Otari Mx 80

[Sput]

HI Folks!

I recently recorded a couple of albums using one of these machines. I have to say that even without any noise reduction system I was pretty happy with the results.
I just found one for sale (3000 euros), but I'm concern about this "ERROR 90" thing that seems to be the nightmare with these recorders. It's a comunication error between the recorder and the remote control that basically makes the whole thing useless.

I'm asking for any advice that you guys might have on this, since I'm pretty new to analog. Also advice on other models that you think are worth the money are welcome!

Thanks very much in advance!

J.

[The Byre]

It's one of the best machines out there. I've bought one used in 2002 and so far, not one thing has gone wrong with it.

Many regard it as second only to the 827.

[Eric Edwards]

Hi, Welcome to the "Error 90 Club". I have an MX 80 sitting in my studio that has been "useless" for 2 months. Without the remote working you cannot use this machine.Any help from someone familiar with this problem would be appreciated.Thanks, Eric

[Ricey]

i'll ask the other engineers at the studio, they got it going...

[Sput]

Yeah, that's my question here. Should I be concerned about this error 90 becoming a nightmare and making the machine totally useless?
I really liked the sound of the MX80 I worked with though.

J

[Trakworx]

I've been using my MX-80 heavily for the last 9 years with no major problems. 'Never even heard of that error. Something new for me to worry about?

It's a great machine, just be careful not to push too hard on the pots when aligning it.

[Goreski]

Error 90 is a boot-up communications error, and is common... usually re-attempts at turning off the machine, waiting 5 minutes and turning it on again clear it.... though in some machines you'll have to do this many times to finally get a 'good' boot-up. Note that you MUST wait a good 5 minutes between attempts to turn the machine on!

First thing to do is to spray clean the Serial Board connector, and the connections to and from the Remote. This has 'corrected' many Error 90 faults on machines I've had in my shop... so try this first. I also switch all the DIP switches back and forth.... make sure to return them to the correct position!

Also check your voltages inside the Remote... a low voltage power rail will cause this and other errors. Also check that your ground in the Remote is good and solid.

Once you have to go beyond the above simple fixes, you'll need either another machine in which to test your Serial Card and your Remote with, or cards you can swap to narrow down where the fault is.

The MX80 error codes are listed at my site if anyone doesn't have them:

AnalofRules.com * Otari MX-80 Error Codes

regards,

Goreski

[Eric Edwards]

Hi Goreski, Thank You for taking the time to supply this information, I am going to try your suggestions, Eric

[Sput]

HI Goreski!
Thanks very much for enlighten us!

The guy selling the machine said he had experience the error 90 from time to time, but it always dissapeared just by waiting 5 minutes and rebooting.
My experience was different, that's why I was concerned.

It's good to hear it from an experienced tech though!
The pics of worn heads in your website are really helpful too. I've worked very little with analog recorders, and never really knew this kind of thing.

Thanks to all who posted too!

J