I still have such a soft spot for mechanical music players. Even so, I can't actually quite bring myself to use my tape decks or turntables - such variable sound quality and lack of high end, especially with tapes. Always enjoy your vids. Thank you.
I used to have NuTrol as my main cleaner but graduated to the super contact cleaner 801B. I still have a bit of NuTrol, but only use it when I repair food equipment as it is cleared for use in food facilities.
I am the original owner of this unit , bought in 77 on a payment plan from True Recordings in Oakland (on Piedmont ave ) , Calif from the loveliest stereo store owners (Bud and Ruth ) that probably ever existed , and it has been unused and in storage for 30-35 years ,and never been serviced , not bad , eh ?
Thank you so much for this video, thanks to you I got a Technics RS-630 working again by cleaning the record / playback switch. The VU meters were randomly at max on it and when I saw you cleaning the switch I thought of seeing a similar switch inside the RS-630. Only thing to sort out still, is that it does not play the tape well. Could it be that sometimes the capstan needs a good cleaning, I checked the pressure on the pinch roller, but I have to put a lot more pressure on it by hand in order for the tape to play. Otherwise it sits still. Rubber is also cleaned. I think the capstan could be dirty.
What a loverly old unit, i love the solid mechanical side, built to last and it has :-D Panasonic did a good solid job, not a cheap unit in it's day i expect. It sounds pretty dam good for it's age. i guess the heads have been replaced and the meter lights still work, quite supprising. Ahh the loverly and quite vocal kitty :-D ,you just have to teach it to solder now lol.
Heads will never wear on this. They all had a 10 year warranty when new. They are Panasonics equivalent to to glass heads. Akai were the only ones to call them glass, they trade marked it but in the era everyone was doing it. Hard as hell, but just average sound quality.
Hey that's a really cool old deck! Quick question, what lubricant do you use on older decks? I've got an RS-TR575M2 that's in serious need of a birthday, and it's in need of a lube as well as belts, pinch rollers and a few other things.
I like the 'oversized' electric motors on this machine - they last. I remember a book mentioned Dolby FM, pretty neat idea for recording from air. BTW, on average how much current should a 12V capstan motor draw, anyone. My Nak after capstan motor replacement draws around 90mA, with the whole mechanism somewhere 115-120mA. The speed wonders and drops once the cover is closed. The transistor that acts as regulator is rated at 100mA, 150V and it's heatsink is quite hot. Maybe I should change the transistor for something more robust or mod the circuit to run on 7812 regulator.
I bought and restored a 676 unit based on your video. On my unit the switches light up when pushed. Did you check the light bulbs behind them? Good video as always. I watch all you videos. Learned a lot about repairing VCRs. Thanks for posting them. Good luck. Tod.
Old video but I was curious if I could get your input on my 677 I just purchased. It's in good condition I believe, the only issue it has currently is that it fails to rewind 100% of the tape. It does fast forward just fine and seems relatively clean, however the rewind doesn't function towards the end of the spool. Any input? Thanks!
The BBC in London did a lot of experiments with Dolby FM back in the 1970s when they broadcast the Proms at the Albert Hall live. They also experimented with what thy called simulcasts when the broadcast both the FM Dolby and TV signals in synchronisation with the FM broadcasts. They were fantastic and I did watch and listen to them and occasionally record a whole symphony. I use Dexoit and proper specialist electronic contact cleaners. I have seen some people use WD40 as a cleaner. Do you have any opinions on that ?
I have an almost the same deck here. It works but sometimes it lets the tape slip. Then the tape speed goes up for a short time. I still have to figure out why. It is definetly a heavy machine.
I worked at Sony service in the 70's. The switch ( & controls) problem were called "crystaline growth". It was caused by salt air in shipping. More silica gel & plastic wrapping took care of most of it. BUT those Alps slide switches were garbage. I did mostly smalls & we got in tonnes of TC110B cass decks & every one needed a PB/REC switch. Only thing I did more were clocks in ICFC660 & 770's. I could do 5 per hour without breaking a sweat... LFOD !
