Saturday mornings with Techmoan is the adult equivalence of Saturday morning cartoons. That episode was brilliant. loved it.

The correct way of removing a screw with a damaged head is...... any way that gets it out without damaging the product.

The difference between you and an expert is that the expert edits out all the mistakes he made.

"I could have just overdubbed the audio, and no one would have been the wiser... BUT THAT'S NOT GENUINE!" Right on dude! That's the way these type of videos should be done!

You didn't want to know if I didn't enjoy this video. OK. I have to therefore let you know that I LOVED this video. Captivating from start to finish.

That was maybe my favorite techmoan video ever. Excellent work, Matt.

Some engineer in Japan in their 70s or 80s, if they were to view this would be extremely happy with their work and your love and care over something so constructed. Thank you for your great videos and narration. Please, please keep such great content and preservation alive.

This video made me take another crack at fixing my first record player! I'd given up on the thing and replaced it with a lovely German turntable from the '80s. Now my first player is not only working, but I've restored it back to it's original home in my booth. Thanks for the indirect inspiration, my dude!

Tech Moan : I'm not qualified and I dont really know what I'm doing. Does all research, takes down, diagnoses, repairs, knows all the names and other stuff I wouldnt even think of.

I like how you show all the wrong turns along the way. It's like an exploration of a puzzle and makes the solution all the more enjoyable.

I’ve been fiddling with repairing a ct-f2121. It’s astounding how fine the tolerances are in the belts and tensions in these mechanisms. Good call on the rubber o rings, I did the same. Well done for persevering!

I feel like the guy responcible for that notch was on his death bed and he watched this video. After he appreciated his work the notch guy was able to die in peace.

Hey Matt; I've never worked on this particular deck, but I've seen many others from the late 70s and early 80s with electronic auto-stop faults and they've generally been down to bad electrolytic capacitors in the auto-stop circuit. On the diagram you showed in the video at around 32:40 I would say that the prime suspect would be C352 (100uF/35V). Once this component starts leaking, it will be unable to fully charge, possibly to the point where the voltage across D353 is insufficient to trigger switch on transistor Q352. This could prevent the auto-stop from engaging. The auto-stop circuit is not especially complicated (yeah I know it's easy for a former electronics repair guy to say that, but honestly I've seem much more complex ones than this) - The basic way this works is that the pulses from the sensor are used to switch Q351 on and off. In the absence of the pulse from the sensor, capacitor C352 will charge via the 27K resistor R356. While the tape is running, the constant stream of pulses will be causing Q351 to short the capacitor to ground via the 270 ohm resistor R357, thus preventing the voltage from rising to the point where the relay is activated. When the pulses stop (as at the end of the tape), the pulses will stop and thus the voltage on C352 will be allowed to rise. Once the voltage difference from one side of the diode D353 to the other rises above about 0.6V or so, the diode will conduct and transistor Q352 will turn on, ultimately activating the relay. However, if C352 is leaky to the point where the voltage is draining away faster than it can be charged up, then the threshold voltage will never be reached and thus the auto-stop will never be activated. So if it were me I would start by changing C352. If that fails to fix the issue, then it might be worth checking the transistors themselves, especially given their age now, and also the higher value resistors as old resistors often have a tendency to move in value (usually going higher resistance), but my money would still be on that capacitor as the most likely, followed by a bad transistor if recapping fails to fix it. You should be able to easily test the relay driver transistor Q354 by connecting its base terminal to the B+ line via a 1000 ohm resistor. That should cause the relay to trigger. I'm not sure if you have access to an oscilliscope, but if you have, then it would definitely be worth checking the waveforms at the points marked on the diagram, especially the sawtooth-like waveform in the upper diagramin the region where it is marked "tape run" - if that wave is flat (or significantly flatter than it looks in the diagram), then that would also point to the capacitor C352. (though if Q351 were shorted then this would cause the same symptom, but that would be easy enough to test with a multimeter. If Q351 checks out OK, and changing the capacitor doesn't help, then check the 27K resistor R356. It's unlikely that this has gone open - at worst it might have raised in value, which would still allow the auto-stop to work, though it might take a bit longer to trigger, but it never hurts to check. Good luck Matt - it would be amazing to see this gorgeous machine restored to fully working condition

I laughed heartily at "if you didn't like it, please don't let me know". Really fun video. I love deep dives into electronics and repairs.

Your perseverance is really inspiring. You demonstrate a simple method for attacking a problem: have at it until you hit a wall, then step back for a while and take a breath, then dive in again. Like Einstein said: "It's not that I'm so smart. It's just that I stay with problems longer."

