Tips & Advice ~ 1. Valve Amplifiers

First of all Servicesound would like to make one thing clear.
Valve equipment, of all types, operates at very high (lethal) voltages. No attempt to service, alter or even touch the internal workings of any valve equipment should be made by anyone who is not competent. Servicesound do not accept liability for any damage to equipment or persons arising from this article.

Some don'ts

DO NOT EVER RUN ANY POWER AMPLIFIER WITHOUT SPEAKERS CONNECTED.
- You run the risk of severe damage to the output transformers and valves.

DO NOT ATTEMPT TO CONNECT A SIGNAL LEAD WHEN THE AMPLIFIER IS ON.
- There is a good chance of blowing up your speakers.

DO NOT TRY AND REMOVE A VALVE WHILE THE UNIT IS RUNNING.
- You will burn yourself and perhaps damage the amplifier and speakers.

DO NOT SWITCH A VALVE AMP OFF THEN IMEADIATLY ON.
- This can harm the valve filaments and blow fuses. You should leave the amp at least 1 minute before switching back on.

DO NOT ALTER THE MAINS VOLTAGE SETTING.
- The mains voltage in the UK is 240 volts. If your amplifier has an adjustable mains sector do not alter it in an effort to get more power or overcome aged valves. You will damage your equipment.

Some do's

ALLOW PLENTY OF VENILATION ALL AROUND.
- If you must place an amplifier on the floor make sure it is placed on a solid base. There must be plenty of air underneath. Some amplifiers, such as Leak, do not have feet and it is wise to have some fitted.

USE DECENT SPEAKER AND INTERCONNECT CABLING.
- You do not have to spend a fortune but do not use bell wire/ car speaker cable or the free interconnects that come with most equipment. A £200 CD player connected to your amp with a £50 interconnect will nearly always sound better than a £300 CD player connected with the £2.50 worth of interconnect that is usually given away with the CD player. QED do a superb range of low price cables and 2.5 mm solid mains cable makes a great budget speaker cable.

MAKE SURE YOUR SPEAKERS ARE CONNECTED CORRECTLY.
- Speakers must be connected to the correct terminals on both the speaker and the amp. "+ " to "+" and "-" to "-" or "red" to "red" and "black" to "black". Connecting a speaker out of polarity will cause a big hole in the soundstage and a lack of bass.

REMOVE VALVES CAREFULLY.
- Some of the big valves can be tight in their bases. A very small side to side movement while pulling upward will ensure they are safe. Smaller valves should be removed by just pulling. Do not wobble them from side to side with any force as this will damage the contacts and could break off the locating pin on larger valves.

ALLOW THE VALVES TO BURN IN.
- Normally at least 48 hours of continuous is needed before the benefits of new valves are heard.

BIASING.
- Some amplifiers have manual biasing adjustments. These should be set up by an experienced engineer who has the appropriate test equipment. This should be done when you replace the output valves and at regular intervals between.

 

Tips & Advice ~ 2. Tape Recorders 

To get the best out of any tape recorder all heads must be spotless. The following will tell you how.

Tape Head Care

Materials –

1. Isopropyl Alcohol, which can be bought from any chemist.
2. Solvol Autosol chrome polish, which can be bought from most motoring shops such as Halfords.
3. Good quality Cotton buds.

Method -

1. Start by cleaning the heads with a cotton bud dipped in alcohol.
2. Next dip a fresh bud into a little of the polish and with a firm side to side action polish the head face.
3. With a clean bud polish the head surface until it is mirror like.
4. With a fresh bud dipped in alcohol, give the head a final clean.
5. Do this to the tape guides as well. This will improve the tape contact with the head and thus the quality of the recordings.
6. Finally, clean the rubber pinch wheel to remove all tape residue.

On early Ferrograph’s the pinch wheel is brass and the rubber surface is applied to the capstan shaft itself. Clean this but be very careful not to dig into it as the rubber coating is thin.

‘Micro Polish’ the heads and guides only once in a while, perhaps twice a year and clean everything with alcohol after every second full reel of tape. When preparing to record, clean all the heads and guides even if they look fine.

Some don'ts

PLEASE DO NOT BE TEMPTED TO ALTER ANY OF THE ALIGNMENT ADJUSTMENTS.
- If you think the tape path or heads are out of alignment you should entrust this work to a competent engineer who has the right equipment and test tapes.

DO NOT TOUCH THE HEADS OF YOUR MACHINE WITH ANY METALIC OR HARD OBJECT.
- This will permanently damage the heads.

DO NOT BRING ANY MAGNET OR MAGNETISED OBJECT NEAR YOUR MACHINE OR TAPES.
- This includes speakers and mains transformers. Data is stored on the tapes magnetically and will be damaged if exposed to magnetic fields.

DO NOT LUBRICATE ANYTHING UNLESS YOU KNOW WHAT YOU ARE DOING.
- Music tapes and rubber in the machine can be damaged by lubricants.

DO NOT SWITCH OFF YOUR MACHINE WHILE PLAYING, RECORDING OR WINDING A TAPE.
- This will stretch and damage the tape.

Some do's

DO CLEAN THE HEADS, GUIDES AND RUBBER PINCH ROLLERS REGLULARY.
- See the instruction above for advice about this.

USE NEW TAPE FOR RECORDING WHENEVER POSSIBLE.
- This will improve the quality of your recordings.

DO HAVE YOUR MACHINE SERVICED AT LEAST EVERY TWO YEARS.
- This will keep your machine in tip top condition.

USE YOU TAPE RECORDER AT LEAST ONCE A WEEK.
- This will keep everything in good order.

HAVING RECORDED A REEL OF TAPE, MAKE SURE YOU STORE IT ON THE FINISHED SPOOL (THE RIGHT-HAND SIDE)
- This is to negate ‘print through' from the adjacent layers of tape.

DO HAVE THE TAPE HEADS DEGAUSSED OR DE-MAGNETISED EVERY FEW MONTHS.