Ian Zamojc An hah....some humor!? You 'needled' us! Ouch! We got the 'point', in 'around (2) bout' fashion. Just "Capstanising in a PINCH!" I jusy love going to the movies to see 2 REELERS!
Hi, spent years repairing these old decks and enjoyed every moment. Brings back memory's , remember the pioneer esp was a nice deck that had a logic problem. Most 3 motor decks were built real well.
My father had an Akai GX-635D. It's still in service. I grew up playing with it. It was something out of this world. I remember my father had to teach himself a different language, and he wanted to loop a relatively long recording. Although the system had auto-reverse and it would be possible to simply glue some aluminum foil onto a tape section, he instead made a continuous loop and suspended it under the ceiling, using a series of hooks. It resembled a Rube Goldberg machine.
Trust me, as someone who doesn't have the opportunity, or ability if you will, to stay at home during this difficult time, videos like these are so very much welcomed. Maybe more so than before the pandemic. If people thought the real world was trying before, it's so much more than that now. Videos like these are a welcome respite from our new reality. I work in a retail situation that, according to the company I work for, is considered "essential", and therefore will not be shutting down, like so many things around us are right now. It is definitely not frivolous to be putting out videos such as these right now. I literally always smile when I see a new Techmoan video put up in my feed, so I do certainly hope and pray that you and your family can safely ride out this whole covid-19 scare unscathed! Much love to you and yours from Indiana, USA!! Thank you Mat!!
Thank you for the half hour of entertainment. I too am keeping to home these days, but I would have watched if I were free to roam the world. I’ve had one of these off and on since 1970 and when, in 1995, my Toshiba went wonky even going in for a manufacturer’s repair, I decided that something there is that didn’t want me to enjoy that format and ditched the machine and all my reels. Then, in 2014, I saw a
I always preferred the Robert's Akai reel to reel, but was blown away by the TEAC reeltoreel. I miss the era of analog . Never heard any thing comparable to super vinyl on a carver pre amp Sony amp on two advent self powered speakers. You could hear it clearly up to 3 blocks from my house
A word about the reel sizes and braking performance. In these 1970's machines, even though they often used the phrase "logic controlled," that was much less of a CPU than you might expect today. In the Pioneer line (I'm not sure about the Sony), when the reels were stopped, a delay was introduced by discharging a capacitor. From the factory, there was a long enough delay so that a full 10" reel could stop, but this meant a 5" reel, which stopped much more quickly, was held in a several-second "pause" mode until the delay time expired. This is what passed for logic then. I had a Pioneer unit like this (RT1011?), but I needed to shuttle small portions of the tape back-n-forth to hear music and do takedowns for lead sheets and other charts. The delay was excessive and annoying, so I got a schematic and modified the recorder by inserting a reel size switch. I determined the minimum delay necessary for each reel size with minimum allowance by using a capacitor substitution box and trial and error, then wired the switch with the best values. It worked extremely well. It's possible that the Sony would have been better for my needs without modification, but I didn't have the resources then to buy both and test!
At around 14:00 - it's usual to fit a leader tape, so that you don't have to touch the recording tape. Many new tapes came with leaders and conductive stop ribbons fitted to each end.
A little note on the VU vagaries, mechanical ones generally tended to come in a few varieties that ranged from peak level meters (with their tendency towards overshooting the actual level recorded) to average level meters (which were not ideal for tracking short loud sounds). Manufacturers usually tended towards striking a balance between the two types of meters, you may even have noticed some hi-fi manufacturers would include LED lights into their analog meters to more accurately indicate when a certain peak level was reached. Naturally, digital VU meters were not bound by the mechanical constraints of the older analog varieties, though their depiction of a recorded level would only ever be as finely grained as the amount of discrete elements included in their displays. Thankfully the later models of higher end tape recorders were fairly liberal in these. Of course there is also the issue of differently aligned and misaligned machines causing different readouts on different machines. As you noticed, the source/tape monitor switch had suffered a little corrosion over time, happily it was easily dealt with, though with a plethora of alignment controls in the electrical circuits it is not beyond possibility that these too have drifted out of true in the years since manufacture and only a professional grade test tone tape could determine this. Not that an amateur enthusiast would need to go to such lengths to get the meters "just so" when a mere flick of a switch and a nice pair of headphones can give you a direct comparison and from what I was able to hear the Sony was delivering a more than acceptable performance from the program content you were feeding it. When all is said and done, I'm sure your friends will be delighted with your generous gift and thank you for taking the time to share it with us before sending it on its way. I've owned a few open reel machines previously myself and well remember the pleasure of operating them, both professionally and in a domestic environment. At the risk of pandering to a fellow Nixie tube affecionado, my very first open machine which I received at the tender age of four was a Philips model which employed a EM-80(?) "Magic Eye" tube for its recording meter. Good luck tracking one of those battleaxes down these days!!! Always a personal pleasure to know people like yourself are keeping those memories alive and introducing the younger generations to what went before. I look forward to the next trip down memory lane... and thank you for it in advance.
Used to own a Teac x1000r similar functions to Pioneer with DBX Stilll own an Akai GX-230D The Teac was convenient as their Tascam reel adapters could be left on the machine and with a twist the 10.5 inch reels simply came off.
I would take the Pioneer given the choice but I was wondering if there were a R2R machine that would, through an option, allow one to use the full width of the tape in one direction for record and would that make a great improvement in the recording or would it just be a waste of tape. Really enjoy your videos, stay safe, stay away from others and wash your hands.
Could be interesting to play the sony recording back on the pioneer, and see what the levels look like. I think the analog meters are slow and without adequate peaking circuitry they display more of an average. Old caps could be compounding the issue.
20:00 VUs are fed by amp by default not like by preamp in Pioneer. Pioneer is also always "presence MORE" which goes up to modern DJ consoles. You can make them peak RED but in reality they play normal. On Pioneer everything is over enthusiastic. If I remember right if you switch to monitor mode you should see a full UV action on Sony.
I got a Sony open reel deck a while back (TC-640) and has the same issue with the meters. I've been using it to backup old family tapes to the computer and the levels don't match each other and had to compensate.
6:59 I wonder how many of the non-British (or younger British) viewers know the origins/significance of "other brands are available" as an aside comment?
Haha, I wondered that too! It doesn't even make sense in a UA-cam video really but it made me laugh. It's still very much a thing on the BBC - Radliffe & Maconie say it all the time.
I know about it from other british UA-camrs, like Ashens would joke about it and say "Wait, I'm not the bloody BBC"´, so I assume that's what the british TV channels would say to stay in line with Ofcom regulations and make sure nobody thinks they're being paid to show the brand? :)
@@pierdeer yeah, specifically the BBC bc it has more neutrality mandated than the commercial channels. Though sometimes the commercial channels still black out logos and say the thing if they haven't been paid, to try and encourage product placement money >.> "we're not doing it for free!" etc
Sorry for my bad english. But i love youre films. Did you ever see one if these? The TL10 from presto.. Is a real 2 real machine to put on a turntable... Haha i have a picture but cant upload in youtube and i dont find a email of you. Keep up the good stuff. I learn alot if you. Thx and greatz from belgium
Do you know where to get parts for a 10 inch system? My Uncle has one and he is looking for a belt of some kind. I am not sure of the brand he has. Any help would be appreciated.
More leisurely look videos mate! Churn out prolific content. It’s time to totally wipe out and utilise every idea you have. I’m sure you’ll gain hundreds of thousands of subscribers in the process.
I would've liked to see the recording made on the Sony played back on the Pioneer system just to see if at full volume it would've maxed the meters out there, either way it was a great video.
I have seen the same thing, cassette recorders are somewhat more consistent, however the standard levels for open reel seem to be more manufacturer dependent.
Exactly! I had a zoom department meeting start during a techmoan video and my boss was like, ‘who’s the English man I’m hearing?’ He wasn’t sure if it was a recording or what. I told him his English accent gives me comfort during this, which for some reason he thought was funny.
