I once had a Fisher CR 110 cassette Deck it died in 2013 when i turned the power on. I wish i would have discovered your channel at that time. I had it since 1982
Thanks for this detailed video. Waiting for my unit to arrive, got all belts needed, will replace them too following your footpath. Charming old machines they are, got to save as many of them as possible. 📻 🛠️ 🤔
Nice video thank you very much ! I cleaned the heads, replaced the belts and oiled the mecanisms but there is still one problem happening : the rewind is extremely slow or sometimes even not working at all. FF, play and counter work perfectly fine, I don't understand why.
12voltvids I know that I have 5 devices from the same era and I will do maintenance videos for them in the near future I look forword to your coments 🌷🌷🌷🌷🌷
My first cassette deck! Bought it new then. Made hundreds of great-sounding tapes and I ended up giving it away to a friend after I bought my first Nakamichi in 1976.
Yes same here. I had one of these back in the 70's as well. I sold it to buy a pioneer, which I still have, and I modified my old Pioneer. It is totally unique. Not another unit in the world like it. I took out the analog VU meters, and pit in my old home built meters. I will have to locate that deck and do a tear down. I am interested to see how bad my hack job was, as I did it back when I was in high school.
HAHAHAHA I used to do exactly what you mentioned, if I needed a "poor man's" limiter for something back in the day! Or if stereo didn't matter and I needed some kind of "poor man's AGC" I would use a tape deck to boost the level some (not too high because I didn't want to risk damaging anything) and then run it into a mono VCR since a lot of them had some form of audio AGC.
An old video I know, but if the speed is a little slow - try putting a thicker sq section belt on. Thickness of the belt does alter the gearing ratio, plus/minus one/two/three percent. Regards.
That's a nice old unit, i've seen similar autostop systems on other old decks, very clever designs :-D. I have an old ITT 720 studio recorder that has a similar idea, but as the motor gets old the drivebelt gets removed to put less load on the motor. For an evil speed bodge, take 1 inch of sewing cotton and dampen one end, press play and feed the damp end into the motor pulley/belt. Yes it is very very nasty, but i've done this just to make old crap player play near speed.
HDXFH, That sounds like a bit of a pain :-( So what about sanding the motor pulley groove down a bit with 1000 grade sand paper?, i know it's nasty but i'm an evil sod LOL :-D. I've also changed pulleys to get the speed right on some tape decks. Or is it a real pig to get to the motor?
Ooops i misread your quoted frequencys, i thought it needed to go slower, im a silly arse lol. You could try my evil way, 1 inch of sewing cotton with the end damp, then feed it on to the pulley on play back lol.
I have this exact unit, my problem is playback only plays the right side on both headphones out and line out, the left VU meter reads no sound source as well. But when recording to tape does it show both left and right and sound can be heard, but still no playback, is this an easy fix?
The Dollar Guy The other auto stop mechanisms of the day used a tape tension detector that only operated in play. Since in 1973 there weren't many cassette decks out there, most used a design very similar to this that had all mode auto stop.
Any idea on where I should look if the right channel is playing much lower than the left? Happens on both the headphone out and line out on the back. The VU meter also shows this discrepancy in volume.
If you’ve eliminated any possible dirt on the tape path Could be play head wear. There are probably adjustments on the pcb for pb level for each channel I did this with one of my old AIWA which had a similar issue
I remember that operators manuals were great manuals back in the day with pictures and some even included human hands showing actual operation! If I remember correctly was that called either "Hand Acting" or "Hand Models" maybe even called "Hand Talents" back in the day?
Hi Dave, It was nice to see you getting this old cassette deck working again. Is this your machine or a customer's machine? Could the motor be a little slow due to the motor needing to be lubricated? Regards, Tom
This is my machine. The speed is not generally lack of lubrication, they just get tired. It is a mechanically governor type motor.There are weights that spin out with centrifugal force and mechanically slow the motor. The springs start to get weak, so the weights fly out with less centrifugal force and slow the motor sooner. It was a crude way of speed control for DC motors before electronic speed control was developed.
@@12voltvids Love your videos. I recently got hold of a Sony TC-177SD for very little money. I managed to get it working as the 'Play' button was stuck. What I am finding now is the tape speed seems fine for quite awhile but as more of the cassette is played it begins to slow down - is this likely to be the problem you mention above or belts becoming stretched or something else?
