New to R2R Question

Starbond

Starbond

Active Member
I got my dad a Sears brand r2r from the 'bay for Christmas this year. Every since I was young he's been lamenting that he's had dozens of reels from when he was a kid but no player so I decided this was the year, ha.

Anyways, I bought the R2R and some 7" reels from the bay too (home recorded) and put them on. When they run through, it sounds like the sound is playing backwards AND forwards. Were these reels recorded with a 4-track machine?
 

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Starbond said:
I got my dad a Sears brand r2r from the 'bay for Christmas this year. Every since I was young he's been lamenting that he's had dozens of reels from when he was a kid but no player so I decided this was the year, ha.

Anyways, I bought the R2R and some 7" reels from the bay too (home recorded) and put them on. When they run through, it sounds like the sound is playing backwards AND forwards. Were these reels recorded with a 4-track machine?
Click to expand...


It could very well sound like that nice little Sear thingie is a 2track deck, and the tapes you got are recorded on a 4track deck.
 
Starbond - my favorite source for reel to reel decks, except here on AK, is CraigsList. I would recommend shopping there in your area. Look for working Teac 4010 (S, SL, GSL) model deck. Fairly plentful from my experience and a solid tape machine that can be easily serviced if needed. Do you have any model numbers for the Sears deck? I have no idea who would have actually made that machine. Servicing it may be a challenge.

Another option - ask for someone to convert your reel to reel tapes to another media. (CD / cassette). Sounds like you have a few dozen tapes though.
 
Jmiles -its a Sears Model 8230, which is possibly a rebranded Silvertone. So far it runs well, the reel spindles are slightly off kilter so the takeup reel dips slightly per revolution. Its got some nice features for a basic unit, 3 3/4 speed or 7 1/2 and very sharp playback!

I bought a pack of 7 used 7" reels and nearly all of them have the forwards/backwards effect so they were taped on a 4track unit. My dad had all 3" (5"?) reels which got about 15 mins at 3 3/4
 
Starbond said:
My dad had all 3" (5"?) reels which got about 15 mins at 3 3/4
Click to expand...

Unusual, if they are all 3" reels I'd guess they were taped on a portable unit. These were almost all half track machines. But in this case the evidence certainly points to a quarter track deck. Be sure to get one with the three common speeds (1 7/8, 3 3/4, 7 1/2 ips) just in case there are any more surprises!
 
backward/

How about the heads or guides being out of line? Look at alignment with the cover off. Somebody may have messed with alignment.
I know. I was a kid once and messed with alignment on an old Sony tape deck. Never was the same after that. Alignment and azimuth way out line. I really did a number.
Or 2tr on a 4tr machine.

Paul
 
That machine looks very much like a Sanyo - with some minor cosmetic changes.
If it's mono, it's almost certainly half-track.
National made some mono 1/4 track portable machines that only recorded one track at a time, doubling the recording time of a typical mono machine. Such tapes are incompatible with the more common half-track mono machines.
 
pdm- how would I go about a realignment on a machine like this? (pic)

eclectik - that sounds about right, i believe he recorded all his reels in the late 60s, with a portable basic unit.

i've done some test recordings on it, there's a 1/8 in jack labeled 'RADIO' I think it is mono. Not conclusive yet. I'm having a bit of difficulty finding info on this thing.
 

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The last thing you want to do is meddle with the tape head alignment. Without the necessary tools and experience, you may never be able to put it right. Just try and get a quarter track deck and take it from there.
 
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