I increased my Patreon payment after watching this video.

Really enjoyed watching the behind the scenes efforts. It does make me appreciate the time, effort and cost that goes into making each video. I also really admire the workmanship that went into these lovely machines back when I was but a child. And such a beautiful device, so glad you got it working.

Matt, I don't comment often, but I want to commend you for your dedication to making videos like this. What a mountain of work it must've been to edit this all together. I really enjoyed watching it! Keep it up and perhaps someone will be able to chime in on the electronics side of this and help you along.

When I saw the length of this video i thought 'oef, this too long, i could be seeing a lot of other interesting videos in the same time'. But i gave it a try and, as always, i found this again a very entertaining video. The way you explain your struggles, keep your honesty and not boast about your accomplishments make your videos very genuine en make you a very likable guy. Thank you very much for this half hour of technical meditation.

Me: There's no way I'm going to watch this guy fix a machine for a half hour Also me, 30 min later: wait it's over already?

Waking up to TechMoan episodes each Saturday has been like waiting for Saturday morning cartoons as a kid.

"Okay now, this was another mistake. I shouldn't have done this- it made things worse." I need to make a little button on my desk that plays this clip for when I fail to fix things.

Something I learned from a friend which is a technician: when you're getting an oscillating speed on a cassette deck, open it and look directly to the main belt while it's spinning with the deck playing. It must look like it's stopped. No wobbling or swinging around. Many cheap belts (specially here in Brazil, from mid 80s to 2000s) were simply sections cut out from big "hoses", without much care, which worked in a very unbalanced way. You needed to buy many in order to choose the less bad one. I don't know how good are processes or quality control in most chinese manufacturers which makes these nowdays, but I think it's most of the same...

23:07 The "flipping things died right at the end..." just after the flipping flip clock... flips.

Wire wrapping was very common in the 70s when my Dad was working in the manufacturing industry. He showed me how to use wire wrap tools in the early 80s while saying "You'll probably never need to know this, we don't use them any more." I've used them probably twice in 30 years as a prototype wireman.

I'm happy to say that I thoroughly enjoyed watching the video.

A couple of friends and I were discussing what makes your channel fun to watch versus that of the experts. While the experts are informative and have their funny moments, it's mostly just a brief journey between the beginning of the disassembly and the end. Yours is an adventure from the beginning to the end complete with all the pitfalls and confusion that the rest of us deal with. We are watching a journey we can empathise with and understand, which is why we enjoy your work.

Love love love your channel. You don’t give yourself enough credit! Most people chucked these old machines out as soon as they stopped working, and here you are not only repairing these cool machines, but videotaping yourself doing so, and sharing it with the world. Hell of a job, keep up the great work!

I love Saturdays, especially when they start with Techmoan

"mostly broken to mostly working" sounds like a Monday to me

Amazing job. The frustration that you felt in this repair is very similar to the frustrations I feel in my job. Getting through a project like this one is a huge accomplishment. You should be proud.

My dad made a living repairing all this kind of electronic devices. So when I see this videos bring me back to my childhood happy days. Thanks a lot techmoan for sharing it. Love the channel.

These kind of videos are what i most like of your channel, attempting to repair a mechanical puzzle mixed with your extra-dry sense of humor that hits way after you dropped 'em and with many tries to approach to the same problem I felt identified, usually i have the same behaviour, to stop, step back, trace a new strategy and try again What i have to say? One of the best channels ever

if your working on this age stuff from japan do not use a philips screw driver you need an jis driver (Japanese Industrial Standard) you will round off far less screw heads

Yess another Techmoan vid boy I've missed you. I havent used a tape in over a decade but I've watched everyone of your tape recorder repair vids as they fascinate me. You are a legend for seeing this project through. Only a replacement circuit away from perfection so you should be proud

Your search for the correct bulb reminded me of a story. In the late 90's, when I was REALLY into car audio, part of my custom amplifier install was to use a large bullet fuse with 1/0 gauge red power wire running from each end and through grommets in the floor of my hatchbacks spare tire cover, between the amplifier cutouts. I stepped down the wire from 1/0 gauge to ~28 gauge wire and connected it to the light in my hatch that turned on when you opened it. Instead of a fuse, in the bullet holder I put a dome light bulb that was roughly the same length. It took me a few different bulbs to find one with the right effect, hence the this video reminding me. It looked as though my main fuse with huge power wires was glowing red hot. I have never seen so many people freak out! As soon as I popped the hatch, there was yelling "it's shorting out!" or "THAT'S NOT RIGHT!". good times