@@oliverfasola19 a lot of studios record digitally and then put the individual tracks through a tape machine, to add saturation, a slight bass bump and warmth to a mix.
ungratefulmetalpansy isn’t a noun a person place or thing? If so we capitalize them as well, not saying I didn’t find that capital weird myself. I just googled this to not look dump lol but wouldn’t that be an adverb? ( not a language expect myself )
Once they figure out that this kind of "social distancing" campaign is great help in avoiding climate disruption & the inevitable sea level rise (people not travelling as much, so we're not burning as much fossil fuel), they may decide we should keep doing it. Apparently, the pollution level has already dropped significantly in China.
I don't think Techmoan's intentions, when he mentioned the virus, was to be starting a whole debate on it, on his channel! Let's leave it nice and revert back to the very point of the video's subject. Please. Thanks.
A comment on the meters: If I recall my decks correctly, your Pioneer RT909 has dB meters, while the Sony has VU meters. It's an important distinction and they indicate two different things and operate completely differently. That could account for some of the discrepancy you noted. Keep up the great videos as long as you can, Mat. I'll do the same with the random stuff I'm making.
How cool is this - two of my favorite youtubers checking out each others channels!! Stay safe both and please keep the vids coming. (It's no good I've got to head over to Dallas now (virtually speaking))
That’s not quite correct. dB is just a scale of measurement- specifically, the difference between two voltages or power levels. In the case of a recording meter, it is the difference between the ideal voltage for recording to the tape and the actual voltage received. What you are probably thinking of is VU vs Peak meters. A VU meter is basically an average over a short period of time (a few milliseconds.) A “peak” meter is an instantaneous measure of the highest level over the last second or so. Both meters should be calibrated to the same zero level - around 0.3v RMS. However, it looks like the Sony unit is calibrated to a higher nominal voltage, and it commits the worse sin of measuring the playback signal after the output level control. That’s not where you should be metering on a tape deck. The system should always meter the output signal after the pre-amp and before any output level or volume controls. In other words, the meters are basically useless when measuring output levels, but they are probably reasonable when measuring _input_ levels. My guess is that Sony and Pioneer have made different assumptions about the saturation level of the tapes and so have calibrated their meters to different reference levels. When being used by itself, it doesn’t matter as much, but if I was using that deck in a studio where tapes might get played on different units, I would absolutely build a calibration tape with known sound levels, then calibrate the recording and playback levels on those meters to a specific audio level on the tape.
@@tomwilson2112 Indeed dB is about comparing levels according to a log scale and defined electrically on a specified impedance. Even meters with needles moving around can be made to show real peak levels if the preceding electronics transform the detected peak levels to the right indication of the needle. Of course without such electronic measures "normal" VU meters would be too slow to follow short peaks. My Tandberg casseteplayer has needle type meters, while my Revox B710MKII uses LED-strips. Both are fast enough...
@@tomwilson2112 The Sony has VU meters in decibels and the Pioneer seems to have PPM-ish peak meters, also in decibels. The VU meters though will almost always register lower for most kinds of content because VU meters have 300 millisecond integration time and PPMs are like 5ms or just instantaneous, a VU meter is effectively doing a 300ms rolling average. VU and peak meters only agree on alignment tones or steady-state sounds.
Really interesting discussion on meters. I looked at a couple of my pro machines all in vu. My definition of pro 1/2 track full bias/eq pots screwdriver set of course right under the meters and (this costs $$) No connecting jacks other than xlr/balenced. Just a thought Happy New Year
I know absolutely NOTHING about audio equipment but I watched the entire thing in one go with undivided attention. It is entertaining, educational and, dare I say, therapeutic. Keep it up , Mat & stay safe.
That's a great idea, maybe something with a nice smooth grain to it, and myself would go with a gray to dark gray stain. I think that would look good, also you could play with the thickness of the wood to match whatever might be around the machine. Nothing wrong with a little customization.
That's the sound of a tape transport made of real metal, not plastic or some other cheap material. In 2050, someone might just replace the electrolytic capacitors and rubber drive components in that Sony (or the Pioneer) and enjoy that fine "chunk" sound again as they play some golden oldies from 2020.
13:35 “touching the tape” leader tape will assist you greatly in this. EDIT: Sorry you didn’t have a good experience with the Akai gx-625. I use mine almost daily. Fantastic deck.
Techmoan when I ordered a reel from ATR, it didn’t have leader either. I had to make a second order of some and splicing tape. I really wish they’d just ship them with leader already attached.
I think it's quite common in the professional and semi-pro fields to see tapes without leader; after all, studio technicians were probably presumed to know all the precautions and pitfalls by the time they "graduated" to handling that kind of equipment.
@@sawyerlightsey3709 I understand; for home use, where a tape is often used many times for multiple recordings, the leader is certainly a bonus as it tends to prolong the life of the tape, whereas in a studio, tapes tended to be used once and then archived, and a new tape would then be used for the next recording project.
I, like you, have some hearing loss but am fascinated with your coverage of all this retro tech. I don't have anything but CDs and now a Sony NW-45 that I picked up after watching your review and getting interested in lossless media like FLAC, etc. That leads me to the next question, do you think lossless digital sounds better, the same, or not as good as a reel to reel (assuming the highest settings like 15 IPS, etc., and whatever else you can do to optimize it)? Or is it more for the love of the format and the nostalgia of former times? And to you reel to reel hard core fans that will inevitably read this, please don't go off on me. I've never heard one live and I'm just looking for an honest opinion. Thank you, Mat, for another great video. From Boston, best regards and stay safe.
It's a difficult one to answer because often the stuff put out on hi-res has been cleaned up, remastered or is in some way more suited to getting the special treatment. A quickly thrown together mid 90s pop album might not benefit from hi-res, but a specially recorded acoustic number with a wide dynamic range might do. Some people prefer tape as they want the best quality while keeping things analog. You've probably seen my video about the 15ips 2 track tapes - but if you haven't it delves a bit more into this world. ua-cam.com/video/5KHSz9Gi-II/v-deo.html
As usual a very interesting video, to be honest your relaxed style of infotainment could go on for an hour or more as time passes quickly just relaxing and seeing some old tech. Oh and you have the nicest toys too, that Pioneer tape machine is a work of art, dozens of buttons and brushed steel, delicious! As always thanks for creating :)
Thanks for the video, Mat! I want a reel-to-reel someday for myself, and your videos teach me a lot. I'm an old school technician from the old days, but retired from a totally different field. Lately I've been getting back into old tech that I owned myself back in the 70s and 80s. So far I have a decent turntable and cassette deck. I bought an old 8-track player at a garage sale and was able to repair it and use it in my "stack" of components. I have a feeling that this is just the beginning...
Regarding the meters, it's possible the previous owner had the playback level set to full at all times, but didn't want the meters on the front stuck in the red all the time. You can use the little flat head adjustment screws on the front of them to adjust them back up to their correct level! (haven't finished the video yet, just in case you end up doing this anyway!)
@ indeed if all.machines are maintained they are all good. The pioneer is a behemoth in its class, I know I have one that would put any technics to shame, my comparison is my Studer A807.
@ungratefulmetalpansy For its price range, Pioneer performs quite well. However, if you want to go down that road, Technics sucks. McIntosh is the real deal.
I really like the woodgrain. Somehow I always end up with akai gear. I like it though. I think that since Also stopped making consumer electronics, people don't recognize the brand, therefore they put it on Craigslist rather than eBay. On another note, always have a look on local selling sites, because the customer base is a lot smaller.
Another awesome vid! I love my cpu digital setup. But there is just something so aesthetically pleasing about the analog hi-fi equipment. With its vu meters, toggle switches and analog knobs. My parents had an RCA entertainment center in the 70's. Tv, Phono, Tuner and 8 track combo with left and right built in speakers. I loved it! As I grew up it grew with the times too. First using the line in to run a standard cassette. Then later with my first cd player. The old girl finally blew the picture tube somewhere in the early 90's. But the memories from my first 45's and Lp's right up through my teenage years were priceless. Mom just passed nine months ago. But the memories last a lifetime!
