Query on using Grundig TK46 as amplifier

[Emibell]

Hi, I'm pretty new here and have found the site a very useful source of info and help so far. My main interest is vinyl but I was seduced by the curved lines and vintage cream finish on a TK46 in my favourite charity shop - thinking I would use it as an occasional amp for a record player.
Having got it home and found a manual on-line however I couldn't get much sense out off the m/c, the motor was working after a fashion but absolutely no sound. After much tinkering I noticed one of the fuses near the din inputs was blown so I put a 3 amp fuse in just to see what happened. Again no sound but after pressing and turning controls in desperation I found that the built-in speakers started up. Great! But now comes the query, it seems that I can only get sound when the two recording keys on the left are depressed (as per manual) AND a tape speed is selected via the knurled wheel on the left (not mentioned in manual). This doesn't seem right as it means the mechanism is turning, and in the case of this particular m/c making quite a racket. I would be grateful if anyone could comment on whether this working correctly or not.
P.s. I realise the speed selector is an on/off switch so it kind of makes sense to use it but I could really do without the row.
Thanks, Mark

[Lucien Nunes]

I noticed one of the fuses near the din inputs was blown so I put a 3 amp fuse in just to see what happened

The mains fuse should be 0.4A (slow) and the HT 0.16A (slow). The fact that a fuse had blown (and it sounds like the HT fuse) indicates a possible overload situation, often due to faulty capacitors. The machine may now be slowly destroying itself all the time the power is on, until the original cause of the failure is corrected, unless the electrolytics have satisfactority re-formed. A 3A fuse will not protect the transformers from burning out if the fault persists.

IIRC It should function as an amplifier if the record track selectors and the replay track selectors are depressed simultaneously, but not the start key, with the volume set by the record level control.

[Emibell]

Thanks Lucien, The 3 amp fuse was of course a temporary measure just to check if any sound was possible, I will get the proper one if I decide to make any further use of the deck. Your description of the procedure for 'amp only' is different to the one in the manual unless I mis-read it, though yours seems slightly more what I would expect.
Can anyone else comment on this point please?

Thanks also for your word of caution - are there any caps in particular that you think ought to be replaced as a matter of course on these particular machines?
Cheers,

[Chiltern]

I had one of these TK46 machines a couple of years ago. I did not have any instructions and it took a while to work out that the speed selector is also the mains switch, a strange arrangement in that the supply would be interrupted by simply changing speeds. It did mean that the motor was running all the time that the recorder had a speed selected. Thankfully the mechanism ran quietly.

Attached a couple of pictures.

Alan

[julie_m]

Oooooh! Do I see three heads there?

If so, using the machine as an amplifier would require setting the monitoring switch to SOURCE as opposed to TAPE ..... or at least it would, if the switches were labelled in English, as opposed to using icons whose meaning is only obvious once you already know it

[Radio Wrangler]

All that mechanism! all those parts and all the fiddly little assembly processes. It's odd how tape recorders get more complex as you go to more expensive models, and then the most expensive ones suddenly become a lot simpler.

I hope it has got source monitoring switching with the speaker live, because it might be muted out of fear of howl-round. Using tape monitor with the time delay of the tape moving from record (middle) head to play (rightmost in picture) head as an amplifier for a guitar or microphone will be hilarious. If you haven't tried talking into a microphone with half a second's delay to the audio you hear, you've got to experience it, Alan. There was a comedy sketch with Rowan Atkinson playing the part of an alien with a language translating microphone which was intermittently faulty....

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hTNU...=ThankYouBrian

David

[Emibell]

Thanks Alan, that confirms how I must operate it. Now all I have to do is clean everything up so it runs quietly (and replace fuse and capacitors!).

[Station X]

What sort of caps are fitted? They may not need replacing.

[Tractorfan]

Hi,
Just as an aside, I have a B&O tape recorder which also has the mains switch combined with the speed change control (so, not just Grundig). The buttons are also in hieroglyphics, but I worked out that in 'amplifier' mode a mechanical lever keeps the micro on/off switch pressed when 'neutral' is selected which would normally turn the deck off.
Cheers, Pete.

[Emibell]

Hi Graham, Sorry, haven't had a close look at the caps yet, I was being a bit lazy and wondered if there were any known 'usual suspects' that ought to be whipped out on sight. Cheers,

[Station X]

I'm not familiar with the type of capacitors used in this machine. Generally the only types of capacitors which need changing on sight are Hunts waxed paper and mouldseal types.

Being of German manufacture this machine may well use better quality capacitors. Best thing is to post a picture of the caps on here so that the type can be identified.

[Emibell]

OK, thanks Graham. Will post pic if/when I need any help.
Cheers,