I'm screwed aren't I?

[Faruque I/O]

So I bought a Univox ec-80 for the amazingly low price of 20 bucks or so off of ebay. Well, it came without a cartridge and I knew this when I bought it, how hard could it be to find a cartridge for this thing?... Shit! How the hell do I find cartridges for this thing? I did a little checking pre-purchase and thought I could find some alternative. In my excitement ( I've never owned a tape echo, obv.) I didn't realize all of the sites or forums I got info from were 2+ year old posts or sites that seem to be abandoned. Apollon and Dictaphone seem to be a no go. Am I screwed?

Do any of you brilliant recordists have any ideas?

[the brill bedroom]

Screwed is a relative term. You only wasted $20, that's not too bad.

[RefD]

apparently this person gets the carts occasionally.

rendelld@verizon.net

[Faruque I/O]

Screwed is a relative term. You only wasted $20, that's not too bad

True, but I was all excited.

Thanks for the info I'll send a email that way.

[RefD]

Thanks for the info I'll send a email that way.

no problem, i hope it works out.

[ckeene]

What kind of caartridge does this thing take? Is there a way you can DIY something that works?

[A.David.MacKinnon]

I've got one of those with a couple of replacement carts and I've never been able to get it to work. Very disappointing. Buyer beware I guess.

[calaverasgrandes]

this may only apply to certain tape echos but isnt there a mod to make them work with 8 track carts? I seem to remember seeing that a while back.

[japmn]

this may only apply to certain tape echos but isnt there a mod to make them work with 8 track carts? I seem to remember seeing that a while back.

I'm not sure about that. The cart they use is about 1/2 the size of an 8 trk.
You would have to put in completely different mechanics. I have had 3 of these machines and after owning 3, have finally given up. When they work they are OK at best. Nothing as amazing as a Space Echo.
The carts (when you can get them to work) always break/need re-spooling.
They slip. They are near impossible to replace these days. The entire unit is unreliable.

I say re-post it on Ebay for $20.

[Faruque I/O]

Thanks for the info everybody well I guess I've got a few options, but maybe it's best I look for more stable (does this exsist?) tape echo options... today's lesson RESEARCH.

[Harry]

those dictaphone carts come up on ebay once in a while.
Be patient and one might turn up... in the mean time get a Hiwatt,Fulltone,or take your chances on an expensive space echo.
Tape delays are well worth the trouble IMO

I would never be without a tape delay.

[joel hamilton]

I like the Korg Stage echo. A lot. I have owned or operated almost every tape echo/mechanical delay unit I have ever heard of, and I love the Korg stage echo, the hiwatt custom echo, the echoplex, and the klemt echolette.
The hiwatt is being made today. It is a great, great unit, and not very expensive compared to all the others. It also has a killer auto run feature that stops the tape until there is signal present at the input. I LOVE that. if I wind up with the tape echo on a non automated return on the console, I am not printing MORE noise at the top or in the acoustic breakdown or whatever, you know? You can defeat this feature of course. The Hiwatt is probably the best for the money right now. Thats just my opinion. The univox echo's really are not that great even when they are working well, which is really, really rare.

[ImaginaryCat]

you're not really screwed. I'd give you $20 for it as it sits, then your break even. Or do what I do, put it in your garage for a few years, and then sell it for a lot more on eBay later.

Second tier gear is going UP UP UP, and will continue to as people realize that it can be rather cool too. It's money in the bank. It appreciates much faster then premium gear, which has now found it's going rate. And you may have noticed that your money market isn't doing so well lately. I just wish I had a bigger garage.

I built my whole studio that way, on what was then second rate gear, but today is also respected. I got LA-4a 's when everyone said they were crap and only 2A's were any good. Some people might say the same today, but you have to admit they have gained respect.

It was a GOOD buy, don't sweat it.

[alex matson]

I like the Korg Stage echo. A lot. I have owned or operated almost every tape echo/mechanical delay unit I have ever heard of, and I love the Korg stage echo, the hiwatt custom echo, the echoplex, and the klemt echolette.
The hiwatt is being made today. It is a great, great unit, and not very expensive compared to all the others. It also has a killer auto run feature that stops the tape until there is signal present at the input. I LOVE that. if I wind up with the tape echo on a non automated return on the console, I am not printing MORE noise at the top or in the acoustic breakdown or whatever, you know? You can defeat this feature of course. The Hiwatt is probably the best for the money right now. Thats just my opinion. The univox echo's really are not that great even when they are working well, which is really, really rare.

Nice. Thanks!
http://www.hiwatt.com/data/HiwattFX.html
It's a lot smaller than the Fulltone too. Someone just bought a like new one for $390 - that's half of what I paid for my now departed Fulltone.

[calaverasgrandes]

or you can do what dudes did back in the day.
Just set up a couple reel to reel decks and run a tape loop around them. On some 3 head decks (sony comes to mind) they have a built in echo feature.
I've even rigged cassette decks to be tape delays before, just need 3 heads (record playback and erase) and some creative wiring.