Cleaning the Tape Path: How Often REALLY, confessions here!

[ferriteman]

I'm sitting here looking at my Otari manual, it says the entire path should be cleaned before each "session". But what is a session ? - I would think it's a record session with playback. I wonder what how often the tapeheads around here ACTUALLY clean the tape path...can we get some honesty here or what!

I've never followed exactly the cleaning/demagnatizing regiment for my cassette decks, I'm sure...because I can't remember what it is!

On the other hand, I can see cleaning being more significant for R2R decks, due to the higher speeds...with higher speeds you are dragging more tape across everything per second, per minute of usage therefore more particles etc will be rubbing against the heads/capstans/rollers per hour of use...therefore necessitating more cleaning? Am I on the right track here or no?

Feedback appreciated, being a R2R novice...

[niklasthedolphin]

I do it after maybe 5-10 tapes being played or before a recording.
Most of my tapes are 3600ft.

With pure isopropylalcohol no harm is done to the heads no matter how often you do it.

OTOH if the tapes you use are very new ones but played all the way through at least once, they won't leave much behind.

If you play an old defect tape , loosing layers, by accident, then clean tape path immediatly after.

I demagnetize tape path maybe after 15-30 tapes.

"dolph"

[MacGyver]

i have no R2R experience, but PLENTY with cassette. i played a family phone conversations tape from 1972 on my PIONEER CT-W910R to record it to my HD audio recorder. it sounded great and will sound even better after i clean it up. anyway, after i was finished, i played another, newer tape and the highs were suddenly all AWOL!! i ran my ALLSOP cleaner through it and all was once again well. apparently kids, ancient-ass tape will muck up your heads...