Yamaha KX-200 cassette deck repairs

[@DrCassette]

Regarding the 3D printing issue, I am happy to see some people in their comments have made some good points I did not previously know about, such as alternative 3D printing techniques specially designed for high resolution prints. This is a very useful discussion. So I will correct myself and say, 3D printing a replacement gear is *not impossible* . However, two points remain: How to create a sufficiently accurate 3D model of the original gear, and most importantly: Is the cassette deck really worth all the effort (time and money) of creating a 3D printed replacement gear?

[@ElectoneGuy]

Just like everything else, the technology will improve to the point where we're likely to not see a difference between the original and copy.

[@vwestlife]

3D printing the gear is still not likely to be a suitable replacement, because the original gears were made of a very soft plastic to reduce noise and ensure smooth operation. Even the softest available 3D printing material is too hard and will result in noisy and unsteady operation, as the DCC Museum found out when they tried to get new replacement gears 3D printed for DCC machines. So instead they had to get the gears custom molded out of flexible polyurethane resin: kzbin.info/www/bejne/hZ6wY6CYl99qfJY

[@JacGoudsmit]

Philips DCC recorders (2nd and 3rd generation only) also have the problem with the soft gears, but at the DCC Museum, you can now buy replacement gears that are injection molded if I understand correctly. I wonder, however, if you could send a design for a gear to a place like Shapeways.com and have them 3D print a replacement gear using professional high resolution 3D printers.

[@Godzilla941]

The infamous reel drive motor pinion on my Technics RS-BX707 finally cracked and started sliding off the shaft, so I ordered a 3D printed replacement. I was genuinely surprised how well-made it was and how it all went together. I suppose if/when that one fails I'll end up reverse engineering the specs of the original gear and mill a replacement out of brass. (or Delrin, or Titanium, or whatever else...) I'm really happy that we've gotten to this point.

[@JMNTN]

People always heavily overrate the abilities of 3d printing, even very expensive printers (6 figure range) can't print small parts with acceptable tolerances

[@centurybug]

I actually work in 3D printing -- it's very much true that an FDM (plastic extrusion) printer would not be capable of printing something that small, but a DLP (photocuring resin) printer absolutely could! Potentially not worth the effort, but it might be worth looking into if something similar happens on a nicer deck. At any rate, thanks for the video, I enjoy these!

[@littlejohnny47]

I have fixed several of these Yamaha cassette decks and figured the door problem as a partial engage as soon as you started. What didn’t happen is on most of these, if the counter belt isn’t present, the chip shuts down the drive to prevent spilling tape. There is usually an optical sensor on the counter to check on tape advance - but I see this KX-200 does not have that. Learn something new every day! Thanks!

[@DrCassette]

Take a look into the back of the mechanism at 8:32, you will notice the gear with a black/white pattern on it, linked to the back of the supply reel. The optical tape movement sensor system is hidden deep inside the mechanism in this cassette deck.

[@littlejohnny47]

Oh, yes! I have seen that before but not on low-end decks. Thanks for keeping us straight! Regards.

[@mndx89]

I've been subscribed to this channel at least from 5 years, and its clearly noticeable how your skills improved a lot over the time. I'm happy about this new cassette decks repair series. Thanks for the great contents, greetings from Italy!

[@isoguy.]

Print a new round cog (with no teeth) the outer diameter of the old one. Use a PCB or needle drill to bore the centre hole, then using the old cog hot melt glue it to the new one. Cut the teeth using a shaped jewellery file. Separate the 2 cogs with IPA. Really is easy I've made several replacements for cassette tape decks an VCR's. Whole process takes about 30 to 60 minutes.

[@dismaswafula3818]

My brother Dr cassette you seems to be a very good teacher because you talk slowly and your English is good for everyone to understand, thank u so much, I'm listening u from Kenya.

[@onesixfive]

i woke up this morning a bit earlier than necessary to go to the airport. this was to give me some extra moments to make sure my bag is packed. it was NOT to watch dr cassette videos. but alas, this is what i have done. that is very sad about the tiny gear which will eventually cause the deck to perish. but, so shall i, and us all. excellent video! thank you!

[@DrCassette]

I hope you didn't miss your flight!

[@tomekkruger]

I do cast epoxy spare gears. If you can make a model into a mold from an old wheel, you don't need a 3D printer. If the wheel is broken and lost, nothing can be done unless you borrow the same mechanism. Last week I had a problem with the Philips FC930 deck, but out of the two mechanisms I choose the best wheels, made the mold and casts. Deck mechanisms work fine.

[@DrCassette]

That's very interesting. How do you create the mold for casting? How precise are the epoxy gears?

[@tomekkruger]

@@DrCassette I use modeling silicone for the mold. It is activated with a special liquid. The accuracy of the gear depends on the model. In the mentioned Philips, I had to glue broken the spider gear with contact glue, then I poured it with silicone, and after curing, I took the model out of the mold. I make the froma open from one side to take out the casting. I polish any unevenness because sometimes the model has burrs. I use silicone grease to lubricate the axles. Look for one of the last movies of museum DCC, DR DCC channel , show there made of resin gears.

