Commodore C2N Datasette Repair Part 2

The second (and hopefully final) part of my adventure repairing my Commodore C2N (similar to 1530/1531) datasette.
This time I used your suggestions from the comments to the last video ( • Commodore C2N Datasett... ).
I replaced the belt, changed the capacitors on the PCB and even adjusted it again using my oscilloscope. I also try to briefly explain the circuitry (I don't claim to be an expert here so I stand to be corrected and am probably talking gibberish).
Here's the link to the replacement belts I bought (eBay Germany): www.ebay.de/itm...
Keep in mind that you can probably just use any belt with the right measurements (I describe it in the video).
Here's the AudioTAP tool I used to make a real tape from TAP files: wav-prg.sourcef...
Here's the original German version of "Recorder Justage": app.box.com/s/...
Here's the translated English version: app.box.com/s/...
Here's a service manual for the C2N/1530/1531 datasette: www.zimmers.net...
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Thanks!

[@backtogeek]

Sitting here with 6 broken 1530's, watched part 1 and 2 for tips, I managed to get 1 up and running straight away with a head clean and a new band, got the 2nd partially working, it was trying then giving up and crashing, I recapped it (just the electrolytic ones), roughed up the wheel and after yet another head alignment... Outrun is loading :) 4 to go!

[@TheKetsa]

I really like how the old stuff was so easy to work on, easy for DIY mods... Easy to open, easy to fix. Compare to today's glued, clipped, flimsy devices where you need an electron microscope to work on. I have the same mainboard in my datassette and it was VERY crusty under that shield, nasty solder joints and full of residue. I added a BT receiver in the datassette so I can send .TAP files from the computer or android.

[@Handz001]

Hey, I realise this is an older video, but I thought i'd add in my experience of a similar issue with old cassettes not loading. I found an image of it online and then re-recorded it back to the original tape. My non working games now work again. I had to do this for a couple of games my wife bought me for my Amstrad cpc464. Should be the same with the C64 though I'd say.

[@thefangoth]

Hello Jan, glad you were able to solve the issue with your deck. I also have a few spare decs I collected during the last few years. That is why I was able to experiment with the signal levels and also was able to mod one of my spare decs for easy azimuth adjustment. I did that by connecting a buzzer and a switch to the output pins of the deck, just before it connected to the host c64. The clearer and higher the pitch of the sound coming from the buzzer, meant that the alignment is pretty spot on. The switch is there for the purpose of disabling the buzzer. Then I also connected the red led (which usually indicated the recording state) to the same line as an additional visual feed back. Keep up the good work !!!

[@JanBeta]

+thefangoth Cool mods! I saw a mod with an LED indicator on the web but using the LED that's already there sure is a nice twist. I think I want to keep this C2N in its original state but maybe I'll get another one to experiment with some time. Thanks!

[@dantootill]

There was an unofficial, commercial mod doing the rounds in the 80s named LOAD-IT. It was a thumbwheel attached to the azimuth adjustment screw and an LED bar graph showing the input level.

[@RyanSmith-pf7ci]

My favorite thing in your videos is when you say "Nice!"

[@chriswebb4162]

Never knowing for certsin whether your tape was going to load successfully or not was part of the excitement of owning and using a CBM64 😊

[@104d_3rr0r_vince]

So glad you made it!!! Reminder: Check wav2prg, it makes fast loading tapes. Cassette adapter for adjusting decks to match datassettes's azimuth. Tip : Also check otla for Z80 based machines.

