Davide BucciIf 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
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.
The #RevoxB77 more or less works, but definitely needs a lot of care. I need some spares for the switches’ levers, the VU meter lamps and the ball bearings. I think I will change the electrolytic caps but in s second moment.
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 🤩 I can’t wait to receive the spares I need to put everything together again.
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 😍 I still have to calibrate it (I’m waiting for a calibration tape and VU meter lamps), but the sound quality is amazing 🤩 #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 😍#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
This must be the longest object I’ve ever bought in my life 🤣 And I bought two NAB pancakes of it! I have now 2.2 km of LPR90 magnetic tape to record my music 😍 I’ll calibrate the bias for it and I’ll start by recording again the Silk Dust soundtrack 😉 #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
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 1980’s (we did not have a compact cassette recorder). I’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
I’m trying to prep and paint the box of the #RevoxB77. It’s a difficult job, after A LOT of wet sanding to remove the original Nextel paint, I’m using car body filler to repair small defects, plastic primer and spray paint RAL 7024.
I sprayed the first layer of the final paint on the #RevoxB77 and the result is OK. I’m not aiming for perfection as I would need a cabin. Tomorrow I’ll wet sand it and spray a second layer.
I finished painting the box of the #RevoxB77 and the result is 😍😍😍 I must find a solution for the broken corner of the plastic front panel though. This evening I have to remove the heads to send them to a relapping service. I hope I will be able to align them again 😰 (I have a calibration tape for 15ips). #repair #AnalogAudio
I sent yesterday the heads to a relapping service. I hope they will be able to recondition them. While I am waiting, I updated the blog post about the restoration and #repair of the #RevoxB77 with some pictures of the painting: http://davbucci.chez-alice.fr/index.php?argument=varie/revoxb77/revoxb77.inc&language=English
I received two days ago the #RevoxB77 heads back from Photovox Technology. They did an amazing work relapping them and are like new 😳😍🤩 I installed them back on the #ReelToReel recorder, aligned them and after a full recalibration the sound is amazing 🤩 #AnalogAudio #Repair
I used quite regularly the #RevoxB77 reel to reel recorder lately. I love it and the sound quality is just amazing. However, using headphones, you can hear a faint tape hiss. I bought a dbx-150x noise reduction system. The combination should be a real bliss. #AnalogAudio
I found a nice #Revox 10.5 in reel for the #B77, but the tape smelled bad. Holy crap, there was life, there! 🤪 It cleaned nice, though.
I received the #dbx150x type I #noise reduction system. I had to import it from USA as I couldn’t find one in Europe at a decent price. I tried recording some tracks with it on the #RevoxB77 and I couldn’t distinguish them from the originals. It is clearly the best analog audio quality I have ever listened to 😍 I didn’t notice any “pumping” artefact some people complain about dealing with #dbx. It’s incredible. #AnalogAudio
If you want to help me, here are two tracks (uncompressed, so 66MB each): http://davbucci.chez-alice.fr/varie/revoxb77/Catacombs_1.wav and http://davbucci.chez-alice.fr/varie/revoxb77/Catacombs_2.wav In your opinion, which one is the original version and which one has been recorded through the #RevoxB77+#dbx noise reduction? If the links do not work, try copy/pasting them in your browser. #ComparativeTest #AnalogAudio #audio
Catacombs_1 original, Catacombs_2 B77+dbx
Catacombs_1 B77+dbx, Catacombs_2 original
No difference at all
Poll ended at .
Jelora@davbucci
I can't hear any difference by listening them.
I put the two files in Audacity to compare them graphicaly and there is just some noise when I amplify at +50dB the difference beetween the two files.
So, yeah, no difference.
@jelora thank you very much! I did the same: I can only see a difference looking in Audacity and searching for tiny details in the spectrum, but certainly not by listening (even with headphones). For the moment, I am totally enthusiast of the combination of R2R recording and dbx type 1.
@jelora I was thinking about it and I think there's something that is not normal. The two tracks should not be perfectly aligned. Have I exported twice the same version???
@jelora I checked again and it does not seem so. I will do other tests, I was not expecting the two files being so similar.
@davbucci You may have done a good calibration of your Revox ;)
@jelora it may be, but this means that I have also aligned very precisely the two files. I will do another test I think, as I am suspicious of this one.
@davbucci One thing that could suspicious :
It seems there is absolutly no dropout.
I know you used a good tape, at high speed, with good heads ...
But I seem too much perfect ...
One other thing :
I don't think the frequency response of your analog tape recorder is absolutly linear on 20Hz-20kHz
There is no difference on high frequency between the two files
@jelora I am suspicious, too. The tape is new LPR90, but I have reused it several times for tests. I'm preparing another test.
@jelora I also matched the volume, but with a tolerance of a 0.2 to 0.3 dB. The difference between the two tracks can not be zero!