Philips EL3514 Tape Recorder - UK Vintage Radio Repair and Restoration Discussion Forum

Ben1978 · 1st Aug 2018, 7:05 pm

Hello, I’m really hoping some wise person can help me here. I’ve just acquired a Philips EL3514 4-track tape recorder. It seems in really good nick and has the microphone still, the manual and some tapes. I’m hoping it works!

However, I can’t power it up because the wires have been disconnected from the plug itself and I’m confused about how to wire the plug as there are only 2 wires. I know nothing about how to go about fixing this, any ideas?

I’ve attached a pic of the power cable to illustrate what I’m talking about.

Also, I was wondering as the unit has a voltage adapter which is set to 240V - can I just use any modern 2 pin power cable instead of fixing the plug on this one?

Refugee · 2nd Aug 2018, 12:20 am

It is just a normal 13 amp plug.
You may need to add a couple of bits of sleeve to the cable to get the strain relief to work so that it does not pull out again.

GRID LEAK · 2nd Aug 2018, 12:35 am

The two wires go to the line (live) and neutral terminals of the 13 amp plug. It doesn't matter which way round they go as the fig.8 plug is non polarised. The fuse in the 13 amp plug should be rated no higher than 5 amps. Hope this helps. The voltage selector is set correctly at 240V.

John

TonyDuell · 2nd Aug 2018, 4:58 am

This is an interesting little machine (I have one). Despite the small-ish size, it uses valves mostly (there is one transistor too).

As others have said, the 2 wires of the mains cable go to the L and N pins of the plug. Nothing is connected to the (larger) earth pin. According to the service manual it consumes about 25W, so a 3A fuse should be fine. A 2A or even a 1A fuse would be even better but those are much harder to find.

I would advise getting somebody knowledgeable to look over it before you turn it on. There are some inexpensive components (for example capacitors C18, C27, C28 in the Philips circuit diagram) that could cause expensive damage if they fail.

My experience is that the drive belts will certainly need replacing too.

ricard · 2nd Aug 2018, 6:16 am

It could be that the wires were disconnected from the plug intentionally in order to deter a casual user from connecting the machine to the mains without closer inspection.

As to the OP's question of whether the specific mains cable needs to be used, you could use another cable providing the connector fits in the machine, as there is no voltage conversion or other trickery being performed by the cable. The connector looks to be a bit special from what I can make out from the attached picture so a suitable cable might be hard to find though.

1st Aug 2018, 7:05 pm	#1
Ben1978 Retired Dormant Member Join Date: Aug 2018 Location: Ilkley, West Yorkshire, UK. Posts: 1	Philips EL3514 Tape Recorder Hello, I’m really hoping some wise person can help me here. I’ve just acquired a Philips EL3514 4-track tape recorder. It seems in really good nick and has the microphone still, the manual and some tapes. I’m hoping it works! However, I can’t power it up because the wires have been disconnected from the plug itself and I’m confused about how to wire the plug as there are only 2 wires. I know nothing about how to go about fixing this, any ideas? I’ve attached a pic of the power cable to illustrate what I’m talking about. Also, I was wondering as the unit has a voltage adapter which is set to 240V - can I just use any modern 2 pin power cable instead of fixing the plug on this one? Attached Thumbnails

2nd Aug 2018, 12:20 am	#2
Refugee Dekatron Join Date: Apr 2012 Location: Worksop, Nottinghamshire, UK. Posts: 5,553	Re: Philips EL3514 Tape Recorder It is just a normal 13 amp plug. You may need to add a couple of bits of sleeve to the cable to get the strain relief to work so that it does not pull out again.

2nd Aug 2018, 12:35 am	#3
GRID LEAK Triode Join Date: Jun 2009 Location: Lancashire, UK. Posts: 46	Re: Philips EL3514 Tape Recorder The two wires go to the line (live) and neutral terminals of the 13 amp plug. It doesn't matter which way round they go as the fig.8 plug is non polarised. The fuse in the 13 amp plug should be rated no higher than 5 amps. Hope this helps. The voltage selector is set correctly at 240V. John

2nd Aug 2018, 4:58 am	#4
TonyDuell Dekatron Join Date: Jun 2015 Location: Biggin Hill, London, UK. Posts: 5,208	Re: Philips EL3514 Tape Recorder This is an interesting little machine (I have one). Despite the small-ish size, it uses valves mostly (there is one transistor too). As others have said, the 2 wires of the mains cable go to the L and N pins of the plug. Nothing is connected to the (larger) earth pin. According to the service manual it consumes about 25W, so a 3A fuse should be fine. A 2A or even a 1A fuse would be even better but those are much harder to find. I would advise getting somebody knowledgeable to look over it before you turn it on. There are some inexpensive components (for example capacitors C18, C27, C28 in the Philips circuit diagram) that could cause expensive damage if they fail. My experience is that the drive belts will certainly need replacing too.

2nd Aug 2018, 6:16 am	#5
ricard Octode Join Date: Mar 2006 Location: Lund, Sweden Posts: 1,632	Re: Philips EL3514 Tape Recorder It could be that the wires were disconnected from the plug intentionally in order to deter a casual user from connecting the machine to the mains without closer inspection. As to the OP's question of whether the specific mains cable needs to be used, you could use another cable providing the connector fits in the machine, as there is no voltage conversion or other trickery being performed by the cable. The connector looks to be a bit special from what I can make out from the attached picture so a suitable cable might be hard to find though.