusted engineers who can properly full-service & calibrate a Tascam 388 studio in order for it to be firing on all cylinders from the get go enabling optimum performance? Just starting out again as it were I'd very much like to have the peace of mind of knowing that everything is running (and sounding!) the best it possibly can so I can just crack on with music-making in 2014.
 
gentlejohn said:
PS: Apologies, I provided misinformation on the test tape I've been using! The one I thought was Ampex all along is actually BASF (I don't know what type but comparing it to the used Maxell UD35/90 - the other tape that came with the unit) it does look very similar with the dark brown matte finish on the outside of the tape. I'm going off out now to wipe then try this Maxell tape and will report back. (That said, I still won't have conclusive results until I get to try the unit with a compatible NEW tape methinks!)
Click to expand...

And this brings up another issue when it comes to selecting tape: If it's not sealed there is no sure way to know what type of tape it is. You are now saying that what you thought was Ampex is really BASF... but you can't be sure of that either because the tapes were opened and used before you got them. Over time reels wind up in wrong boxes and tape ends up on wrong reels, even in professional studios.

As JP mentioned some BASF tapes have the model number printed on the back, as do some AGFA and EMTEC, but if its not, there's no sure way to know what you've got. Some of us can tell by the smell of the tape from decades of working with different types, but that can't be taught online of course.

So anyway... RULE NUMBER 1: Never buy or depend on used tape because once a box is opened the tape inside may not be what the box says it is.
 
Wise words indeed! From here on in it's sealed tape. THANKS! Now to find a source .......
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top