“I believe I have made a significant find in the Kandarian ruins, a volume of ancient Sumarian burial practices and funerary incantations. It is entitled "Naturum De Montum", roughly translated: Book of the Dead. The book is bound in human flesh and inked in human blood. It deals with demons and demon resurrection and those forces which roam the forest and dark bowers of Man's domain. The first few pages warn that these enduring creatures may lie dormant but are never truly dead. They may be recalled to active life through the incantations presented in this book. It is through the recitation of these passages that the demons are given license to possess the living.”
The tape playback was interrupted by Cheryl , scared to
death by the words of Dr. Knowby .
The recorder used in this famous sequence is a Panasonic RQ-
706S . This is an old-fashioned model of " Reel to Reel Tape
recorder" , or those here in Italy much more simply referred to as
registratori a bobina" . As I am a (mad) collector, once retrieved
information about the model in question , I need to have absolutely one !
Finding
a Panasonic RQ- 706s is not easy because even if you can find one on Ebay , it
is difficult to find someone that offers shipping in Italy at a good price .
The first vendor to whom I applied for information I have explicitly stated
that, since the recorder extremely big and heavy , he feared that I would not
have received intact . Too bad, because his model , in addition to cost very
little (under 20 U.S. dollars) was even complete with original microphone …
The second attempt went better : device in good shape and
(probably) tested. Paid under $30 ,
shipping was certainly more challenging economic value of the real object.
However, the past 3 weeks canonical shipping U.S. - IT, I received a box in the
office over- heavy with the technological gem inside ... Take it home ,
honestly , it was a hoot , but what you are not willing to do in order to
recite evocations of Kandarian demons sitting comfortably on your couch?
Here's where the fun starts . How can you run in 2013 an
object produced in the 1970 without knowing anything about it, except that it has been used in a horror
movie ? Good question , I have not the answer: D
Well, first of all I've tried to find documentation. I
bought on Ebay a "Service Manual", I suppose what today would be the
technical manual for repairers.
Here are the specifications of this jewel:
and look at this beautiful image that explain the components
Ok , a lover of Evil Dead at this point have to be excited.
But I’m speaking aboug a lover of Evil Dead and not of technology , because
after reading the specifications you come quickly to the conclusion that to
make work this lovely device you will need to jump through hoops : D
There we can get away with these
http://www.datatex-italia.com/it/audioprodotti/bobine-serie-sm-911-rmgi/b-1-dettaglio-prodotto.html
or 7 inch (18 cm) 1/4 . Not sure what the "1/ 4" means, but
fortunately the forums were kind enough to tell me this specific :)
Now the trickiest part will be power on the Panasonic. I
discovered that a voltage transformer is not enough (220V - the Italian - 117V to - the American
one) : being so old, the legendary RQ-706S does not support multiple
frequencies (before this episode I admit my ignorance on the subject, but I was
not particularly well documented even though I had passed 2 exams in physics at
the university), but only 60 Hz. And because In Italy we have 50 Hz ... ok
guys, we have a situation here :D
If you give power to something that need 60Hz with 50Hz, not
only the recorder could go faster (not being digital, the speed of the
mechanics is related to the frequency), but you might even blow it up! So,
thanks to the fantastic suggestions from the vintage forum, I just tested the
recorder turning on the transformer and then I turned it off (I did not want to
make it burn, and because I would like it to work, either because they do not
use blow up objects at home). Here's an excerpt of the forum post that has
saved me from the explosion
Just out of curiosity, what is the rated mains frequency of your reel to reel? You say you are buying a drop-down transformer to go from 220 to 117. I believe it is 50hz in Italy and if the reel to reel is rated for 60hz, the tape speed won't be correct and the motor could overheat. However, I'm not familiar with your model so I don't know if it has dual freq operation etc... If is says, 50hz you're fine. Just thought I would bring it up just in case.
I have a few reels that sound like they were recorded in Vietnam, they have radio recordings from AFVN (American Forces Vietnam Network). The speed should be 3.75IPS but it sounds like it is too fast. They were either recorded on a machine brought from home (the US) or on a machine bought there running off a 120v 60hz generator.
Now you will think the same thing i tought: surf on ebay and
look for somithing to do the conversion... Well dear friends , IT DOESN’T EXIST
! if you want to convert the frequency , you need a power generator that starts
with that frequency. Put at home a power generator goes against my ethics (
more than anything else, as well as occupying a lot of space , will cause my
sudden death or, in the best of cases, expulsion from the settlement ) .
Fortunately, there is a fantastic american kit, designed to
" allows you to use your favorite American-Made Corded Electric Shavers
& Trimmers to shave while traveling internationally without compromising
the performance of the shaver " (yes, you read right , the shaver!) that
permit to convert the voltage and even the frequency ! It looks like two phone
ac adapter hooked one to each other ! It is also compliant with the RQ-706s
power specifications, supporting up to 75w ( the toy it requires 45). Ok , it
will be mine, even if it costs more than $ 100 !
Nessun commento:
Posta un commento