Good overhaul. Any idea why the factory puts blue marker pen marks on top of the electrolytic capacitors? Seen this many times. Final assembly quality control?
Yes likely. Remember back in 73 these were all put together by hand, on an assembly line with mostly young women placing the components and soldering them one at a time. They had like 10 seconds to place a part and solder it, and then it went to the next station where the next worker would place the next part. Sort of like spart phone production in China today. Labour intensive, and mistakes were common. At the end of the line QA inspectors would spot check every unit for misplaced or backwards components, and mark the tops of parts they checked. Very common before automation eliminated the human error factor. Still these old machines represent the very best of the Japanese assembly era. This old machine will run for many more years. Just look at the parts, all metal, and heavy metal at that.
Also, just looked this up, it looks like this is/was an induction motor - so you're stuck with the speed. Only course of action - renew motor run caps, and experiment with belt with slightly differing thicknesses. Regards. EJ.
Putting the recorder in record mode will demagnetize the record/play head and erase head and the record head on a 3 head recorder. The only head that needs demagnetizing is the playback head on a 3 head deck. Playback only machines need it, not 2 head machines as long as they are put into record once every 30 to 40 hours of playback. Recording is not necessary just put it in record for a couple of seconds and the ac signal from the bias oscillator will neutralize any residual magnetism on the head.
I did that to see what happened. I was at a journey concert and what happened it they monetised the videos. So if you watch a journey concert clip on my channel ads run but I don't get the money they do.
@@DavidBerquist334 1 of 3 things will happen. 1) Nothing 2) The copyright owner will run ads on it, and collect the revenue regardless if you monetize or not. 3) they will have the video taken down which you may get a copyright strike for. There are very few artists that exercise option 3. G and R's is one, Egle's is another. Note that I am purposely spelling their names incorrectly because videos have been flagged in some cases for even saying or putting their names in descriptions. Check out Rick Beato's channel for more info about bands that take videos down. He has to be careful which artists music he plays, and when I say play's I am referring to him playing the music on his guitar. They will take down the video if a riff he playes even resembles the original.
Replacement belt too tight! That should be obvious... realize how quickly it stops turning when you press stop, that's why it's slow and has wow problem. I had this problem with deck which also has mechanical regulator motor, and previous owner put belt which was too tight and machine was also a bit slow and unstable, after I put proper size belt, the problem was gone. For a cassette deck, it's better that belt is a bit loose than a bit too tight, if proper size is not available!
220 volts? What have you been smoking? 120 perhaps. My fingers are further away from live circuits than appears on camera and everything on my work bench is isolated.
I once had a Fisher CR 110 cassette Deck it died in 2013 when i turned the power on. I wish i would have discovered your channel at that time. I had it since 1982
I miss that old technology.
Thanks for this detailed video. Waiting for my unit to arrive, got all belts needed, will replace them too following your footpath. Charming old machines they are, got to save as many of them as possible. 📻 🛠️ 🤔
I have a TC-142 that I got when I was in college in 1978. It still plays, barely. I would love to get it refurbished.
Back then auto stop mechs were very reliable, my 1978 national r432qs model i think it is, makes a nice Thump on auto stop, all metal mechanism
Another great video, thank you!
Great video! Really takes me back to my father's Sony TC deck (a bit different from this one). What was 'the stinky stuff' used to soften the belts?
I used to have one of these units and very nice it was too. I don't believe it had full auto level control - simply a very useful limiter.
Nice deck!
Nice video thank you very much ! I cleaned the heads, replaced the belts and oiled the mecanisms but there is still one problem happening : the rewind is extremely slow or sometimes even not working at all. FF, play and counter work perfectly fine, I don't understand why.
this set will live out date us thay are alll power i love this
It's built like a brick sh1t house.
12voltvids
I know that I have 5 devices from the same era and I will do maintenance videos for them in the near future I look forword to your coments 🌷🌷🌷🌷🌷
thanks for this video god bless you
My first cassette deck! Bought it new then. Made hundreds of great-sounding tapes and I ended up giving it away to a friend after I bought my first Nakamichi in 1976.
