Otari MTR 90 maintenance

Looks like I'm going to be getting my feet wet on one of these decks.  I figured I'd ask around here and see if anyone has performed any work on these and if there are any tips/tricks or gremlins I should be on the look out for.

Any assistance is greatly appreciated.

Thanks!

James

TheJames said:

Looks like I'm going to be getting my feet wet on one of these decks.  I figured I'd ask around here and see if anyone has performed any work on these and if there are any tips/tricks or gremlins I should be on the look out for.

Any assistance is greatly appreciated.

Thanks!

James

Click to expand...

Series I, II, or III?
Best,
Bruno2000

Hmmm....That's a good question!  I've been handed the manual, and it says series II....But that's not to say that the actual machine is a series II.  The machine is on it's fourth owner now and has some calibration issues.  The new owner should be getting a MRL tape in this week and was asking me to take a look at it.

Other than that...I sadly don't know much about this particular machine.

careful with the calibration trim pots. very easy to over crank them and break the trim pot. I've never done it per say but I have replaced enough of those because others did it.

Hi,

How are you ?
If I can help you. I my first appointment  ;D
Regards from France.

Cheers,
Pascal

pucho812 said:

careful with the calibration trim pots. very easy to over crank them and break the trim pot. I've never done it per say but I have replaced enough of those because others did it.

Click to expand...

+1 on this.  We had a whole drawer full of the replacement pots.  Some second engineer would get the tweaker in beside the pot, and snap it off. 

Is this an audio calibration problem, or a transport problem?  We had a Mark I, and 3 Mark II.  I still have "some" spare parts for both, and a whole spare card set for the Mark I.

Best,
Bruno2000

Hi Guys,

Anybody have an aftermarket replacement for the 10k  Repro gain control?

Check that the swing arm shafts aren't bent, a common Otari problem. Caused by not securing the tape to the takeup spool properly when loading tape. If the spool spins and then grabs the tape, it puts huge pressure on the swing arms.
Mechanical tape setup problems are the most common, otherwise a pretty good deck.

Hi Guys,

If someone needs schematics, I have everything I need.

My best wishes.
Cheers,
Pascal