Sony Betamax Engineer Needed

[Chatty75]

Hi Everybody,

I'm new to this forum and I'm posting because as I am in desperate need of somebody (preferably local but prepared to post if needed) to service and repair my badly ailing Sony Betamax.

I bought my current machine about six months ago, having owned a Sanyo VTC 5150 from new as a teenager until the mid 2000's when most had long since been retired I had built up quite a decent collection of movies and on a nostalgia trip I decided to pick up another machine (which is not cheap nowadays) to play them on, I always wanted a Sony as a kid so that's what i got!

Anyway, it has never been right since I got it and this is the first time that I have been able to afford to have it looked at, it just about functions but very badly and it's becoming an unpleasant experience to watch films on it now.

The tape eject flap does not raise properly (never has done) so I have to lift it up myself to swap tapes which is not a major inconvenience but it would be nice to have this sorted.

A more serious issue is that there are several faint patterned lines that appear during playback which almost resemble lines of 'arrow shapes' and although tolerable during speech the sound is wobbly and quite distorted during music on films.

Finally when using picture search the fast-forward works perfectly but when rewinding the machine becomes very noisy, making a loud banging/clunking sound when winding back (this is not present when using the the normal rewind function)

I will admit now that I am completely clueless when it comes to electrical work or any kind of DIY repairs so this forum is one of my only avenues for help as I do not want to get rid of my Betamax so I am hoping that somebody here can put me onto an engineer or enthusiast who is prepared to work on it for me and restore it to good working order.

My machine is an Sony SL200ME MKIII Super Beta, I know from when I bought it that this is not a standard UK model (although it is a PAL one) so I presume it's also a case of whether there are UK equivalent parts that will fit it.

Another issue I have is a lack of transport, I am in Halifax but I have a few friends who would probably help me out locally so anybody based in neighbouring towns like Huddersfield, Leeds or Bradford would be ideal but if the other option is not getting the machine fixed than I would gladly courier it anywhere across the UK.

Please let me know if anybody can help as this is pretty much my last hope for getting it up and running again.

Thank You

[ben]

This was a late Beta, quite a basic front load machine - info here

I have an sl-f55 in my junk pile which is almost identical and also suffers from similar problems to yours - the loading problem is due to wear on the carriage (lots of plastic) and the poor take up in rewind could be tape path wear-these machines do not unthread in wind mode, so the drums suffer. The patterning is probably down to ageing capacitors (psu probably) or if there is severe noise the capstan bearing may be worn.

I too would look at getting a refurbed Sanyo!

[Chatty75]

Hello Again,

Thanks a lot for your advice about my Sony, I now realise that repair is pretty impossible so I am currently in the process of taking your advice and trying to get hold of a decent used Sanyo instead.

As I mentioned in my first post I did have one of these machines that served me well for a very long time and although they lack the remote control operation and more modern casing of my Sony (I may need a bigger cabinet!) I suppose this is a small price to pay for reliability.

Anyway I have looked at what is currently on offer and asked a few more probing questions than I did when I bought the last machine but all seem to be buy at your own risk listing apart from one which was described as being in full working order, however alarm bells are ringing for me with this one because the owner has told me that the deck is a bit slow to rewind, am I right is suspecting that this is a sign of some kind of impending part failure?

I am prepared to pay a fair price for a genuine machine so I was wondering whether anybody on this forum might have a VTC 5000/5150 or even one of the newer Sanyo decks that they would be interested in selling on?

Thanks for your help everyone.

[cheerfulcharlie]

One of the basic flaws of the Betamax system is the fact that the tape remains looped around the path during all operations, causing amongst other things the audio and control head to wear rapidly, this was notable on the Sony C5 and C7 models, which along with power supply problems and other niggles are a complete basket case these days.

If you're still after a Sony, the Sony C6 however seemed to be a much sturdier tank-like model and maybe worth a gamble if the price is right.

You also have to think of the tapes themselves if they are years old, the lubrication in them may have dried out, causing them to drag in the mechanism causing the sound to wow and picture to streak.

But I agree with others to go for Sanyo. There are many machines out there that have been serviced recently & frequently and are working fine.

[IanNVJ35]

As to finding a Beta engineer I do know of one who is very well qualified but he is on the East Coast (near Great Yarmouth). If you would like his details please PM me.

The Sony machines are all suffering now and it is a shame as they were an excellent Beta brand. Sanyo is a far better choice these days though due to the rugged build and easy to repair machanicals. Sanyo did the Beta HiFi VTC-M40 (1985) which is rugged and offers excellent picture and stereo sound. I recorded some modern TV on mine here http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QBvWJ-k8sTA and it is crisp and clear. Also the Sanyo VTC-6500 is excellent but mono and older (1983) but still good - see a clip here http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nnW1oSJ4Bqk

Good luck!

[ben]

Originally Posted by Chatty75

.....apart from one which was described as being in full working order, however alarm bells are ringing for me with this one because the owner has told me that the deck is a bit slow to rewind, am I right is suspecting that this is a sign of some kind of impending part failure?
.

'full working order' is pretty meaningless - it's subjective, and unless the rubber idlers and belts have actually been changed and the deck cleaned and serviced, you'll be back to square one in no time. You need a fully refurbed unit.

[cheerfulcharlie]

You will have to consider the state of the tapes and try new ones if you can find them to give a comparison. You can use industrial Betacam tapes as long as they are the light blue coloured (as opposed to black/blue) non SP ones which are metal oxide.

Much of the waxing lyrical about how good Betamax was hides the fact that the sound was atrocious and many of the tapes are now in a crappy condition compared to much maligned VHS, tapes of which I have are now 30 years old and still play perfectly.

[Sanbeta]

Actually the mono edgetrack sound for VHS and Beta was pretty dire (compared to todays 5.1,6.1 high quality digital surround systems) but not THAT bad.
I have played my mono recordings ,VHS and BETA through a top quality Hi-Fi and surround system too.NOT a TV speaker as most seem to judge with these days (or did).
Yes there is a limit to the dynamic range and you do get tape 'hiss' at high volumes but it's only high quality music that really suffers.Movies and the like fair OK for the recording system available at the time.
The Sanyo Beta's had more of a pleasing mono sound compared to the Sony's ,which is probably why they fitted a tone Lo/hi switch on the latter models.They seemed to suffer with more tape 'hiss'.
This is also taking into consideration the audio head was well aligned.
Also some tapes can have a creased edge from a rogue ,poorly aligned /unserviced machine,which will limit the sound output if on that edge.Giving a low muffled quality.
Also many did'nt get their vcr's serviced and that adds to the woes of all formats.
It never ceases to amaze me how many get frustrated when their twenty or thirty years plus vcr goes wrong, especially having No service whatsoever or a poor 'bodge job', you see a lot nowerdays.These are very technical pieces of equipment ,and the fact they are as reliable as they are is pretty amazing.
Overall the tapes i have, some old, some new give a good overall impression of what CAN be achieved.Look after your tapes and equipment and you will be rewarded with many years of faithful and enjoyable service.

...................Kevin