Hello, people. Hopefully things are sunnier for you than they have been for yours truly. (Sigh) As I observed elsewhere today, an eBay member selling a Fisher PH-D8000 in part states: Everything (EXCEPT the one tape deck which when playing a tape it just sounds like static, could be [an] easy fix) but the rest works good. Is that true? The listing doesn’t say which cassette deck has the “sounds like static” problem. Is it Tape Deck 2, the recording deck? Is it Tape Deck 1, the non-recording deck? Did the seller really mean that playback produces a “horrible wail” or a “horrible screech”? (Perhaps one should simply contact the seller for more information.) Can the problem be solved with DeOxit and by using a tiny screwdriver to adjust the azimuth (huh?) of the faulty cassette deck? Maybe one won’t have to open up the whole stereo and expose all those gears, wires and circuit boards to reach and clean the recording bar that experts like James Craven Pierce AKA DecentMan4you insist has to be cleaned to record properly. Perhaps one will only need to take off the door of the faulty tape deck to clearly reach the front of the cassette-deck mechanism for azimuth adjustment when it is still mounted in place in the boombox. (It’s a less scary idea than trying to open up the whole stereo. But even that idea is still a bit scary. I mean, if one breaks something in trying to remove or reinstall that deck door …) Or does one have to haul the big thing, detachable speakers and all, to an electronics expert?
I love cracking them open and doing it myself. Some of the small screws and connections can be intimidating and unforgiving but use the right tools and organizers to keep the parts separated. Take photos if needed because we all forget how it goes back together. Go through the basics first, I've said it several times, clean the tape path, DeOxit the switches and, if needed, make sure the speaker/headphone connections is working correctly and the wires haven't gotten loose. Try switching the speakers to see if it's the speaker, most of these units were built to last forever but the dirt and connections may fail. I hope things are well Easthelp, maybe some loud boombox music and a few beers?