[@JanBeta]

+Vincent GR Thanks! I will. I just couldn't fit any more stuff into this video as it got very long already (it's edited down from 2.5 hours of material). I had to stop somewhere. :)

[@TheBurk1989]

Warning, long comment incoming! Hi Jan! Awesome video! This inspired me to look into my storage room and find my 2 broken original Commodore Datasettes that I got with my C64 when I bought it a few years ago and attempt to repair them. I have both the newer one (the one you repaired in this video) and the older one (which has a smaller Commodore logo and was more designed to go with the VIC 20). Both worked fine mechanically wise, meaning they powered up and the motor spun and pulled the tape as they should. The newer one must've had a really rough life because the azimuth screw was missing completely leaving the head dangling all loose inside. What's even worse is that the zenith screw had been loosened up as well. I thought it was doomed, but I decided to give it a chance anyway and found a replacement screw to fit into the azimuth mount and then tested the head with the Recorder Justage software. As I feared, no matter how I turned the azimuth screw I couldn't even remotely get a clean signal due to the zenith screw being out of line as well. So I just started tinkering with both the screws and no luck. Then out of desperation I tried bending the head upwards with a screwdriver. I noticed the signal getting better while doing this and what do you know, after some bending and slight adjustment to the azimuth screw, it worked! I got a crystal clear signal! Even better than the brand new clone I used before! So with that success, I cleaned all the heads and parts and demagnitized it. I also replaced the belts as they were getting a little sloppy. I wanted to replace the caps as well, but the screws holding the board in place were severly butchered and I couldn't remove them, so changing the caps will unfortunally be impossible. But it is now fully working and it even loads games that didn't work with the new clone I used before! The older one runs great and the belts were incredibly enough very good despite its age! But the head have alot of trouble getting a clean signal even after cleaning and demagnitizing so I narrowed it down to bad caps. I have removed them and ordered some new ones and hopefully that will fix it up and help clean the signal a bit. Thank you for this video Jan and your tips that helped me repair my datasettes!

[@JanBeta]

+Burkman1989 Wow, thanks for sharing. Hope the recapping fixes the remaining issues. Always great to hear that my videos are helpful. :) You reminded me that I need to get a demagnetizer some time.

[@TheBurk1989]

I finally got some new caps and replaced them in my other Datasette that wasn't fully working. The signal got cleaner, but still not enough to be able to reliably read the tapes. I noticed when I ran the Recorder Justage software that the signal got a lot cleaner when I was holding my screwdriver against the Azimuth screw, but as soon as I removed it, the signal got bad again. So I figured there must be some grounding issues, so I grabbed my multimeter to test it, but it was fine. Now I got really confused what caused the problem. After a while I said "Screw it!" (pun intended) and just adjusted the screw to the best possible position then I soldered the screw in place and then added a blob of solder on top of the screw and now it works great! I don't know what exactly caused the problem, but it is now fully operational and reads tapes very reliably! So now I have 2 fully working original Commodore Datasette units! It feels really good that I was able to fix them! Once again, thank you for your informative videos, they helped me alot with my repair attempts.

[@alanpwhelan]

Fantastic Jan 👍🏻 I love watching these repair videos. I’ve got a replacement Datasette on its way to me so I will have more confidence taking it apart to clean/repair it when it arrives 😀

[@tenminutetokyo2643]

The 2 film caps can be replaced. On the 5th model they were 0.1uF 50V 10% tolerance. The 3 tiny ceramic caps are also still available.

[@L.C.A.car_adventure_channel]

Great Information, exactly what I need after picking up an old Datasette with old Floppy belt on it. But I have also the problem that the motor hase some connection issues, but first I ordered some belts and then I will go from there. Keep up the good work 👍.

[@JanBeta]

Thanks! Hope you get the datassette running again! :)

[@povvercrazy]

The fact you could load a tape made on a different machine is a good sign

[@TechLord79]

Platen Cleaner - Druckerwalzenreiniger - which also restores rubber would be the correct thing, at least that much I've gathered ... but still so much more to learn including soldering/desoldering ...

[@smrogers6650]

You probably have sticky tape syndrom. This is where the tape sticks together and slows down or stops. Usually damp loft stored tapes suffer from this. They can be 'baked' and restored.

[@ElectoneGuy]

Hello Jan. Those orange capacitors, although old, are low-leakage type. Not sure if Commodore used those on purpose, but I believe today's replacements would be Nichicon KL.

[@RetroRecipes]

Something to try if you haven't: Record Squirm.tap back onto the original Squirm cassette, overwriting the faded version. I bet it works.