[@DrCassette]

@@tomekkruger Thank you for the info!

[@tomekkruger]

@@DrCassette I took some photos, I can share it from the google drive.

[@kotogray8335]

These videos are soooo addictive. I have watched quite a few this evening already and want to watch more!

[@orange_light_pictures]

great video and good to see you back at fixing Cassette decks again, looking forward to seeing the German ones you showed off in a previous video.

[@yanliu8011]

Great video! I used to have a KX-7, I like the soft touch buttons a lot. Yes, I remember install the main belt is a pain. Thanks for solving the mystery of the "ticking" sound which happened to my technics deck before, I never figure out why and now I know. Thanks.

[@davidlandelle7000]

Thank you for this interesting video. In my case I had the solenoid stuck. I made it move manually once, and it got back to work. The symptoms are very different, FF and RW work well. Play does not "clack" and the head does not go up (the tape just winds up). A few years later without operation it was stuck again (looks like magnetic, no dust, no rust, nothing sticky).

[@themegaspook6916]

Thank you! I'm a cassette deck noob. I was going mad when I couldn't get my belt in place, glad you showed me how to do it

[@DrCassette]

You can also find official service manuals for many cassette decks online, those usually help a lot, too

[@nvo7024]

Excellent! just what I needed before approaching my K-340 (looks almost the same, same mech but different PCB inside). It's amazing that it was my main deck back in the 80s and 90s and ... I could not be happier then! Today, I got a Revox and a Nak but this Yamaha is still in decent shape despite very high mileage and teenage abuse. Overall, seems like a very robust mech.

[@Electrobilia]

Great result; for me, usually something worthwhile to learn in a DrCassette video, thanks. Looking forward to the next cassette repair videos :)

[@First112]

you have a wonderfully steady presentation voice. Really enjoy that you stick on task and not get sidetracked. Enjoy your videos- thanks a lot

[@DrCassette]

I do sometimes get sidetracked, but I edit my videos very carefully to make sure only the relevant parts make it into the final version :)

[@sumawav]

That was really informative. I hope to try my hand at repairing old tape decks soon and this video was invaluable. Great job!

[@DrCassette]

Thank you :)

[@ESDI80]

I have that same deck! Picked it up cheap at a thrift store and it worked perfectly. I did loose the counter belt later on and just removed it. I use it with a component stack on my desk at work with some home made speakers. :-)

[@myredsweetheart]

Very informative and professionally executed as far as simplicity of instructions is concerned, I have this particular deck and thanks to this video I’m well educated on the mechanics of the unit. Thanks for the information 🥂

[@DrCassette]

You are welcome, I am glad you find this video helpful! :)

[@lucvanhove9639]

You are right, I have a Philips 70FC565 and the gear was broken. More, I put and save it in a small box, but it change in powder. I don't know why this happens. If you know where the have spareparts, it will be great. Thanks. 🙂

[@ivanigorpollick6690]

I like your analitical approach

[@bottletree33]

I gave myself an electric shock today whilst having the stereo system open and fiddling around the cassette area. My left arm accidentally touched the mains points inside the system whilst i had the power on to test the tape mechanism. It didn't cause serious problems but made me shout a bit. I got a good telling off from the wife.

[@oliverlotus]

A great fix. I like Yamaha tape decks. I have a KX500 and 530.

[@LZDEN]

first class work my friend. well done.

[@martyjewell5683]

Some years back I picked up a Yamaha KX-260 deck. My first deck (then) with Dolby HX-Pro. It also has Dolby-B/C, Bias Adjust and a really sweet feature; Play Trim. Like your deck, the 260's meters suck with only five or six LED's per channel. Still though, for the price it is a reliable deck. I use it as playback only and have no complaints. Interesting video.

[@bletheringfool]

Great to see inside this. I've been wanting to get myself a cheap deck and see if I can fix it. Some of the SONY portable recorders are going for a fortune. I never have any luck picking up a cheap one to fix myself

[@TheJaHa5]

Not a bad deck... falls directly in line with the year of my birth, so it would've been a pleasure to own one of those!

[@piouhgd.dghuoip]

Just worked on a KX-230 with a similar (if not identical) mechanism. Takeup motor badly needed lubricating. Was almost deafening in operation when I picked it up. Wasn't fun having to yank that soft gear off the motor.

[@BurhanRana]

explanation at another level!

[@andrewlittleboy8532]

I think this is one of them decks that leave the capstan running 24/7 if powered, so they can often wear out very quickly from people leaving them on!

[@DrCassette]

It's actually the other way around, this deck runs the capstan really only when it has to: During Playback and Record. Even in Pause mode the capstan motor is off, which is unfortunate because one of the points of having a Pause mode is to give the capstan drive a chance to get up to a stable speed before starting to record!

[@robertdavis5714]

Well done as always Sir. Own a KX-300U which I bought brand new back in the day. As i need to lubricate that motor as it runs slow, which I thought was the belt.

