trying to record onto an 8 track?!?!

[wilkes85]

OK, I'm wondering something. Why is it, that when you tape over an old blank 8 track, you can still hear what was previously recorded onto the thing?! I just wasted 90 minutes taping onto a blank 8 track I bought, and i can still hear Bob Welsh's shitty ass music through my own music (Bob Welsh is what someone originally recorded onto the tape). When a tape recording has been sitting for a while, does it become permanent or something?

And no, it's probabally not my 8 track recorder, because I just made another tape 2 days ago, and there's no evidence that anything was recorded onto it before.
(The 8 track is a Memorex... **** memorex, I never been satisfied with ANY of their blank tapes; new or old)

I never, NEVER have this problem copying over cassettes. maybe i should take this Lloyd's stereo I bought and dump it in the trash, or sell it to some stupid moron. I only bought it for it's 8 track recording capabilities, but it doesn't even do that well (hell, it doesn't do ANYTHING well), so since that's my only reason for buying it, then i think this POS is going RIGHT back to the damn value village where it came from. Then I'm buying a stereo for my basement that isn't a total POS. I vowed never to buy any Lloyd's product again, ever since my first stereo, which was a Lloyd's, and multiple other Lloyd's crap. But then i saw this unit, and i thought "well, maybe this one might not be so bad"... I did see a Soundesign stereo (all in one; 8 track, cassette, tuner, turntable) at a flea market recently... it looked really nice, it was in near mint condition, it worked perfectly, and it had a really cool early '70s design to it. I had to fight myself not to buy the stupid thing, because I've had it with ANY cheap crap.

I like 8 tracks, but recording anything onto them is an absolute heart attack. And to top it all off, it seems to be getting worse as the tape switches tracks; track 1 was bearable, track 2 was borderline irritating, and i'm on track 3 right now, and it's like listening to 2 stereos playing at the same time. I wonder how bad track 4 will be?

I think i'll stick to the pre-recorded 8 tracks, and if i want to make my own tapes, I'll stick to good ol' cassettes.

 

[timofred]

Try erasing or recording silence first, then record over that.

 

[dshoaf]

You'll have to check into the tape transport's viability. Some of those things were built cheaply and the lower quality tape used usually put a lot of residue onto both the erase head as well as the rec/play head. Also, the ratchet systems used to move the head up and down need to be looked at. I'll bet any grease used is hard and brittle now.

Next up would be the rec/play switch system. Take a look and see where the linkages on the record button end up. I'll bet there's a multi-pole switch with lots of wires hanging off it and soldered to a circuit board that needs a good dose of contact cleaner along with some vigorous working back and forth.

So, a bit of maintenance is in order before throwing it out. There were some rather decent (for 8-tracks) made that could sound pretty good but you had to be using new, fully-lubricated tapes.

The symptom you describe is that the erase head isn't doing its job during the record cycle. My money is on the mechanical things and then cleanliness of the heads.

Cheers,

David

 

[Sir.Byrd]

Transfer all of your 8 tracks to cassette while they still work.
Toss the player on freecycle or something, this is what I did and never looked back.

 

[circlesky73]

The erase head is either disconnected or misaligned, I'd suspect. Is there bleedthru on the same deck you recorded on, or is it on another player? If it's the same deck, the erase head is effed up, something that can happen to any tape deck. Get a bulk eraser and you're good to go.

 

[wilkes85]

Actually I did blank out the tape first. Also, that's a good idea, cleaning up the controls and everything. And i just cleaned the head recently, but maybe the tape I was using was a little dirty.

but if it still doesn't record properly, i'm gonna take this Lloyd's stereo, and put it in my travel trailer. maybe cut a hole in the closet wall, and install it in there or something. That would be cool lol... and put the BSR in the drawer? hm.... but either way, I'm on the lookout for a better 8 track recorder.
Or i could find a bulk eraser somewhere. Or at least find something i can use as a bulk eraser. i heard something about setting the tape on the magnet of a big speaker? Would anyone reccomend that?

And I've got 3 8 track players in use (one upstairs, one downstairs, and one in the car), and over 100 8 tracks. LOL I'm not abandoning them now

 

[Sir.Byrd]

 

[raffie]

I don't use 8-tracks but when this occurs on R2R's one of 2 problems have occured:
1. Dirty erase-head. Erase heads seem to pick up dirt more easely than any of the others.
2. The tape is bad (sticky/shed), not only won't it erase or record properly, it will make your heads dirtier every minute you use it. Clean the heads thoroughly, try a different tape.

 

[Sansui Louie]

maybe i should take this Lloyd's stereo I bought and dump it in the trash, or sell it to some stupid moron. I only bought it for it's 8 track recording capabilities, but it doesn't even do that well (hell, it doesn't do ANYTHING well), so since that's my only reason for buying it, then i think this POS is going RIGHT back to the damn value village where it came from. Then I'm buying a stereo for my basement that isn't a total POS. I vowed never to buy any Lloyd's product again, ever since my first stereo, which was a Lloyd's, and multiple other Lloyd's crap. But then i saw this unit, and i thought "well, maybe this one might not be so bad"...

Lloyds never made anything that was worth a diddle. And 30 or 40 years of time passage certainly isn't going to improve anything.

