Otari MX7800 8 track tape recorder

[SUPADUPA]

i would like to buy this machine .... but

parts , heads etc ...... it would be good

for recording local rock & folk bands

who dig this format ..... more trouble than

its worth? ..... uummmm ?

[Gone Fission]

The impression I get is that it's really more in line with the MX-5050 decks, and not up to the MTR's or even the MX-70 or MX-80. Get's little respect, but that doesn't necessarily mean it's horrible. MX-5050 8 tracks did some pretty good work, like all the old Sub Pop stuff, a lot of early Forte Apache stuff, and so on. (I'm on MX-5050 1/4" 2 track and 1/2" 8 track decks, myself.)

Athan is a good first stop for tape-path parts, with Otari generally being more expensive by a wide margin than such third party parts. There's always JRF for heads (and I think IEM?), and other companies do motor work for most deck brands. The key is to make sure parts are reasonably availabe for your specific model of deck.

You might ask John Klett at his ProSoundWeb forum about this deck, as I'm sure he must have run across some in his travels, and he seems to be the go-to guru for Otari issues.

Bear