[@DrCassette]

It could also be a bad belt causing the deck to run slow. But try lubricating the motor first.

[@robertdavis5714]

@@DrCassette Thanks to you was able to get both motors lubricated (1 was easy and 1 was pain in ass). My counter belt has vanished, I looked everywhere, gone, must have disintegrated. But, main belt is running dead center on pulley, motors are now silent, found a brand new blank cassette and made a wonderful recording. Thanks to your videos was able to bring this back to Life, Thank You Sir.

[@EmberTheFoxyFox]

I have a yamaha k220 but the tape ounter is not working, havenf opened it up yet but guessing belt issue, hoping its similar to ghe k200 as cant find any guides for the k220 online and not swapped a belt before but have some ordered

[@davegregg118]

Superb. Excellent explanations, good photography, good editing. So much better than overweight American KZbinrs drawling on for an hour...

[@DrCassette]

Thank you! I try to keep my videos short and straight-to-the-point, I don't like long videos either

[@nicmost3044]

Hi Dr. I will look out for a KX-200 gear(no cost, I'm just enthusiastic to see your KX-200 Working) since everyone dumps all their old stuff now(Covid 19, people clearing houses etc). I'm sometimes lucky getting Yamaha, Nakamichi, National-Panasonic, Sony, Technics-Panasonic, Telefunken, Blaupunkt etc. Well known makes only. I don't repair the latest sh!t. I like your video. If i owned a KX-200, i would definitely use your video to repair it. I won't say what Hi-Fi's and TV's ive got. PS: currently working on a very rare Baby Monster called a Nakamitchi 1000ZXL(You would know). Over 2900 models of almost everything i repaired( i stopped counting), but i only serviced repaired tuned two( Three just now got my third one). They are very rare Fully Computerized. Both Hitachi oscilloscopes are working to repair it and one military scope analyzing, not to mention the Fluke's, Uni-t's and HP test equipment and one Wandel and Goltermann time lapse analyzer used in the 1990's PCM ST and Plessey Telecommunication Systems. Thank you for your video, was very inspirational... Re

[@JamesE707]

A success story! Regarding those gears that may break over time, there have been similar cases for some Nakamichi decks. Some of these gears are not 'solid' in construction - makes me wonder why Nakamichi did this? Even my cheaper Sony decks have longer lasting gear wheels.

[@DrCassette]

The gears that tend to break are made from a very soft plastic. You can actually bend those gears around almost as if they were made from rubber! Unfortunately this plastic is so soft that teeth break off easily. The reason they used this soft material was to reduce noise and to make the mechanism run more smoothly. So this was done to make the product better.

[@dorfschmidt4833]

@@DrCassette Weiche Zahnräder, welches Material könnte das sein ? Bin jetzt auch über sowas gestolpert.

[@umeshupadhyay...]

I have a NAK DR 2, the problem is that i 20:13 t stops playing cassettes.If I put the deck on pause modethe head assembly comes down after some time .I have replaced the main frive belt very recently.Coujd you guide in this matter.Thanks.

[@tracerx6324]

On Ebay I saw a seller who does those tiny gearplates by hand. You can buy (relatively cheap) very much every gear for the Philips Decks. I don't know if he also makes gearplates for the Yamahas, Technics and Denons, but it would be worth a look.

[@Twotakesit]

Loving the 3D print rant! 🤣

[@DrCassette]

I am tired of people telling me to 3D print replacement gears as if it was the easiest thing in the world, implying I was just too lazy to do it.

[@lilyvidol7917]

Hi doctor, where did you get the replacement belt for the counter? Or can I just get any belt that fits? I have a kx-200u

[@lachlanlau]

Any will work Edit: just make sure it isn't too tight

[@Rancherinaz]

You can probably find a belt kit on eBay . That’s where I found mine .

[@HealthFitnessMartialArtsDEng]

Nice video. I love how adamant you were about 3D printing not working. But it was sad to see that the gear for the supply mechanism was disintegrating. I see the discoloring of the gears which I think I can assume is from oil. Someone thought to lube it which is a no no. It should have stayed dry or if they were to lube it, use some sort of silicone base. The white lithium could work to. The properties in oil will deteriorate the plastic like you show. I have a Yamaha KX630 which is a bit more complicated to work on. I'll have a video of that and the work I did on the tape transport in the near future but it will be on my other YT channel.

[@jmmbos]

I have a Yamaha K 540 . It has a third motor that controls all the functions, a sort of cam motor , but at some point it broke down.. I just had fixed some alignment problems because recordings weren't well balanced . I found that the spacer on the capstan wasn't in its right place and because of that the capstan moved back and forth when hitting record and so the tape was pulled slightly incorrectly over the heads from the start . After I fixed it , it was very stable and recordings sounded absolutely perfect . Unfortunately when I turn the power on now , it makes some rattling noise and that's it.. 😞 .

[@MC-bu6ez]

Thank you for a very informative presentation, please could you say where the counter belt is attached inside the mechanism, Thank you.

[@DrCassette]

The counter belt wraps around a section of the take-up reel. It is easy to see where it goes.