I had one for similar reasons, but after getting into digital audio recording on a PC, I realised the space it was taking up could be put to better uses, so I sold it to an older bloke who was most happy.
Matthew, thank you for your content, which is always a delight even in normal circumstances, and stay safe! :) Back on topic, maybe it could be interesting reviewing the TEAC X-2000R, likely one of the first contacts my generation had with one of those and its rather anachronistic appearance in Quentin Tarantino's Pulp Fiction? ;)
I Own both , a Sony TC-766-2 (which is the 2-track high-speed version of the 765), and the Teac x-2000R. Please don't oblige Mat to present one of those. The TEAC X-2000R was the very last gasp of the open reel consumer model line. it does have some conveniences, like auto reverse, a real time counter, repeat functions and a very efficient (but unloved by the purists) DBX tape noise reduction system.They are extremely hard to find in working condition, accordingly very dear. They cannot be 'quickly' restored, they have a lot of issues, both mechanical and electonics-wise. The Sony will stay in working order long after the TEAC has had it's last breath. The TEAC has a capstan motor which uses carbon brushes, with practically no way the replace them as the spare parts are unobtainable. The motor alone demands silly prices. Oops, the pioneer RT-909 from Mat also has the same motor.... but a better motor control which doesn't burn the motor if it, for some reason (like a bad rubber belt) gets stalled. By the way, if you look closely at the Pulp Fiction sequence you will notice that the VU-meter lamps don't work, either.
Honestly didn't even notice this video was almost 30 minutes long. This is exactly what we need in times like this, a leisurely video on a lovely piece of equipment.
Florans Yousif haha yes! I just discovered her and I feel like the way they are boutbaudio is the same. She said she had a reel to reel top so total kindred spirits.
God bless you my friend. You’re one of the best UA-camrs imho and I thoroughly enjoy your videos. In fact my top 5 youtubers are all Brits haha. Must be the BBC effect. Stay safe and healthy
Unfortunately the 765 fell into the same trap as TEAC in just getting bigger for 10" instead of re-thinking the concept. The actual mechanics were quite unreliable in contrast to the conceptually different Studer/Revox products and the latter's direct drive was far superior in longevity, quietness and accuracy, with the B77 possibly being the best all round open reel ever. Sony spares were hard to get even by the early '80s and belts were often better home made using trial and error. Your Pioneer is a sort of half-way house design and the craftsmanship closer to the Swiss than to Japan. You have a treasure there.
Thanks for your prompt reply. I saw how some of the machines arrive at your place. I'll be very scared to loose a 1000ZXL. I repaired, serviced over 2900 various machines, but only ever tuned repaired two(2) 1000 ZXL's. I understand that you must be very busy. I would now also understand that you might not be able to get one because they are so rare and expensive- i did my research.... I watch all your videos, and i see how lovingly you restore-repair those electrical monsters. Carry on your good work please...Re
Matt/Techmoan thank you for your brilliant content. My thoughts are with you and others like you who are at risk at this time. Keep up the great work. Without doubt you are amongst the very best UA-cam content providers. If I was a Tech or music teacher I would have all my pupils distance learn by having them watch your back catalogue.
Hello! NAB adaptors made on 3D printer works ok, i guarantee that. But also no need to pay crazy money for the NAB spacers - use an old CDs instead. It works ok!! Stay healthy!!! Regards from Russia
Hello mr. techmoan. I love your videos, I watched everyone, and i will try to watch most of the future ones... Any chance in getting hold of a Nakamichi 1000ZXL. Maybe i'll bet you can't, because some unopened models from collectors are fetching crazy money. If you get a broken one for good money, i'll fix it for you for free, and i will personally drive it from your house before
Bad connections must be responsible for about 80% of faults with audio and video equipment! The play / record switch in a two-head recorder is also a source of much grief. Three-head machines fortunately don't have this problem, but there are still opportunities for things to go wrong .....
Watching your videos has made me really start wanting a reel to reel player for myself. It's a format I totally missed out on, as cassettes were the main format in my earliest memories. There's something very endearing about reel to reel players, not to mention how connected one would feel to their music having to be so deliberate in playing it.
I always wanted one but they were orders of magnitude more expensive than a decent cassette deck. The Technic’s models were the ones I lusted after but they were $1,600 in late 70’s money. I’ve never seen his Pioneer one before. It’s another one to drool over.
25:45 well i found the song that dankpods uses during the headphone test… anyways excellent reel-to-reel machine… this is a good project for me since i could swap out the veneer for black paneling… would look amazing on a desk in my home 👍
There appears to be a wood support piece on the behind, i didnt notice if it was just on one side or both, but id imagine its probably a sticking point to just flipping the pieces
Lovely hearing the mechanics of the machine again! I used to operate a live/automated radio station. I did the live bits, had to load up the tapes and ad carts, and, even if doing something else, would always be listening for the solenoids that told me all was running smoothly. Hearing those sounds even brought back the memory of the scent of the tapes...
The meters are damped because they are high end analogue meters. They have a wide operating range to give the user the optimum balance between a good recording level before distortion kicks in. The Pioneer has electronic peak metering and is more forgiving when recording before distortion kicks in.
Thankyou for this video Mat, this brought back happy memories for me listening to Pink Floyd with my late father in the late 70s on his Akai reel to reel. Stay safe
The VU meters may need calibrating using a calibration tape, which has various frequencies recorded at a specific level. They also can be calibrated by using a tone generator and setting the volume so that the input goes to a specific voltage which would be in the maintenance manual. Setting up reel to reels is quite a long laborious task but worth it in the long run. Calibration tapes are usually from Germany.
Regarding the meters, what I believe you're seeing is the difference between an analog mechanical meter with standard VU ballistics and a digital meter with peak indicate that responds instantaneously. This is the way record meters acted on virtually all recorders that didn't use peak hold circuitry or indicate the effects of record eq. In other words, they're working according to spec.
Both machines are gorgeous and thanks for the demonstration. A few years ago I purchased nice reel-to-reel for five dollars at a garage sale. The price even included a dozen or so boxed tapes almost entirely devoted to old Johnny Cash songs that I had never heard before. Back in the days when machines like this were popular, I could never quite justify spending the money for one since I already owned a good quality cassette deck. I was surprised to learn that reel-to-reels don't require Dolby. There simply isn't enough hiss associated with the larger tape format to worry about. As far as music goes, I really can't detect much difference between the source material and the recording. My my hearing is excellent, by the way. Needless to say, I did give it a thorough cleaning beforehand. I also removed the rear panel and added a few drops of synthetic oil to spindles and lever pivot points here and there. Nothing major, the job took thirty minutes or so. To me, the home stereo experience has always been by choice highly interactive, an ongoing educational experience, and and a serious art form all rolled into one. The slides, levers, lights, switches, VU meters, capstans, spinning reels, turntables, sophisticated tracking, counterweights and all the other cool stuff have always been a never ending source of entertainment. Don't get me wrong. Pushing a CD into a cheap plastic player and depressing a button is certainly convenient and inexpensive. It's just that that having that as my only option makes me feel deprived, dumbed-down, and short changed.
Shoving a cd into a cheap plastic player kinda sells compact very short, your right the mechanical workout to get these older formats is quite appealing, but CD is also just in a different way, using microscopic lands and grooves to digitally encode media and then using an infrared laser to detect those lands and grooves. the whole use of nyquist shannon for encoding and decoding, CD was an amazing thing for a reason a perfect digital copy as early as 1982, that was just amazing. but also keep in mind CD players weren't cheap at first they of course cheaped out over time but that's down to mass manufacturing, which tape formats also suffered from, hence the reason for the cheap budget minded tanashin mechanisms we have now. but short changed and dumbed down CD was not, it just changed belts and reels for precise speed controlled motors and magnetically floating laser lens assemblies, ADC's and DAC's
Your technical & troubleshooting abilities excel - even without electronics experience. I also like your shirt! Hunkered down in New York - good luck everyone!
