[78-L] half track tapes

[Michael Biel]

From: "Robert M. Bratcher Jr." <bratcher at pdq.net>
> What about the idea of keeping my Pioneer (with it's 10" reel 
> capacity) for quarter track & getting a half track stereo
> Tascam deck for playing my 2 track stereo tapes? Perhaps a
> Tascam 32 machine would fit my needs? 

Tascam is TEAC, much like Technques is Panasonic.  Although I like the
TEAC decks I have used, I had very bad experiences with the pair of
Tascams that was in the recording studio classroom when I arrived in
Kentucky 31 years ago.  It had the worst brakes in the world, and one of
them proved unrepairable even to Tascam.  I like the Otari MUCH better,
and I have used perhaps a dozen 5050s at my school.  I do have a few
warnings, though.  There is a big difference in the brakes in the
machines that are in a straight case with the amp below the deck, and
the Mark series that has the amp in a "birdcage" above the deck.  The
brakes on the Mark series are the best I have ever used in a pro
machine, while the brakes on the straight ones are almost as bad as the
Tascam.  They eventually bind up and make it difficult to hand-turn the
reels for editing and cueing. 

I like both the Mark III and the Mark IV, but there are differences that
you might like in one but not the other.  There is a readout for the
variable speed control on the Mark IV but there is no way of accurately
getting back to the exact variable speed you used before on the Mark
III.  The quarter-track play head is an option on the Mark IV and you
will have to look to see if there are four heads in the machine that you
might find.  The second head is the quarter track play, and there is a
spacer in its place on the standard Mark IV.  It was standard issue on
the Mark III.  I find the solenoid pushbutton system for retracting the
tape lifters during fast wind on the Mark IV a royal pain in the butt. 
I like the mechanical lever over on the left side that is used for the
Mark III because you can vary how much the lifters are retracted.  But a
warning -- midway through production they changed how that lever works. 
In the early ones you pull to retract and push back to restore.  In the
later ones you pull to retract but you PULL AGAIN to restore.  If you
push back you will eventually bend the bar inside.  Since we had
machines of both types -- and they looked identical -- we had to be
careful to not move them around so that everyone could remember which
ones were which.  

Of course if you can get a Studer, GET IT!  But repair parts are
becoming EXPENSIVE.  I also like Ampex, but Studer is the Mercedes or
Rolls Royce, Ampex is the Caddy.  Otari is the Honda or Toyota. 
Wollensak was the Rambler.  Webcor was the Pinto.  VM was the DeSoto. 
Pentron was the pits.

Mike Biel  mbiel at mbiel.com