Excellent. Thanks for taking the time to edit this together. I think this is exactly the way most mechanically-inclined (but not specifically trained) people go about repairs. Service manuals are very helpful for guidance when you can find them. Otherwise, this is pretty much how I go about a teardown without one as well (until the point when I get stuck and need to ask online for help). Learning from taking various mechanical electronics apart is rewarding, and coming to recognize how everything fits together just by looking at it is part of that skill set that only comes with "doing." Unfortunately, component-level electronic diagnostic training has fallen by the wayside, I think. These days circuit boards are just replaced whole, and made to be. :(

This video was great! It's so nice to see humanized repair experiences instead of some magical chap repairing the entire thing with perfect knowledge from the get-go.

Matt, thank you for inspiring us non-technicians to try and fix our own gear. I’ve fixed my Yamaha CD-Player and Yamaha Cassette Deck myself thanks to watching your various repairs! Thank you!!

I know just about nothing about electronics, but this was really satisfying to watch. It actually inspired me to learn more about them!

Also, it's mind blowing when you think about the design process behind the construction. A team of engineers had to devise that mechanism, and the tooling to make the parts, etc - amazing skill

Thats a very calm “end of ones tether”

Well done, Matt. I admire the way you roll your sleeves up and get stuck in when there is a problem with the equipment you're looking at. A lot of people wouldn't dare.

Techmoan, I really do appreciate your honesty, and your determination. Absolutely brilliant.

Techmoan is a man who suffers for his craft.

Thank you Mat for putting in all this effort! It t is so good to see that even people like you who are a whole lot more knowledgeable about HiFi systems than the average person is oftentimes just forced to throw stuff at the wall to see what sticks. Watching a trained technician fix faults is all well and good, but I like seeing "mere mortals" (which I don't mean in any offensive way) giving it their best shot - and winning. So my guess is that somebody somewhere on this planet will have a lightbulb moment from this video after tearing their hair out over a so far fruitless attempt at fixing their machine. It is also extremely satisfying to find and successfully fix a fault all by yourself. The way to the solution might not be as the crow flies, but there is a lot to be learned along the way.

Even if the process of reparing was quite simple, the whole work of finding out is often the more complex and confusing part, as you demonstrated impressively. Thank you for sharing this project with us and being honest and humble, thats what makes your content so enjoyable to watch!

How do you make everything so interesting? It's like you have a super-power! Brilliant, as always!

9:03 - I wonder if the lack of plastic is due to the 1970s oil crisis. Amazing video as always!

I appreciate how these episodes of Techmoan (fixing obsolete, but still useful electronics) are like the archaeology of the late industrial age, and how like an archaeological dig there's a lot of guesswork. If it were truly archaeology, though, you'd be able to just say that the broken components had some obscure ritualistic purpose and be done with it

Its so cool and awesome to know there are still people out there that still have a love of these once proud machines... now just dinosaurs and relics of yesteryear if it weren't for people like you.. this machine would have met a sad end... please keep repairing these machines... and keep the repair of machines of this nature going... there are a lot of people out there that still use things like this and many that may need repairs so they may continue to work for many more years to come...

This one brought back uncomfortable memories of when I tore into my own cassette deck to find out that, as you said, the thing seems to be built around the drive belts, and the only way to access same is through disassembly of some pretty complicated machinery. I suppose I ought to try it again, since my tape collection is silent until I figure out a fix or simply replace the deck, which I really don’t want to do. I found it interesting to compare devices such as this cassette deck with modern digital music players, which frequently have no moving parts whatsoever.

Mat, as I enjoy watching this whole process I am struck once again by your level of patience, experience you've developed by making all these videos, and indefatigable nature to achieve a goal. My knowledge and motivation has been greatly increased by watching you do all these things. Thank you.

On the Autostop circuit board. The pulsing can be used to “pump” up a voltage level so if the pulsing stops that voltage drains out and that voltage level via a transistor then drives the solenoid. Such pulse controlled circuits are often tuned to the frequency of the pulsing and the storage of that voltage and the power of the pulse to activate the solenoid all likely have capacitors involved. And we know the electrolytic capacitors drift and fail with many years if age under them as the electrolyte dries out. So I’d take a crack at just replacing those electrolytic capacitors in the Autostop boards with the same rated new ones. Make sure you get the + and - correct on the capacities to match where the old ones were.

