Reel to Reel Question?


Hello,

I recently bought a used Teac X-700R reel to reel deck that I just paid a lot of money to have serviced. My question concerns the operation of the two tension arms on this model. The arm on the left seems to switch on the motor which turns both capstans, while the one on the right seems to have no electrical function (does not cause the motor to turn on or off) but may aid in tensioning the tape -- although it rides higher in the slot than the left tension arm. Does this seem normal or is the right arm not working as intended?

Apart from that, the deck sounds marvelous and all other functions appear to work okay. Thanks in advance for any help.
plato
You can go really crazy and pick up great broadcast machines for decent dollars - ampex 440's - ATR100's - even the odd A80 - although they do take up more space in the old listening room and not as asthetically pleasing as a Teac 7300 let's say - in the end it always comes down to:
analog = good
digital = bad
Personally, I think that the studio console that houses my Tube Research modified 270 Scully looks very nice. However, please don't ask the wife!
Factory prerecorded R2R tapes are perhaps the most astounding sound that you will here on this earth. They are scaled down copies of first generation masters. We all should know by now, The more difficult the playback meduim,
the better the reward. I have a 41yr old recording of Belafonte at Carnegie Hall & I borrowed the audiophile pressing of the LP, & the R2R blew it away(Table VPI TNT-3
tape deck, pioneer Rt1020L) The table lists for about 10X
the amt of the reel to reel. Perhaps the secret should be now released, look to the past for the best sound.(yes I own a SACD player) I hope that this does not drive up the price or reels on Ebay. When I leave the Stereophile shows,
listening to equiptment 30 fold more expensive than mine, I do not feel bad that I will never be able to afford ANY of these fine products. I go home, put a Ampex 7&1/2 ips tape,
and I smile.