|
Audio Asylum Thread Printer Get a view of an entire thread on one page |
For Sale Ads |
72.40.99.156
I have been an on and off long time audiophile and recently got into Reel to Reel. I bought a Tandberg TD20SE and finally found some time to put it into operation. (Keep in mind I have absolutely no prior knowledge of Reel to Reel prior to this.)Strange things that are not logical are happening. I am a fairly technical person so I am definitely confused. I was told the deck I acquired is a high speed 7.5/15ips unit that can record in both directions. I was running my first tests on the deck, recording and testing various attributes just to see how it would perform. Tape ran out on I guess you would call it side A. I flipped the reel over and set it up to record on the other side. I mistakenly hit play and the songs I recorded previously were playing backwards. WHAT IS GOING ON!
I took a look on the back of the deck and it says 2 Track 7.5/15ips unit. I was told this unit is able to record in both directions, but I don't see how that is possible if I am hearing my music backwards. That would logically indicate that the entire tape has been recording on.Am I doing something wrong? I don't get it. Did I get the wrong deck out of the bunch?
Just to let you guys know, my test recordings sound great. Very musical. Put it this way, I have a Nakamichi ZX9 cassette deck that is awesome. I think that the test recordings I made from the Tandberg at the slow speed are better. Seem more intimate more connected to the music with greater dynamic range. I did not do any A/B comparisons so this is just my impression. Oh and that brings up another thing: Why are the VU meters showing much lower readings during playback then the level I set during recording?I have a spool of Quantegy 456 tape that I am using for testing and I understand that it is no longer being made. Will I need to have my deck sent in to calibrate it for a different tape? That would suck.
Thanks in advance.
Follow Ups:
Sorry forgot to mention that the V U meters DO measure LOWER readings on playback but this is perfectly normal it even states it in the operators manual! and you can record in both directions but you will wipe any information on the tape that was previously recorded on the A side. I wouldn't say you picked the wrong one of the bunch as these decks are known as the rolls royce of tape decks. You should be proud of your new posession. You have a tape deck that has been used by many proffesionals you have the two track for stereo high speed version the high speed gives incredible results but consumes more tape obviously Tandberg made an excellent 4 track version of the TD 20 A too which doubled the amount of time you could record and you can flip the reels over and record in both directions with it too without loosing previous recordings on the other side. I have used both and found them to be equal in listening quality though I'm sure technically the slower speed 4 track would be lower in quality. Still a great machine. Your deck is more for live recordings to use as a master recording because of the tape consumption but will give you better results overhaul.all the best
Poor you! I own one of these wonderfull decks. Secondary to none these decks work for years and years, I'm surprised they didn't advertise what the heads are made of as they don't seem to wear out!
The reason your tapes sound backwards when you change turn them over is because these decks record full width, it's not just a case of 1-4
The entire tape gets recorded on except for a very thin dividing track to ensure less crosstalk. Sure you can play these tapes on 4 track machines but you loose a lot of information. The 2 track high speed version is records and plays back exceptionally and do try the a/b test this will show just how well your system is set up. Quantegy 456 should work fine and I think you should still be able to get some brand new tape from http://www.svs-media.fsbusiness.co.uk/wa2.htm make sure you order it on a 10.5" NAB spool though or you could end up with a pancake! Cheaper but can be messy if your not really carefull and seeing as your new to reel to reel might be best to start off easy! To set the tape up properly all you have to do is adjust the bias potentiometers on the front panel. These are located behind the internally coverd black dots named bias on the front panel you use a very small flat bladed screwdriver and do the a/b test whilst recording until the sound is exactly the same as the input on both channels or as near as damn it! or you may choose to increase the highs or lows it's entirely your preference but whatever you do don't over do it these are very small screws and the pots can be damaged if heavy handed. 1/2 to 3/4 turn is all you should need to adjust them if necesarry.
Got it.
Although this is from a Revox site, the definitions will apply to all tape decks:
Taz,As far as I can tell, your 20A is working normally.
Let's start off with some definitions - what you allude to as a deck that "can record in both directions" refers to an automatic reversing function that was incorporated into some machines equipped to play /record quarter track tapes continuously. Visualize the tape being divided into four continuous "tracks" numbered, from the top down, 1,2,3,4. The quarter track heads are manufactured so that they can record and record and play information on tracks 1 and 3 ONLY. So when you start recording information, it is recorded on tracks 1 and 3. When the tape runs out, you turn it over and continue recording on what is now, from the tape's perspective, tracks 2 and 4. The net effect is to be able to DOUBLE the record /playback TIME available on a given length of tape. If you could listen to all four tracks simultaneously in ONE DIRECTION, wou would therefore hear two tracks playing normally,and two tracks playing BACKWARDS.
"Auto reverse" decks were developed to take the bother out of having to take a quarter track tape off the machine after it has played through and reverse/remount/rethread it to play "the other side". To do this the mechanics had to be made bi-directional and the heads had to be able record and play all four tracks, when you get to the end of one side of the tape, the deck sensed the end and automatically reversed operation.
I am not aware that Tandberg ever made a deck with auto reverse capability, so in your case, when you turn the tape over you are simply hearing what you previously recorded playing backwards. You therefore have to rewind the tape after recording it to listen to it. I happen to always leave my tapes in an "as played" condition, so they do have to be rewound before every audition.
The fact that the 20A says "two track" on it also indicate to me that when you record, you do record two "sets of information" on the entire tape in one direction.
Hope this long-winded discussion helped.
This post is made possible by the generous support of people like you and our sponsors: