I picked up an old Marantz/Superscope CD-330 portable cassette deck at a yard sale for ~$1, in "not working" condition. On opening it up, it seems that the only problem is that the two main rubber drive belts had somehow become tangled together and twisted by the motor. The original belts are hopelessly stretched and mangled.
Where is a good place to get suitable replacement belts? Also, I am not quite sure where the original belts went, since the damaged belts were so stretched that they could fit around all the flywheels at once with slack to spare. It would be nice if someone knew about this cassette deck or had a service manual for it.
Thank you.
-Michael Mendenhall
Where is a good place to get suitable replacement belts? Also, I am not quite sure where the original belts went, since the damaged belts were so stretched that they could fit around all the flywheels at once with slack to spare. It would be nice if someone knew about this cassette deck or had a service manual for it.
Thank you.
-Michael Mendenhall
You should be able to get a service manual from Superscope themselves - I did for my CD-330 a few years ago, and it was free, including delivery to the UK, which goes down in my book as the best service I've ever had from any company, electronics or not. The quality of the photocopy isn't great, though, otherwise I'd offer to scan it in. Have a poke around on the web for the company, which I think may still be doing pro gear.
Cheers, Jon.
Cheers, Jon.
Triophile,
Superscope doesn't seem to still support these models. They build portable CD burners now.
moamps,
Should I ask Superscope before I ask you for the SM?
The problems I have/had:
-The counter doesn't turn ; the belts are loose.
-The recording level pot have broken PCBs. I'm working on this problem: About every pot PCBs are the same so I'll buy two pots and use the PCBs.
-The right VU wasn't moving well, I re-adjusted the screws.
-There are a couple of bits falling out each time I open it. (A metal U shaped object, a white 1/4" long white plastic philips "screw"(Seems to come from an adjustable cap or resistor.
Superscope doesn't seem to still support these models. They build portable CD burners now.
moamps,
Should I ask Superscope before I ask you for the SM?
The problems I have/had:
-The counter doesn't turn ; the belts are loose.
-The recording level pot have broken PCBs. I'm working on this problem: About every pot PCBs are the same so I'll buy two pots and use the PCBs.
-The right VU wasn't moving well, I re-adjusted the screws.
-There are a couple of bits falling out each time I open it. (A metal U shaped object, a white 1/4" long white plastic philips "screw"(Seems to come from an adjustable cap or resistor.
I wouldn't bother repairing this deck, to be honest. I had one which I thought sounded bad because it was clearly in need of some repair, but a second 330 I bought recently, this one in good condition, sounded just as bad. I'm afraid I have to say that, while the transport's pretty good, the deck as a whole sounds surprisingly bad, which I suspect is due to either inferior heads (only very light wear on my second example, and they were freshly cleaned and demagnetised) or poor electronics.
Cheers, Jon.
Cheers, Jon.
All of these decks have some problems and break often. Maybe it's even the case of the second one.
My CD-330 is only able to give a good line out.(A lot better than my other tape deck) For a couple of time, the monitor speaker, the recording and the speaker outputs sound bad. I don't know if it's because it's falling in pieces, the design is poor or if Marantz got some fake Toshiba semiconductors.(They use mostly Toshiba parts)
I don't think the head is the problem. Permalloy ones are supposed to be good.
I read somewhere that most faults were caused by high ESR caps. Might be worth changing them to see if it solves problems.
As far as I'm aware, permalloy heads are normal quality. The better quality heads are amorphous, or a number of other types used by different manufacturers.
Superscope still gives the SM free of charge. I've ordered one, just to see if I can do something with it.
Hi DragonMaster,
Permalloy = glass heads. They don't look like they wear, but they do. They also saturate very easily at lower levels. Because the highs are boosted so much in record, this is where they sound the worst.
I used to do waranty service on these and they weren't that bad, but they were a low cost line compared to Marantz. No, the Toshiba parts aren't fakes.
On any old deck, very carefully check the capstan bearing. If it is worn, it needs to be replaced or the deck is junk. Period. Failure of this bearing means the tape path is incorrect. That is something that is basic to the performance of the machine.
If you can find a Nakamichi BX series, or better, grab it and have it repaired properly. These sound the best of any machine. They put the best Teac machines behind them. Did warranty on both brands, so I know. I currently own Marantz, Nakamichi and Teac machines.
-Chris
Permalloy = glass heads. They don't look like they wear, but they do. They also saturate very easily at lower levels. Because the highs are boosted so much in record, this is where they sound the worst.
