Cassette deck repair - still viable?

Dug out my old Sony TCK-611S after, oh...10 years of storage and was looking forward to a night of nostalga playing some old tapes.

Its not playing properly!!! :steam:

Sound seems to be playing at correct speed, but its "warbled" and very low in volume.

Funny thing is, it starts off ok for a second or so, then it goes bad.


The Sony was a good deck in its day, would it be worth getting it repaired cost wise or just get a good second hand deck for around the same price, considering its not for "critical" use and perhaps even just for a one off use for digitising the tapes I want to keep?


Thanks.
Gary
Thanks.

I bet you could get a perfectly working 611S for less than the cost of repair - assuming parts are available...

Check that the pressure roller is perfectly clean and fast wind some tapes from one end to t'other and back to give the mech some excersise. Like the Denon 34HX I have in storage, the springs which pull the head block up into play mode may have stretched, as they're extended when stopped, but as I only know the Sony from experience of a friend buying one (and liking it) I can't say for sure...

Hope you have a friendly tape deck expert nearby. Most service engineers haven't a clue on mechanicals and often make things worse.........

P.S. Are your AE109's original? if they are, you may need to lift the tweeter about 3 - 5db in level to make them more neutral (I think there was a resistor quite high in value feeding the tweeter for some reason - we traded some in once and I looked at the crossover to see why they were so dead and dull sounding..)

Hey Dave,

Thanks for that, I wondered about the 2nd hand market actually, not looked but I bet the repair cost is around £60/70 and im sure I could get a good Yamaha or Nad for that.

Now, what is REALLY interesting is that AE109 comment!

Any information on the tweeter3-5db lift you mentioned?
My AE's are the original ones, bought in '96 I think, and I've always felt they are a bit dull and shut in at low volumes, and I have to turn the wick up to get them motoring..

I'd be very interested in this, its what I feel my systems been needing.


Cheers,
Gary.

Gary,

I can probably swap your Sony for a nicely sounding fully serviced 3-head deck out of my collection, for instance Aiwa AD-F850 - for a price of postage both ways :) . PM me if interested.

Cheers

Alex

Nice one Alex, thanks for that.
A lot of my tapes are decoded in Dolby S though, not sure if thats a problem?


Best
Gary.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Gazjam

Nice one Alex, thanks for that.
A lot of my tapes are decoded in Dolby S though, not sure if thats a problem?


Best
Gary.

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Hi Gary,

I do have some Dolby S decks but nothing that is ready to go. You definitely will need Dolby S capable deck to get a good playback quality from your tapes thought.

Cheers

Alex

Shame, ah well.

OK, Alex, thanks for the kind offer. :)

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Gazjam

Shame, ah well.

OK, Alex, thanks for the kind offer. :)

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Gary,

Have a look at this one on ebay - it may be a reasonable option for you, especially if you can get it for less.

Cheers

Alex

thanks.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Alex Nikitin

Have a look at this one on ebay - it may be a reasonable option for you, especially if you can get it for less.

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I used to have a K515S and it was a nice deck.