[@JanBeta]

Might be worth a try!

[@dantootill]

By the way, if you have access to a really old PC (Pentium 2 class or older) with a parallel port, you can use an old DOS tool named PTAP to transfer TAP files to real tapes. This works via an XE1541 or XA1541 cable attached to the C64's serial port, and a program named TAPSERV running on the C64 itself. This allows the PC to write TAP files directly to the C2N. I plan to make a video about this myself soon.

[@JanBeta]

Oh, that sounds like an interesting tool. I don't have any old PC hardware here (yet) but already contemplating getting an old laptop or something to use some of the old tools that are available.

[@dantootill]

Mine's a desktop, actually my old AMD K62 400. Been looking for an old laptop to do the job, picked up a 600 MHz Pentium-III but it doesn't work. The data just gets mangled due to timing issues. By the way, I like your channel and how receptive you are to these comments so subscribing :-)

[@JanBeta]

Thanks! Welcome aboard. :) I used to have a K6-2 system back in the day. I think it was a 500 but I'm not sure.

[@elmariachi5133]

Hello! Why would it need to be such an old PC? Is it the parallel port? I have seen Core i7 boards with a parallel port, and also there are expansion cards for USB/PCI(e). What is the reason? Thank you!

[@dantootill]

ElMariachi I believe it is some sort of timing issue with MS-DOS apps. The programs appear to work but the data gets trashed. More recent PCs with parallel ports with with Windows / Linux apps that support XM1541 / XA1541 cables, but these only support floppy drives and not tapes.

[@lelandclayton5462]

You're on the right track to peak the deck with the scope but I would advise to use a audi recording of a sine wave. Start at 1KHz and then work your way up to the azimuth frequency to know how to trigger the sweep of the scope and which timebase setting to use. I usually trigger on channel two as that is in the center of the tape and has less dropouts. The adjust azimuth for the greatest amplitude while making sure the phase of the 16KHz signals both line up with each other phase wise. When the amplitude is max and the two signals are in phase then you lock the screw down with some lacquer paint of nail polish. KEEP the stuff out of the screw head as if it get in there it will be hard to adjust after then. it only goes on the screw head edge.

[@JanBeta]

+Leland Clayton Ah, so that's the proper way to do it. Thanks for pointing that out! I was thinking of using a sine wave but then thought that maybe the deck I would record it on would be misadjusted which would make it pointless. I guess it's still more accurate than what I did. :)

[@dantootill]

I always found that if I adjusted the azimuth with the tape sat directly in the mechanism, the alignment would be off again after I put the C2N back together. The upper half of the plastic case appears to raise the height of the tape slightly, so better to adjust the head through the little hole, with the unit in one piece.

[@JanBeta]

Makes sense. I heard from some people that they had to hold down the tape door to make certain tapes work. So it might alter the position of the tape and the tone head slightly if you close the case. The adjustment I made with the case open seems to be good enough to work with my tapes now but I'll definitely keep that in mind.

[@TheHorho]

@@JanBeta Door does not push tape down. There is part missing that do that.

[@mdftrasher]

My brother had a zx Spectrum, he tuned his tape recorder to the most highes tones. You can connect a crystal earpiece (only crystal) and do the same. You can hear the screaming en adjust the tape head.

[@JanBeta]

I heard about that method, too. Didn't try it yet though. Should work the same as the oscilloscope method except for that being easier on the ears. ;)

[@mdftrasher]

For sure ;-) My brothers friends had recordings that where recorded with a fault, so adjusted the head for for them.

[@JanBeta]

Yes, sometimes you need to adjust it for every particular tape.