I rarely comment on videos but I must say I just watched a half hour video about repairing a cassette deck and didn't get bored or consider clicking off even once! Thanks man great video

Whatever you do, do not feel bad about your repair and your ability. You saved another piece of equipment and you learnt. You enhanced your knowledge. It doesn't matter if other people knew better. Plus, you have probably got more feeling for the cassette recorder now. I recently repaired my 5yo amp. Although I was upset it broke, looking back I enjoyed it as it worked my brain and occupied me during lockdown. And you know what, instead of moaning about my amp for breaking, I actually find myself liking it more because I got tok now it intimately and deeply. Pat yourself on the back!

24:37 Wire-wrap was pretty common back then. I remember my dad even had a tool that would do it automatically (you pulled a trigger and it would spin the wire around the post). Antiquated stuff, but neat to see nowadays.

6:30 "Exploded view" *But my machine has imploded*

Hi there, I love your videos. I am blind and the way you describe things is just great. Keep it coming. Love all this vintage tech that you’re showing. Takes me back.

Watching in 2021. Compact cassettes died so many years back its wonderful you are saving vintage machines!

When I was a kid I was obsessed with flip clock alarm radios! Every time I'd see on in a store I'd have to go look at it and drive mum nuts!

Your repair videos give me more confidence in my own repairs. Right now, I'm working on a Teac 3300-11 two track stereo reel to reel deck.

Marvellous viewing. When people say ‘ blimey - that was a dear do back in the day ‘ this particular example is self explanatory, highlighting the complexity and labour intensive building and content of electrical/mechanical consumer products and the cost associated of getting the thing past final test and in to somebody’s home. Having spent a lifetime in the industry from the dawn of colour TV to the present digital age and the rapid leaps in technology which most nontechnical people just take for granted can you imagine what the next 25 years hold for us all bearing in mind the stratosphoric advances in recent years - mind boggling. Wonderful content by the way Matt !

Come on Techmoan, really no need to beat yourself up. You did a fantastic job fixing this unit. I know there are viewers that are critics of everything, but what you've demonstrated is that with a bit of patience and drive anyone can tackle something like this. Regards,

I wasn't expecting half of that... Perhaps one of the best episodes you've put out so far! Thank you!

Another great Saturday morning treat, thank you Mat. Looking at the circuit, I am going to suggest you need to do a capacitor replacement activity to return the transistor based auto stop back to functionality. Should be a relatively simple job of ordering the capacitors (values on the side of each) observing the polarity and soldering the new ones back in place. Be brave and take your time and you will have success!

Absolutely mega. What an odessy. It's an honor and a privilege to see you work. Loved the vid, big props and cheers.

The most important skill to have when working on this type of thing is patience. Matt has that covered. Loved the video. I've watched it several times.

I really love how honest this guy is. One of the best channels for this sort of stuff and I'm looking fowards to seeing more videos about these sort of machines!

Lovely video. I've been looking forward to watching the repair of this device. You needn't be so modest about your skill level. I'm no electronics expert, but thought I'd look over the auto-stop diagram in the video out of curiosity. It seems C351, D352, & D351 act as a kind of pump when the tape is turning. Since caps are the most common to fail, would it be a good guess that C351 has failed short circuit? A short fail would mean a constant block to solenoid operation (constant drain on Q352 base voltage). Either that or the C152 cap failed short circuit, never allowing voltage increase at the Q352 base. That's my two pennies' worth...

I am currently in the process of repairing a 1983 sanyo rd r60 cassette deck. I have been having some problems with the belts. After watching this video and taking some notes of your information sources, especially for a service manual, I believe I can get it to live again. Keep up the good work and keep doing these repair videos because you never know whom your video can help someone that is in desperate need.

What a gift you have of making videos like this repair just as entertaining as your regular content. Well done with the repair as well.

All right, you won me over! :-D Been watching for years, and I figured your efforts deserve a little more than just the odd ‘Like’ now and then, so I got off my arse and joined the Patreon. Count me as well entertained (oh, and that little Polaroid CUBE+ cam still does the job) :-)

I bet that "pop" sound you heard at one point was something blowing out that made the auto-stop work.

Great video, thanks. The autostop is issue could be a transistor, but it's always best to check with a multimeter if the board is getting the correct supply voltages first. You can get small component testers for something like $10, that will allow you to desolder and test individual components until you find a faulty one. That is probably the easiest way to repair electronics without being able read the schematic. Other than that, a small cheap oscilloscope can be very useful in fault finding.

