Reelist
Member
First, thanks to AudioKarma for keeping up a great site. So far I've been pulling as much information as I can.
My background in hifi goes back to birth, however I am a noob at collecting. There was an Ar-15 running on AR3's in my parents living room before I knew what stereos were. I grew up spinning those ar3 brass labels in my spare time. All that gear has since disappeared from family possession, probably discarded to goodwill in 1980s or 90s.
Currently running a Yamaha R-700 for which I have no knowledge how it ended up in my possession. Not a clue. Was on a shelf in my garage. Needs servicing, but it's still chugging away. I'll be buying, upgrading, trading, and selling so I might upgrade to a Marantz soon. In the meantime, my Yahama R-700 remains on active duty. I know some hate that receiver, but haters will be haters.
I'm here at karma mainly because I jumped into rtr players and tape. There's something special about these machines with 3 and 7 ips formats. I miss the days of 1/4" location recording before DAT ruined that party.
So I recently jumped in and bought my first 1/4" rtr deck. And it is the typical story I just had to live out myself.
First off, I ignored the BEST advice out there. Avoiding the ill-famed cliched sales pitch;
"Turns on, but I don't know much about these machines, so selling as-is..."
The machine I bought is an akai gx-625 and bought on feebay. From a guy who had actually had that above epitaph written in his ebay auction. And I definitely overpaid, considering not knowing much about it.
When the darn thing did arrive, I lifted up the box and the 40+lb machine shifted from one side of the box to the other. It was the feeling you get jumping from a plane. It just didn't feel right. Sure enough, the guy wrapped the machine in bubble like a burrito, then tossed it into a box and sent it as if they were sending a plush doll.
The reel tables were bent, thus my avatar. The case, cover and backing were also damaged. Not sure if the deck runs well, since I can't put a reel on the machine even after straightening out the reel tables. The machine came with a hub, 10" reel, and an akai-labeled plastic dust cover. It appears there might have been a cover for this GX or it's a rogue cover that fell in love with my machine and at some point they married each other. Time will tell. The top latch is broken. Looks like an "interesting project".
So there I was, a noob wearing no clothes, and facing a $100 loss in shipping costs both ways. The guy actually charged a low shipping fee ($17), which should have been the "red flag" of all "red flags" for most discerning buyers. Not me. Head first.
Luckily the ebay seller ended up being a really great guy, and took responsibility. Turned out, he really didn't know much about these machines. I claimed it was totaled, which at the time seemed logical. Still is. He gave me an 85% refund and I kept the item as a rebuild or parts machine.
After careful examination, it looks like I can fix this GX-625, restoring it with new tables, new caps and transistors, revitalized rubber, alignment servicing, and an overall circuit bath. Including the machine, replacement parts, and add-on parts I ordered, all in all, I'm still under $250. I suppose I can get this thing fully restored for under $300. As long as I don't screw up servicing. Because parts for these machines are scarce, they are pricey. Parting it out might be profitable, but I want a 625 and this one will do.
I've also picked up a mint condition Akai x-300. I will be selling this item, but probably after I restore it. The machine is in very good condition, and is good as-is. If anyone is interested in it now, let me know. The lot comes with an older style hub, 10" metal reel, and the akai microphone. Correct me if I am wrong, but the X-300 was Akai's first consumer 10" reel to reel deck. An older akai machine that handles 10" must have been popular at the time. Today, it seems like a piece of akai history. Sorry if I digress... Did I say I was selling this machine?
My next target is an Akai 280D-SS quadraphonic deck. They seem to go for $150-$300... My system will look vintage overall, but it will incorporate old with new. I'm on the look-out for singles or pairs of AR3 speakers.
I'll post my decks and projects soon. Cheers!
My background in hifi goes back to birth, however I am a noob at collecting. There was an Ar-15 running on AR3's in my parents living room before I knew what stereos were. I grew up spinning those ar3 brass labels in my spare time. All that gear has since disappeared from family possession, probably discarded to goodwill in 1980s or 90s.
Currently running a Yamaha R-700 for which I have no knowledge how it ended up in my possession. Not a clue. Was on a shelf in my garage. Needs servicing, but it's still chugging away. I'll be buying, upgrading, trading, and selling so I might upgrade to a Marantz soon. In the meantime, my Yahama R-700 remains on active duty. I know some hate that receiver, but haters will be haters.
I'm here at karma mainly because I jumped into rtr players and tape. There's something special about these machines with 3 and 7 ips formats. I miss the days of 1/4" location recording before DAT ruined that party.
So I recently jumped in and bought my first 1/4" rtr deck. And it is the typical story I just had to live out myself.
First off, I ignored the BEST advice out there. Avoiding the ill-famed cliched sales pitch;
"Turns on, but I don't know much about these machines, so selling as-is..."
The machine I bought is an akai gx-625 and bought on feebay. From a guy who had actually had that above epitaph written in his ebay auction. And I definitely overpaid, considering not knowing much about it.
When the darn thing did arrive, I lifted up the box and the 40+lb machine shifted from one side of the box to the other. It was the feeling you get jumping from a plane. It just didn't feel right. Sure enough, the guy wrapped the machine in bubble like a burrito, then tossed it into a box and sent it as if they were sending a plush doll.
The reel tables were bent, thus my avatar. The case, cover and backing were also damaged. Not sure if the deck runs well, since I can't put a reel on the machine even after straightening out the reel tables. The machine came with a hub, 10" reel, and an akai-labeled plastic dust cover. It appears there might have been a cover for this GX or it's a rogue cover that fell in love with my machine and at some point they married each other. Time will tell. The top latch is broken. Looks like an "interesting project".
So there I was, a noob wearing no clothes, and facing a $100 loss in shipping costs both ways. The guy actually charged a low shipping fee ($17), which should have been the "red flag" of all "red flags" for most discerning buyers. Not me. Head first.
Luckily the ebay seller ended up being a really great guy, and took responsibility. Turned out, he really didn't know much about these machines. I claimed it was totaled, which at the time seemed logical. Still is. He gave me an 85% refund and I kept the item as a rebuild or parts machine.
After careful examination, it looks like I can fix this GX-625, restoring it with new tables, new caps and transistors, revitalized rubber, alignment servicing, and an overall circuit bath. Including the machine, replacement parts, and add-on parts I ordered, all in all, I'm still under $250. I suppose I can get this thing fully restored for under $300. As long as I don't screw up servicing. Because parts for these machines are scarce, they are pricey. Parting it out might be profitable, but I want a 625 and this one will do.
I've also picked up a mint condition Akai x-300. I will be selling this item, but probably after I restore it. The machine is in very good condition, and is good as-is. If anyone is interested in it now, let me know. The lot comes with an older style hub, 10" metal reel, and the akai microphone. Correct me if I am wrong, but the X-300 was Akai's first consumer 10" reel to reel deck. An older akai machine that handles 10" must have been popular at the time. Today, it seems like a piece of akai history. Sorry if I digress... Did I say I was selling this machine?
My next target is an Akai 280D-SS quadraphonic deck. They seem to go for $150-$300... My system will look vintage overall, but it will incorporate old with new. I'm on the look-out for singles or pairs of AR3 speakers.
I'll post my decks and projects soon. Cheers!
