Technics Tape Deck Troubleshooting

[backinblack]

Okay, I know this is the Vinyl Engine and my question is about tape decks but I figure there are alot of you out there who have knowledge of both vinyl and...er....ferric oxide?!

Anyway, I picked up an early 90's (I think) Technics RS-TR313 tape deck from the thrift store for dirt cheap. I had to buy a power cord and some RCA plugs and then hooked it up to my late 90's JVC receiver. I get power to the tape deck, the tape moves when I press play, ff, rewind etc but trouble is, I get no sound from the speakers. If I crank the receiver volume way high, I do here a hiss but that's it. Tried through headphones same deal. The tape deck has a level indicator which is redlined as soon as I press play even when turning the receiver volume down. What gives? Anyone have any ideas or should I dump her in the recycle bin? Will a Technics tapedeck only work with a Technics receiver?! That would seem strange.

[Singlemania45]

Okay, I know this is the Vinyl Engine and my question is about tape decks but I figure there are alot of you out there who have knowledge of both vinyl and...er....ferric oxide?!

Anyway, I picked up an early 90's (I think) Technics RS-TR313 tape deck from the thrift store for dirt cheap. I had to buy a power cord and some RCA plugs and then hooked it up to my late 90's JVC receiver. Trouble is that I get power to the tape deck, the tape moves when I press play, ff, rewind etc but I get no sound from the speakers. If I crank the receiver volume way high, I do here a hiss but that's it. Tried through headphones same deal. The tape deck has a level indicator which is redlined as soon as I press play even when turning the receiver volume down. What gives? Anyone have any ideas or should I dump her in the recycle bin? Will a Technics tapedeck only work with a Technics receiver?! That would seem strange.

If you are playing a reliable tape and have the output leads from the tape machine connected to tape in on the receiver there should be no problem, failing that I think the machine may be defective

[backinblack]

Thanks for the reply singlemania. Yeah, I'm pretty sure I hooked the cables up correctly. Just to be sure I reversed them as well with no luck. I'm afraid it's fried.

[Alec124c41]

Cassette decks typically have a sliding switch on the board, connected to the transport by an arm, or a stiff wire. This keeps the deck from trying to record and play at the same time. Wash it out with contact/control cleaner. It might do the trick.

Cheers,
Alec

[backinblack]

Cassette decks typically have a sliding switch on the board, connected to the transport by an arm, or a stiff wire. This keeps the deck from trying to record and play at the same time. Wash it out with contact/control cleaner. It might do the trick.

Cheers,
Alec

Thanks Alec, I'll take her apart and give it a go with some Deoxit.

[Steerpike_jhb]

About 2 montha ago, I serviced a TR212 someone gave to my housekeeper.
From the outside, I can't see any difference beween the 212 and photos of the 313. Web pics show the 313 had HX, the 212 not, but the one I had was definately a 212, and definately had HX - so there may have been some overlap.

The 212 uses all-electronic switching. There is no multi-way mode switch for rec/play, so nothing to spray deoixit at.

Do you get the same result with both decks, in both directions?

If you are lucky, it may be something like failed electrolytic coupling capacitors.

As an aside, it's not a real technics - its one of those OEM badge engineered things from Taiwan (the company name eludes me right now) and very low budget mechanisms.

[backinblack]

About 2 montha ago, I serviced a TR212 someone gave to my housekeeper.
From the outside, I can't see any difference beween the 212 and photos of the 313. Web pics show the 313 had HX, the 212 not, but the one I had was definately a 212, and definately had HX - so there may have been some overlap.

The 212 uses all-electronic switching. There is no multi-way mode switch for rec/play, so nothing to spray deoixit at.

Do you get the same result with both decks, in both directions?

If you are lucky, it may be something like failed electrolytic coupling capacitors.

As an aside, it's not a real technics - its one of those OEM badge engineered things from Taiwan (the company name eludes me right now) and very low budget mechanisms.

Thanks steerpike,
Yep, I get the same result with both decks and in both directions! So is it just a matter of checking all the caps to see which one is faulty or would you suspect it is a specific cap? I have no experience with a multimeter but I wouldn't mind learning some of that stuff. It only cost me $10 so if I totally destroy it...well...no big deal :)

[Steerpike_jhb]

I didn't pay too much attention to the amplifier in the 212, since it only needed mechanical repairs. You can't easily measure capacitor failure with a multimeter. The strange thing is that it is doing this on both channels, L & R, so it is more likely to be a fault in the power supplies than the audio path itself. Electrolytics are known to fail after a few years so that would be a logical suspect. Happily they are very cheap - usually 10c to 25c each, depending on size.

The most likely to fail are the ones in the power supply section - those that are physicallly big, and have vales over 470uF, maybe as high as 4700uF.

[backinblack]

I didn't pay too much attention to the amplifier in the 212, since it only needed mechanical repairs. You can't easily measure capacitor failure with a multimeter. The strange thing is that it is doing this on both channels, L & R, so it is more likely to be a fault in the power supplies than the audio path itself. Electrolytics are known to fail after a few years so that would be a logical suspect. Happily they are very cheap - usually 10c to 25c each, depending on size.

The most likely to fail are the ones in the power supply section - those that are physicallly big, and have vales over 470uF, maybe as high as 4700uF.

Thanks again Steerpike. I'll pay a visit to the local electronics store, see if they have some caps for sale and give it a go. I got nothing to lose and I'll gain some experience replacing caps. Thanks again.

[backinblack]

Wooooooohooooooooo!! :D :D :D :D :D :D :D

I did it!!
I replaced all the caps in the power supply section like you said Steerpike and voila....both decks work as they should!! I am so excited! I have a working tapedeck and I repaired it myself....thanks to vinylengine and steerpike!!

Thanks again!

[Steerpike_jhb]

Woohar! Well that's rewarding & cause to celebrate. Congratulatons! Let's put gin in our tea!

[recordguy67]

Wow, ok, I know it's been 9 years since this message string originated, but I thought I'd see if backinblack is still listening. Yep, I'm having the exact same problem you had all those 9 years ago with the same tape deck, and I was hoping to get a little advice as to how you went about replacing the caps as you did. Are you still out there?

[lenjack]

Woohar! Well that's rewarding & cause to celebrate. Congratulatons! Let's put gin in our tea!

As long as we don't put tea in our gin :!:

[mmillervinyl]

I would like to ask a question about a 212 I bought today. Deck 2 works fine. Deck 1 will fast forward and rewinds up to a point then it stops like it is stuck. If you push play it will play for a about 5 or 10 seconds then stop. I see that the tape is not advancing. I remove the tape out I end up having to wind the tape back up. I am no expert and dont have a clue of what it could be. I will try to clean Deck 1 but I doubt that will do anything. Any help from the prose in this forum would be appreciated. Oh yes I paid $20 bucks for mine. It "looks" good in my cabinet. Now lets see if it will function properly again. I'd like to do some high speed dubbing.

Thank you,