Teac A-5500 was the best Teac reel in A series?
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KentTeffeteller
Gimpus Stereophilus!
Decent machine that Technics is! Good luck on either or finding parts. The Teac A series family mentioned in this post was their best A series family. The 10.5" model in this family with built in Dolby would be the best A series Teac built. Any of the DD A series Teacs are superb machines and well worth owning. :tresbon:
I never got what the A series was....they made a 3340S, and an A3340S, and a 4010 and an A4010, etc etc....never made sense to me.
I Just refer to them by transport design e.g. 3300 series, 6010/7010 series, etc.
I Just refer to them by transport design e.g. 3300 series, 6010/7010 series, etc.
I never think of the 5500 machines as true A series Teacs, more like the red headed stepchild of the A series. They were kind of going in a different direction, not sure why they used the A series moniker. The top of the line 1/4 track stereo home use machine for the true A series (meaning belt drive, ac motor, right side single capstan machines) in the 7" format really was the A-4300. The 5500 machines were to the Teac A series what the Tornado was to the Oldsmobile division. Yeah, technically the Tornado was an Olds, but it wasn't like any of the others in the series and most of the parts weren't interchangeable with the others.
jayk
Super Member
SkywaveTDR
Active Member
Hi AK members,
I worked on the A5500 and it's lesser brother and they are or were nothing but a pain. They first came out with reel motors that looked like they belonged in a cassette deck. If you think the Tascam 32 motors are weak, these make the 32's motors look professional. Then they came out with a AC retrofit for AC motor for both of these decks- guess what? they were A3300 type motors.
The direct drive was a good idea but it was compromised by all the other bad and cheap stuff. These two machines are the only ones that I could say looked like they were made by Akai. There were other things that were bad but I just don't remember the details. Even when I could get them for near free I never took them knowing what I did. NOT all Teac are a champ. The similar design was the A7300 or -2T. This was much better design right off the bat. It looks like the A5500 or A5300 but it is a machine I would own. Heck, just so you guys know I have all kinds of Teac/Tascam decks here probably about 30 to 40 and then some Otari too. I don't collect junk: X-3, X300, 22-2 and no A5500 or A5300 either. The A series were not really a series but a classification which mean the deck was meant for America.
This did not start upon distribution to the USA but at some early point maybe around the point where Fair Trade started in- remember that trick? In any case the decks I try to obtain or advise to buy have in most cases the AXXX and the S on the end. If you try to stick to that rule you should end up with a good deck. The S was not always attached to a model once solenoids were a common place thing. The A4300 and A6300 were signs of that but the A4300 did have an SX the A6300 was always just that. I hope this educates and helps.
I worked on the A5500 and it's lesser brother and they are or were nothing but a pain. They first came out with reel motors that looked like they belonged in a cassette deck. If you think the Tascam 32 motors are weak, these make the 32's motors look professional. Then they came out with a AC retrofit for AC motor for both of these decks- guess what? they were A3300 type motors.
The direct drive was a good idea but it was compromised by all the other bad and cheap stuff. These two machines are the only ones that I could say looked like they were made by Akai. There were other things that were bad but I just don't remember the details. Even when I could get them for near free I never took them knowing what I did. NOT all Teac are a champ. The similar design was the A7300 or -2T. This was much better design right off the bat. It looks like the A5500 or A5300 but it is a machine I would own. Heck, just so you guys know I have all kinds of Teac/Tascam decks here probably about 30 to 40 and then some Otari too. I don't collect junk: X-3, X300, 22-2 and no A5500 or A5300 either. The A series were not really a series but a classification which mean the deck was meant for America.
This did not start upon distribution to the USA but at some early point maybe around the point where Fair Trade started in- remember that trick? In any case the decks I try to obtain or advise to buy have in most cases the AXXX and the S on the end. If you try to stick to that rule you should end up with a good deck. The S was not always attached to a model once solenoids were a common place thing. The A4300 and A6300 were signs of that but the A4300 did have an SX the A6300 was always just that. I hope this educates and helps.
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Thanks for clearing that up, Sam!
I keep my X-3 handy for playing very fragile tapes that I don't want running on some of my better machines-which are usually a bit harder on the tape.
I keep my X-3 handy for playing very fragile tapes that I don't want running on some of my better machines-which are usually a bit harder on the tape.
X-3 Dependability
I've had an X-3 in my stable of a dozen or so for years and has turned out to be one of the most dependable and easiest to work on machines I have though all it has ever needed is a little lube and a belt. It's been my go-to machine when I have to set up a 2nd 7" machine quickly and don't want to pull a gut doing it and sits on a top shelf for the same reason. The pull and snap reel locks would be better if made from metal but they work great none-the-less.