You have to have the reels spin when you listen to easy listening jazz. Used to play my roommates Akai he got in Nam when he was in the service. Loved watching the machine spinning when the ladies were over.
A very nice example of a consumer version high-end 10.5" R2R deck. As a R2R fan since I was 12 (I'm 60 now) this one was always my favorite Sony unit as so many of their earlier home decks were 7" decks. This one raised the bar in tape stabilization with it's unique modular head/tension dual capstan block married to a robust series of drive motors controlled with a nice large touch button logic control. It has three motors but if I'm correct only the reel motors are direct drive and the capstan module is belt drive as it the tape counter (which we have actually seen). With two capstans I can see why they are much simpler to power by belt rather than synchronizing 2 motors or building a direct linkage between the two capstans to a motor shaft. I think the design is pretty cool and should be easy to get to most things, like belts and such, that need service. I'm surprised the belts on the unit are in such good condition. This alone would indicate not just quality belts but a unit that was kept in a decent climate controlled space.. The Pioneer 909 is still a winner for me however as it was about the most beautiful R2R ever made for consumer use if not quite as impressive as the hulking Technics 1500 units with the isolated loop tape system and analog meters. Getting this for free and passing forward for the same is a sign of very good man indeed. A truly high-performance collectible consume deck the owner should get many hours of pleasure from.
The introduction of consumer decks with 10.5” NAB reels, dates back to the mid ‘60’s, not ‘70’s and certainly was not anything to do with a “last hurrah” for R2R.
Oh, my dad is into reel to reel players. He's collected a lot of them over the years. Don't think he has any Sony players, but as we are Norwegians he purchased have a small number of Tandberg players.
I only got a model 64 and a much later half inch data deck. I like how the tape presence sensor is just a small mechanism under the head cover, not that big design used by the Sony in this video.
Those VU meters might still have an issue, or they may be OK but are indicative of another issue. The low playback levels on the meters, when playing a tape recorded on the Pioneer, might indicate an head alignment issue between the two decks, or some other calibration issue. When you make a fresh recording on this Sony, you got good levels, and they matched on playback. For the 7" reel, you thought it was recorded on this machine, but are you sure? Or, it was recorded on this machine, but the head alignment has shifted in transit. I would definitely obtain a service manual for the Sony and investigate its head alignment and other calibrations, before handing it over to others. VU meters also have electronic damping, and that can be skewed by failing capacitors and such. On the NAB hubs, the best ones I have seen are the TEAC ones. They incorporate the spacer shims, and are very slick to use. I still have a few TEAC, TASCAM and Pioneer 10" machines, and luckily was able to find the TEAC NAB hubs in eBay for all of them.
It's quite possible the VU meters are a bit lethargic as this unit is likely calibrated for a +4 dBu 'pro-audio' line input signal and not a consumer grade -10 dBV found in most CD players and electronic audio equipment for sale today. So you are correct when you say the unit wants a 'louder' signal. The +4 dBu level has been the industry standard in recording studios for decades. I would not doubt that these classic pieces of audio gear would be wanting that same hotter signal to properly record on their fast moving and incredibly sensitive magnetic medium. Even your Activo player is probably still not as 'loud' as these recorders want at lower and more efficient gain levels. You can do as you have and send a post-gain boosted consumer-grade level (the Activo) to this fantastic professional-grade recording device but you are in reality probably increasing the noise floor (rumble and hiss) and thus not at all realizing the full quality of this unique, extremely high-fidelity analog recording format. It's also likely that the recording from your personal tape deck didn't register well on the 765's meters because it too suffered from the same line-level mismatch when you fed it a consumer-grade, weaker audio signal to make the recording. There are booster devices available to up-convert your consumer-grade -10 dBV devices' line levels to that of 'pro audio' +4 dBu. I realize this all seems a bit geeky and overkill as you managed to get both decks working pretty well. I'm quite sure however that you are likely not realizing the full potential of these recorders as they were originally engineered. Perhaps you can do a bit of a dive into this subject and realize a rare and uniquely informative video on the matter. The true potential of these magnificent recorders deserves to be understood, realized and shared by those who still own them.
It needs to be calibrated. That's why the output is noisy and low. The cards inside the machine have small potentiometer adjustments for EQ, recording levels, playback levels, etc.
Keep safe Mat! And keep the videos coming please. For those of us confined to the sofa indefinitely, your videos are a welcome relief from the constant bad news we are receiving at the moment!
"The red ink on the metres has faded ... they probably got some sun". So the VU got some UV?
Ian Zamojc An hah....some humor!? You 'needled' us! Ouch! We got the 'point', in 'around (2) bout' fashion. Just "Capstanising in a PINCH!" I jusy love going to the movies to see 2 REELERS!
I love puns
@@SACWarrior70s Lol, like flipping a switch xD
@@SACWarrior70s lol, vinyl and tape jokes
ROFL
Hi, spent years repairing these old decks and enjoyed every moment. Brings back memory's , remember the pioneer esp was a nice deck that had a logic problem. Most 3 motor decks were built real well.
My father had an Akai GX-635D. It's still in service. I grew up playing with it. It was something out of this world. I remember my father had to teach himself a different language, and he wanted to loop a relatively long recording. Although the system had auto-reverse and it would be possible to simply glue some aluminum foil onto a tape section, he instead made a continuous loop and suspended it under the ceiling, using a series of hooks. It resembled a Rube Goldberg machine.
Trust me, as someone who doesn't have the opportunity, or ability if you will, to stay at home during this difficult time, videos like these are so very much welcomed. Maybe more so than before the pandemic. If people thought the real world was trying before, it's so much more than that now. Videos like these are a welcome respite from our new reality. I work in a retail situation that, according to the company I work for, is considered "essential", and therefore will not be shutting down, like so many things around us are right now. It is definitely not frivolous to be putting out videos such as these right now. I literally always smile when I see a new Techmoan video put up in my feed, so I do certainly hope and pray that you and your family can safely ride out this whole covid-19 scare unscathed! Much love to you and yours from Indiana, USA!! Thank you Mat!!
Thank you for the half hour of entertainment. I too am keeping to home these days, but I would have watched if I were free to roam the world.
I’ve had one of these off and on since 1970 and when, in 1995, my Toshiba went wonky even going in for a manufacturer’s repair, I decided that something there is that didn’t want me to enjoy that format and ditched the machine and all my reels. Then, in 2014, I saw a
I always preferred the Robert's Akai reel to reel, but was blown away by the TEAC reeltoreel. I miss the era of analog . Never heard any thing comparable to super vinyl on a carver pre amp Sony amp on two advent self powered speakers. You could hear it clearly up to 3 blocks from my house
That is a very nice deck. Stay safe, Mat.
A word about the reel sizes and braking performance. In these 1970's machines, even though they often used the phrase "logic controlled," that was much less of a CPU than you might expect today. In the Pioneer line (I'm not sure about the Sony), when the reels were stopped, a delay was introduced by discharging a capacitor. From the factory, there was a long enough delay so that a full 10" reel could stop, but this meant a 5" reel, which stopped much more quickly, was held in a several-second "pause" mode until the delay time expired. This is what passed for logic then.
I had a Pioneer unit like this (RT1011?), but I needed to shuttle small portions of the tape back-n-forth to hear music and do takedowns for lead sheets and other charts. The delay was excessive and annoying, so I got a schematic and modified the recorder by inserting a reel size switch. I determined the minimum delay necessary for each reel size with minimum allowance by using a capacitor substitution box and trial and error, then wired the switch with the best values. It worked extremely well.
It's possible that the Sony would have been better for my needs without modification, but I didn't have the resources then to buy both and test!
At around 14:00 - it's usual to fit a leader tape, so that you don't have to touch the recording tape. Many new tapes came with leaders and conductive stop ribbons fitted to each end.
