Thank you so much for this series of demonstration videos , I have an EL-7 that has been in storage for quite a while and is now grabbing onto the tape whilst the capstan is still feeding the tape leading to a horrible rats nest , I shall attempt to work my way through your procedures and hopefully restore back its function
I have an EL-5 that is perfect except REWIND does not work. The light on the button lights up-but no sound and no action. Can anyone please give me help,where to look to solve issue-much thanks
Hi Bob. Reel-to-reel tape has the same with, but is thicker. I never tried it myself but I know some people have. Because of the thicker tape 90 minutes playing time cannot be reached.
Thank you for the series of 7 videos I have recorded a video on how to fix this for me to remember and never really published it. I wish I did. I use a special silicon oil that is not oxidizable as the grease is. Again thanks for sharing
my deck ELCASET 7 is only recording one track not two tracks of the STEREO. but its playing already recorded Stereo though. IS there a way i can get it checked or replace the recording head? thank you somuch for your great videos.
Hi. I have an EL-4 which was a display unit in a store I used to sell for. It was virtually unused and untouched. Everything seems to be operational. Except there is no transport at all. Motors are spinning but capstan will not engage although it spins. Reverse and FF do not work at all. I am interested in getting it working. I will try the belts and see if the grease and oil have dried as you mention. Thank you for your videos.
I bought what appears to be a Semi-working Fixer-upper deck because I didn’t want to pay $1800+ eBay wants me to pay for a restored one. The description said there was no audio on the left channel and FF and REW run slow. I bought a set of new belts. I just hope it’s just 45 year old slipping belts.
What type of grease do you use for this machine? I came into an EL-5 and the AIWA version of the EL-7, looking to restore them with a deep clean and some new belts.
Thank you so much! I've often asked how to fix this and was always told to grease the hubs...but was never quite sure exactly what they meant by this. This video explains it perfectly! Is that a Type III cassette? I only have Type I and II, never seen a Type III before :-) Also Paradiso is my favourite music venue! :-)
It may be, but it may also be the light bulb that has blown which the sensor is trying to see (it needs the light to know the tape has run to it's end. It will look through the transparant part of the end parts of the tape and switch off play mode. You may try cleaning the sensor by carefully rubbing a dry cotton swab against it. You can see the sensor on the right side of the cassette bay. It is just big enough for the swab to fit in, it should be a white looking sensing eye. Though keep in mind, I own a EL-5. the EL-7 may have two sensors on each side. You may want to search for a service manual online to find that out. Good luck!
I always wondered how good those would perform if you replaced the tape with Maxell UD 180XL-2. That tape was AMAZING. On my Teac reel to reel, after I switched to that, I could no longer hear the difference between source and tape. It went about 5KHZ farther out.