I used to do waranty service on these and they weren't that bad, but they were a low cost line compared to Marantz. No, the Toshiba parts aren't fakes.
On any old deck, very carefully check the capstan bearing. If it is worn, it needs to be replaced or the deck is junk. Period. Failure of this bearing means the tape path is incorrect. That is something that is basic to the performance of the machine.
If you can find a Nakamichi BX series, or better, grab it and have it repaired properly. These sound the best of any machine. They put the best Teac machines behind them. Did warranty on both brands, so I know. I currently own Marantz, Nakamichi and Teac machines.
-Chris
I received the service manual a couple of days ago. Maybe it will help me know what the capstan bearing is!
Are these portable or not? It doesn't matter to me if it is or not. The CD-330 is staying at home.
Hi DragonMaster,
The CD-330 was one of the best portable machines ever. It has counter-rotating flywheels and is three head. I used to have one (still might somewhere). I really liked it.
The capstan shaft is the metal rod that turns the tape. The pinch roller rides against it with a reasonably high force. That's why the bearing gets worn quickly. Make sure it's lubricated in the bearing.
I was commenting on home machines, forgot that was a portable. If you ever get it set up it will sound pretty good. The factory tape was TDK-SA. If your highs are low and tape path is good, try Maxell. It's about 4~5 dB hotter in the highs.
-Chris
The CD-330 was one of the best portable machines ever. It has counter-rotating flywheels and is three head. I used to have one (still might somewhere). I really liked it.
The capstan shaft is the metal rod that turns the tape. The pinch roller rides against it with a reasonably high force. That's why the bearing gets worn quickly. Make sure it's lubricated in the bearing.
I was commenting on home machines, forgot that was a portable. If you ever get it set up it will sound pretty good. The factory tape was TDK-SA. If your highs are low and tape path is good, try Maxell. It's about 4~5 dB hotter in the highs.
-Chris
Oh, this one.
What do I use? Sharpening/sewing machine oil?
Also, is it normal for these machines to fall apart? I think I've got a lemon. It went to repair lots of times and still has problems. (Listed in a previous post)
I think the white screw I was talking about is one of the bias adjustments.
Hi DragonMaster,
Can you please link to the old thread for me?
These were not unreliable machines 15 yrs ago (or there abouts). I did see many that were not serviced correctly, and therefore had a long history.
Unfortunately, the consumer is hard pressed to tell whether the machine or tech is at fault. I've even had situations where the manufacturer and or the distributor has misled the service facility. The end losers are both the service shop and the customer.
I have more often seen long service histories as a problem with the service the machine has had. Add fake semi's to the mix and ..... Normally the tech and service center want to do their best for the customer. This is not always possible.
-Chris
Can you please link to the old thread for me?
These were not unreliable machines 15 yrs ago (or there abouts). I did see many that were not serviced correctly, and therefore had a long history.
Unfortunately, the consumer is hard pressed to tell whether the machine or tech is at fault. I've even had situations where the manufacturer and or the distributor has misled the service facility. The end losers are both the service shop and the customer.
I have more often seen long service histories as a problem with the service the machine has had. Add fake semi's to the mix and ..... Normally the tech and service center want to do their best for the customer. This is not always possible.
-Chris
Okay, now to lubricate the capstan bearing. The transport needs to be removed. Take pictures and work slowly. Then the mechanism is disassembled only as far as it needs to be. I think there is end play adjustment on those as well.
Remove the belt and place in a safe place. Check how much play there is in each direction at this point. Remove the capstan / flywheel assy. Clean with Methyl Hydrate, do the same with the other flywheel. Put a very thin film of light oil, no additives on both shafts and reassemble.
Clean the capstan shaft with Methyl before you do anything else. Make sure the pinch roller is clean.
That's it. It's also why a good shop charges a bit of money for this job. I was trained at Marantz for this and it is the proper procedure.
-Chris
Remove the belt and place in a safe place. Check how much play there is in each direction at this point. Remove the capstan / flywheel assy. Clean with Methyl Hydrate, do the same with the other flywheel. Put a very thin film of light oil, no additives on both shafts and reassemble.
Clean the capstan shaft with Methyl before you do anything else. Make sure the pinch roller is clean.
That's it. It's also why a good shop charges a bit of money for this job. I was trained at Marantz for this and it is the proper procedure.
-Chris
I'll just re-write them as I fixed some problems and got some more at the same time.