I very much enjoyed this video. It's a story, and has progression along the way of how you worked things out, changed your mind on things, ordered parts. It's not an experience you could've thrown together in an afternoon.

Thank you for the great tip - sticky taping the screws to a labelled piece of paper - I wish I'd thought of that last week, when I took apart a synthesiser! hahahaaa Great vid Mat. :)

Really nice video, Matt! I love the internal design of these 60s/70s Japanese electronics, they always show there was a lot of thought about maintenance from the start of a project, with foldable circuit boards and enough cable length to get stuff out of the way. I just wish they had less solder and more plugs and sockets. I ran into the same problem of mysterious wowing, and in a very similar frequency to yours, a few weeks ago even after replacing every belt and cleaning every idler wheel I could find on my Sony TC-150. However, mine didn't miraculously sort itself out. I'm guessing it might be an old capacitor down on the power regulation circuitry. It only really bothers me when playing tapes recorded on the same machine, as the fluctuations in playback speed are added to those from the recording.

Love the transparency. We learn a lot from each mistake. Great job. ( I have the CT-F2121 and this will help me.)

When I was growing up I spent all my time dismantling things and experimenting with electronics. Over the years I've lost a lot of that confidence, but videos such as this really help to remind me what is possible with a bit of patience, care and attention. Thanks Matt.

Usually, for me "English" English is a listening nightmare, but Techmoan accent and pronunciation are quite nice and understandable, great! I enjoy it very much

Congrats 1M subs. You've earned it!

I love fixing these types of vintage device's and bring them to life again , I loved your video.

What a beautiful machine. They dont make em like this no more! You can't beat switches and levers!

Really enjoyed this video-you have the patience of a saint-I salute you for getting it working again.Just a tip-sometimes a squirt of contact cleaner or deoxit in the motor speed control hole can fix a wow and flutter issue due to the speed control screw inside the motor oxidising-its just a variable resistor

Hahaha, Techmoan meme-ing hard again today, with all those 4/20 clock shots :-D

I adore those cassette control levers, the feel when you press them is one of the best I’ve ever experienced in the hi-fi world. I used to have a Pioneer CT-F2121 cassette deck, it looked almost same as this one without it's nice watch. I was very sad when it was stolen.

Discovered this channel a few weeks ago. I love seeing you grow and learn over the episodes. My very first midi tower was a Pioneer.Actually bought it for an apple and an egg. This is a saying in Dutch. When something is bought very cheap you bought it for "an apple and an egg" and an electronica retailer, wen opening a shop in my town in the early 70's, would "sell" a piece of equipment of your choice to the first 10 customers for an actual apple and egg. I was customer #2 and choose that Pioneer tower. When I later in life went for components I usually choose either Philips (National pride obviously) or for some strange reason Technics. (great brand but mostly mid range)

best Techmoan video of 2020, i loved the deepdive into that machine.

I want to see a Techmoan and My Mate Vince collab now.

I love how patient you are in these. I would've given up after taking a few screws out.

Your issue with fixing things is where I stand with cars. I Know most of what goes together, but when people, especially in the Ford Capri community, do a task easily, i struggle. Learning these things take time and that's where the problem is in a lot of our busy lives. Really pleased you were able to get the time to pull it apart and get it working decently. Full pat on the back in my opinion. That wow and flutter, jeez!

small tip: try getting some JIS screwdrivers when working on these vintage japanese electronics

I would try replacing the caps on that Auto Stop circuit. That seems like a logical place to start. After that I’d throw my hands in the air.

never feel down about this sort of project, think of the learning experience you got. that education is invaluable.

Techmoan is one of the many reasons I started collecting cassettes and cassette decks. Thanks for the cool hobby, also I found a WM-EX670! For about 89 USD!

I'd absolutely love to see a collaboration between you and Big Clive fixing this amazing machine.

Holy crap did you undersell the "issues" you had while "fixing" this in the other video..

Just because you don't have the in-depth knowledge to fix the auto stop, doesn't mean you don't know enough! We all have to start somewhere in our skills, and you took on this project and did learn alot! I am sure your other skills are well established and you have the knowledge in them. The thing that impressed me was that you did try, and learned alot along the way, even without a service manual! Congratulations on your repair!

Really like the look of this. It’s got so many classic retro features. Love that you push the cassette deep into the unit at an angle, then the 3D effect once it is housed and lit up. Tip to anyone restoring 70’s /80s separates - if replacing light bulbs-be sure to use yellow-effect ones. Bright, bluey or intense ones totally spoil the look. Quite addicted to your videos now!