Teac’s enduring 7” R2R swansong
A look at Teac’s last budget reel to reel tape recorder range. Initially I envisioned this as a simple demonstration, however the history side of things took an unexpected amount of unravelling.
I trust your week is going well. Take care and be nice to one another.
UPDATE: Fixed a couple of things…new version embedded above.
Comments (50)
The tension arms on my Sony TC-755 are not moving during normal operation either. But if there is a slight problem, like tape that's not properly wound on the reel (loose tension) , they adjust the tension so that you'll not notice any problems during playback anyways. And I think that's the way it's supposed to work. So I don't think they are supposed to move during normal operation as long as the tension between the reels is right. But on the other hand, what do I know🤷♂️😅
Regarding tension arms not moving - if this Teac is anything like Tascams, & they're out of the same stable, this works with a small cylinder moving in a tiny pot loaded with grease, a sort of mini shock absorber. The grease goes waxy as it solidifies over time & needs cleaning out & replacing. It's a nasty little job, most people seem to live with the arms as they are.
Thanks for the info.
Wow, talk about a REALLY quick reply! that must have been seconds ;)
By the way, I really love the downloading tool Downie that you suggested to me. It's fantastic! Just download all the video's, no ads and stream them. Just pay the developer and help the creators via Patreon and circumvent the increasingly unbearable ads on YouTube..
I’m glad it worked out.
I kind of like that thing, might go for one. Yes, the bigger reels are nice, but easily twice the price...
Mat, I was watching Antiques Roadshow and someone brought in a Toy Gramophone from 1899. It uses wax cylinders like the real one but they are short and fat. Its like the 1899 version of all those kid’s music formats we love. I googled it and one was for sale for 11k so I don’t think a video will be coming soon ha.
Lol, that Spanish ad had some quirky language
Can I leave this here. Just popped up on my feed and I thought you might enjoy it. Some heath ro inson mods to his twin cassette decks for mixing and scratching... https://youtu.be/urGmmkUDi20
I agree that the metal enclosure looks way better than the wood one. And: what the HELL is up with that gap?! Were they concerned about the wood trapping heat if it were flush with the top of the mechanism?
I wonder if the U.S. Memorial Day weekend barbecues, get-togethers and such are negatively skewing the viewer numbers. 🤔
I’d like to think that’s true…but I just think people aren’t interested in this one - even more than they aren’t interested in all the others.
These are the ones I enjoy most, But I still watch those that are not me. I buy into it all. Top work mat!
Excellent video, Mat. I don’t know if I’m in the minority, but these are my favorite posts from you; it reminds me of when I first subscribed to you 8 years ago. Keep these wonderful ‘simply looking at an interesting open reel/turntable/cassette deck’ videos coming. :)
I like the simple ones too. I think like most videos they split the audience - Perhaps 30% are in it for each different type of video - which leaves the other 70% who wont be impressed with whatever this week’s offering is. I try to keep it on a rota basis, so everyone gets to be cheesed off equally.
@4:14, the Radio Shack brochure - I've _never_ heard of recordable 8-track before. 12Khz top end might be a reason however, it has Dolby on 'play AND record' which is a bonus I guess.
If you haven’t seen it before here’s my old video about my Pioneer HR99 TC8 that can record https://youtu.be/XLZS0Sj9-1U
Born in 1982 these went right past me, still interesting machines. Clint even used one as a backup tape once and i found that hilarious. From a retro computing fanatic perspective it would be interesting how many reel to reel machines where actually used as datasettes back then. Because well, it already existed and was maybe collecting dust otherwise so its still fine enough for being used with that new computer thingy. Did you ever encounter any "bitrock" when checking out used reels?
Not as backup (as I recall). But I did a bounce or two using my dad's old r2r when I only had one early 70s cassette recorder for all-round use as a newly minted teenager. :)
Great vid Mat, have a great weekend !
Love my RTR’s, I have a Teac A-6300 and a Pioneer RT 701.
Hi-Fi system 💙 it's beautiful. This video is concise, informative, and enjoyable. I need to check my tape threading on the next occasion. You single-handedly got me into the R2R collecting, so I thank you very much for that. All I need to make my Akai GX-215D ( https://ibb.co/pwVCt1n ) complete is another OEM metal reel (presently on its way from Canada) and an original dust cover. Recently picked up a factory sealed box of unopened Scotch 7" reels. https://ibb.co/gj6wCNk The only problem is, deciding what music to record on them (cue background music?). The sound quality of reel-to-reel is excellent and it should be appreciated in person by all. I do like your Akai unboxing video https://youtu.be/WaMgUUM28c0. By my count, you've had at least four console sized R2R machines?
I still feel that Akai of yours is a rare one - I never see that model around and it’s more sophisticated than other machines that look vaguely similar. It’s either 4 or 5…probably 4
Great video as ever. Really enjoyed it. Beautiful looking machines!