[@povvercrazy]

Nice tape deck btw I do like Onkyo, there AV Receivers are top notch

[@JanBeta]

I agree. Very well made stuff mostly as far as I can tell. My first "real" hifi system was build around an Onkyo receiver and I loved it. :)

[@stefanmarinescu5086]

I highly apreciate your videos. What is your profesion? You say you are not electronic Engineer but you have incredibile skills and knowledge. Best of luck

[@TheHighlander71]

Yaaa, the pinch roller :) I wonder if it's possible at all to have the head positioned correctly for every tape you throw at it. Eventually you're going to have to fidget with the head position. Hey you actually have your own Señor Onkyo. Apart from the nostalgia, I hope I never have to load another game from tape again. Just don't have the patience. I do appreciate that you got your own tape to work!

[@JanBeta]

Yeah, the tapes seem to be pretty different and work with slightly different alignments. I think that's how it is. There's no "perfect" adjustment because the alignment of the machines the tapes were recorded on vary a bit. I strangely love the sluggishness of the tape loading. Gives you time to think and makes you choose more carefully what game you really want to play. Feels kind of like the difference of MP3s from vinyl records to me. Although vinyl is faster. ;)

[@GadgetUK164]

Excellent video! You certainly found the easiest way to accurately adjust the azimuth there! When I go back to finishing off one my tape decks I will do exactly the same thing instead of mess around with that adjustment program =D And thanks for the shoutout again =D I will return the shoutouts ;)

[@JanBeta]

+GadgetUK164 Thanks! The adjustment program isn't that bad actually, I found it's not too far off from what I achieved with the scope (although that's probably the most accurate of course). :)

[@volo870]

You have to INVERT the waveform in Audiotap??! Boy, you saved my sanity! I am new to C64. Don't have anything but misaligned tape drive as data source. I had to eyeball the alignment and it loads now. Can somebody of your audience advise a tape-based alignment program?

[@BlackDragon-xn2ww]

It a great video on setting a tape drive you fixed it as well as can be expected for it's age those tape wheels wear out one thing that killed cassettes as a media you could try erasing those bad tapes and rerecording the data it might just fix it that is a major problem with tape it corrupts so easy. I got some used tape drives for pc and played around with them but seen how long it took to load data from one that it was rather pointless lol

[@JanBeta]

Yeah, it is kind of pointless of course. I still enjoyed tinkering with it and learning about how this stuff works. ;)

[@izyt1973]

love the persistence keep up the good work.

[@SparksNZeros]

some c64 tapes are held together with screws so if you wanted to you could do a reel swap and still have the game look original but just with fresh media in it that you've recorded the game on to, the other idea is to cover the write protect notch in the tape, blank out the tape with a demagnetizing tool or white noise and then rerecord the game back on to it. I've seen people fix famicom disk system games in a similar way, modifying the drive to both read and write, using software to blank out the unreadable disk and then rewriting the game, it doesn't always work but it's nice when it does to save on throwing these things away. I'd love to see you work on Famicom stuff one day as it was very much marketed as an easy to use computer at the start until it was obvious games were better business.

[@JanBeta]

Oh, that's a good idea. I might try that in a future episode. The Famicom is an interesting system indeed. I might look into that in the future (I have a lot on my list so it definitely will be a while though).

[@dazamad]

Can you use an old music tape original with an oscilloscope to check azimuth as I have some of those. I enjoy your videos😀

[@JanBeta]

Thanks! If you find one that's been recorded on a well adjusted machine (which all major label releases will be), it should be fine.

[@speedbird737]

I had a device that you plugged two C2N datasettes into - the device then connected to the back of the C64 into the datasette interface - you could then perform 100% perfect tape to tape copies of software - press play on one C2N then record on the other.

[@JanBeta]

Yes, I saw pictures of that device. What a neat trick. ;)

[@maxsmarts8210]

Great educational video!! and Street Surfer, what a game for the 64. really good !!!

[@JanBeta]

Thanks Max! Yes, I loved Street Surfer back in the day. Still do (although I need to practice more). :)

[@blackterminal]

Enjoyed your video Jan.

[@myquestlog733]

Nice to see it working again. I just recently had the idea of using a cassette deck adaptor for car stereos hooked up to an old smartphone to basically create a ghetto solid state data storage for computers relying datasette drives. I don't own any datasette drives, otherwise I would test it out myself, but I really think it might be a good idea since it eliminates all mechanical wear to both the drive (including the tape head!) and the datasettes. That and it's much more conveniant that having to switch datasettes all the time. What do you think about this concept?