I has the fortune of working for sony in 83 when all the rewind kits were going bad in the beta vcrs and the sanyo capacitor plague in the sl5000 front loaded. They would bring these in on a skid and every single one had to have the aluminum caps replaced with tantalum before the unit was sold. I got pretty good. Could do 6 or 7 an hour. Target was 50 units a day. It was mind numbing work for a few months and then I was surplus.
wow i see all the solenoids in there thats what i was wondering ah the evolution of technology im always reading checking out cassette decks from all decades.....comparing specs and stuff ... ..
@@12voltvids I am surprised people still use cassette tape recorders... Interesting. Why would people use these in the 21'st century? Also, will you get an electric car?
I have 2 electric cars. They are chevy volts, both of them. Technically they are plug in hybrid however GM did things completely different than just about every other company that makes plug in hybrid. In the others the engine starts at higher speeds when you need more power and when you need heat. On the volt they run exclusively on the battery until the battery is drained and only then do they switch over. I can go just under 100 km on a charge. Have driven over 10,000 km without the engine starting but it is there for the longer trips that go beyond the range. My wife's is the older of the 2 with a 60 km range so she uses a little gas. 3 month is what she gets from a 30 litre tank.
@@12voltvids Any benefit on using higher wattage resistors to try run them cooler? I think mine gets so hot like 80-100C. Other than this device works very good. Thanks.
I have Clarion brand car cassette tape His mechanism working perfectly but no sound output It has ic Hitachi HA 5208 I also changed ic but No sound Pls guide me sir
flat cable on the remote is designed to lie under rugs/carpet whatever. my technics 630 is the version with piano keys & no remote. I have a later rs-m250 with wired remote, but it's much lighter round cable.
Glad it was just a gummy switch. Thanks for explaining the Dolby transmission . I don’t think we had that in the U.K. if we did, I certainly didn’t have the equipment to receive it!
Again, sir, no disrespect but you're wrong - what you call Dolby FM is nothing more than an MPX filter, the purpose is to cut off the 19 kHz tone pilot of FM broadcast...
Dolby fm and the mpx filter are 2 totally different things. No I am not wrong, you are. If you look this unit has both an mpx filter to remove the 19khz pilot tone so that it doesn't beat with the bias oscillator and dolby fm. Dolby fm was experimented with in the 70s. It used 25uS preemphasis as opposed to 75 as standard fm did and also used dolby b companding. The highs were boosted by 10dB at the transmitter and reduced by 10dB at the receiver. Has nothing to do with the mpx filter. That is a completely different thing, a low pass filter that rolls off above 15khz. Incidentally my formal education was for broadcast even though I didn't go down that road that is what I studied.
It's amazing that someone built this machine. Such tight clearances and a gazillion wires running everywhere. It boggles my mind.
LOL that remote control and the cable would have been big enough if it worked with hydraulics :-D
Very nice machine!!! Thanks for posting.
Pure build quality, still works after many years. Tho I was expecting to see the remote control under use :D.
I will do a tear down of it later.
I still have such a soft spot for mechanical music players. Even so, I can't actually quite bring myself to use my tape decks or turntables - such variable sound quality and lack of high end, especially with tapes. Always enjoy your vids. Thank you.
I hear you. I don't use any analog stuff myself. Digital quality all the way.
Nice transport co trolls on that thing lound clunk. I like that. Reminds me of my teac RTR
I used to have NuTrol as my main cleaner but graduated to the super contact cleaner 801B. I still have a bit of NuTrol, but only use it when I repair food equipment as it is cleared for use in food facilities.
I am the original owner of this unit , bought in 77 on a payment plan from True Recordings in Oakland (on Piedmont ave ) , Calif from the loveliest stereo store owners (Bud and Ruth ) that probably ever existed , and it has been unused and in storage for 30-35 years ,and never been serviced , not bad , eh ?
The sure don't build them like they used to. Sounds great
Thank you so much for this video, thanks to you I got a Technics RS-630 working again by cleaning the record / playback switch. The VU meters were randomly at max on it and when I saw you cleaning the switch I thought of seeing a similar switch inside the RS-630. Only thing to sort out still, is that it does not play the tape well. Could it be that sometimes the capstan needs a good cleaning, I checked the pressure on the pinch roller, but I have to put a lot more pressure on it by hand in order for the tape to play. Otherwise it sits still. Rubber is also cleaned. I think the capstan could be dirty.
