Issues with Portastudio 488 mkii 

hello sam, i figured i'll ask you since you seem to know a bit about those machines... i have a 488mki, it works well but the tempo of the tape is very inconsistent and the pitch control doesnt work at all... do you know what it might be / how to fix it? advice would be appreciated thanks very much!

captaincat40 sad story too captain, just let me know if you find a medium to fix it!

Could there be like a busted component that would cause such behavior? I did open mine in hopes to find the broken piece of the cassette door but didn't really examine the circuit boards at all. Stupid me, it was a real pain to open and close the chassis.

Michele Casadei hi Michele ! Just read the comments of frank Hernandez ! He found the right solution I was searching for. That worked for my 2 488 mkii !! Easy fix, really. Glad I can help somebody out of my experience

@@zzzfabio Same thing is happening to me. Is it even worth getting it fixed ? The music on the tapes from 25 years ago that we're never mixed and mastered are more valuable to me.

Lettuce Playhouse I think that's worth the shot, you can fix your 488, get your old tapes mixed and mastered and sell the 488 for $$$ if you don't want it then

Found out that turning the dbx off will allow you to get a better sound overall anyway... much crispier and large

----> " Hey man I fixed it up ! You just need to replace ONE gear that costs 25 bucks on ebay. I don't remember if it's the B or the C but if you open the Tascam, you can find out. Don't worry, no professional trickery you'll just need patience and a screwdriver, you can fix it in 1 hour ! here's the gear B www.ebay.fr/itm/TASCAM-122MK3-464-112MK2-112MKII-112RMK2-488MKII-NEW-GEAR-B-5801474200/301966462321?hash=item464e9a8d71:g:GR0AAOSwLF1X2HN2 open up your tascam first and check if it's the B or the C i don't remember. I fixed 2 tascam 488 with the same problem... It's pretty greasy on that area and the gears just melt down... take a rag with you and clean up the whole area and you will be OK for years ! Happy to help you, that problem costed me another 488 because i didn't know how to fix it "

Narcolepsy5 hey man just check out the answer I gave to go dam in the comments. If you miss something hit me up again

Fabio Amico where is the gear c located?

Narcolepsy5 I don’t remember but you have to open the deck. But it really is nothing, i suck at opening/fixing things up but this one is really easy. Maybe 15 screws off and you’re good

Fabio Amico yea same thanks for the help!

Hey man I fixed it up ! You just need to replace ONE gear that costs 25 bucks on ebay. I don't remember if it's the B or the C but if you open the Tascam, you can find out. Don't worry, no professional trickery you'll just need patience and a screwdriver, you can fix it in 1 hour ! here's the gear B www.ebay.fr/itm/TASCAM-122MK3-464-112MK2-112MKII-112RMK2-488MKII-NEW-GEAR-B-5801474200/301966462321?hash=item464e9a8d71:g:GR0AAOSwLF1X2HN2 open up your tascam first and check if it's the B or the C i don't remember. I fixed 2 tascam 488 with the same problem... It's pretty greasy on that area and the gears just melt down... take a rag with you and clean up the whole area and you will be OK for years ! Happy to help you, that problem costed me another 488 because i didn't know how to fix it