My Teac X2000R was adjusted and updated by Ken Swauger

schwarcw

Greetings!

My Teac X2000R has always been one of the nicest looking and sounding pieces in my audio system. I am a little anal about having this sophisticated machine in the best possible working condition. I gave it to Ken at the DC Audiofest in July. Ken does some really nice repair and resoration service to reel to reel machines. Check out his website Here

Ken checkedd over the machine, lever tension, tape path alignment, checked the record and playback response (provided a nice hand drawn graph), head alignment, etc. He also changed the light bulbs from the white candescent to the Blue LED type. The machine has never sounded or looked better!

If you are interested in reel to reel, Ken is definately our resident expert! Thank you Ken for the super job!

How about a little RTR pie?

SCompRacer

Awesome R2R Carl! I'm in major lust mode! Love the Blue LED's. High marks to Ken for the TLC!

headrott

Did Ken add the wood paneling on the outside of the case? Looks nice. I like the blue LED look. I may have to add some to my X-2000R. Good idea on Ken's part.

Greg

george daniel

absolutely gorgeous.

janmike

Very nice looking piece of gear Carl.

stuwee

w00t! w00t!! Love it! Very sharp with the blue, and that wood cab is beyond nice. Ken does great work! I'd love to have him refurb my lowly A-3340

!Teac A3340.jpg

dkg999

Ken is da'bomb! That is one sweet looking R2R deck.

schwarcw

Thanks for the kind words folks! The veneer was done by me. F1Nut gave me some excellent pointers on finishing. I used a wood dye instead of a stain. I also used some hand wiped polyurathane. The depth in the wood grain is just amazing.

Ripping lps to tape is easy LOL!

schwarcw

Stu, the 3340 is a very nice machine! It should serve you well!

tonyb

SCompRacer wrote: »

Awesome R2R Carl! I'm in major lust mode! Love the Blue LED's. High marks to Ken for the TLC!

Amen to that Rich, Ken is the man. That R2R is just frickin' ourstanding.

[Deleted User]

Ah, the X-2000R was a pleasure to work on, like tuning up a 911 that has been lovingly preserved. I kept looking for an area where I could whip out the Flitz, but Carl had already been there.
Now, this one is the complete opposite. It is without a doubt the most messed up A77 I've worked on. It must have been used in a coal mine office or someplace grimy. I've had to take it apart down to the frame and scrub each and every part with a toothbrush and Soft Scrub. But, I think the motors are fine, I don't hear much bearing noise.

schwarcw

Greetings Ken!

Please put on a dust mask while cleaning that thing. Who knows what could be in that dirt. Seriously, there could be asbestos in there, mold, or the Andromeda Strain.

I know once your finished with the refurb it will look like a museum piece and sound like a Stratavarius.

[Deleted User]

Thanks for the reminder to use a mask, you're right about not wanting to breathe any of that gunk in. Most of the insulated cables that come from the AC interlock and the motors are gummy, probably some of the plastic's elastomer material leaching out. So I'm used to having to get rid of that sticky mess, but in this case these cables now have another coating of black grime on top of the gummy undercoating. I start off with GooGone on a cotton ball just wiping it off, stubborn gunk needs acetone and a Q-tip. But I've never had to scrub parts with a toothbrush and Soft Scrub before.
But, it's very satisfying to see the rinse water take all the grey gunk away and the original finish start to come through. And then you spin the outer motor housing and hold it up to your ear and only hear a very slight whirring sound with no bearing chatter and can't believe it still sounds so smooth. The motor run caps are all well within specs and have low ESR and should be fine. The stainless steel faceplate is shot, but I very carefully puled it away from the stock plastic faceplate and it looks brand new. I've already found a lower faceplate that is in pretty nice shape and two wood cabinets to work with. I just have to remove the head block assembly, upper input/output assembly and pinch roller arm assembly and I'll be down to the frame. Good feeling!
Anybody watch that cable show about the guys who refurbish old Coke signs and candy machines? I love it, can't get enough.

heiney9

Very NICE Carl!! What sweet piece of electronics. As I understand it, Ken is about the best there is for this kind of work. Meticulous, methodical and he seems to love doing this kind of work.

H9

TECHNOKID

Great team work, cudos to KS for the restoring job, cudos to you for the beautifull finish work and of course cudos to F1 for his assistance for the finish supply. This reel to reel is a real beauty! :cool: