not my auction. just noticed this and know there people looking for one
http://nashville.craigslist.org/msg/309781165.html
FS: Tascam 388
Moderators: TapeOpLarry, tomb
Re: FS: Tascam 388
Man, if that is in good shape...that is a great price.crashsick wrote:not my auction. just noticed this and know there people looking for one
http://nashville.craigslist.org/msg/309781165.html
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earl parameter
- buyin' gear
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- Joined: Mon Mar 08, 2004 2:36 am
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earl parameter
- buyin' gear
- Posts: 514
- Joined: Mon Mar 08, 2004 2:36 am
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joelmoore
- pushin' record
- Posts: 299
- Joined: Wed Mar 07, 2007 8:44 am
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Hey no sweat if it does. I've become quite Zen about all this gear acquisition stuff lately. One of these or something better will come to me eventually. And if I have to fork over a bunch of dough for it...well so be it. I'm not rich but I'm not poor either so if I have to work a little harder to get something that I want then that's what I have to do.
It would be so sweet though if this turns out to be a solid machine at this price. But I don't believe anything until its real and proven. I'm not getting excited about this until its a done deal.
TapeOp is the awesomest place in all of the internets!!! Just don't tell anybody.
It would be so sweet though if this turns out to be a solid machine at this price. But I don't believe anything until its real and proven. I'm not getting excited about this until its a done deal.
TapeOp is the awesomest place in all of the internets!!! Just don't tell anybody.
I picked one up in Wisconsin (while on a road trip for a gig). Paid 550 for it.joelmoore wrote:Hey no sweat if it does. I've become quite Zen about all this gear acquisition stuff lately. One of these or something better will come to me eventually. And if I have to fork over a bunch of dough for it...well so be it. I'm not rich but I'm not poor either so if I have to work a little harder to get something that I want then that's what I have to do.
It would be so sweet though if this turns out to be a solid machine at this price. But I don't believe anything until its real and proven. I'm not getting excited about this until its a done deal.
TapeOp is the awesomest place in all of the internets!!! Just don't tell anybody.
Mint condition and I love it! I am sending positive vibes your way...
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Sean Sullivan
- moves faders with mind
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- Joined: Sat Mar 31, 2007 2:24 pm
- Location: Nashville
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I've decided that craiglist is the place to find these cheap. I bought one 30 miles from where I live for $250 and it looks museum new. One of the mic inputs does not work, but the everything is so clean it blows my mind. This thing is a ton of fun, and as soon as my new reels come in the mail I'm not going to see sunlight for a few weeks (I'm working on 2 albums).
If not this one, another will come along I am sure...I waited a good six months.joelmoore wrote:Thanks Greg...I am sending positive vibes your way...
The guy emailed me back this morning saying that he had somebody interested that was supposed to come by tomorrow to buy it but if it falls through he'll call me.
We'll see how it goes I suppose...
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joelmoore
- pushin' record
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So I emailed the guy a few days ago saying something to the effect that "I guess it's safe to assume that this is no longer available since I haven't heard back from you right?" and still no reply for about a week I guess. So then I assumed that it was a done deal. Somebody else beat me to the punch on this one. Ok no big deal I'll try again on the next go round.
So of course I spent what money I had set aside for this on a few other needed items in the studio when suddenly BOOM! The guy emails me last night saying "hey can you come get this on Wednesday?" Can you say dilemma? Crap! So now I've spent the morning feverishly trying to rob Peter to buy a 388. And I think I got it worked out so I'm sort of not so worried about that anymore.
What I am a little concerned about is that the condition of unit has never been mentioned. I did ask about that in this last email. I'm waiting to hear back from him though I get the feeling he doesn't really check his mail very often. So it may be a while before I get a response.
My question to you guys is this. Being that I'm unfamiliar with this unit I'm wondering if there are any common faults specific to this machine that I should look for on Wednesday. Is there a good uniform way to test this thing relatively quickly but thoroughly before I put money out, get it home and find out the hard way why the first guy didn't follow through on the sale?
Any help here would be greatly appreciated. As always What Would TapeOp Do? (WWTOD).
So of course I spent what money I had set aside for this on a few other needed items in the studio when suddenly BOOM! The guy emails me last night saying "hey can you come get this on Wednesday?" Can you say dilemma? Crap! So now I've spent the morning feverishly trying to rob Peter to buy a 388. And I think I got it worked out so I'm sort of not so worried about that anymore.
What I am a little concerned about is that the condition of unit has never been mentioned. I did ask about that in this last email. I'm waiting to hear back from him though I get the feeling he doesn't really check his mail very often. So it may be a while before I get a response.
My question to you guys is this. Being that I'm unfamiliar with this unit I'm wondering if there are any common faults specific to this machine that I should look for on Wednesday. Is there a good uniform way to test this thing relatively quickly but thoroughly before I put money out, get it home and find out the hard way why the first guy didn't follow through on the sale?
