Teac R2R, Cassette and Dolby unit

[Decatur Greg]

Got the itch to get into R2R. Does this sound like a good deal?

Anyone have experience with replacing the drive belt on a Teac A-4070 unit?

Craig's List ad:

For sale is a Teac A-4070 Reel-to-Reel Stereo Tape Deck, a Teac A-400 Stereo Cassette Deck, and a Teac AN-60W Noise Reduction Unit. The reel-to-reel needs a drive belt. All items are in decent shape cosmetically. All items are sold as is.

 

[skywavebe]

Hi Greg,
Yes, I have replaced about 45 of them. The problem these days is heads.
If you need heads on the unit they just are not made anymore-that is the record and erase combo ones at each headstack end. You can still get play heads somewhere. From the memory and I did one not too long ago I seem to think you go in from the front and have to take the head block off as well as the Pinch Roller Linkage which most likely will need lubrication anyway. Don't strip any screws and you should be OK. I did so many belt replacements because I have worked for Teac at the factory Service in Chicago. I have therfore worked on just about every model they made. Getting a Service manual in paper from stereomanuals.com is not a bad idea if you are going to keep the unit as at some time you are going to need it.
The A400 was not a favorite with technicians as it had a lot of trouble with tape skew and it has record play switches that get dirty. It is not the same grade of machine as like the C-3RX where the Tascam 122 came from.

 

[jblmar]

How much for the set? The 4070G is a compromise in sound due to the combination head. The cassette deck is a low quality deck ca. 1977. The AN60 is an outdated Dolby add on. Add on Noise Reduction Units are a crap shoot. The deck & the NR unit must be adjusted properly. This is especially true with DBX. If the electronics of the deck are noisy, Dolby will make it worse.
Changing the belt is not difficult. It may follow the style of the 1200 series since the 4070 is a pre 4300 type deck. The decks from the 2300 & up had belts replaced with the rear panel removed.
BTW Ask if the sync cable is available. It was used along with the 4300 to sync reverse play of the 4300 to reverse record of the 4070.

 

[skywavebe]

To make a correction the belt for the A4070G is replaced from the front and you will have to take a lot more off on this model than any A2300 or like model.
Often times the screws can seem stuck and where this is not handled well this is where the deck can be difficult. The Belt change on a A4070G is NOT a piece of cake and anyone who says so has not done one yet.

The heads on the unit although the record and erase heads are in a single package does not affect their performance. It is the OBTAINING these heads that is the problem just as it is on the Technics units- very hard to come by and made in small numbers. The last price I saw for a A4070G combo head was $367 when I worked at Teac. Since there were two of them on the unit no one I have ever heard has changed them. On such a machine at this point it would be good for playback only and you can put te X series heads on it for new ones if you can find them.