What a loverly old unit, i love the solid mechanical side, built to last and it has :-D
Panasonic did a good solid job, not a cheap unit in it's day i expect.
It sounds pretty dam good for it's age.
i guess the heads have been replaced and the meter lights still work, quite supprising.
Ahh the loverly and quite vocal kitty :-D ,you just have to teach it to solder now lol.
Heads will never wear on this. They all had a 10 year warranty when new.
They are Panasonics equivalent to to glass heads. Akai were the only ones to call them glass, they trade marked it but in the era everyone was doing it. Hard as hell, but just average sound quality.
@@12voltvids i have a ITT tape recorder with a sendust head, what on earth is sendust? lol.
@Orange OwL Well at least it has wood side panels.
Hey that's a really cool old deck! Quick question, what lubricant do you use on older decks? I've got an RS-TR575M2 that's in serious need of a birthday, and it's in need of a lube as well as belts, pinch rollers and a few other things.
On a Technics RS-677 the Play, Rewind, and Fast-Forward functions will work for a few seconds…and then stop. Any idea what the cause could be?
I like the 'oversized' electric motors on this machine - they last.
I remember a book mentioned Dolby FM, pretty neat idea for recording from air.
BTW, on average how much current should a 12V capstan motor draw, anyone. My Nak after capstan motor replacement draws around 90mA, with the whole mechanism somewhere 115-120mA. The speed wonders and drops once the cover is closed. The transistor that acts as regulator is rated at 100mA, 150V and it's heatsink is quite hot. Maybe I should change the transistor for something more robust or mod the circuit to run on 7812 regulator.
Dang, I'm early to this game. As always, I bet we'll learn something.
I bought and restored a 676 unit based on your video. On my unit the switches light up when
pushed. Did you check the light bulbs behind them?
Good video as always. I watch all you videos. Learned a lot about repairing VCRs.
Thanks for posting them.
Good luck.
Tod.
Yes they light up. Look closely you will see it on camera.
Old video but I was curious if I could get your input on my 677 I just purchased. It's in good condition I believe, the only issue it has currently is that it fails to rewind 100% of the tape. It does fast forward just fine and seems relatively clean, however the rewind doesn't function towards the end of the spool. Any input? Thanks!
Idler
The BBC in London did a lot of experiments with Dolby FM back in the 1970s when they broadcast the Proms at the Albert Hall live. They also experimented with what thy called simulcasts when the broadcast both the FM Dolby and TV signals in synchronisation with the FM broadcasts. They were fantastic and I did watch and listen to them and occasionally record a whole symphony.
I use Dexoit and proper specialist electronic contact cleaners.
I have seen some people use WD40 as a cleaner. Do you have any opinions on that ?
Counting for inflation, this deck would cost $2286 in 2021. It was $500 in 1976.
Want it? I'll sell you mine with the remote for 2 grand.
nice deck built to last oh my god! yes cat approved
Pusska knows a good repair when he/she sees one !!!
Man those units were built to last!
I have an almost the same deck here. It works but sometimes it lets the tape slip. Then the tape speed goes up for a short time. I still have to figure out why. It is definetly a heavy machine.
I worked at Sony service in the 70's. The switch ( & controls) problem were called
"crystaline growth". It was caused by salt air in shipping. More silica gel & plastic wrapping
took care of most of it. BUT those Alps slide switches were garbage. I did mostly smalls &
we got in tonnes of TC110B cass decks & every one needed a PB/REC switch. Only thing I
did more were clocks in ICFC660 & 770's. I could do 5 per hour without breaking a sweat...
LFOD !
I has the fortune of working for sony in 83 when all the rewind kits were going bad in the beta vcrs and the sanyo capacitor plague in the sl5000 front loaded. They would bring these in on a skid and every single one had to have the aluminum caps replaced with tantalum before the unit was sold. I got pretty good. Could do 6 or 7 an hour. Target was 50 units a day. It was mind numbing work for a few months and then I was surplus.
What was the liquid stuff you had put on the rubber tyre drive wheels in the tape deck mechanism?
Rubber renew
@@12voltvids Cool,,will look at getting something like that online to renew rubber tyres on a few tape decks i have here.