[@JanBeta]

There's actually an Android app called "TapDancer" that was build to be used like that. I tried it with a ZX Spectrum connected directly to my phone's headphone jack and it worked fine. The app is optimized for use with a C64 datasette and one of the adapter cassettes you mentioned. :)

Maybe not so much on-topic, but I couldn't find any answer to this, probably somebody knows: as far as I know, datasette gets about +6V for the motor when instructed by the computer to spin. However what I am interested in: would it work with "only" +5V as well? I plan to modify a C64 to have only +5V supply (short board, no need for other voltage inside, only for TOD, and SID, and well, for datasette - the TOD/SID issue can be solved easily some low-power step-up converter since the needed current is really not so much, but the Datasette is another problem). Yes, and I don't mind the 9VAC on user port too much, to be honest, that's another thing.

[@JanBeta]

Interesting question... I frankly don't know but it might just work. I think I'd just try it. Otherwise you could hack in a DC-DC converter to get to 6V.

Thanks. Surely, however I wouldn't add another converter if it's not needed otherwise, that was my dilemma here. I tried to search for datasheet (or something) on the motor (searched by the printings on it) used in my datasette at least, but I couldn't find too much to prove if it's really okey to feed it with 5V only. And that's quite annoying anyway if it works with one datasette but who knows, maybe not with another I need to be replaced with in the future, well, that's the other side of the story. Anyway, I just liked the simplicity of the design to have a single 5V supply, and 9V for (new) SID is very light load only so no problem (and for some 555 to generate some kind of 50/60Hz square wave for the CIA's TODs anyway, but it's not even a load too much and 5V is okey there for sure).

[@TEBLify]

Thanks for doing these videoes, have been putting off fixing a version of the same tape deck - atleast now I know what to expect inside of it. Don't know if it's fixable, but seems every tape deck I come across have a broken eject button - cover has to be manually lifted open using a piece of tape or something. Notice you didn't change the other belt, wouldn't that affect turbo tapes when attempting to find the correct position?

[@JanBeta]

Oh, the eject button mechanics are delicate at times because usually they have a tiny spring mechanism connected to a plastic rod that may easily break. If I remember correctly, the smaller belt is just for the counter. I would have to take another look though to be sure. This datasette still works fine today. :)

[@ricklonghi909]

What kind of screwdriver is needed to adjust the azimuth, Flathead or phillips?

[@davidsmall264]

where can i get a copy of the cassette azimuth software you use to help with the aliment of the tape head.

[@mrlurchAU]

Thumbs up for the Aussie ruler mate :)

[@JanBeta]

Haha, thanks! I actually have a couple of relatives in Australia. My late great aunt & uncle flew from the Nazis to Tasmania in the 1940s.

[@mrlurchAU]

My grandparent and father arrived in the mid 50s from zee fatherland.

[@DropDeadFrederick]

Glad it wasn't the op-amp and just the caps and belt! :)

[@JanBeta]

+DropDeadFrederick I'm also glad it was nothing serious in the end. :)

[@bit-ishbulldog2089]

Just had a look on the bottom of my Data cassette drive and it has a date of August 89 on it.. made in Taiwan.. Must be one of the last ones made for C64c.. Then they brought out the Cheap version out called C64s.. @Jan Beta I want a bread bin C64 like the one you have..

[@JanBeta]

I didn't know they produced datasettes for that long. But it makes sense because they sold C64 games on cassettes long way into the 90s I think. I always adored the bread bins the most. My original one was an ALDI model (bread bin with white keyboard). Sold it way back unfortunately. :/

[@bit-ishbulldog2089]

I would like a C16 as that would of been the first computer I used at home, my first experience ever.. Then at school I was introduced to the BBC Micro... In my opinion nothing Micro about it, it was big.