[@MC-bu6ez]

@@DrCassette Thank you, I was able to fit the belt following your reply, quite easy, I might add, this is a great deck, appart from two things, the meter is poor, and it is noisy when rewinding or FF any ideas how to silence it? Also, the use of silicon oil to lubricate motor, is this compatible with the bearing lubrication? Thank you

[@lewis72]

1:10 It may be a middle of the line cassette deck overall but it was Yamaha's entry-level deck back in '87. For some reason that I do not know, there was never a KX-100.

[@DrCassette]

Interesting, this does show what you could expect from Yamaha back then. I was expecting them to have offered some sad single motor cassette deck of some sort, but if this is the entry-level model, you got a two-motor mechanism and some very good heads even in the cheapest deck they offered at that time.

[@lewis72]

DrCassette Back then, and perhaps still now, Yamaha made a great range of hi fi that was at the sweet spot of quality and price. I have found the ‘87 brochure online, auf Deutsch. I shall link it when I am next in my laptop.

[@lewis72]

www.hifiengine.com/manual_library/yamaha/hifi.shtml#1987

[@mapp4751]

i envy people who can fix things especially electronics Cheers!

[@peterjmcgee4680]

You can go on eBay now and buy a bag of assorted plastic gears made for justice problem so you can buy these gears go on eBay you'll find them they are out there I've done it myself I repair these devices all the time and you just go right there on eBay and it's a bag of assorted gears and you can also find them in wish as well as geek and you can also find a sorted replacement belts on those two app site so so it's not that hard to find the gears down I'm not sure what your name is but that was old units with the gears can be brought back to life because the gears are now being made

[@ElectoneGuy]

Too bad that's not the KX-300. The 300 is one of the best-sounding budget decks ever manufactured.

[@DrCassette]

The KX-300 indeed looks like a very nice cassette deck.

[@HamtaroEL]

@@DrCassette KX-300 is a nice competitor with Nakamichi CR-2. Both are similar.

[@johnbateman4255]

I have the kx 330 model which I bought from Richer Sounds in the late 80s or early 1990 i think. Still plays really well. Better than all my other cassette decks.

[@AstroSam66]

You CAN print the gear with a resin printer since they have a much higher resolution as a filament printer. And those printers are pretty affordable now.

[@DrCassette]

You have not read the pinned comment above ;)

[@AstroSam66]

@@DrCassette Oh... sorry :-) Did not see that. But there are ways to construct such models. Even with free CAD Software like FreeCad or Fusion 360 (which has a special feature for constructing gears). Of course it is not really usefull to buy a 3D Printer for just one piece. But they are usefull for a load of other things.

[@kevinh96]

I'm a fan of Yamaha cassette decks. I have two KX-580s one of which works perfectly having been fully re-capped, re-lubed and refurbished as well as being fitted with new belts, but the second has the play heads stuck in the UP position, I've yet to get round to fixing it. The KX-580 wasn't as high end as my Sony TC-K611S but sounds slightly better in my humble opinion.

[@DrCassette]

The second deck might just need some new belts. The original belt could be loose so that the deck is no longer able to move the heads back into the resting position.

[@svenschwingel8632]

Looks like a basic Alps mechanism. The wear on the coupling gear was also present in some Nakamichi decks with Sankyo drives. There is pro and con to idler tyres and this plastic gear is one of its pros.

[@DrCassette]

Yes, bad idler tyres can be fixed or replaced, unlike broken gears...

[@ejonesss]

what you can do is keep the tape deck for parts and when you come across another deck with compatible part you can swap the part. yamaha is a very good name and the quality is very good by todays standards compared to todays tape decks.

[@fhwolthuis]

Nice deck! I used to have a silver 1989 KX130 which was very similar.

[@PeterMilanovski]

I wonder if taking out the little gear and giving it a coating of resin or something else that could protect it from the lubricants? So long as it doesn't make it too thick to work properly? It would have to be applied only to the face's though... It might keep it running for longer.... It's just an idea...

[@senilyDeluxe]

At least the gears in the early/mid 80s Grundig tape decks can be 3D printed. They suck and make lots of noise (and you do have to file the print head snot off between the teeth), but at least you have a working tape deck again. (getting the take-up/supply gear to work with a 3D printed gear really is a gamble. You're better off replacing the motor with one that has a groove for a belt, then cut a groove in the take-up reel, put a belt around these and remember to never, ever hit that rewind button again - that's how I fixed mine. The 3D printed gear for the head assembly/record functionality lasted over a year on moderate use)

[@sehnzeleid]

That soft gear is like the blue take-up gear in many Sony VHS VCRs. With age they eventually crack and split, rendering the take-up reel non-functional.

[@johnwerner4925]

I had a Yamaha better grade two-head model that escapes me. I'm pretty sure it must have been the little soft gear you mention that killed it. In my case I was not savvy enough to see any reason inside why it wasn't working but now I feel you've explained. it. I always feel really let down when they build an otherwise really solid kit around a cheap little part that will make the rest of the company's effort to make a good deck fail A good rule of thumb is make any moving part to a high degree of reliability and take into account heavy use, temperature and humidity variations beyond average tolerances, and general abuse of things like sticky tapes and all. If the moving parts are built to last in these instances all the circuitry past this should be repairable without heroics. It's those failing one of a kind and impossible to access moving parts that spell end of life.