Any help here would be greatly appreciated. As always What Would TapeOp Do? (WWTOD).
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earl parameter
- buyin' gear
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well i don't have a 388, i do have 38 though and i've bought my share of second hand mixers. one was a tascam 35 which is sort of close to what you'll find in the 388 so you have to take this all with a grain of salt especially since its all sitting in boxes at the moment
first things would be to get it plugged in and turned on and pull up on the tape guide's, or load a tape and listen for the motor to spin up if it isn't already (i forget if the capstan is always spinning or just when tape is loaded). it shouldn't be that loud but should be audible, you should see the capstan spin, and then press play, rewind and forward to see if they function (they will only work if you lift the guides or load a tape). obviously the reel hubs should spin accordingly. listen for any horrendous noises or grinding as these would be bad things but if its just a little scraping from reels on the outside of the machine or something it should be fixable. if you do here the motor spin up when lifting the guides but hitting play, rewind and FF don't do anything it should just be a bad belt which is about $20 and an hour of removing panels so you can replace it (well it is on the 38, but it maybe different on the 388) check to make sure lights light up as you would expect but burnt out bulbs are not an indication of trouble and easily replaced or ignored. if you get the chance to play music through it (maybe bring a battery powered cd player, cable for it with 1/4" adaptor and some headphones with a 1/4" adaptor) then watch for meters to move and make sure you get audio through each channel of the mixer. check the trim/gain pot to make sure the preamps work and the faders for the same. but remember that its new to you and you might just not be familiar with the routing to get audio to run out of the correct bus or main, a little more time playing around with it could get it too work, and don't rely on the owner to know. they could be a total moron or someone's dad or the guy that stole it from someone else and not have any idea how it actually works.
that should be a good start short of being able to actually run tape through it and recording something which would be ideal. if you can get a manual and any alignments tapes or other reels that would save you a lot of money. obviously grab any extra's you can like splicing blocks, splicing tape, cleaners etc...
oh and don't forget to check the heads for wear! they should have a semi round face and not a big flat spot where the tape runs over them. but a bit of flat is typical. expect it to have a lot brown crap all over the heads and guides, its buildup from old tape. if the head is all brown don't be afraid to get a few drops of water on your figure and rub it off or even spit if you have to. it won't hurt anything and you can clean it off when you get home which you should do anyway using denatured alcohol found in the paint section of any store. not isopropyl regardless or what anyone says. its cheap anyway and safe on plastics. isopropyl is not
i'm sure i'm forgetting something but that should be a good start.
first things would be to get it plugged in and turned on and pull up on the tape guide's, or load a tape and listen for the motor to spin up if it isn't already (i forget if the capstan is always spinning or just when tape is loaded). it shouldn't be that loud but should be audible, you should see the capstan spin, and then press play, rewind and forward to see if they function (they will only work if you lift the guides or load a tape). obviously the reel hubs should spin accordingly. listen for any horrendous noises or grinding as these would be bad things but if its just a little scraping from reels on the outside of the machine or something it should be fixable. if you do here the motor spin up when lifting the guides but hitting play, rewind and FF don't do anything it should just be a bad belt which is about $20 and an hour of removing panels so you can replace it (well it is on the 38, but it maybe different on the 388) check to make sure lights light up as you would expect but burnt out bulbs are not an indication of trouble and easily replaced or ignored. if you get the chance to play music through it (maybe bring a battery powered cd player, cable for it with 1/4" adaptor and some headphones with a 1/4" adaptor) then watch for meters to move and make sure you get audio through each channel of the mixer. check the trim/gain pot to make sure the preamps work and the faders for the same. but remember that its new to you and you might just not be familiar with the routing to get audio to run out of the correct bus or main, a little more time playing around with it could get it too work, and don't rely on the owner to know. they could be a total moron or someone's dad or the guy that stole it from someone else and not have any idea how it actually works.
that should be a good start short of being able to actually run tape through it and recording something which would be ideal. if you can get a manual and any alignments tapes or other reels that would save you a lot of money. obviously grab any extra's you can like splicing blocks, splicing tape, cleaners etc...
oh and don't forget to check the heads for wear! they should have a semi round face and not a big flat spot where the tape runs over them. but a bit of flat is typical. expect it to have a lot brown crap all over the heads and guides, its buildup from old tape. if the head is all brown don't be afraid to get a few drops of water on your figure and rub it off or even spit if you have to. it won't hurt anything and you can clean it off when you get home which you should do anyway using denatured alcohol found in the paint section of any store. not isopropyl regardless or what anyone says. its cheap anyway and safe on plastics. isopropyl is not
i'm sure i'm forgetting something but that should be a good start.
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earl parameter
- buyin' gear
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- Joined: Mon Mar 08, 2004 2:36 am
For those on the west coast there is one in the SF north bay that I am trying to sell.
http://messageboard.tapeop.com/viewtopic.php?t=44101
http://messageboard.tapeop.com/viewtopic.php?t=44101
I have some really horrible gear!!!
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