[@JanBeta]

Another bread bin. :) I always liked the looks of the C16. Never had the chance to really use one though. The BBC Micros are very rare here in Germany so I've never even seen one in person. Seems a lovely old machine, too.

[@bit-ishbulldog2089]

You should grab yourself some 80s computers from the UK, buy a three pin power adaptor for your two pin socket.. here in England we have three pin wall sockets.. Europe has same voltage as England as far as I know.. Have fun collecting Micro computers from the late 70s through the 80s.. Apple 2 comes to mind. Japanese MSX systems are pretty cool.. You should get ether a Commodore +4 or C16, which are basically the same +4 has like some word processor built in, but plays C16 software to..

[@JanBeta]

The only things that keep me from collecting more retro computers at the moment are money and space. I already have C64, VIC20, ZX Spectrum, and Amigas though. There are just so many nice machines from the old days. ;)

[@GameTechRefuge]

Great video, very informative. Was working on one of these today. Mine is working fine but I might replace the capacitors at the weekend. Seems to have worked out well here.

[@JanBeta]

Thanks. It was quite a journey fixing the datasette. Glad you find it informative. :)

[@remicaron3191]

It's a Robertson screw? square head with flat slot

[@lelandclayton5462]

Here is something even better. get one of those aux tape adapters. You know the tape that has a headphone cable sticking out. Plug the input into your PC and play the raw data while having the tape side in the Datasette. No need to use real tapes let alone you then can use a function generator to inject the sine wave signals to tweak the peak of the azimuth. Just so you know it doesn't mater if it turns digital in the end. the sine wave has to hit a certian peak for the TTL/CMOS to registor a high or low state.

[@JanBeta]

+Leland Clayton Definitely something I want to get some time. (I might have one lying around somewhere even.) Thanks for your tips!

[@RogerBarraud]

Hi Jan, really enjoying your videos - Thanks! :-)

[@MrTobysDad]

I see that you have a Mac keyboard and mouse there but AudioTap seems to be for windows only! Are you using a Mac or windows? I achieved the same using tapDancer on an android tablet but I would prefer to use my Mac.

[@JanBeta]

I'm using a virtual machine Windows XP installation in VirtualBox for most of the times I want to run Windows software. Works very well for most things.

[@bit-ishbulldog2089]

I use the SD2IEC to load games, I also use Audiotap with a ALBA Cassette adaptor, because tape loading is nostalgic to me.. When I use Audiotap my options are (wave form) sine.. and volume 220, and 25% on my laptop.. works all the time.. I have noticed on Ebay that a seller has a massive stock of Data cassette drives boxed (Brand new).. for about 25 British pounds.. was a while ago I come across these. If interested I look it up and send a link.

[@JanBeta]

+Video/Computer Games-Played-today Yes, I saw that seller on eBay, too. I was tempted at first but then got the datasette from this video for very cheap and went with that. I think I have enough datasettes now although seeing a brand new one is a nice thought of course. ;)

[@dantootill]

Those new old stock C2Ns appear to be clones, definitely vintage hardware but not official Commodore. Price is good nevertheless, they are almost sold out now.

[@bit-ishbulldog2089]

Just had a look and you are not wrong, but brand new for £25 is a good deal if you was to get a backup Data cassette deck. A second hand one that may or may not work could cost between £10-£20+.. Did say on Ebay 10 in stock.. I recolonize the seller, they do other bits for Retro systems..

[@HometownUnicorn]

Did you ever try to re-record the game back to the tape with the poor signal that might work.

[@Laziter73]

Nice work, I'm getting a deck like that in a few days, so your experiences may come in handy if it doesn't work :) I am going to build a Tapduino though, I don't have many tapes and with all the .tap files out there, it seems like an easier option for now.