Sir what is the good replacement for FHF5N60 MOSFET TRANSISTOR?
I have no idea
wow i see all the solenoids in there thats what i was wondering ah the evolution of technology im always reading checking out cassette decks from all decades.....comparing specs and stuff ... ..
The paws were on!
Yes they were.
@@12voltvids I am surprised people still use cassette tape recorders... Interesting. Why would people use these in the 21'st century? Also, will you get an electric car?
@@12voltvids have you repaired a high end blue ray player?
I have 2 electric cars. They are chevy volts, both of them. Technically they are plug in hybrid however GM did things completely different than just about every other company that makes plug in hybrid.
In the others the engine starts at higher speeds when you need more power and when you need heat. On the volt they run exclusively on the battery until the battery is drained and only then do they switch over. I can go just under 100 km on a charge. Have driven over 10,000 km without the engine starting but it is there for the longer trips that go beyond the range. My wife's is the older of the 2 with a 60 km range so she uses a little gas. 3 month is what she gets from a 30 litre tank.
Nope, and don't intend to. I stick mostly to vintage stuff.
On mine these 4 large greenish resistors become very very hot. Is that normal, what do you think? Cheers!
Yes normal. They are the run resistors for the solenoids. Without them the solenoids would burn up.
@@12voltvids Any benefit on using higher wattage resistors to try run them cooler? I think mine gets so hot like 80-100C. Other than this device works very good. Thanks.
ELNA company must have been a big player back in the day... saw a lot of those elna boards in the day on many manufacturers units...
Before your time you would have seen the name on electrolytic capacitors in many Japanese transistor radios. After 1968 they made PC boards as well.
That's a big a55 remote cable!
Do you have thevtapedeck hooked up
To an amplifire?
Yes
I have Clarion brand car cassette tape
His mechanism working perfectly but no sound output
It has ic Hitachi HA 5208
I also changed ic but No sound
Pls guide me sir
flat cable on the remote is designed to lie under rugs/carpet whatever. my technics 630 is the version with piano keys & no remote. I have a later rs-m250 with wired remote, but it's much lighter round cable.
I've always felt Dolby NR was a joke. It's like the engineers said, "Let's just cut off any frequency above the snare drum and call it a day".....
Makes me wish I'd kept my Aiwa XK-009 Excelia instead of throwing it all those years ago 😖
I think that cat needs some attention or food. poor your assistant :)
26:10 Is your repair work being criticized?
No the cat is telling all the thumbs down people to f off.
needed a catscan
What a lovely pusso approval !!
Glad it was just a gummy switch. Thanks for explaining the Dolby transmission . I don’t think we had that in the U.K. if we did, I certainly didn’t have the equipment to receive it!
I think that remote is a tripping hazard.
What would give you that idea.
Porn music starts @ 19:17 lol
Royalty free music bakery. It may have found it's way into porn, you would know.
@@12voltvids It's a joke, you gotta admit it sounds like stereotypical 70's porn music. Haha
usually a crusty play/rec slide switch
seems a lot can go bad on these decks
Less than the cam controlled decks with their plastic gears.
Can you please translate what the cat is demanding? My neighbourhood cat says the same....... :D
Get off your ass, let me inside and feed me... a55hole! That's a loose translation there was an f bomb in there too.
@@12voltvids :D
Again, sir, no disrespect but you're wrong - what you call Dolby FM is nothing more than an MPX filter, the purpose is to cut off the 19 kHz tone pilot of FM broadcast...
Dolby fm and the mpx filter are 2 totally different things. No I am not wrong, you are. If you look this unit has both an mpx filter to remove the 19khz pilot tone so that it doesn't beat with the bias oscillator and dolby fm. Dolby fm was experimented with in the 70s. It used 25uS preemphasis as opposed to 75 as standard fm did and also used dolby b companding. The highs were boosted by 10dB at the transmitter and reduced by 10dB at the receiver. Has nothing to do with the mpx filter. That is a completely different thing, a low pass filter that rolls off above 15khz. Incidentally my formal education was for broadcast even though I didn't go down that road that is what I studied.
Wow Electric Cars Creepy...lol
Not technics made this one, but matsushita electric industrial Co, Ltd.
Technics, Panasonic, all were brands of matsushita electric.