am i missing something...what's wrong with this??

[the velour fog]

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?Vi ... gory=15199

the seller severely contradicts himself in this. he says it powers up and seems to run perfectly...but he must sell as a "parts only machine." is this a good investment, or an expensive desk weight.

would it be best to get the unit and chance repairs and maintenance, or leave it be? how tough is maintaining a machine like this?

[antilog]

i'm no expert, but those heads look rough

[percussion boy]

I have a 4 track 1/2" 5050. I think I paid $460 on e-bay, and the heads are in good shape. I like it. Mine has 4 mic pres, just like the one you're looking at.

These machines are not real popular, for some reason, so you could probably pass on this one and find a healthier one cheap, sooner or later.

Parts & repair labor are NOT cheap for reel-to-reels, as a rule. Try to get a machine that's been treated well, unless you know how to fix it.

[wayne kerr]

caveat emtor - I'd skip this one.

CC
PP

[bobbydj]

No offence - honestly - but wtf's right with that??

[ottokbre]

i'm no expert, but those heads look rough

I was looking at this one on Monday and thought the same thing. Those are sweet machines tho!

[the velour fog]

No offence - honestly - but wtf's right with that??

that's why i'm asking, cause i don't know the difference. it's beatup, but i don't know if that means if messes with it's working condition. i know nothing about what heads should look like. what a bad transport/reel/button/input looks like. for all i know that's a picture of a cardboard box with some of those little pizza table things on it. is it a box of pizza? i can't tell.

[ottokbre]

No offence - honestly - but wtf's right with that??

that's why i'm asking, cause i don't know the difference. it's beatup, but i don't know if that means if messes with it's working condition. i know nothing about what heads should look like. what a bad transport/reel/button/input looks like. for all i know that's a picture of a cardboard box with some of those little pizza table things on it. is it a box of pizza? i can't tell.

if it is, it's Little Ceasars and not Jet City Pizza!

Do you think the reel hubs are just TP tubes?

[spiral]

this eBay-speak:
"I bought this unit expecting it to be in excellent working order and I'm reasonably sure that it is,"

translates to:
"I totally got f**ked and now i'm going to try and sell it to some other unknowing jacka$$."

It may be worth $200 just for the remote and motor but the heads scare me. Granted i've not seen the heads for a 5050 but i don't think they are supposed to have shiny flattened wear marks. Definately not a risk to take if you want to use it as a tape machine.

Look for my new eBay translation dictionary in the 2nd quarter of '04. Thanks.

[spiral]

ps. Nick/xonlocust can tell you all about getting a "great deal" on an Otari.

[jtotheg]

I would skip this one.
For such a shitty looking fixer-upper, I wouldn't dump more than $50 for it.
Don't forget you gotta get it shipped too...

That thing looks like it's been out in the rain, shitted on & pecked at by birds.

Although only a 2-track, I got a MINT (and I mean MINT) Otari MX5050-MKIII for less than that.

[I'm Painting Again]

It does not look increadably bad..the heads dont look shot..probably wiser to wait for a better machine to come along..probably wiser to buy one in top condition at top $ from a reputible dealer so you know how much it will really cost and save yourself from an ulser..

[b3groover]

I like this one:

It powers up fine and seems to work flawlessly but I must sell it as a "parts machine" because of what the photos reveal below.

The photos? Oh you mean that really dark one that you can't see jack shit in? Yeah, that reveals a lot...

[bobbydj]

this eBay-speak:
"I bought this unit expecting it to be in excellent working order and I'm reasonably sure that it is,"

translates to:
"I totally got f**ked and now i'm going to try and sell it to some other unknowing jacka$$."

Meanwhile "due to the fact this unit was obviously mishandled at one time" translates to "the unit found useage as lathe-come-spin dryer for 5 years back in the '80s".

that's why i'm asking, cause i don't know the difference. it's beatup, but i don't know if that means if messes with it's working condition. i know nothing about what heads should look like. what a bad transport/reel/button/input looks like. for all i know that's a picture of a cardboard box with some of those little pizza table things on it. is it a box of pizza? i can't tell.

I have no clue at all about what unworn heads look like. I was just referring to the general tone of the seller. Maybe I'm just an overcautious a-hole, but it screamed "don't even go there" right at me. Another thing - apart from the blurb - it looks like shit to my eye. Just plain knackered, y'know.