[@JanBeta]

+Laziter73 Thanks! Hope it helps. I also want to make a Tapduino at some point. Tapes are getting rare and break easily. But the nostalgia is a big win. ;)

[@Laziter73]

+Jan Beta You're welcome :) Yeah nostalgia is a big factor for me too, the Tapduino can only do so much, but at least it's been proven to work and load times are still the same, so close enough for me until I get my hands on a bunch on real tapes :D So far I've been using a MP32C64 with the Tapdancer app on my mobile, it does work, but is hard to use. Some games requires different settings or they won't load. I only bought because I found it as a kit and I do love to swing that good old soldering iron around those components :D

[@JanBeta]

+Laziter73 I tried tapdancer as well but found it a bit fiddly to find the correct settings to make it work. Making real tapes has proven easier (and I still have some empty tapes lying around that I kept for whatever reason).

[@Laziter73]

+Jan Beta Yeah it's not all that easy, but when it works, it does so perfectly. Some games that loads multiple parts can be tough to load, but with patience they can be made to work. That's why I'm going for the Tapduino, it'll act just like a cassette deck, pausing when needed, continuing when the request is made. I don't know if rewinding is supported though, I'll have to check that out once I've recieved all the parts and getting it build. I do get what you're saying though, there's nothing compared to loading tapes from the original source. I go to thrift stores and to buy as many tapes as I can find. Doesn't matter what's on them, I'll record over it anyways :D

[@povvercrazy]

I do love orange capacitors

[@JanBeta]

The orange ones are my favorite flavor, too. They are almost always bad. ;)

[@povvercrazy]

Opened a coleco today 1 orange the rest were pale blue :(

[@JanBeta]

+Brian Jones Ah, the pale blue ones are okay, too. ;)

[@ruibarbosa7221]

Can you please do a video tutorial about Turbo Tapes?

[@JanBeta]

I might. I have a huge list of stuff I want to make videos about at the moment but I think it's an interesting topic so chances are that there's going to be a video at some point (might take some weeks or even months, though.) :)

[@realgun666]

I have one of these with a rectangular pcb. Now strangely it appears to work fine but has a black wire connected to the board that does not go anywhere. Information on this pcb are non existant i can't find anything. Any ideas ?

[@JanBeta]

A black wire that isn't connected? That's strange indeed. I know that there are some slightly different versions of these datasettes but I've only ever seen the one from this video in person so I have no idea. Maybe you find the schematics for your PCB in this list: ftp://www.zimmers.net/pub/cbm/schematics/datassette/index.html

[@povvercrazy]

I think that last cap is to reduce/eliminate signal noise not RF

[@JanBeta]

+Brian Jones Ah, okay. I was guessing RF because of the low capacitance and the FCC remark. Noise filtering makes sense, of course.

[@IanSlothieRolfe]

The capacitor across the motor is to prevent the brushes sparking when they disconnect one of the coils on the rotor. This gets rid of any rf from the sparking and it also stops the brushes/commutator from burning. If you look at a lot of dc motors they have capacitors built into them, often soldered across the terminals of the motor. I imagine it is a requirement of the FCC hence the marking on the schematic.

[@carstenklein4531]

hast du mal probiert die original tapes von der anderen seite zu laden? viele hersteller haben ein backup auf seite b

[@JanBeta]

Ja, habe ich probiert. Leider mit dem selben Ergebnis. ;)

[@HeyBirt]

When I used to repair things with such rubber rollers we used a product like Fedron to clean the rubber. Alcohol will dry the rubber out :(

[@JanBeta]

That's why I used the alcohol very carefully on the rubber. I only heard of special products for cleaning rubber after I did this repair (it still works so I probably didn't do much harm)... Thanks for pointing this out. :)

[@HeyBirt]

Just wanted to let you know it was available :) I was thinking about this some more this morning when the belt on my CNC mill spindle was sticking to the pulley. The first step we did on cleaning the rubber parts was simple soap and water. I cleaned the spindle belt with some mild soap/cleaner and wiped the pulley grooves as well. This took off a lot of gunk from the belt and now there is no more sticking. I think I will order some Fedron or similar to test on the belts.