[@drulli1]

Hi Dr., Great videos, very informative. What kind of white lithium grease do you use? Any special one? Thx.

[@65CJ5]

I always used Lubriplate white lithium. Still available on amazon.

[@maxmustardman298]

Hard to imagine that small parts like that cannot be printed nowadays, probably not yet on consumer available tech, but industrial machines are more than likely capable of doing tiny dimensions such as those cogwheels.

[@guyfromsac1]

Nice job, as always ...

[@DrCassette]

Thank you :)

[@dykodesigns]

I wonder how replaceable those motors are if you had to. I reckon it wouldn’t be easy to source the exact right motor. My boss has a 3D printer and yes, the resolution is pretty coarse, it definitely wouldn’t be suitable to print such a fine detail part. Having a 3D printer is one thing, but he can’t use a cad package so guess who had to design a test object... Me. It was quite finnicky as I used a building modelling cad package (Revit) which is totally unsuitable to design small 150x150mm footprint items.

[@DrCassette]

The original motor is a Mabuchi motor. Mabuchi is nice enough to list on the label the direction the motor runs (counter clockwise) and the speed (2400 RPM). Most other manufacturers don't do that, so you have to experiment to find a good replacement. You are very right about needing to know a CAD program before you can even get your 3D printer to do anything.

[@larshoel]

Delighted to find this video, since I have a nearly-identical unit (KX-200U) with a similar set of problems. But I have questions - what brand of “silicon oil” did you use, and where on the motor did you apply it? Also - where does one obtain white lithium grease, such as you applied to the capstan bearings? Please keep in mind many of us viewers don’t have a fully-equipped repair shop at our disposal.

[@DrCassette]

Please keep in mind that I can not explain each and every detail in these videos. Most of your answers are only one Google search away...

[@tengelgeer]

Might not be possible to print on a filament printer but looks possible on a resin printer. They can print M2,5 nuts and bolts (yes, including threads) with that.

[@enricoself2256]

Services like www.shapeways.com/ do print gears like that. I bought a couple of years ago a 3D printed gear for philips CD player and it was printed perfectly with ultra high resolution and pretty sturdy plastic. The problem is providing the file to print the gear as measurements must be very accurate.

[@adlerweb]

This. FDM might not do the trick, but DLP/SLA should be sufficient. If not more professional printers exist which - depending on the marterial used - easily can go down to 100um and better. For a few € you can also get them printed by commercial services.

[@DrCassette]

Very true, creating a sufficiently accurate 3D model of the original gear is a challenge in itself.

[@RetroMechanic]

Do you see spring in door mecanism was missing?? Spring place is under that spring, that was in video. That spring is point 5:26 top on screen. Its function, is lock that hook to door. Without that spring door don't lock all the time.

[@DrCassette]

There is a notch cut out for a spring, but if you watch 9:35 you can see the spring present above the empty notch does exactly the same thing a spring would do in that empty notch.

[@EricLDC]

Hey so a cassette deck that doesn't record even if the vu meters are moving. Just need dexoit on a certain area or can it be more serious then that like a solder issue? Have a pioneer ctf755. It won't record and it has a sticker on it saying "refurbished"

[@DrCassette]

Sounds like an issue with the record/play switch that could be fixed with contact cleaner, however, looking at the model of cassette deck you have I am not sure if it has a record/play switch or if the switching is done electronically.

[@Mister-Salieri]

The capstan belt probably has been replaced by the previous owner. There is no way a 1984 belt to survive for so long.

[@DrCassette]

You would be surprised how long belts can last. If they are made from the right material, to the right quality and the cassette deck they are in is kept in a good environment and used from time to time, they can last many decades. The oldest cassette deck I have worked on with all belts in good condition I think was from the mid 70s.

[@davidrhinehart8818]

excellent video

[@DrCassette]

Thank you :)

[@henryradtka6919]

Great video, so many tiny pieces

[@stevelouie5928]

I have this exact tape deck and pulled it from the garage as it sat there for 20 plus years. When I tried to operate it, when I press play, the mechanism spins for a few seconds but then stops. The tape head does not pop up to play. I don't hear the clicking sound. Fast forward and rewind works perfectly. Any idea what's wrong that's preventing the tape head from popping up?

[@DrCassette]

Seems like one of the belts in your cassette deck has gone bad.

[@Rancherinaz]

I don’t have that exact deck . Mine is the K300 . And without a counter belt , there is a sensor on the counter and if the counter isn’t moving it does exactly what you are describing . Maybe some decks had that sensor and others didn’t . But I’d check to see if your counter belt has turned to grease and failed . If it’s not turning the counter , that may be your problem . I know that’s what caused mine to do exactly what you are describing .

[@stevelouie5928]

@@Rancherinaz where do you get a counter belt?