Yes same here. I had one of these back in the 70's as well. I sold it to buy a pioneer, which I still have, and I modified my old Pioneer. It is totally unique. Not another unit in the world like it. I took out the analog VU meters, and pit in my old home built meters. I will have to locate that deck and do a tear down. I am interested to see how bad my hack job was, as I did it back when I was in high school.
Hehe! Don't be surprised if you feel a bit embarrassed at your work! ;-) But you will have some nice memories looking back at who you were then.
HAHAHAHA I used to do exactly what you mentioned, if I needed a "poor man's" limiter for something back in the day! Or if stereo didn't matter and I needed some kind of "poor man's AGC" I would use a tape deck to boost the level some (not too high because I didn't want to risk damaging anything) and then run it into a mono VCR since a lot of them had some form of audio AGC.
12 Volts .. love the grey cat ❤
An old video I know, but if the speed is a little slow - try putting a thicker sq section belt on. Thickness of the belt does alter the gearing ratio, plus/minus one/two/three percent.
Regards.
Thanks. Excelent video...
That's a nice old unit, i've seen similar autostop systems on other old decks, very clever designs :-D.
I have an old ITT 720 studio recorder that has a similar idea, but as the motor gets old the drivebelt gets removed to put less load on the motor.
For an evil speed bodge, take 1 inch of sewing cotton and dampen one end, press play and feed the damp end into the motor pulley/belt.
Yes it is very very nasty, but i've done this just to make old crap player play near speed.
This one is very close. The 400hz test tape is playing at 395hz.
zx8401ztv my national RQ 432s runs 420 instead of 440 Hz, no way to adjust it's speed
HDXFH, That sounds like a bit of a pain :-(
So what about sanding the motor pulley groove down a bit with 1000 grade sand paper?, i know it's nasty but i'm an evil sod LOL :-D.
I've also changed pulleys to get the speed right on some tape decks.
Or is it a real pig to get to the motor?
zx8401ztv bigger pulley🤔 now that's a good idea, motor is very easily accessible and uses a grubscrewed brass pulley similar to one in this vid
Ooops i misread your quoted frequencys, i thought it needed to go slower, im a silly arse lol.
You could try my evil way, 1 inch of sewing cotton with the end damp, then feed it on to the pulley on play back lol.
thanks for this video
I have this exact unit, my problem is playback only plays the right side on both headphones out and line out, the left VU meter reads no sound source as well. But when recording to tape does it show both left and right and sound can be heard, but still no playback, is this an easy fix?
Do you have vidio to repair switch play won,t stay?
That ALC is so slow that it will allow the peaks of crescendos to come right through at '11' :)
I take it all the other auto stop mechanisms had patents already...
The Dollar Guy
The other auto stop mechanisms of the day used a tape tension detector that only operated in play. Since in 1973 there weren't many cassette decks out there, most used a design very similar to this that had all mode auto stop.
The manual is like a complete guide to compact cassettes and cassette recorders :)
They don't write em like they used to.
Any idea on where I should look if the right channel is playing much lower than the left? Happens on both the headphone out and line out on the back. The VU meter also shows this discrepancy in volume.
If you’ve eliminated any possible dirt on the tape path Could be play head wear. There are probably adjustments on the pcb for pb level for each channel I did this with one of my old AIWA which had a similar issue
I remember that operators manuals were great manuals back in the day with pictures and some even included human hands showing actual operation! If I remember correctly was that called either "Hand Acting" or "Hand Models" maybe even called "Hand Talents" back in the day?
I had an aunt that was a hand model. She would have her hands photographed wearing rings, and bracelets for deportment store catalogs.
there were also hand models that were once in owners manual such as the Panasonic PV1200!
How do I adjust pitch speed on this unit? Anyone?
Hi Dave,
It was nice to see you getting this old cassette deck working again. Is this your machine or a customer's machine?
Could the motor be a little slow due to the motor needing to be lubricated?
Regards, Tom
This is my machine. The speed is not generally lack of lubrication, they just get tired. It is a mechanically governor type motor.There are weights that spin out with centrifugal force and mechanically slow the motor. The springs start to get weak, so the weights fly out with less centrifugal force and slow the motor sooner. It was a crude way of speed control for DC motors before electronic speed control was developed.
Thanks for the information there. I'm glad this machine is yours because I know it'll be well taken care of.
