If everything goes as planned, I hope I'll get something REALLY NICE to #repair within a few days. I'm really looking forward for this project. #AnalogAudio
Welcome on the bench, big boy! ๐Ÿ˜ #AnalogAudio #RevoxB77 #repair #thread
There are some issues that need to be addressed immediately on the #RevoxB77. The last time it was used, the tape badly mangled around the capstan and there are three pyrotechnic capacitors ready to explode. #AnalogAudio. Overall it is very crusty.
Now the capstan is muuuch better. #analogaudio #RevoxB77
The #RevoxB77 more or less works, but definitely needs a lot of care. I need some spares for the switchesโ€™ levers, the VU meter lamps and the ball bearings. I think I will change the electrolytic caps but in s second moment.
Hey you ๐Ÿ˜ 
I put an X on all bad or very bad capacitors, tested in-circuit. In the audio circuits I only found two bad tantalums, but on this board (main logic) almost all electrolytic capacitors are abysmal. #AnalogAudio #Repair #RevoxB77
I ordered some new levers for the broken switches, so this means that I have to remove the PCB near the main panel. It was dirty (as everything inside this deck), so I could clean it. The main speed selector was very oxidised, so I cleaned it, too. #AnalogAudio #RevoxB77 #Repair
I cleaned and greased with high viscosity silicone oil (500 000 cst) the shaft of the tape tensioner. Now its movement is slightly dampened, as it should be. #repair #AnalogAudio #RevoxB77
I #3Dprinted a NAB adapter and did a test fit with a 10.5 in Agfa reel. It already looks amazing ๐Ÿคฉ I canโ€™t wait to receive the spares I need to put everything together again.
Little by little ๐Ÿคฉ #AnalogAudio #RevoxB77 #repair #rReelToReel
I received some spare pieces for the #RevoxB77, motor capacitors and ball bearings. Someone tried to lubricate the reel ball bearings, but they were completely shot. #repaired #AnalogAudio
Since I had to remove the brake, I installed the new belts for the counter and I put it back on place. The old belts basically disintegrated, one was clearly a hack. Now everything is very smooth and works perfectly. #RevoxB77 #AnalogAudio #repair
The #RevoxB77 now works again ๐Ÿ˜ I still have to calibrate it (Iโ€™m waiting for a calibration tape and VU meter lamps), but the sound quality is amazing ๐Ÿคฉ #repair #AnalogAudio, my little assistants validated it.
The trident fixture was missing on my reels and they were slightly deformed. My father in law took good care of them and I #3Dprinted a new retaining clip that works as the original one. #repair #RevoxB77 #AnalogAudio
I received some spare lamps for the VU-meters. Now they look much better! #RevoxB77 #repair #AnalogAudio
I received a test tape and performed a full calibration of the recorder. I tried to record the full Silk Dust original soundtrack. It works beautifully ๐Ÿ˜#RevoxB77 #Repair #AnalogAudio https://on.soundcloud.com/bU3QZngX3zWSE4mdA
Silk Dust original soundtrack

This is the original music I wrote for the Silk Dust text adventure game. Follow the adventures of Emilia Vittorini in a steampunk world in 1907. "Today is April 19, 1907. You, Emilia Vittorini, arri

SoundCloud
This must be the longest object Iโ€™ve ever bought in my life ๐Ÿคฃ And I bought two NAB pancakes of it! I have now 2.2 km of LPR90 magnetic tape to record my music ๐Ÿ˜ Iโ€™ll calibrate the bias for it and Iโ€™ll start by recording again the Silk Dust soundtrack ๐Ÿ˜‰ #AnalogAudio #Repair #RevoxB77 #IndieMusic
I wrote a post on my home page (blog) to summarize briefly all that I have done on the Revox B77 mk II: http://davbucci.chez-alice.fr/index.php?argument=varie/revoxb77/revoxb77.inc&language=English #repair #AnalogAudio #RevoxB77 #webpage
Renovation of a Revox B77 - Davide Bucci

Yo may have followed this thread dedicated to the renovation of a #RevoxB77 reel to reel recorded. However it is not the first R2R recorder I repair. My father bought this Magnetofoni Castelli 2005 probably around 1968. We used it since the mid 1980โ€™s (we did not have a compact cassette recorder). Iโ€™m now converting all the reels containing family memories (such as my voice at a three year old kid). I repaired it about 10 years ago (bad capacitors).
I could not resist to take a picture of the #RevoxB77 playing the Silk Dust original soundtrack while listening to it: https://soundcloud.com/user-375194295/sets/silk-dust-soundtrack
Silk Dust original soundtrack

This is the original music I wrote for the Silk Dust text adventure game. Follow the adventures of Emilia Vittorini in a steampunk world in 1907. "Today is April 19, 1907. You, Emilia Vittorini, arri

SoundCloud
Iโ€™m trying to prep and paint the box of the #RevoxB77. Itโ€™s a difficult job, after A LOT of wet sanding to remove the original Nextel paint, Iโ€™m using car body filler to repair small defects, plastic primer and spray paint RAL 7024.
@davbucci
Ooooh! What are the chances of buying the Silk Dust soundtrack on a 7" reel? That would sound awesome on my Akai GX77!
@rc2014 with pleasure, but is it a 2 track recorder? I can record at 7.5 ips ans 15 ips but only on 2 track.

@davbucci
7.5ips is perfect.
2 track means stereo, on both sides of the tape, right? If so, that is perfect too.

I assume you have an empty 7" reel, but I can send one over if not.

@rc2014 uh, no, 2 track means that you can only read on a single side.
@davbucci Are you sure you can measure them without separating them from the circuit?
@waltertross there's always a risk of error, of course. However, measuring the ESR is possible in many cases. I designed and built a small circuit for that: https://github.com/DarwinNE/EsrMeter It is very useful. I measured the capacitors out-of-circuit after I changed them and I can confirm they were bad.
GitHub - DarwinNE/EsrMeter: An open hardware in-circuit ESR meter for electrolytic capacitors

An open hardware in-circuit ESR meter for electrolytic capacitors - DarwinNE/EsrMeter

GitHub
@davbucci "pyrotechnic capacitors" :-D
@waltertross they were ready to explode, so... ๐Ÿคช๐Ÿ˜‚๐Ÿ˜œ
@davbucci That's looking sweet!
Is it valve-based? Or semiconductor?
@VintageProject all semiconductor based. It is a B77 mk II, there are some datecodes that suggest it has been fabricated around the spring of 1981.
@davbucci I have to get on getting my Teac A3440 back up and running just to digitize everything. This will help me get motivated.
@TomasHradcky It's a wonderful recorder! Back in the 90's I lended for a few days a Tascam Portastudio that was also a 4-track recorder, but the quality was limited using the cassette. Recording on analog is a whole experience, quite different from digital. I think that nowadays one can exploit it for artistic purposes. I'd like to try some loops, for instance.