[@Rancherinaz]

I got my belt kit on eBay . Came with a drive belt and a counter belt . It was about 12 bucks if I recollect correctly .

[@stevelouie5928]

@@Rancherinaz I watched the whole video and it looks like his deck worked even though the counter belt wasn't installed. Might be cheaper to get a new used deck. Most are around 100 usd for one in excellent condition.

[@potassiumchloride6968]

you can get that gear from aliexpress or make your own with metal using lathe

[@getzapped313]

Hey Dr cassette, when will you do the telefunken 450? I just bought one from Germany and I'm in the states, I bought one with a 220v 50hz, sticker and I may be screwed, temporary I bought some crappy wall Mart 220v to 110 adapter it works but it plays slow, so I have a transformer on the way to see if an actual conversion will work, upon further discovery, I noticed that If I switch to dolby expander, I lose the left cbannel, switch it to off and the left channel crackles and then works, I'll see when the transformer comes but I do not know if this is a problem from not getting the supplied power or of this was an issue beforehand

[@DrCassette]

The voltage supply to the cassette deck should not be too far under 220 V, that is the only relevant factor, the cassette deck has a regulated DC power supply. The motor speed can be corrected with an adjustment that can be accessed through a hole in the back of the motor. Use a small flatblade screwdriver, and keep it insulated from the case of the motor, or you will cause a shortcircuit when adjusting the speed. Wrap the screwdriver in sticky tape or so. Your other problem seems to be due to bad switch contacts. The switches in these Telefunken cassette decks, including the record/play switch, seem to be quite unreliable. Some contact cleaner should help.

[@getzapped313]

@@DrCassette thanks man, I'm getting a transformer tomorrow so I'll see if it still slow even with right voltage supply I also have a nak 700 that needs servicing, if you ever come up on one of those, I'd love to see you do a rebuild or show off some of the parts, I think I have a bad clutch on mine, the RW is smooth for a second but then it will start clacking up

[@getzapped313]

@@DrCassette hey this should be important to ask before I forget, is there a software I can use to test the speed and what KHZ range do I need for a test cassette?

[@DrCassette]

@@getzapped313 You can use the WFGUI Software Wow&Flutter meter to measure both speed and wow&flutter, but you need a reference cassette recorded on a known good cassette deck. Use 3 kHz or 3.15 kHz as test tone frequency. The WFGUI program can be set to both. You can generate these tones in the Audacity program.

[@getzapped313]

@@DrCassette I think my nak 70/ will be a perfect machine to make reference tapes Thanks Dr cassette I really do appreciate you helping me out I have an even bigger task coming up...the nak 700, bad clutch, rewind makes loud continuous clack sounds after 1 second of engaging, from what I can. Tell, it looks like this spring is shaking but I can't tell if that's where the friction is coming from or if it's the pulley belts

[@nm0490]

Good job! I subscribed.

[@DrCassette]

Thank you :)

[@WARDANT1]

I have had the same issue with a single speaker Philips portable Radio/cassette player from the mid 80s (Malaysian made). It had 3 gears made of that plastic; the plastic becomes really soft. I've removed the gears completely as bits were spreading all over the insides. It will never play a cassette again, but the AM & FM tuner is excellent (perfect with batteries to take in the garden). It was disappointing not to fix as it had long been in my grandparents house & when visiting I regularly used the radio. After they died I brought it home & wanted to restore it, but it is no to be.

[@DrCassette]

For some Philips equipment there are replacement gear sets available on Ebay, try to search for the model number of your radio recorder, you might get lucky...

[@WARDANT1]

I will. Thanks.

[@WARDANT1]

@@DrCassette I bought the gears from Ebay seller Siliconemind. Really good product. Very well profiled teeth. After much fiddling the player is finally repaired. FF/RW are a little noisy, but Play is good & quiet.

[@alexandr6977]

My Yamaha after the belts replacing indicates on the display - "test", that blinks. Play, rewind and ff does not work.What can it be?

[@jogmas12]

Doc, this kind of off the subject but what would cause intermittent break up of the sound from either channel on an amplifier?

[@DrCassette]

Could be a bad contact somewhere, in a switch, potentiometer, or it's hidden deeper down in the amplifier, caused by bad solder joints.

[@andyhedges5705]

I have a Yamaha KC-320. Plays, rewinds and forwards ok but doesn't record. Would that be a belt issue or something more complicated?

[@DrCassette]

If playback works fine, the problem with record is not related to the mechanism because mechanically playback and record are the same. It must be a problem with the electronics.

[@andyhedges5705]

@@DrCassette thank you so much for your response. Sounds like it's probably a complicated problem. Love your channel.

[@RoughJustice2k18]

@@andyhedges5705 I would say the electronics would be a likely problem source - mainly capacitors in the record/playback bias amp stage. From experience, it is not a mechanical fault. I've had Philips decks that failed to record or erase a tape and a bunch of bad caps was the cause. Replacing them fixed the issue.