I've had an X-3 in my stable of a dozen or so for years and has turned out to be one of the most dependable and easiest to work on machines I have though all it has ever needed is a little lube and a belt. It's been my go-to machine when I have to set up a 2nd 7" machine quickly and don't want to pull a gut doing it and sits on a top shelf for the same reason. The pull and snap reel locks would be better if made from metal but they work great none-the-less.
SkywaveTDR
Active Member
Just to clear up and give actual insight from a Teac Technician of the past.
The A5500, A5300 and X3 models and their derivatives were not high end, good machines or the only thing that could be said for them is that they needed a lot of service. As a Teac owner of many of their good models these represented experiments that just went wrong. Nobody at Chicago Factory Service liked working on them and if the manager Matt was to have to work on one he would have his crooked face on indicating his disapproval. Some may like them yes, but they are not coming from the Technical or service point of view.
Now for the A4070G. The only thing that could be said about this machine of bidirectional record is that it had a single Pinch Roller system that avoided the skew that dual roller system did when users did not clean them every 6 hours.
The heads were specialized being dual Ferrite erase and record and the play heads were about $90 even back then. Good luck finding such an item.
They were not remarkable performers like the A6300 or such decks.
The A for those that do not know simply means the units were labeled for American Export. The same model that would look the same from overseas often times had an international fuse holder on it but other than that it was the same. I have been dealing with these units for about 35 years so I have some knowledge of them.
SkywaveTDR
The A5500, A5300 and X3 models and their derivatives were not high end, good machines or the only thing that could be said for them is that they needed a lot of service. As a Teac owner of many of their good models these represented experiments that just went wrong. Nobody at Chicago Factory Service liked working on them and if the manager Matt was to have to work on one he would have his crooked face on indicating his disapproval. Some may like them yes, but they are not coming from the Technical or service point of view.
Now for the A4070G. The only thing that could be said about this machine of bidirectional record is that it had a single Pinch Roller system that avoided the skew that dual roller system did when users did not clean them every 6 hours.
The heads were specialized being dual Ferrite erase and record and the play heads were about $90 even back then. Good luck finding such an item.
They were not remarkable performers like the A6300 or such decks.
The A for those that do not know simply means the units were labeled for American Export. The same model that would look the same from overseas often times had an international fuse holder on it but other than that it was the same. I have been dealing with these units for about 35 years so I have some knowledge of them.
SkywaveTDR
Charlie
At Sea
I was always curious if the "A" was supposed to mean something, and I do remember quite some time back someone mentioned it meaning American Export. With that being said, sooo many of these machines were purchased overseas during Vietnam and brought back to the states, but it's rare we see one without the A. My parents' deck was purchased in Germany, and yet it has the A.
There was a thread discussing the 5500 motors recently...
http://www.audiokarma.org/forums/showthread.php?t=391980
With the 4070, it seems I've read here in the past that it wasn't considered that high on the food chain. I've enjoyed mine and felt like it was a good performer, but then i might have just gotten lucky with it. I remember posts in the past saying that they were usually plagued with problems. The only thing I don't like is the small VU meters whereas most of the other models have large meters. The 4070, like the 5300/5500, is kind of in a class by itself as far as design. Kinda makes you wonder why they even made the 4070. As Skywave pointed out, it really only differs from all the other models by giving you bi-directional recording. It does have the ferrite heads, but then so did the 4010 and 6010 GSL models during the same time. I often wondered why they didn't offer the ferrite heads on any models that followed the GSL and 4070 decks.
There was a thread discussing the 5500 motors recently...
http://www.audiokarma.org/forums/showthread.php?t=391980
With the 4070, it seems I've read here in the past that it wasn't considered that high on the food chain. I've enjoyed mine and felt like it was a good performer, but then i might have just gotten lucky with it. I remember posts in the past saying that they were usually plagued with problems. The only thing I don't like is the small VU meters whereas most of the other models have large meters. The 4070, like the 5300/5500, is kind of in a class by itself as far as design. Kinda makes you wonder why they even made the 4070. As Skywave pointed out, it really only differs from all the other models by giving you bi-directional recording. It does have the ferrite heads, but then so did the 4010 and 6010 GSL models during the same time. I often wondered why they didn't offer the ferrite heads on any models that followed the GSL and 4070 decks.
Charlie
At Sea
Bi-directional recording is simply a convenience. You don't have to flip the reels over to record on side B. Most reel-to-reels are bi-direction play, and only one direction record. Since you dont record as often as you play, it's not really so bad having only one direction record.
The big deal about ferrite heads is they don't wear as fast. If there is a difference in sound, it's not enough for my ears to notice.
The big deal about ferrite heads is they don't wear as fast. If there is a difference in sound, it's not enough for my ears to notice.