@@12voltvids Love your videos. I recently got hold of a Sony TC-177SD for very little money. I managed to get it working as the 'Play' button was stuck. What I am finding now is the tape speed seems fine for quite awhile but as more of the cassette is played it begins to slow down - is this likely to be the problem you mention above or belts becoming stretched or something else?
@@AvidRetro more than likely slipping belts.
I'm working on my sony cfs_1030 for months I didn't find out problems yet lol
Hi Dave, great video. Where do you buy your belts from?
Kpcomponents has most but you need to know the size.
@@12voltvids Thanks
Good overhaul. Any idea why the factory puts blue marker pen marks on top of the electrolytic capacitors? Seen this many times. Final assembly quality control?
I have noticed that too.
Yes likely. Remember back in 73 these were all put together by hand, on an assembly line with mostly young women placing the components and soldering them one at a time. They had like 10 seconds to place a part and solder it, and then it went to the next station where the next worker would place the next part. Sort of like spart phone production in China today. Labour intensive, and mistakes were common. At the end of the line QA inspectors would spot check every unit for misplaced or backwards components, and mark the tops of parts they checked. Very common before automation eliminated the human error factor. Still these old machines represent the very best of the Japanese assembly era. This old machine will run for many more years. Just look at the parts, all metal, and heavy metal at that.
Also, just looked this up, it looks like this is/was an induction motor - so you're stuck with the speed. Only course of action - renew motor run caps, and experiment with belt with slightly differing thicknesses.
Regards. EJ.
Not too worried. Not being put back in service.
Sr Dave, please clear something to me: to demagnetize the cassete deck is necessary keep it turned on and rec mode?
I didn't understand so well
Thanks
Putting the recorder in record mode will demagnetize the record/play head and erase head and the record head on a 3 head recorder. The only head that needs demagnetizing is the playback head on a 3 head deck. Playback only machines need it, not 2 head machines as long as they are put into record once every 30 to 40 hours of playback. Recording is not necessary just put it in record for a couple of seconds and the ac signal from the bias oscillator will neutralize any residual magnetism on the head.
@@12voltvids thanks a lot
yep when you see those heavy metal chassis ... you know they were built to last...
That wow-and-flutter could be due to aged oil that's solidified. Sony reel-to-reel's are notorious for this!
I have another copyright question im going to a concert if i record some of it and post it with a disclaimer saying i dont own rights is it ok
I did that to see what happened. I was at a journey concert and what happened it they monetised the videos. So if you watch a journey concert clip on my channel ads run but I don't get the money they do.
@@12voltvids thanks if there are sines no cameras and you sneak a song and post saying i dont own rights can you get in trouble
@@DavidBerquist334
1 of 3 things will happen.
1) Nothing
2) The copyright owner will run ads on it, and collect the revenue regardless if you monetize
or not.
3) they will have the video taken down which you may get a copyright strike for.
There are very few artists that exercise option 3. G and R's is one, Egle's is another. Note that I am purposely spelling their names incorrectly because videos have been flagged in some cases for even saying or putting their names in descriptions.
Check out Rick Beato's channel for more info about bands that take videos down. He has to be careful which artists music he plays, and when I say play's I am referring to him playing the music on his guitar. They will take down the video if a riff he playes even resembles the original.
Don't most cassette decks have a MPX filter?
No
Replacement belt too tight! That should be obvious... realize how quickly it stops turning when you press stop, that's why it's slow and has wow problem. I had this problem with deck which also has mechanical regulator motor, and previous owner put belt which was too tight and machine was also a bit slow and unstable, after I put proper size belt, the problem was gone. For a cassette deck, it's better that belt is a bit loose than a bit too tight, if proper size is not available!
That FUJI you used was their bottom-of-the-line! I just look at the manufacturer's label and I can tell you what the tape sounds like :)
hight quality
Speed adjustment on the circuit board.
Where?
20:00 - That rewinds sounds like a cheap cassette - even though there's no cassette in the unit!
but ..carefull...near your fingers 220 volts !!
220 volts? What have you been smoking? 120 perhaps. My fingers are further away from live circuits than appears on camera and everything on my work bench is isolated.
wd-40 can fix everything.
I should do a video and actually use it and see how much hate mail I get.