Akai GX-747 threading

[Garrard201]

Hey everyone! I'm new to AudioKarma after having skimmed the forums for a few months now- this is my first post! What I need to know is, I just bought a GX747 reel deck. When I turn it on, the two guideposts keep moving into place, as if to take up tape slack, and they won't stop doing this till I finally thread a tape through and there's something there for them to "latch on" to, as it were. Any suggestions? It seems like maybe it's supposed to do this, but I don't want to take a chance. Thanks for your help!

[blooeyz]

hello there; My understanding, such as it is, to thread a tape, first push the left arm lock (tape tensioner) down to the lock position, thread the tape between the rubber coated wheel and the post, and along below the heads..then same for the right swing arm tape tensioner (pushed down in lock position ) .... with tape threaded, push the arm locks up a bit ..freeing them...if they constantly move during record or playback, , the tape may be poorly wound, giving varying tension, OR the small/large tape reel sensitivity adjustment (button) is not working...hope this is helpful...my GX-635D has a simpler (and i think more robust, if less sensitive) tensioning and braking system. (than the later 646 and 747 machines....)..blooeyz

[goldear]

I have a 747. And your deck is doing exactly what it is supposed to do. The Tape sensor arms are automated on this machine. When a tape is threaded, they will motor themselves into position, and then the transport will engage.

The machine is designed to stop when there is no tape. And it is specifically desinged not to engage, if there is no tape. What you were witnessing was the machine trying to determine if a tape was loaded. And it correctly determined that the tape was not thread, and so it did not run, but instead just moved the sensor guides back and forth.

[cabinover]

The tensioners should lock into place furthest away from the tape until you push any transport button (play,FF,REW). Then they will come into contact with the tape which will let the machine do it's thing like goldear said.

I know my machine has stretched belts that operate the tensioners so sometimes I have to assist the tensioners back into holding pattern.

[Ghog]

I sold one of those machines a while ago, and it did the same thing until I replaced the tiny belts inside the tensioner mechanisms. They should rotate outward until they activate a small proximity switch, which will then cause them to lock in place. After threading a tape, hit a directional button and they will swing back to apply tension to the tape. If you fast forward to the end of the tape and the tension is lost, they should again swing outward and lock in place. The correct belt was a bit difficult to find, and just a bit too loose will prevent proper operation.

Ghog