Love it to bits!tonejunkee wrote:Gotta love tape
I've tried most and no digital cheat or emulation comes even remotely close to it, there is some true "magic" in real running high-end tape deck sonics for the lack of a better word.Pops & rocks on MRL test tape signals
I've tried most and no digital cheat or emulation comes even remotely close to it, there is some true "magic" in real running high-end tape deck sonics for the lack of a better word.
Last edited by Mo-Tech on Sat Aug 15, 2015 5:34 am, edited 1 time in total.
Back to thread, two causes now excluded from the possible candidates that I though my cause it in the beginning of this thread:
1) Heads just relapped by JRF Magnetic Sciences (John French) last week, with excellent results (well over 80% left by his measurements before relapping) and optically aligned. Those heads are basically new now, John's a relapping genius IMO.
2) Brand new Athan polytherane pintch roller installed.
That being said, it little reduced those "pops & rocks" to my ears, unnoticable at 7.5 IPS, hardly noticable at 15 IPS, but clearly still there at 30 IPS with volume pumped up.
Now it's back to drawing board for me. Maybe I'm too much perfectionist, since probably other people would hardly notice this noise at higher speeds, but I want to get my deck to work at it's full analog-sound potential.
I noticed messing with bias has the most effect on the level of that noise - I can make it a lot worse by going off bias when recording my own test signals, nailing the recommended bias reduces them to minium. So I'm now suspecting it must be something in playback or recording electronics pipeline, maybe an unstable oscillator somewhere or a semi-faulty OP-amp or over-saturated EQ electronics?
To fully eliminate any tape-path causes, then just in case I'll probably overhaul my capstan motor too (bearings and brushes) in near future. Not much to lose there since this mod will make the deck serve me many more years to come anyway.
1) Heads just relapped by JRF Magnetic Sciences (John French) last week, with excellent results (well over 80% left by his measurements before relapping) and optically aligned. Those heads are basically new now, John's a relapping genius IMO.
2) Brand new Athan polytherane pintch roller installed.
That being said, it little reduced those "pops & rocks" to my ears, unnoticable at 7.5 IPS, hardly noticable at 15 IPS, but clearly still there at 30 IPS with volume pumped up.
Now it's back to drawing board for me. Maybe I'm too much perfectionist, since probably other people would hardly notice this noise at higher speeds, but I want to get my deck to work at it's full analog-sound potential.
I noticed messing with bias has the most effect on the level of that noise - I can make it a lot worse by going off bias when recording my own test signals, nailing the recommended bias reduces them to minium. So I'm now suspecting it must be something in playback or recording electronics pipeline, maybe an unstable oscillator somewhere or a semi-faulty OP-amp or over-saturated EQ electronics?
To fully eliminate any tape-path causes, then just in case I'll probably overhaul my capstan motor too (bearings and brushes) in near future. Not much to lose there since this mod will make the deck serve me many more years to come anyway.
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