KW-4077

rickl

I'm just a bass player
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I’ve been working on a KW-4077 reel to reel. This thing tried to win and remain dead but it seems to be finally working. Not quiet the same level of gort’s 650 rescue but it is a Kenwood.

Picked it up from a buddy. He got it from a musician “It doesn’t work.”

Removed the face plate and found some of the reel belt. Ordered new belts from Bob at Vintage-electronics.net, cleaned up all the dried out grease, added fresh grease and oiled the capstan and reel spindles and got the mechanical linkages working. Record latching cam wouldn’t catch but studying how it worked found more dried grease.

Cleaned the record and gain pots. Cleaned heads and tape transport. All lights work.

Played ok but right channel sound muddy when compared to the left channel. Replaced the coupling caps and other electrolytics with fresh caps. Got better. Finally lost right channel after about 1 hour of recording. Traced it down to a failed 2SC-871. Subb’d in a KSC1845 and channel works and sound much better.

This is my 3rd reel to reel. Had my Dad’s Sony in college and traded a TEAC for Fisher X101-B. I restored the Fisher and is our ‘living room’ system.

My Raspberry Pi music server is so much easier to listen to music but nothing like spinning reels and the analog sound. Plus it is a good match for my 9400.
 

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after 2 years, the left channel when out. muddy, noisy, very low. Replaced 5 2SC-871s with KSC1845. While I'm in there, replaced 3 more noisy 2SC-871s in the right channel. These measure fine but really muddy up the sound.

And a few old electrolytics in the signal path.

Need to order more 1845s but reel to reel seems to work.

over on the solid state forum, the 2sc871s are on the 10 ten 'replace on sight' transistors. Believe this. I didn't and had to open it up again this weekend.

Attached are a few of the misfits.
caps and transistors.jpg
 
Nice deck and rehab work, now I want one to go with my KA-5002.

I'm also dealing with dodgy transistors in my early sony decks, shouldve replaced them all while doing the recaps.
 
I used the deck all evening without a problem.

Not sure if I'd get another one. These are mechanically complex and took a bit of work to replace the old grease with fresh stuff.

Then get the electrical working.

It does make me smile playing my old tapes.
 
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