On top of that, you're trying to work with a medium that was inferior when it was new - even when using the best of tape and equipment, using old tape and a poor quality unit. If I were you, I'd move on to a different medium, like cassettes, if you're hell-bent on tape.

 

[daveyh]

You need to use a bulk eraser. You may still to be able to get them and Radio Shack or Ebay but not sure anymore. They are getting harder to find. Place the eraser on the tape and turn it on then slowly pull it away from the eraser while it is still on about 6 inches or so and shut it off. Repeat several times. If you hear wobble or something like that after you record your new music then the tape was not erased long enough. This should solve your problem. I have done tons of analog recordings and it works great. But you have to have a good powerful one like a Realistic High Power Bulk Tape Eraser Model 44-233A. Don't buy a cheap one. Also it could be your 8-track tape you are using. They get old and won't record correctly.

 

[circlesky73]

Also it could be your 8-track tape you are using. They get old and won't record correctly.

They can and do. When getting a new tape, you need to check the splice and replace the pad if it's dried out. Takes 2-3 minutes tops. Do reels and cassettes stop recording properly after they get 'old'?

 

[daveyh]

They can and do. When getting a new tape, you need to check the splice and replace the pad if it's dried out. Takes 2-3 minutes tops. Do reels and cassettes stop recording properly after they get 'old'?

This look like it explains a little about it.

http://www.tangible-technology.com/tape/baking1.html

I have had tapes both cassettes and reel to reel that this has happened to. I have purchased a lot of older tapes also that are pre-recorded music that shed so bad they won't even play. And I sure wouldn't try to record with them.

 

[wilkes85]

I've got the 8 track sitting on top of a speaker right now, and hopefully that will blank it out totally. I took a speaker to it to see how it would work, and it did demagnatize it a bit, to the point where the music sounds wavy and distorted, but then I recorded something over it, and it still records fine, so I'm just gonna do that. Hopefully that will solve my problem until i can get my hands on a bulk eraser.

 

[circlesky73]

Uh, Wilkes, I think you're actually magnetizing them instead of erasing them. That may be the cause of your whole problem wight there. Get a demagnetizer and work it on your heads. A magnetized head will seriously eff up the recorded signal. :thumbsdn:

 

[wilkes85]

Well, today I just adjusted the head azimuth on the 8 track recorder in question. It was a little out of allignment, but it didn't solve my recording problem. Another thing, i adjusted the head the same as my main 8 track player; a Pioneer H-22, and the Pioneer picks up things that the Lloyd's doesn't. When i blanked out the tape, you could barely hear anything on the Lloyd's, but it was very obvious on the Pioneer.
So I'm gonna get a hold of a head de-magnatizer, and a bulk eraser. Hopefully i can come across either one or the other.

Funny thing though, you can re-record over a tape, and then erase your recording, but no matter what, the original recording keeps coming through.

I think I might try to replace the head. I've done it before, but just for fun. it did work, so maybe I might be able to use that bit of experience after all? hehe

[EDIT] I'm not touching the damn head. I had a look, and in there is the cheapest plastic mechanism I ever seen. I'm surprised the damn thing isn't broken yet. It seems that even sticking a tape in it would break the damn thing.
The quality doesn't even come close to my Pioneer deck. It's basically got an all metal mechanism, and it looks like it can withstand a nuclear blast lol

Comparing the Lloyd's to the Pioneer is like comparing a fisher price record player to a Dual turntable.

 

[circlesky73]

[EDIT] I'm not touching the damn head. I had a look, and in there is the cheapest plastic mechanism I ever seen. I'm surprised the damn thing isn't broken yet. It seems that even sticking a tape in it would break the damn thing.
The quality doesn't even come close to my Pioneer deck. It's basically got an all metal mechanism, and it looks like it can withstand a nuclear blast lol

Comparing the Lloyd's to the Pioneer is like comparing a fisher price record player to a Dual turntable.

There you go- the head was askew in what's left of the sh*tty plastic head-holder. That's why the tape played back in that unit but not in the Pioneer. Not the format's fault, but money-saving corporate's fault. It can be repaired, fairly easily, but for a Lloyd's it's prolly not worth it. PM me.

 

[shstrang]

...**** memorex, I never been satisfied with ANY of their blank tapes...

You know I've NEVER understood how Memorex ever got a reputation for being a quality product. I've tried their products from various lines over the years and none of them have been worth a damn.

I'll never forget the time I saw a picture of a NASA computer center tape storage vault and the reels of 1/2" tape saying Memorex on them. Also I've seen 2" quadruplex video tapes from them too.

 

[ampegdan]

and by the way, a Soundesign isn't gonna be much of an improvement over....anything!
Speaking from personal experience.

 

[ha1156w]

Well, Memorex computer products of the mainframe era were a whole 'nother animal. They made IBM 3274-compliant terminal controllers too. Kind of strange to see "Memorex" on your hardware. Their 1/2" computer tapes were no better or worse than the competition in my experience. Yeah, you hit errors in the tape, but everyone else did the same thing too. With 1/2" computer media, you've got a pair of reels with 6" diameter AC reel motors and VERY quick transitions when shuttling the tape. No capstan. You DON'T use tape that will break or stretch. Computer tape drives were VERY hard on tapes. Oh yeah, and don't accidentally miss an idler when threading. I can't tell you how I know that.