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As a general rule, what kind of life can one expect from reel to reel heads? My Nak says I can expect about 10,000 hrs from its heads. I’ve heard R2R heads are less – maybe 5000 hrs? I assume all heads wear at the same rate?
Follow Ups:
but that's all theory...
Just one of the things I like about Dokorder. Also Dokorder has the easiest threading of any RTR I've owned (Teac, Akai, Sony and Pioneer) and the best sound quality and prettiest looking. I know there are better decks but all around I am happy. Plus if I ever want to upgrade the electronics the Dokorder has a tape head output.
"Music is love"
Teresa
I know we can’t be exact here but, assuming we are talking ¼ or ½ track heads, what is the cost and availability of factory replacements (erase, record, playback) for Teac, Revox, Otari, etc. It would seem that the type of deck one buys might hinge on this type of thing.
I can say for certain that as recently as April of this year, Teac still had new heads in stock available.
As the deck ages then parts availability dwindles. Nortronics is out of business and used to make replacement heads here in the USA. Their existing stock is being managed by Joe Dundovic. You can still get heads made for pro machines from JRF and Saki, and even from Ampex. You just need to check the avaliablity of heads and parts before you invest heavily in a old deck. It can get expensive. I use my analog machines only for recording and most of my listening is transcribed to digital media but then I record much of my material in the field and I use my machines professionally. Magnetic media is fragile and you need to get the signal to an optical medium like re-writ CD or DVD as soon as possible. They don't make tape very well anymore and it's life expentancy is quentionable. Ray Hughes
"I take you as you are
And make of you what I will,
Skunk-bear, carcajou, bloodthirsty
Non-survivor.
Lord, let me die but not die out." THE LAST WOLVERINE by James Dickey
It's controlled by many factors, speed, abrasiveness of the tape formulation, tape tension, tape head construction-tipping, frequency of use. Chromium Dioxide is much more abrasive than Ferric Oxide,etc. The laminated form of tape head generally has to employ metals that have a preferable hysteresis and permeability. The qualities that make them desirable frequently makes them soft. Ferrite heads on the other hand last longer but are inclined to saturate more quickly on loud transients or excessive head current. It's really a compromise. Some heads tipped with sendust will last longer. There generally is no hour meter on the average deck, but continuous r-r use at a radio station will generally come in under 5000 hours with (permalloy) heads. Ray Hughes
"I take you as you are
And make of you what I will,
Skunk-bear, carcajou, bloodthirsty
Non-survivor.
Lord, let me die but not die out." THE LAST WOLVERINE by James Dickey
In a word, no. There are different types of heads. There are also several variables that come into play that can affect the longevity of heads as well.
For starters, so-called "permalloy" heads are relatively softer gauge of metal and are probably the shortest lived of heads.
Next would be the so-called "sendust alloy" heads. These are somewhat, but not a whole lot harder than "permalloy".Most common would be so-called "amorphous" heads. So called because they were said to be made with iron particles with random or shapeless orintation. Hence the name.
And finally there are the so-called "crystal-alloy" heads. To my knowledge, only Akai used them on their R2R decks and were claimed to have an indefinite usage life. I have not read any reports that substantiate nor debunk that claim. I will say, however, that out of the 4 or so Akai decks I owned, none of them ever showed any discernable headwear grooves.
I'm sure there are other types of heads out there that I've forgotten.
Comparing the life expectancy of cassette versus reel to reel tape heads is to a large extent apples-to-oranges. Just look at the speed differentials. Most cassette decks operate at 1 7/8 ips. Reel to reel decks operate from that speed all the way up to 30 ips, although most of them are used at either 7 1/2 or 15 ips. It doesn't take a whole lot of common sense to figure out that, well, the higher the speed, the faster it's likely to wear out. Simple physics makes that an all but irrefutable point.
Other things to take into consideration that can seriously shorten the life of your heads is 1) how often you use high-speed audible cue or AMS. This feature keeps the heads engaged while running the tape at fast-wind speed. This is brutal to the heads (and can blow a speaker or fuse if not done right). 2) How often you clean the heads. Oxide buildup, especially if left untreated for some time picks up dust. And oxide, unlike the calendered surface of tapes, is clumpy and randomly shaped. So mix it with dust and it's like running steel wool across the heads. This too shortens the life. And 3), what kind of tape(s) are you using? Are you using high grade premium tape-which is mirror smooth-or are you using low grade ferric that is likely to have a more irregular surface?
Using cheap tape, while cheap up front, will also grind your heads down considerably faster.
In summary, there is no hard and fast gospel rule that I know of that specificallly dictates how long a head should last. But the better decks will usually have better heads. If you use good tape, use the cue features sparingly (or not at all), and keep them clean, then in all probablity, the decks bearings will fail before the heads do, regardless of format.
Hope this helps.
I understand one can’t say with absolute certainty but could fully rewinding a 10.5 reel 2-3 times while in AMS or cue mode wear out otherwise perfectly good heads? Theoretically speaking of course .
Very hard on tweeters! You should have tape lifters that lift the tape off the heads on fast forward or fast rewind and a mute to ground out the play preamp on fast forward or fast rewind.
"I take you as you are
And make of you what I will,
Skunk-bear, carcajou, bloodthirsty
Non-survivor.
Lord, let me die but not die out." THE LAST WOLVERINE by James Dickey
Can you tell me what type heads are in my Teac X1000R? I'm still using the originals in a machine bought new in 1984, and a fingernail test indicates some wear but not as much as I would expect. Does anyone re-lap these things, or are new heads the only option down the road? TIA, Dave
Dave,Headware will result most noticeably in loss of high frequencies. Because it happens slowly over a long period of time, you might not even notice it till it becomes severe.
A reproduce test tape and meter will show up a problem in a second - assuming you measured the response when the deck was new - or trust the original specifications.
Relapping may restore the highs - depends on the head.
The headware pattern can also head mis-alignment.
Charles
The highs remain excellent on my machine (when they're on the tapes in the first place).Which may only mean that in my declining years, the high frequencies are going at the same rate as the tape heads. How's that for planning ahead?
.
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