Tascam 488 mkII issue

[tapecanaveral]

hey yall, just picked up a 488mkii in awesome condition but unfortunately after a few weeks an issue has started to pop up. the recorded signal from track 8 has started to cut out regularly. when the signal's gone, even the track 8 meter shows nothing. however, when i apply a little bit of pressure to the center of the bottom plate of the unit, signal pops back in meter and all for a while until it cuts out again. my first thought was that something with the sync switch was up but no amount of wiggling or deoxit seemed to stabilize the track. i also took it apart, unplugged and cleaned all the pin connections and generally cleaned up the insides, but no luck. anyone have any idea what might be up and what else i could try? thanks

 

[Slouching Raymond]

Perhaps a dry solder joint somewhere, that connects when you twist the pcb.

 

[sweetbeats]

I would:

A. Make certain the head is completely clean using 91% or better isopropyl alcohol or good quality denatured alcohol, and

B. Verify correct pinch roller pressure per the service manual, and

C. The most likely option, replace the pinch roller. In my personal experience the pinch rollers age in such a way that they are slightly conical shaped, causing a skewing of the tape in the path. This can impact tape-to-head contact at one or both edge tracks. Consider a good quality new pinch roller from Athan or getting the existing roller refurbished by Terry Witt at Terry’s Rubber Rollers. You get what you pay for. If you decide to replace your roller with a budget “donut” from Reverb or eBay, you’ve been forewarned. Do it right.