Tascam 388 Repair help?

[pitol678]

Hi,
I have a Tascam 388 that Ive had for a couple of years now. Not long after I bought it, I noticed that the Left channels were not audible unless panned to center. Meaning that the recorded audio was on tape but not able to be panned Left at all without the signal disappearing. But the problem wasn't always there, say for instance if I moved it or it was jarred just a bit, the Left side may come back for a while, then disappear again. It could also happen that I might power it on one day and it was suddenly fixed, temporarily of course.

Currently, Ive got it in the shop of a very competent repair tech in my area who has owned one of these machines before, and he said hes spent about 6 hours on it and is losing hope of finding the problem and is only going to spend another couple hours before he gives up. He said he's scoped it, and is going to start checking caps but after that he's at a loss. So,needless to say that Im concerned as Ive had a lot of fun with the machine (when it works) and if its unable to be repaired, its not very useable and Ive lost some money and what would have been a very useful piece gear to me.

So my question is, has anybody ever experienced this or have any ideas, thoughts or experience with this issue? Thanks in advance!

 

[JohnRoberts]

Check for perhaps a bad solder connection... The intermittent behavior when jarred is consistent with that.

JR

 

[pitol678]

Thanks, the tech agreed that it may be a bad solder joint but was unable to locate it, so the machine is back home and is just the same as when it left   The dilemma for me is that I live in a rural area where I know of no one in the immediate area who works on this type of thing. Im willing to drive a couple hours or so if I knew of a reputable tech but am unsure about the best way to find one.
So the way I see it, I have three options:

1.) Sell it for parts
2.) Try and work with it as-is (not even sure if this is possible or worth it).
3.) Look for a tech within two or three hour radius who has some knowledge of theses machines, although this could run into more money than its worth Im afraid.

Anyway, Id love any thoughts/opinions on how to locate a tech, ideas I could try for myself although Im pretty limited in abilities as far as repair. Thanks in advance, much appreciated

 

[ruffrecords]

I had a TEAC A3440 with an intermittent channel. Turned out to be a dirty/tarnished board connector. It is worth removing/inserting the suspect channel board a few times to clean the contacts.

I also had a Fostex R8 with an intermittent channel. This turned out to be a tiny hairline crack in a PCB track that opened when the board was flexed. Took ages to find.

Cheers

Ian

 

[pitol678]

I had a TEAC A3440 with an intermittent channel. Turned out to be a dirty/tarnished board connector. It is worth removing/inserting the suspect channel board a few times to clean the contacts.

I also had a Fostex R8 with an intermittent channel. This turned out to be a tiny hairline crack in a PCB track that opened when the board was flexed. Took ages to find.

Cheers

Ian


Thanks for the reply! Unfortunately the issue effects all channels but I suppose it wouldn't hurt to open it up and take a look at it and see what I can see.

 

[ruffrecords]

If it happens  to all channels then it must be something common to them all. Perhaps the left bus amp or the connections to it or a broken track.

Cheers

Ian

 

[pitol678]

Thanks, that makes sense but I know very little of this type of repair. I was considering opening it up but had second thoughts of it because Im just not sure where to start. Ive never worked with schematics so Im thinking my best bet is to start making calls to see if there is anyone with experience with these (thats not too far away as I live in rural KY) which Im not very hopeful about. Its either that or sell it "as-is for parts"  :-\ Im all ears if anyone has any suggestions, thanks

 

[QUEEF BAG]

i would go ahead and try to open it...

then i would begin to think that  i would not be able
to open it with out breaking plastic parts....

how far can you get?   

 

[pitol678]

i would go ahead and try to open it...

then i would begin to think that  i would not be able
to open it with out breaking plastic parts....

how far can you get? 

Funny thing is, it's working at the moment although I'm sure that as soon as I try to mix or record it'll cut out again. I've called around to find a repair tech and the only one who would even look at it (2 hours away) quoted me a price of between $300-$500 which I just can't see throwing at it.  I'll just sell for parts I guess. Major bummer.

 

[CJ]

had same problem,

turned out to be RCA jacks in back, easy to fix that panel, on this one at least,

 

[pitol678]

had same problem,

turned out to be RCA jacks in back, easy to fix that panel, on this one at least,

Really!? Man anything  specifically you can tell me about how you fixed it would VERY much appreciated!!!

 

[CJ]

take back panel off

they are soldered to a pc board, mechanical stress from plugging cables over time loosens up solder joints,

just resolder and use machine then trade for Otari,

 

[pitol678]

take back panel off

they are soldered to a pc board, mechanical stress from plugging cables over time loosens up solder joints,

just resolder and use machine then trade for Otari,

Haha, do you like Otari better? I've been looking at an Otari mx5050-8 track but have really been wanting to get this 388 going again.

So the RCA connections were causing the L or R pan function not to work? Thanks, I'll give that a try!!

 

[QUEEF BAG]

otari way better.

tascam not even strong enough to suck an egg

 

[PRR]

> tascam not even strong enough to suck an egg

A lot of us egg-suckers got started on TASCAM gear.

Not a totally fond memory. (But all memory of the '70s is weak...)

 

[QUEEF BAG]

i started with a dokorder 7140...
then went to a tascam 80-8

they were both so weak i had to suck eggs myself as well.


i have both fond memories of the 70's as well as memories of stupidity.

some times they combined.