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Newbie needs advice on R2R thrift store find

K

kenlockejr

New Member
Pioneer reel to reel rt-707 goodwill find

Hello, my name is Ken, and I've been an audio equipment and music addict since a child when I burst into my parent's room at the age of 8 with a JCPenney catalog in hand at 5am and told my mom "THIS is what I HAVE to get for Christmas!" A JCPenney rack system with tower speakers for $299 in 1979. I thought it was the greatest thing ever. Well, fast forward through years of upgrades, downgrades and a lot of wisdom, and I stumbled upon this Pioneer RT-707 at my local Goodwill for $39.99. I picked it up and, wow, is it heavy! Plus, I plugged it in at the store, and everything seemed to work great. However, I haven't been able to test the sound yet as I don't have a reel-to-reel tape.
First, any suggestions on the proper steps needed to prepare this working beauty for its first tape demo? Where do you find tapes? Anything to be careful with or beware of? Everything looks good, no rust on the heads, smooth operation, all the lights and buttons work. Finally, did I get a good deal? Any input is appreciated!


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You likely got a great deal. Clean the heads, and the tapepath in general really well. Check the pinch rollers for integrity, as they can sometimes goo up. The only belt is for the counter. Get a tape on it and start enjoying it.
 
Well I am excited to give it a try. I've noticed take up reels are almost $100, which is more than 2x what I paid for the unit itself. Is there any off-brand alternatives that would be compatible, yet less costly?
 
The RT-707 is a very nice deck, if yours works that's a huge score.

If you like classical music at all, you can get lots of great sounding classical on reel on eBay for very cheap. Buy 7.5 ips recordings for the best sound.
 
update to condition of my Pioneer RT-707

Well, I met a great guy in town who gave me, gratis, two plastic take up reels, a microphone, three brand new tapes and a recording of Boots Randolph. What a great gift, and such a nice person as well.

I cleaned the heads with alcohol and wiped down the outside of the unit well. I set up the Boots Randolph tape and three issues. The first issue is the tape counter does not work. Second, there is cross talk between the tracks (fairly common issue I see online with many 4 track tapes). However, the third issue has me concerned the most. There is a serious drop in output on the right channel. Now, I only tested the one tape, so I am not sure if it is the tape or the machine. However, the level meters also show the reduced right channel output, It is same low output in playback in either direction. It is very low, almost inaudible out of the right channel. If the left was playing at a 10 out of 10, the right is about a 1.5 out of 10. I tried adjusting the output dials on the back of the machine, with no success. Do I need to open up the unit and clean something out (knobs, etc)? Any suggestions would be appreciated. Otherwise, the machine seems to be performing quite well.
 
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Have you demagnetized the heads? The dropout you are experiencing is a result of the heads becoming magnetized. The cross talk is also a result of magnetization.

At minimum get a handheld wand demagnetizer, and use it. Handy-Mag's are found on E-BAY all the time.

the counter not working is most likely the belt disintegrating, or slipping. I'd bet on the 1st. New Belt, and all well.

Larry
 
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