Learnt a fair amount from that one. I was genuinely not aware TEAC and Tascam were related (I think I learnt the connection between Technics and Panasonic from you too!) and EE tape was also a new one on me. I thought one of my TDK reels may have been one, but alas no. Also, I feel quite left out only having a 3¾ ips machine (Philips N4307 I think).
You’ll be unlikely to come across any EE tapes in the wild - they died off very quickly. I don’t think I’ve seen any…it took a while just to find any decent resolution pictures of them.
You are supposed to put the metal foil on the outside of the tape, not on the oxide side. This is stated in the instruction manual page 24. By putting longer foil, you managed to cause the contact at the edge of the tape.
Whoops - if so, that’s opposite to how it works on my RT-909.
Excellent vid Mat...... and I now want a reel to reel.... again.
I know someone who has a surplus Teac X-3R in the ‘hard to find’, ‘collectible’ and ‘rare’ exclusive wood case design.
I still have a Technics RS1506 in mint condition. My Friend Stephen has a Tascam 24 track. I asked him why he didn't sell it on Ebay and he said who would want it. Your guess is as good as mine. How would you ship it for a start ?
You’re right - I’ve received a few in parcels over the years and every one arrived damaged in some way despite extensive packaging. I wouldn’t risk shipping a normal one…but that 24 Track recorder would be like shipping a jukebox or a fridge freezer. Buyer collects.
I have some Realistic 7" tapes I bought in the 80s for $0.99
That's a pretty nice looking recorder! What I always find interesting is that whenever I watch a YouTube video about a reel-to-reel recorder, people are always very careful to demonstrate it in the most careful way: They push the wind button, then the stop button, then they wait until the tape has stopped moving and they press the rewind button. Then the stop button again, and the wait until the tape has stopped, then they use Play, etc. What I'd like to see is if the deck actually keeps your tape safe for you under all circumstances. Yes I believe you when you say that when you go from Play to Reverse, it doesn't shred the tape or pull it off the reels; even a fully mechanical mechanism usually doesn't do that. And it looks like it would do the Right Thing (TM) when you change directions while playing, although you don't demonstrate that except with the conductive tape. But how about Rewind to Play without stop? Or Play to Fast Forward without stop? Or (the ultimate test): From Fast Forward to Play without stop. A good tape recorder with electronic control should not shred your tape if you do any of those, and don't wait for the mechanism to stop. Of course you may want to use a tape that you don't care much about, when you test this, so that might be a problem...
There’s always things I don’t think of showing because they just work as advertised. There’s a balance between showing absolutely everything but taking way too long about it or just showing the things that move the video along but having to dump the rest. There’s no winning option - just different ways of annoying different people.
I had the Radio Shack version of that device. It was not too bad, but I would have probably bought the Teac version had I known of its existence at the time.
Thanks for the video Mat. Out of curiosity can you tell the difference between standard tape and the EE tape? On a side note I got a US "NOS" 1977 "ELO Out Of The Blue" on 3 1/2 ips.
I don’t have any EE tapes - they’re very rare, only two companies sold them - they were expensive, few people were prepared to pay the premium, R2R was pretty much dead and they were only on the market for a very short period of time.
I do like a nice real-to-reel! I used to have two Sony TC 377s but I used Revox and Tandberg machines at work. A review is always of interest, thanks.
I've got to know how you got the shot the Pioneer machine "working". Or was it?
I got it back from the repair place after shooting the rest of the video - so the whole thing is back to front…but keep that under your hat.
Excellent and fascinating as always. I always wanted a R2R, but sadly could never afford one while they were still being made. I did recently get a brand new model Teac turntable, so it's good to see they're still going strong. Have a good weekend, Mat.
The only real "budgetty" thing I noticed is the fact that is has auto-reverse, but only 1 capstan and pinch roller, so I guess the tension over the heads is not the same in both directions... I guess there's a reason why the capstan is always after the heads normally. And I thought I knew a lot about R2R, but never heard of EE High Bias tape for them before, I thought that was never a thing on R2R. I'm still happy with my 70s Revox A-77s, got a couple of them when they were still affordable.
I never thought about the pinch roller - that’s a good observation.
Great video, thanks for this.
Awesome video classic Techmoan, I have been rewatching your format videos lately they are so timeless! Did you use a script for this one?
I went back to the old way of doing things - shoot video, acquire assists, assemble in an order that also at the same time forms a story in my head, write the text to match what I want to say to match the clips and then read it out while adjusting the clips to fit the tempo.
This is exactly what I needed right now! A new Techmoan video on RTR to cheer me up :) I've been looking to buy a new used RTR so this is perfect
If you’re in the U.K. and want a Teac X-3R in a wooden case I know someone who would let you have one at cost provided you pick it up. ;-)