[@cassette_decks_and_turntables]

There is a guy in eBay...called silicon mind and makes gears for cassette decks...not 3D printed but moulded i think... I've bought for some philips decks gears from him and they are very good

[@stevensims3342]

Best thing you could do with the gear is maybe find one that is in decent shape and cast it in silicone face down. Even then you'd have to leave some extra material on the back to plane down or something. The down sides of plastics.

[@universellesradio]

Do you know how to switch from Normal/Chrome/Metal tape type on these decks ?

[@DrCassette]

This cassette deck has an automatic tape selector, it selects the correct tape type using the detection holes on the top of the cassette.

[@universellesradio]

@@DrCassette thanks, I was confused because a lot of tapes that are labeled chrome are 120 uf so they dont switch, thanks for the reply

[@DrCassette]

Prerecorded cassettes with chrome tape, but 120 µs equalization have detection holes to switch automatic tape detection systems accordingly. So there is nothing to worry about.

[@user-of9px7gg9e]

You can 3d print that part

[@Bus2000]

3D with a budget printer NO in this case. But with a professional 3D printer no problem at all. I printed smaller gears without issues. With FreeCAD for example it has a build in tool for creating gears. Takes les than an hour to draw such a gear.

[@polam12]

I had almost the same Alps mechanism in my 1989 Pioneer CT-333 deck :)

[@DrCassette]

Interesting, thanks for the info!

[@rusuclaudiu1988]

I was just thinking, for somebody with enough time and or a CNC delicate machine technically should be able to manufacture that wheel from a harder plastic like ebonite as is hard enough to be delicately machined. I made a component for golf door like by file. Of course, for those little teeth you need a machine. The downsize would be a noisier mechanism and in time most probably will wear the bigger nylon wheel. I believe those wheels are made from nylon because it is soft enough and it does not need lubrication. Yet again, everything described is not economically to be done.

[@EastAngliaUK]

you make it look an easy fix good its going

[@DrCassette]

It was a reasonably easy repair, quite enjoyable :)

[@Thanson199415]

I have a 1984 Yamaha K520. I got it for $5 at a pawnshop a couple years ago. I looked it up on Ebay and it was around $125. I barely used it but everything works on it although it has bad Wow but the Flutter sounds ok. It's in my grandma's room and I can't wait to give it some good maintenance. *hopefully it doesn't use the same mech with that bad gear this one uses :(

[@DrCassette]

The Yamaha K-520 looks like a nice cassette deck. I like the unusual arrangement of the transport control buttons. Not sure though if it's really worth $125... Given that it is from 1984 I would assume it's either still using idler wheels or has some rather chunky gears. Early 80s mechanisms were quite a bit better built than late 80s mechanisms.

[@Thanson199415]

@@DrCassette Yeah, probably not worth $125 anymore. Definitely the best cassette deck I've owned yet.

[@Thanson199415]

@@DrCassette I opened up the deck a few days ago and it has an entirely different mech with chunky gears 😄✌

[@abo7arb177]

Can it be connected to the laptop?

[@DrCassette]

Yes. Use an RCA to 3.5 mm plug adapter to connect the cassette deck to the audio input of your laptop.

[@jj-jo6wr]

clean the belt with windows cleaner? why not with Isopropyl alcohol?

[@DrCassette]

Window cleaner is based on alcohol, but the alcohol has a lower concentration than in isopropyl alcohol. Rubber does not react well with alcohol, so you want to only get a bit of alcohol onto the surface for cleaning. Highly concentrated isopropyl alcohol would attack the material.

[@JMNTN]

DrCassette i use an interior detailer for cars, auto finesse spritz to be exact. You'd think it makes the rubber more slippery but it actually makes it more grippy most of the time and looking like new. I also use it to clean the rest of the devices because it makes everything look brand new.

[@DaXande135]

Wegen dem Laufwerk, ist das nicht ein ALPS (glaube, so heißt es??) -Laufwerk? Hat ja auch einen braunen Löschkopf und die waren auch öfters in unterschiedlichen Geräten verbaut. Kann mich aber auch irren, weil ich bis jetzt noch von keinen kaputten Zahnrädern bei ALPS gehört habe. Kann aber auch sein, dass es ein frühes ALPS-LW ist oder auch garkeines. Und das mit Plastik in den Laufwerken finde ich generell so eine Sache. Manchmal gibt es aber tatsächlich 3D-gedruckte Nachbauten von z.B. Zahnrädern, wie die von den Walkman DDs. Aber die werden dann wohl auch einfacher zu drucken sein, bzw. größere Zähne haben.

[@DrCassette]

Ich habe keine Ahnung, wer das Laufwerk hergestellt hat. Kann gut sein, dass das Alps war. Wäre es Sankyo gewesen, wären auch die Motoren von denen, ebenso wenn es Matsushita gewesen wäre, dann hätten die ja nicht nur den Spulenmotor, sondern auch den Capstanmotor aus eigenem Hause genommen. Ich will nicht bestreiten, dass es 3D-gedruckte Ersatzzahnräder gibt, die auch funktionieren, aber es geht mir tierisch auf die Nerven, wenn Leute hier in Kommentaren sagen, das könnte ich alles einfach so zu Hause machen, wenn ich nur wollte. Ich habe ein paar Freunde, die 3D-Drucker besitzen, aber wenn ich mir die Sachen anschaue, die sie damit drucken, dann bin ich mir sicher, dass sich winzige Ersatzzahnräder für Cassettendecks damit unmöglich drucken lassen. Es mag 3D-Drucker mit ausreichend hoher Auflösung geben, aber die sind dann viel zu teuer, um die sich zu Hause hinzustellen.