[@JanBeta]

I will get some of that (or a similar product--depending on what's available here), too. I'm also working on tape decks and turntables sometimes so it will be a nice addition to my toolbox anyway. :)

[@HeyBirt]

I was just looking on Amazon and Fedron is rather costly! I guess it has been nearly 20 years since I have purchased any. I looked at the MSDS for Fedron and was surprised to find that it contains both ethanol and methanol. Perhaps the other chemicals in it replenish what the alcohols tend to take away? Some of the other products like that form Techspray contain 'orange oil' (Limonene) as the solvent and soem sort of waxes to replednish the rubber. I might try the Techspray platen cleaner or MG Chemicals Rubber Renue as they are less expensive. Nice chatting with you, like your channel :)

[@JanBeta]

Nice chatting with you, too. And thanks for the info. I will have a look around for something that's both available here and not too costly. :)

[@refractionpcsx2]

Now I'm curious what would happen if you re-recorded Squirm over the Squirm tape, if it would come back to life :P

[@JanBeta]

+RefractionPCSX2 My guess is that the coating on the tape is worn so it would be impossible to make a proper recording over it. That said, I had the same idea and already downloaded a copy of the original Squirm tape. Worth a try, I think. ;)

[@refractionpcsx2]

For science! :P

[@JanBeta]

+RefractionPCSX2 For science! :D

[@JeremyLevi]

Probably a better idea to download and record to a fresh tape and just transfer the reels into the old cassette so that it still looks original. :D

[@refractionpcsx2]

Jeremy Levi probably, but where's the fun in that? XD

[@Rick_Todd]

Splice some new tape into that squirm tape. Job Done

[@RogerBarraud]

IIRC there are such things as tape cleaning machines - a pass or 2 thru one of those might take the smeared oxide off it and give it a new lease of life.

[@God-CDXX]

can I hook a 1531 datassette to a C64 ?

[@mcosta3810]

Hello Jamie Phillips, Yes it is. As you may know, the 1531 was made for the Commodore 16 and Plus 4, and has a 7-pin mini DIN connector rather than the C2N's card edge connector. But when the 1531 was sold brand new you could (or did get?) an adapter to plug it in to the C64. The signal is the same. A while back I found the pinouts: www.lemon64.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=31879 I will soon make one of these adapters for myself because I only have a 1531 datasette and only a C64 to plug it in to. I sourced the female mini-din connector from digikey, as well as spring clip connectors from there and a card edge connector from thingiverse that can be 3D printed, so hopefully I can make my own adapter soon.

[@ChaosEmerald85]

Why is the signal inverted twice?

[@JanBeta]

I'm not sure about that and I couldn't find anything online. My guess would be that it uses the concept of symmetric signals/balanced lines (common for professional audio stuff) to filter out noise. -> en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Balanced_line

[@Ertiyed]

Holy, I need to get my old C64 out and fix some games lol

[@JanBeta]

Indeed!

[@RogerBarraud]

Hi Jan, are you aware that there are/were several different types of tape, with different characteristics - sensitivity for recording (coercive force), output level, frequency response, bias requirements (I note the use of a cheap, nasty DC erase/record bias head - typical penny-pinching Commodore style :-/ )... So you may want to ensure that you match the type of tape and the recording level and bias settings either to the original retail tapes' characteristics, or at least adjust so that the output is reliably high but without driving the analog (pre-Schmitt-trigger) parts of the playback amplifier of the Datasette into clipping, for best reliability. Also, easiest azimuth adjustment is by highish-frequency sinewave - try recording constant-amplitude sine on your Onkyo deck and tweaking it on the 'scope. The test program is no doubt a boon for people with no oscilloscope (i.e. most people :-) ) though - great stuff! :-)

[@povvercrazy]

don't knock the camera over :)

[@hayesmaker64]

6:17 I see what you did there :P

[@JanBeta]

Haha, finally somebody noticed. ;)

[@fortnitegod2647]

Hi Jan Kim here like the vid seeya on twitta

[@JanBeta]

Hey Kim. :)

[@coryengel]

64th "like" :)

[@JanBeta]

Hahaha! Nice. :)