A little note on the VU vagaries, mechanical ones generally tended to come in a few varieties that ranged from peak level meters (with their tendency towards overshooting the actual level recorded) to average level meters (which were not ideal for tracking short loud sounds). Manufacturers usually tended towards striking a balance between the two types of meters, you may even have noticed some hi-fi manufacturers would include LED lights into their analog meters to more accurately indicate when a certain peak level was reached. Naturally, digital VU meters were not bound by the mechanical constraints of the older analog varieties, though their depiction of a recorded level would only ever be as finely grained as the amount of discrete elements included in their displays. Thankfully the later models of higher end tape recorders were fairly liberal in these.
Of course there is also the issue of differently aligned and misaligned machines causing different readouts on different machines. As you noticed, the source/tape monitor switch had suffered a little corrosion over time, happily it was easily dealt with, though with a plethora of alignment controls in the electrical circuits it is not beyond possibility that these too have drifted out of true in the years since manufacture and only a professional grade test tone tape could determine this. Not that an amateur enthusiast would need to go to such lengths to get the meters "just so" when a mere flick of a switch and a nice pair of headphones can give you a direct comparison and from what I was able to hear the Sony was delivering a more than acceptable performance from the program content you were feeding it.
When all is said and done, I'm sure your friends will be delighted with your generous gift and thank you for taking the time to share it with us before sending it on its way. I've owned a few open reel machines previously myself and well remember the pleasure of operating them, both professionally and in a domestic environment. At the risk of pandering to a fellow Nixie tube affecionado, my very first open machine which I received at the tender age of four was a Philips model which employed a EM-80(?) "Magic Eye" tube for its recording meter. Good luck tracking one of those battleaxes down these days!!!
Always a personal pleasure to know people like yourself are keeping those memories alive and introducing the younger generations to what went before. I look forward to the next trip down memory lane... and thank you for it in advance.
Used to own a Teac x1000r similar functions to Pioneer with DBX Stilll own an Akai GX-230D The Teac was convenient as their Tascam reel adapters could be left on the machine and with a twist the 10.5 inch reels simply came off.
I would take the Pioneer given the choice but I was wondering if there were a R2R machine that would, through an option, allow one to use the full width of the tape in one direction for record and would that make a great improvement in the recording or would it just be a waste of tape. Really enjoy your videos, stay safe, stay away from others and wash your hands.
Could be interesting to play the sony recording back on the pioneer, and see what the levels look like. I think the analog meters are slow and without adequate peaking circuitry they display more of an average. Old caps could be compounding the issue.
20:00 VUs are fed by amp by default not like by preamp in Pioneer. Pioneer is also always "presence MORE" which goes up to modern DJ consoles. You can make them peak RED but in reality they play normal. On Pioneer everything is over enthusiastic. If I remember right if you switch to monitor mode you should see a full UV action on Sony.
I got a Sony open reel deck a while back (TC-640) and has the same issue with the meters. I've been using it to backup old family tapes to the computer and the levels don't match each other and had to compensate.
6:59 I wonder how many of the non-British (or younger British) viewers know the origins/significance of "other brands are available" as an aside comment?
I'm 25, and I get it. But maybe I'm not "younger" anymore...?
Haha, I wondered that too! It doesn't even make sense in a UA-cam video really but it made me laugh. It's still very much a thing on the BBC - Radliffe & Maconie say it all the time.
I know about it from other british UA-camrs, like Ashens would joke about it and say "Wait, I'm not the bloody BBC"´, so I assume that's what the british TV channels would say to stay in line with Ofcom regulations and make sure nobody thinks they're being paid to show the brand? :)
@@pierdeer yeah, specifically the BBC bc it has more neutrality mandated than the commercial channels. Though sometimes the commercial channels still black out logos and say the thing if they haven't been paid, to try and encourage product placement money >.> "we're not doing it for free!" etc
@@pierdeer Correct!
Sorry for my bad english. But i love youre films. Did you ever see one if these? The TL10 from presto.. Is a real 2 real machine to put on a turntable... Haha i have a picture but cant upload in youtube and i dont find a email of you. Keep up the good stuff. I learn alot if you. Thx and greatz from belgium
I have a tc-756 2 track that I got for $5 up to 15 IPS!
I want to buy one and which one would you suggest ? I have in mine Revox Tandberg. Next choice Akai 77 , pls advice . Thanks Manu
Do you know where to get parts for a 10 inch system? My Uncle has one and he is looking for a belt of some kind. I am not sure of the brand he has. Any help would be appreciated.
Where i buy a chrome tape for this machine? ? Thanks
In this time of madness & chaos, we need more 30 minute long *Techmoan* videos !
Wiggysan Wiggysan longer the better I could watch him live just playing music and stuff man needs a tv channel
Agreed!
I would gladly take a 60min video :)
Here, here!
12 hour live streams!
More leisurely look videos mate! Churn out prolific content. It’s time to totally wipe out and utilise every idea you have. I’m sure you’ll gain hundreds of thousands of subscribers in the process.
I would've liked to see the recording made on the Sony played back on the Pioneer system just to see if at full volume it would've maxed the meters out there, either way it was a great video.
Yeah, I was thinking that exact thing.
Yep see my comment made today
Tones are the only way to get it right
Yup, same here.
I have seen the same thing, cassette recorders are somewhat more consistent, however the standard levels for open reel seem to be more manufacturer dependent.
Thank you for being a distraction during this difficult time in the world. Stay safe
here here!
And here too :)
Me, I would say “Hear, hear!”.
And WHAT a distraction it is!
Exactly!
I had a zoom department meeting start during a techmoan video and my boss was like, ‘who’s the English man I’m hearing?’ He wasn’t sure if it was a recording or what. I told him his English accent gives me comfort during this, which for some reason he thought was funny.
The sound of well-recorded tape is highly Desirable, these days. I'm not surpised the machines are still expensive.
ungratefulmetalpansy Do Germans use weird English? Asking as someone with German heritage out of Canada
Andrew Barratt just reel to reel tapes or cassettes as well?
@ungratefulmetalpansy my phone capitalised "desirable" for reasons best known to itself.
@@oliverfasola19 a lot of studios record digitally and then put the individual tracks through a tape machine, to add saturation, a slight bass bump and warmth to a mix.
ungratefulmetalpansy isn’t a noun a person place or thing? If so we capitalize them as well, not saying I didn’t find that capital weird myself. I just googled this to not look dump lol but wouldn’t that be an adverb? ( not a language expect myself )
People watching this in ten years will be like "Why can't he leave the house? Is his wife really that controlling?"
@@aserta Payback from China??
Once they figure out that this kind of "social distancing" campaign is great help in avoiding climate disruption & the inevitable sea level rise (people not travelling as much, so we're not burning as much fossil fuel), they may decide we should keep doing it. Apparently, the pollution level has already dropped significantly in China.
@@Syncopator Yes, let's just destroy human culture and civilization. I agree about the environmental benefits but this isn't the real answer.
I don't think Techmoan's intentions, when he mentioned the virus, was to be starting a whole debate on it, on his channel! Let's leave it nice and revert back to the very point of the video's subject. Please. Thanks.
@@aserta very likely some of us survived, I mean this is not the first time humankind dealing with a global pandemic.
A comment on the meters: If I recall my decks correctly, your Pioneer RT909 has dB meters, while the Sony has VU meters. It's an important distinction and they indicate two different things and operate completely differently. That could account for some of the discrepancy you noted. Keep up the great videos as long as you can, Mat. I'll do the same with the random stuff I'm making.
How cool is this - two of my favorite youtubers checking out each others channels!! Stay safe both and please keep the vids coming. (It's no good I've got to head over to Dallas now (virtually speaking))
That’s not quite correct. dB is just a scale of measurement- specifically, the difference between two voltages or power levels. In the case of a recording meter, it is the difference between the ideal voltage for recording to the tape and the actual voltage received.
What you are probably thinking of is VU vs Peak meters. A VU meter is basically an average over a short period of time (a few milliseconds.) A “peak” meter is an instantaneous measure of the highest level over the last second or so.
Both meters should be calibrated to the same zero level - around 0.3v RMS.
However, it looks like the Sony unit is calibrated to a higher nominal voltage, and it commits the worse sin of measuring the playback signal after the output level control. That’s not where you should be metering on a tape deck. The system should always meter the output signal after the pre-amp and before any output level or volume controls.