[@DaXande135]

@@DrCassette Genau das ist das Problem mit dem 3D-Drucken. Die Walkman-Zahnräder gibt es auf eBay, aber auch nur aufgrund der Nachfrage. Bei anderen LWs lohnt sich das einfach nicht, aus den Gründen, die du ja eben genannt hattest. Im HiFi-Forum gibt es eine aktuelle Liste mit ALPS

[@DrCassette]

@@DaXande135 Genau, es kommt immer auf die Nachfrage an. Ich habe zwei Projekte in Vorbereitung, für beide brauche ich Ersatzzahnräder. Das eine ist ein Philips CD-Player mit CDM-4 Laufwerk, hier gibt es genug Nachfrage nach Ersatzzahnrädern für den Schubladenmechanismus, sodass diese Zahnräder heute sogar in China in Massen produziert werden. Das andere ist ein Philips D6920, für den jemand auf Ebay Ersatzzahnräder anbietet (und in der Artikelbeschreibung betont, dass diese nicht 3D-gedruckt sind).

[@DrCassette]

@@DaXande135 Und was gibt es im HiFi-Forum für eine Liste?

[@DaXande135]

@@DrCassette Eine Liste von Decks, die ein ALPS-Laufwerk haben. Link kann ich später posten.

[@martinprenner2342]

I have a Yamaha KX-230 Cassette Deck, and sometimes when I press "Play", it starts rewinding. It can be really annoying, especially when I'm trying to record something. What could cause this to happen?

[@DrCassette]

This is a behaviour I have come across on a few cassette decks in the past, too. So far I have not tried to diagnose the problem, so I don't know what causes it. Sorry.

[@martinprenner2342]

@@mikec9112 Actually, it doesn't smell like a smoker owned it, and I don't see any discoloration on it. I will take a look at the contacts at the buttons. Thanks for the heads up!

[@auris8789]

Thanks for rewiews and nice speaking

[@AVadim]

It's a shame to see what's inside. Emptiness! :)

[@karimdailyjazz]

Very nice deck

[@eduardomendonca5182]

Very Good , Thanks

[@SwedishRetroTechNerd]

I have a Yamaha RX-300 amplifier it looks similar to that cassette deck

[@DaXande135]

Maybe from the same era as the deck.

[@vladnickul]

but you really can 3d print one with resin. not filament. the only thing is not really a improvement over the old plastic .

[@DrCassette]

Have you read the pinned comment above?

[@benjamilindqvist912]

If someone is able to 3d print something like that to you, why not contact them personally and ask them to send it to you :). There might be some magic men in the world

[@DrCassette]

I am sure they are only waiting for me to ask and don't have anything more important to do ;)

[@johnbateman4255]

I believe dr dcc has been doing something similar with the dcc cassette decks and has done a video on the subject.

[@nowaymangoshtomuchna]

awww dude i got ya covered... you just need to print a 3D printer that is small enough with the right resolution to 3D print that part you need! PROBLEM SOLVED!

[@peterjmcgee4680]

I'm not telling you to 3D print I'm telling you that you can buy those little tiny gears and bags assorted gears for cassette decks and for other types of units that use gears like CD changers there's a lot of them the Sony walkmans the Sony Discman some of them that you was gears to open and close the doors to open and close the the units themselves they use gears instead of belts and note the people were throwing them out because they couldn't get the gears and some company I can't remember the name of the company off hand I would have to dig through my Supply to find an unopened package cuz I have a whole bunch of Gears laying in a box right now I don't have the package I think I have one package laying and I have to look through my file Define the company name I haven't had to do it for a while but there's a company out there that you can go through eBay that sells packages of assorted little plastic gears that you don't have to throw these units out anymore that run on Gears instead of belts and torque What do you call its torque units I hated throwing them out to so I used to get the real cheap units I used to buy them up by the 10th and 15th when I go to flea markets and I used to rip the gears out of them the fix the expensive ones and then finally somebody told me about this on eBay and I said he was basically almost told me he was he was a liar and then I looked it up and I actually found it and I ordered a whole bunch of them and I was able to find the right gears that I needed

[@AttilaTheHun333333]

Your text is pretty much unreadable.

[@getzapped313]

Just wanna let you know someone is claiming they 3D printed the gear for the technics deck that has those cheap gears on them

[@gamesforyou2351]

It's good but I love my Onkyo ta-rw404

[@djob3507]

👌

[@dorfschmidt4833]

Hier kannst du kundenspezifische Zahnräder bestellen, die fertigen diese aus POM. shop.kkpmo.com