1. Counter's not turning. Fix: will have to change the belts.
2. It won't stop when the tape has finished playing just clicks.(It stops on FFwd tho)
3. The PCBs on the record level pots are broken. Fix: find pots with the same PCBs and disassemble them. (I have 1 10k with the same PCB but I need 2 20Ks)
4. junk is falling out each times I open it.
Once, it was a little plastic bit : Now, the record button lock(looking for the tab) is loose.
Then, a white plastic screw. What is it?
Then, the tab coming out of spring no.826N (4383115010) fell out.
Now, it's a little metal ball.
None. That's the only thing that is fine.
I kind of have an impression I'll have to buy this one: http://cgi.ebay.ca/SUPERSCOPE-by-MA...ryZ15053QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem
to repair what's broken.
Oh Man
This is not good. The ball bearing goes under the plate holding the heads etc... Critical part. That transport is falling apart! The white screw is an end play adjustment for one of the flywheels (I hope). I'm going from memory here.
It looks like the unit was used roughly. Also, over time the nylon can get brittle I guess. You need to take great care reassembling things to get levers into slots as it goes together. Watch for nylon pins and their alignment.
The bid item looks rough. If you can get it cheap enough for parts it would be good. If you do get it, compare the location of parts in the mechanism to yours and make notes. Who knows, you may get both working.
Don't lose that ball bearing!!!
-Chris
This is not good. The ball bearing goes under the plate holding the heads etc... Critical part. That transport is falling apart! The white screw is an end play adjustment for one of the flywheels (I hope). I'm going from memory here.
It looks like the unit was used roughly. Also, over time the nylon can get brittle I guess. You need to take great care reassembling things to get levers into slots as it goes together. Watch for nylon pins and their alignment.
The bid item looks rough. If you can get it cheap enough for parts it would be good. If you do get it, compare the location of parts in the mechanism to yours and make notes. Who knows, you may get both working.
Don't lose that ball bearing!!!
-Chris
Strangely, the transport started losing pieces 2 years ago, even if it wasn't being used for over 10 years. Well, we used it, but only about twice a year to see if it still works.
I think I lost it.
I've kept the ball! What can I do with it?
They both can play! I think I could get one working great but the other would be in pretty bad condition. All the parts are breaking for unknown reasons...
Oh, finally, the capstan bearing is a bit loose up and down, but it's really hard to know it.
Oh, btw, tape version of "Best of The Doors" sounds better on the CD-330 than CD version on my CDP.
When opening it, I have the impression it's a "Realistic" brand cassette tape : The covers have all sorts of wire soldered between them and the PCB. I know why: Under it, it's marked "Designed in the USA".
Hi DragonMaster,
The reason the capstan shaft moves a lot up and down is that the white screw is not in position. It's made of nylon and normally has some locking compound on the threads to keep it put. Nail polish works fine.
The ball bearing. Hmmm, I think there are a couple in there. There are three or four under the head sliding plate. There may be one or more under some sliding levers on the back. The diameter of the ball bearing is important. Put it and any other parts you have in a plastic bag. Don't lose anything.
As for wires, sometimes that is the best way. It's better than running the signals all over the place on a PCB like they do now (cause it's cheaper).
I remembered, I sold my CD-330 and got a PMD-360. Same thing, newer under the Marantz name. They added a "crash bar" for the front switches. They don't get knocked off anymore. Hunt for one of these on ebay. I think they fixed some small issues with the CD-330. These are basically home decks in a tough lexan case. They added the counter rotating flywheel so you can move it without the speed changing a lot.
-Chris
The reason the capstan shaft moves a lot up and down is that the white screw is not in position. It's made of nylon and normally has some locking compound on the threads to keep it put. Nail polish works fine.
The ball bearing. Hmmm, I think there are a couple in there. There are three or four under the head sliding plate. There may be one or more under some sliding levers on the back. The diameter of the ball bearing is important. Put it and any other parts you have in a plastic bag. Don't lose anything.
As for wires, sometimes that is the best way. It's better than running the signals all over the place on a PCB like they do now (cause it's cheaper).
I remembered, I sold my CD-330 and got a PMD-360. Same thing, newer under the Marantz name. They added a "crash bar" for the front switches. They don't get knocked off anymore. Hunt for one of these on ebay. I think they fixed some small issues with the CD-330. These are basically home decks in a tough lexan case. They added the counter rotating flywheel so you can move it without the speed changing a lot.
-Chris
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