ct0517, larryi,
I haven't had a problem with any reel to reel machine I've ever owned. I play them regularly and all of them are over 35 years of age. That and a quick Google check shows that here in the Chicago land area there are several quality shops that will do a full service on your machine. I honestly think that with most all machines, parts are still available from some source.
The most common concern is that of head wear. If you're using a Sony, or an Akai (they only made one half track machine) then head wear isn't a concern with their ferrite heads. I was worried about this and bought a couple of NOS head stacks for the Pioneer that I use most. But now after years of use the heads look tremendous. I realize that I am probably never going to wear out the original stack. Maintenance and using quality tape helps a lot in this regard.
If there were NO available master tape copies I would still own a reel to reel machine to tape LP's that I enjoy most. I can edit out the songs I don't like, put them in the order I do like and at then listen for 45 min at at time without having to get up and flip the LP.
larryi, I listen to tapes that I made back in the early 70's. Only those I made using Scotch 206 and Ampex 468 having given me issues. Maxells, BASF, AGFA, Memorex (believe it or not), and TDK's play beautifully without issue.
N.
I haven't had a problem with any reel to reel machine I've ever owned. I play them regularly and all of them are over 35 years of age. That and a quick Google check shows that here in the Chicago land area there are several quality shops that will do a full service on your machine. I honestly think that with most all machines, parts are still available from some source.
The most common concern is that of head wear. If you're using a Sony, or an Akai (they only made one half track machine) then head wear isn't a concern with their ferrite heads. I was worried about this and bought a couple of NOS head stacks for the Pioneer that I use most. But now after years of use the heads look tremendous. I realize that I am probably never going to wear out the original stack. Maintenance and using quality tape helps a lot in this regard.
If there were NO available master tape copies I would still own a reel to reel machine to tape LP's that I enjoy most. I can edit out the songs I don't like, put them in the order I do like and at then listen for 45 min at at time without having to get up and flip the LP.
larryi, I listen to tapes that I made back in the early 70's. Only those I made using Scotch 206 and Ampex 468 having given me issues. Maxells, BASF, AGFA, Memorex (believe it or not), and TDK's play beautifully without issue.
N.