tape echo rehab

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dmp

Well-known member
Joined
Oct 28, 2009
Messages
3,850
Location
Madison, WI
I have a Univox Echotech em-200 that I've been trying to restore. Electrical restoration is done with all new electrolytic caps. The dry signal sounds good.
I replaced the tape disk with a brand new 5.25 floppy disc. The old tape disc was in bad shape.
The tape heads seem to be the remaining problem. I cleaned them with IPA when replacing the tape. Starting it up without any adjustments and it produced a lot of noise - a lot of hiss and some clicking in time with the delay. I think it is a problem with playback heads, because lifting the playback heads gently to reduce pressure on the tape makes most of the noise go away. So I adjusted the head height up and the delay sound is much better, lower noise, no clicking, but now the repeat delay is weaker, so it won't go up to the edge of feedback like it did before, with the 'echo repeat' turned up.
I don't know much about tape gear.
What could be causing this problem? Are the heads bad? Need resurfacing? Or is a better adjustment of the heads needed? Picture shows the head adjustments. There are two playback heads, a record, and an erase.
 

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