In other words, the meters are basically useless when measuring output levels, but they are probably reasonable when measuring _input_ levels.
My guess is that Sony and Pioneer have made different assumptions about the saturation level of the tapes and so have calibrated their meters to different reference levels. When being used by itself, it doesn’t matter as much, but if I was using that deck in a studio where tapes might get played on different units, I would absolutely build a calibration tape with known sound levels, then calibrate the recording and playback levels on those meters to a specific audio level on the tape.
@@tomwilson2112 Indeed dB is about comparing levels according to a log scale and defined electrically on a specified impedance. Even meters with needles moving around can be made to show real peak levels if the preceding electronics transform the detected peak levels to the right indication of the needle. Of course without such electronic measures "normal" VU meters would be too slow to follow short peaks. My Tandberg casseteplayer has needle type meters, while my Revox B710MKII uses LED-strips. Both are fast enough...
@@tomwilson2112 The Sony has VU meters in decibels and the Pioneer seems to have PPM-ish peak meters, also in decibels. The VU meters though will almost always register lower for most kinds of content because VU meters have 300 millisecond integration time and PPMs are like 5ms or just instantaneous, a VU meter is effectively doing a 300ms rolling average. VU and peak meters only agree on alignment tones or steady-state sounds.
Really interesting discussion on meters. I looked at a couple of my pro machines all in vu. My definition of pro 1/2 track full bias/eq pots screwdriver set of course right under the meters and (this costs $$) No connecting jacks other than xlr/balenced. Just a thought Happy New Year
I know absolutely NOTHING about audio equipment but I watched the entire thing in one go with undivided attention. It is entertaining, educational and, dare I say, therapeutic. Keep it up , Mat & stay safe.
I imagine that the easiest would be to replace the sides with solid wood - that way you could also decide to go with ash, oak etc. to change the look.
What a good idea!
Sir Sim, Esquire fixed
That's a great idea, maybe something with a nice smooth grain to it, and myself would go with a gray to dark gray stain.
I think that would look good, also you could play with the thickness of the wood to match whatever might be around the machine.
Nothing wrong with a little customization.
@@Wineman3383 You probably want to use MDF then: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Medium-density_fibreboard
@Csab Why?
A reel to reel machine with handles?
My brain: I like to move it, move it.
That enormous clunk noise when Mat presses those buttons ♥️
*sound
that is not noise lol ;-)
... is pleasing!
indeed
That's the sound of a tape transport made of real metal, not plastic or some other cheap material. In 2050, someone might just replace the electrolytic capacitors and rubber drive components in that Sony (or the Pioneer) and enjoy that fine "chunk" sound again as they play some golden oldies from 2020.
Early home VCRs were like that. *Clunk* so satisfying.
I used to be a cabinet maker, making jewelry display cases. That Sony would be a piece of cake to fix cosmetically!
13:35 “touching the tape”
leader tape will assist you greatly in this.
EDIT: Sorry you didn’t have a good experience with the Akai gx-625. I use mine almost daily. Fantastic deck.
The blank reel didn’t have a leader.
Techmoan when I ordered a reel from ATR, it didn’t have leader either. I had to make a second order of some and splicing tape. I really wish they’d just ship them with leader already attached.
I think it's quite common in the professional and semi-pro fields to see tapes without leader; after all, studio technicians were probably presumed to know all the precautions and pitfalls by the time they "graduated" to handling that kind of equipment.
BertyFromDK My statement is just from my own personal use. I can see how in a studio with editing and splicing that leader isn’t necessary.
@@sawyerlightsey3709 I understand; for home use, where a tape is often used many times for multiple recordings, the leader is certainly a bonus as it tends to prolong the life of the tape, whereas in a studio, tapes tended to be used once and then archived, and a new tape would then be used for the next recording project.
I, like you, have some hearing loss but am fascinated with your coverage of all this retro tech. I don't have anything but CDs and now a Sony NW-45 that I picked up after watching your review and getting interested in lossless media like FLAC, etc. That leads me to the next question, do you think lossless digital sounds better, the same, or not as good as a reel to reel (assuming the highest settings like 15 IPS, etc., and whatever else you can do to optimize it)? Or is it more for the love of the format and the nostalgia of former times? And to you reel to reel hard core fans that will inevitably read this, please don't go off on me. I've never heard one live and I'm just looking for an honest opinion. Thank you, Mat, for another great video. From Boston, best regards and stay safe.
It's a difficult one to answer because often the stuff put out on hi-res has been cleaned up, remastered or is in some way more suited to getting the special treatment. A quickly thrown together mid 90s pop album might not benefit from hi-res, but a specially recorded acoustic number with a wide dynamic range might do. Some people prefer tape as they want the best quality while keeping things analog. You've probably seen my video about the 15ips 2 track tapes - but if you haven't it delves a bit more into this world. ua-cam.com/video/5KHSz9Gi-II/v-deo.html
The music slowing down combined with taking off the reel at 3:30 was such a smooth edit, very satisfying :)
3:04 - "You are listening to Seeburg FM. The easy choice!"
Great video as always. One small thing- the reel size switch adjusts the torque of the spindle motors, not the tension arms themselves.
That makes sense. Good observation.
Yes: I noticed that, and confusion between capstans and pinch wheels/rollers as well.
After your Reel to Reel - Most expensive format ever I bought my first one it was a Sony TC 280. Nice little unit to get started with the hobby.
These are truly a piece of an art. They are so satisfying to watch, however the satisfaction costs.
As usual a very interesting video, to be honest your relaxed style of infotainment could go on for an hour or more as time passes quickly just relaxing and seeing some old tech. Oh and you have the nicest toys too, that Pioneer tape machine is a work of art, dozens of buttons and brushed steel, delicious! As always thanks for creating :)
$1000 in 1979 is $3,800 today. and you still have to buy the Amp and Speakers.
Thanks for the video, Mat! I want a reel-to-reel someday for myself, and your videos teach me a lot. I'm an old school technician from the old days, but retired from a totally different field. Lately I've been getting back into old tech that I owned myself back in the 70s and 80s. So far I have a decent turntable and cassette deck. I bought an old 8-track player at a garage sale and was able to repair it and use it in my "stack" of components. I have a feeling that this is just the beginning...
Regarding the meters, it's possible the previous owner had the playback level set to full at all times, but didn't want the meters on the front stuck in the red all the time. You can use the little flat head adjustment screws on the front of them to adjust them back up to their correct level! (haven't finished the video yet, just in case you end up doing this anyway!)
Now that Pioneer is the ultimate in retro-hi-fi, and the black ones I've seen on eBay look as if they could be made today. The Sony looks awesome too.
@ungratefulmetalpansy You're ignorant.
@ indeed if all.machines are maintained they are all good. The pioneer is a behemoth in its class, I know I have one that would put any technics to shame, my comparison is my Studer A807.
@ungratefulmetalpansy For its price range, Pioneer performs quite well. However, if you want to go down that road, Technics sucks. McIntosh is the real deal.
I miss the 80s PIoneer logo. I used to have car speakers with that logo on them. Looked as cool as they sounded with a Blaupunkt radio.
I really like the woodgrain. Somehow I always end up with akai gear. I like it though. I think that since Also stopped making consumer electronics, people don't recognize the brand, therefore they put it on Craigslist rather than eBay. On another note, always have a look on local selling sites, because the customer base is a lot smaller.
25:45, I recognize that track from a certain dank UA-camr…
Depending on how much you plan on using these & how much they were used in the past, I'm sure the heads could use a good demagnetizing.
Hey Mat - Havent finished yet and I think there are screw adjustments in those 2 holes below the VU meter. Its so you can set the level
That would require complete calibration using a signal generator and oscilloscope. I wouldn't recomend just tweaking by ear.
I do believe those are only for zeroing the meters, not necessarily the overall level.
Don't they just set the zero position?
Great job as always Mat, thank you .. The VU meter holes are just to zero the meters.
