Hey folks, looking for some advice about a Tacam DA-20 DAT player.
I have been very kindly given a loan of the aforementioned DAT player to record my old DAT tapes from my gigs in the 90's
Can anyone reccomend an easy way to clean the heads of the DAT as I don't think they've been done since the 90's as I'm getting dropouts and artefacts during playback. It's not the tapes that are fault, they've been stored corectly and have played fine on other systems.
I'm in the Uk and the only head cleaning tapes for DAT players are from the United States and would cost me a fortune in postage and in time waiting on it!
Any help whatsover would be appreciated!

 

this is from another board, but I know it works from past. just go lightly with pressure:

My method given by a former Sony Service Center tehnician:
- avoid cleaning tapes
- put some drops of isopropyl alcool on a clean piece of paper
- gently apply the piece of paper along the heads drum, holding it with a finger
- gently rotate the heads drum with another finger (you should feel the heads passing under you finger holding the the paper)
- wait for the alcohol to fully evaporate before running a tape

 

Fantastic, thanks for the help! I've got a 2ltr bottle of the stuff so I'll give it a go as I think the heads are filthy. The poor thing has been carted up and down the Uk so a bit of tlc will do wonders, fingers crossed!
Thanks again

 

i could be wrong but i've read that its often the roller guides etc (anywhere on the tape path that touches the tape) that really get gunged up, and need a good clean ...maybe be prepared that it might be that the heads are worn (a gauge would be the way to definitively tell and its better to get the entire cylinder replaced), in which case, maybe get the audio off the tapes and gently hand the machine back to your friend then call him and let him know.

 

I wouldn't get too far into a loaner, at all. I probably wouldn't even do the paper trick more than once to it. "Thanks, but no thanks."