*There’s a bit more information about this in the video description text box.*
Another awesome vid! I love my cpu digital setup. But there is just something so aesthetically pleasing about the analog hi-fi equipment. With its vu meters, toggle switches and analog knobs. My parents had an RCA entertainment center in the 70's. Tv, Phono, Tuner and 8 track combo with left and right built in speakers. I loved it! As I grew up it grew with the times too. First using the line in to run a standard cassette. Then later with my first cd player. The old girl finally blew the picture tube somewhere in the early 90's. But the memories from my first 45's and Lp's right up through my teenage years were priceless.
Mom just passed nine months ago. But the memories last a lifetime!
I have never needed a reel-to-reel tape machine, but I still want one. After this video even more so :)
Like many hobby's they can take hold of your life for a long time.
I had one for similar reasons, but after getting into digital audio recording on a PC, I realised the space it was taking up could be put to better uses, so I sold it to an older bloke who was most happy.
Matthew, thank you for your content, which is always a delight even in normal circumstances, and stay safe! :)
Back on topic, maybe it could be interesting reviewing the TEAC X-2000R, likely one of the first contacts my generation had with one of those and its rather anachronistic appearance in Quentin Tarantino's Pulp Fiction? ;)
I Own both , a Sony TC-766-2 (which is the 2-track high-speed version of the 765), and the Teac x-2000R. Please don't oblige Mat to present one of those. The TEAC X-2000R was the very last gasp of the open reel consumer model line. it does have some conveniences, like auto reverse, a real time counter, repeat functions and a very efficient (but unloved by the purists) DBX tape noise reduction system.They are extremely hard to find in working condition, accordingly very dear. They cannot be 'quickly' restored, they have a lot of issues, both mechanical and electonics-wise. The Sony will stay in working order long after the TEAC has had it's last breath. The TEAC has a capstan motor which uses carbon brushes, with practically no way the replace them as the spare parts are unobtainable.
The motor alone demands silly prices. Oops, the pioneer RT-909 from Mat also has the same motor.... but a better motor control which doesn't burn the motor if it, for some reason (like a bad rubber belt) gets stalled. By the way, if you look closely at the Pulp Fiction sequence you will notice that the VU-meter lamps don't work, either.
1:20 - you sir are a gentleman and a scholar 👍
Great video I hope it doesn't make me wanna go down the rabbit hole of the real to real I alway Wanted one since I was a teen.
Honestly didn't even notice this video was almost 30 minutes long. This is exactly what we need in times like this, a leisurely video on a lovely piece of equipment.
I BET REPLACEMENT HEADS COST ARM&LEG.
if being able to buy anywhere at all.
You should check out The Vinyl Guru. I feel like youd love her....
Mademe X She’s way more “out” there than Techmoan which isnt bad but i just checked her out and subbed. Good channel!
Ok, ill check her out!i like that YT name already! VINYL FO LIFE!!!!!
Florans Yousif haha yes! I just discovered her and I feel like the way they are boutbaudio is the same. She said she had a reel to reel top so total kindred spirits.
Your channel is so very enjoyable to watch, thank you for all your hard work.
God bless you my friend. You’re one of the best UA-camrs imho and I thoroughly enjoy your videos. In fact my top 5 youtubers are all Brits haha. Must be the BBC effect. Stay safe and healthy
Unfortunately the 765 fell into the same trap as TEAC in just getting bigger for 10" instead of re-thinking the concept.
The actual mechanics were quite unreliable in contrast to the conceptually different Studer/Revox products and the latter's direct drive was far superior in longevity, quietness and accuracy, with the B77 possibly being the best all round open reel ever.
Sony spares were hard to get even by the early '80s and belts were often better home made using trial and error.
Your Pioneer is a sort of half-way house design and the craftsmanship closer to the Swiss than to Japan. You have a treasure there.
Lovely! I grew up with Sony reel to reel decks, so I appreciate seeing this.
Thanks for your prompt reply. I saw how some of the machines arrive at your place. I'll be very scared to loose a 1000ZXL. I repaired, serviced over 2900 various machines, but only ever tuned repaired two(2) 1000 ZXL's. I understand that you must be very busy. I would now also understand that you might not be able to get one because they are so rare and expensive- i did my research.... I watch all your videos, and i see how lovingly you restore-repair those electrical monsters. Carry on your good work please...Re
Matt/Techmoan thank you for your brilliant content. My thoughts are with you and others like you who are at risk at this time. Keep up the great work. Without doubt you are amongst the very best UA-cam content providers. If I was a Tech or music teacher I would have all my pupils distance learn by having them watch your back catalogue.
Hello! NAB adaptors made on 3D printer works ok, i guarantee that.
But also no need to pay crazy money for the NAB spacers - use an old CDs instead. It works ok!!
Stay healthy!!! Regards from Russia
I found a wonderful place in Nelson, Lancashire that repair reel to reel machines, Wilkinson's Hifi.
That’s really good to know - thanks for the info.
@@Techmoan I can strongly recommend a guy named Geoff Kremer, in Bexhill-on-Sea. Find him here.
www.servicesound.com/
With things like these you really need to be within driving distance - a trip with a courier will do them more harm than good.
@@Techmoan luckily, I'm an hour away from Nelson. But I would drive anywhere in the uk to drop something this fragile in person.
I’m under 40 mins from Nelson - but Bexhill on Sea - that’s a ten hour round trip.
Hello mr. techmoan. I love your videos, I watched everyone, and i will try to watch most of the future ones... Any chance in getting hold of a Nakamichi 1000ZXL. Maybe i'll bet you can't, because some unopened models from collectors are fetching crazy money. If you get a broken one for good money, i'll fix it for you for free, and i will personally drive it from your house before
One of the best channels on UA-cam. Thank you for continuing to upload during this time of crisis. Stay safe.
Bad connections must be responsible for about 80% of faults with audio and video equipment!
The play / record switch in a two-head recorder is also a source of much grief. Three-head machines fortunately don't have this problem, but there are still opportunities for things to go wrong .....
Another informative video, will there be a follow up with any more stuff from the chap from Sony? Stay safe Matt.
This is really it - the other things (bar a couple of small items) weren’t something I could use and have gone to other people.
My wife is a type 1 diabetic and in self isolation. I hope you are managing ok, stay safe.
We used reel to reel in radio back in the 80's and 90's for recording and editing phone calls. Memories.
So you worked in evidence manipulation and/or kompromat production?
What is on the left of the reel to reel looks like something on top of the DAC it looks like a VU meter
Watching your videos has made me really start wanting a reel to reel player for myself. It's a format I totally missed out on, as cassettes were the main format in my earliest memories. There's something very endearing about reel to reel players, not to mention how connected one would feel to their music having to be so deliberate in playing it.
I always wanted one but they were orders of magnitude more expensive than a decent cassette deck. The Technic’s models were the ones I lusted after but they were $1,600 in late 70’s money. I’ve never seen his Pioneer one before. It’s another one to drool over.
25:45 well i found the song that dankpods uses during the headphone test… anyways excellent reel-to-reel machine… this is a good project for me since i could swap out the veneer for black paneling… would look amazing on a desk in my home 👍
Can you not just swap the side panels for now, that way the damage would be at the back...
It looks that you can switch left with right with no problem. Good idea!👍
There appears to be a wood support piece on the behind, i didnt notice if it was just on one side or both, but id imagine its probably a sticking point to just flipping the pieces
*There’s more information in the video description.*
I've got a Teac X3-R which has a dropping right channel, but no clue where to start with diagnosing that issue.
Lovely hearing the mechanics of the machine again! I used to operate a live/automated radio station. I did the live bits, had to load up the tapes and ad carts, and, even if doing something else, would always be listening for the solenoids that told me all was running smoothly.
Hearing those sounds even brought back the memory of the scent of the tapes...
The meters are damped because they are high end analogue meters. They have a wide operating range to give the user the optimum balance between a good recording level before distortion kicks in. The Pioneer has electronic peak metering and is more forgiving when recording before distortion kicks in.
Thankyou for this video Mat, this brought back happy memories for me listening to Pink Floyd with my late father in the late 70s on his Akai reel to reel. Stay safe
The video may just be a half hour of you messing about with the machine. I enjoyed every minute of it! Cheers!
The VU meters may need calibrating using a calibration tape, which has various frequencies recorded at a specific level. They also can be calibrated by using a tone generator and setting the volume so that the input goes to a specific voltage which would be in the maintenance manual. Setting up reel to reels is quite a long laborious task but worth it in the long run. Calibration tapes are usually from Germany.
Regarding the meters, what I believe you're seeing is the difference between an analog mechanical meter with standard VU ballistics and a digital meter with peak indicate that responds instantaneously. This is the way record meters acted on virtually all recorders that didn't use peak hold circuitry or indicate the effects of record eq. In other words, they're working according to spec.
Both machines are gorgeous and thanks for the demonstration. A few years ago I purchased nice reel-to-reel for five dollars at a garage sale. The price even included a dozen or so boxed tapes almost entirely devoted to old Johnny Cash songs that I had never heard before. Back in the days when machines like this were popular, I could never quite justify spending the money for one since I already owned a good quality cassette deck. I was surprised to learn that reel-to-reels don't require Dolby. There simply isn't enough hiss associated with the larger tape format to worry about. As far as music goes, I really can't detect much difference between the source material and the recording. My my hearing is excellent, by the way. Needless to say, I did give it a thorough cleaning beforehand. I also removed the rear panel and added a few drops of synthetic oil to spindles and lever pivot points here and there. Nothing major, the job took thirty minutes or so. To me, the home stereo experience has always been by choice highly interactive, an ongoing educational experience, and and a serious art form all rolled into one. The slides, levers, lights, switches, VU meters, capstans, spinning reels, turntables, sophisticated tracking, counterweights and all the other cool stuff have always been a never ending source of entertainment. Don't get me wrong. Pushing a CD into a cheap plastic player and depressing a button is certainly convenient and inexpensive. It's just that that having that as my only option makes me feel deprived, dumbed-down, and short changed.
Shoving a cd into a cheap plastic player kinda sells compact very short, your right the mechanical workout to get these older formats is quite appealing, but CD is also just in a different way, using microscopic lands and grooves to digitally encode media and then using an infrared laser to detect those lands and grooves. the whole use of nyquist shannon for encoding and decoding, CD was an amazing thing for a reason a perfect digital copy as early as 1982, that was just amazing. but also keep in mind CD players weren't cheap at first they of course cheaped out over time but that's down to mass manufacturing, which tape formats also suffered from, hence the reason for the cheap budget minded tanashin mechanisms we have now. but short changed and dumbed down CD was not, it just changed belts and reels for precise speed controlled motors and magnetically floating laser lens assemblies, ADC's and DAC's
Your technical & troubleshooting abilities excel - even without electronics experience. I also like your shirt! Hunkered down in New York - good luck everyone!
Back in the day, in the US, and I hate to admit it was my day too, the reel to reel to get was a Teac. Now all they make is junk.
You have to have the reels spin when you listen to easy listening jazz. Used to play my roommates Akai he got in Nam when he was in the service. Loved watching the machine spinning when the ladies were over.
I liked the big old sony Reel to reel machine you demonstrated, I guess a machine without the reels reminds me of a bird without feathers.
Agreed with previous comments. Nice calming video. Keep it up ! It might be the only interaction people have over the next 3 weeks.
nice vid ... good friend to have ... wish my mates would give me a logic r-t-r tape recorder ;-)
A very nice example of a consumer version high-end 10.5" R2R deck. As a R2R fan since I was 12 (I'm 60 now) this one was always my favorite Sony unit as so many of their earlier home decks were 7" decks. This one raised the bar in tape stabilization with it's unique modular head/tension dual capstan block married to a robust series of drive motors controlled with a nice large touch button logic control. It has three motors but if I'm correct only the reel motors are direct drive and the capstan module is belt drive as it the tape counter (which we have actually seen). With two capstans I can see why they are much simpler to power by belt rather than synchronizing 2 motors or building a direct linkage between the two capstans to a motor shaft. I think the design is pretty cool and should be easy to get to most things, like belts and such, that need service. I'm surprised the belts on the unit are in such good condition. This alone would indicate not just quality belts but a unit that was kept in a decent climate controlled space.. The Pioneer 909 is still a winner for me however as it was about the most beautiful R2R ever made for consumer use if not quite as impressive as the hulking Technics 1500 units with the isolated loop tape system and analog meters. Getting this for free and passing forward for the same is a sign of very good man indeed. A truly high-performance collectible consume deck the owner should get many hours of pleasure from.
i honestly think that the reel to reel is the most beautiful for,m of physical music
The introduction of consumer decks with 10.5” NAB reels, dates back to the mid ‘60’s, not ‘70’s and certainly was not anything to do with a “last hurrah” for R2R.
I clicked your video because of the 'leisurely' in the title and I am keen to get away from corona-panic news everywhere
Oh, my dad is into reel to reel players. He's collected a lot of them over the years. Don't think he has any Sony players, but as we are Norwegians he purchased have a small number of Tandberg players.
I only got a model 64 and a much later half inch data deck. I like how the tape presence sensor is just a small mechanism under the head cover, not that big design used by the Sony in this video.
What’s the orange multi columnar device on the left?
Those VU meters might still have an issue, or they may be OK but are indicative of another issue. The low playback levels on the meters, when playing a tape recorded on the Pioneer, might indicate an head alignment issue between the two decks, or some other calibration issue. When you make a fresh recording on this Sony, you got good levels, and they matched on playback. For the 7" reel, you thought it was recorded on this machine, but are you sure? Or, it was recorded on this machine, but the head alignment has shifted in transit.
I would definitely obtain a service manual for the Sony and investigate its head alignment and other calibrations, before handing it over to others.
VU meters also have electronic damping, and that can be skewed by failing capacitors and such.
On the NAB hubs, the best ones I have seen are the TEAC ones. They incorporate the spacer shims, and are very slick to use. I still have a few TEAC, TASCAM and Pioneer 10" machines, and luckily was able to find the TEAC NAB hubs in eBay for all of them.
It's quite possible the VU meters are a bit lethargic as this unit is likely calibrated for a +4 dBu 'pro-audio' line input signal and not a consumer grade -10 dBV found in most CD players and electronic audio equipment for sale today. So you are correct when you say the unit wants a 'louder' signal. The +4 dBu level has been the industry standard in recording studios for decades. I would not doubt that these classic pieces of audio gear would be wanting that same hotter signal to properly record on their fast moving and incredibly sensitive magnetic medium. Even your Activo player is probably still not as 'loud' as these recorders want at lower and more efficient gain levels.
You can do as you have and send a post-gain boosted consumer-grade level (the Activo) to this fantastic professional-grade recording device but you are in reality probably increasing the noise floor (rumble and hiss) and thus not at all realizing the full quality of this unique, extremely high-fidelity analog recording format.
It's also likely that the recording from your personal tape deck didn't register well on the 765's meters because it too suffered from the same line-level mismatch when you fed it a consumer-grade, weaker audio signal to make the recording. There are booster devices available to up-convert your consumer-grade -10 dBV devices' line levels to that of 'pro audio' +4 dBu. I realize this all seems a bit geeky and overkill as you managed to get both decks working pretty well. I'm quite sure however that you are likely not realizing the full potential of these recorders as they were originally engineered.
Perhaps you can do a bit of a dive into this subject and realize a rare and uniquely informative video on the matter. The true potential of these magnificent recorders deserves to be understood, realized and shared by those who still own them.
It needs to be calibrated. That's why the output is noisy and low. The cards inside the machine have small potentiometer adjustments for EQ, recording levels, playback levels, etc.
That Pioneer is beautiful...
Keep safe Mat! And keep the videos coming please. For those of us confined to the sofa indefinitely, your videos are a welcome relief from the constant bad news we are receiving at the moment!
Frivolous? No, we need stuff like this more than ever! Stay safe! 👍