Tascam DA-40 or Tascam DA-30 - Advice Please

[vidguy]

Okay, so I've got a chance to grab some DAT decks for a good price. (I think it's a good price)

I know the guy, and can easily return them should I have issues.

Deck 1: DA-30, a little rough in the cosmetics. $75.00
Deck 2: DA-40 - nice shape $150.00

Both decks are working, and it won't be a problem for me to return them in the next month or so, should they fail.

So given that, I'm thinking the DA-40 would be the better one.

Am I correct?

[Skywavebe]

Hi Vidguy,
Take your pick. I don't see putting over $100 into these obsolete units but just so you know Russ Bachmann at New Jersey factory Service does still fix them. I have sent him the ones I had to get repaired from when I worked at Moody and they worked great after that.
Note his new location- for those of you who complained about the Mahwa location-
New Jersey Factory Service, Inc.
16 Chestnut Avenue Suite 103 B
Emerson,New Jersey 07630
201-967-0060
Fax 201-967-0062
www.njfactoryservice.com
Analog/Digital Audio Repair

[vidguy]

Thanks for the repair info.

If I wasn't into "obsolete", then I would'nt be here. LOL

I decided to go for the DA-40, as it's super clean and only 22 hrs showing on the menu. It was bought in 1999.

I figure $150.00 to play around with DAT is worth it to me. If it dies, I can always give it back, I know the seller well.

It was bought to dump voice overs for a video editing project, than sat around.

Played around with it tonight, seems to be woking fine. I'll look into belts, just to have a set handy.

Honestly, not sure why I wanted it, as I can stream Hi-Rez FLACs, but I guess I'm just curious.

[thegreatbear]

The really common problem with these decks and the Fosex D5 which uses the same transport is the tiny loading belt on the underneath of the transport...
Over time it stretches and the loading doesn't happen the deck just whines as the loading motor spins...

Really easy fix too - Belts were still available from Tascam last time I looked but it's not an uncommon size so should be easy to find if you do ever get that problem..

[vidguy]

The really common problem with these decks and the Fosex D5 which uses the same transport is the tiny loading belt on the underneath of the transport...
Over time it stretches and the loading doesn't happen the deck just whines as the loading motor spins...

Really easy fix too - Belts were still available from Tascam last time I looked but it's not an uncommon size so should be easy to find if you do ever get that problem..

I had that problem, and solved it with a belt from TEAC Canada.
Works fine now.

MCM Electronics has a generic one that works too.

[DuckTape]

i loves my DA-40 *Hi5*

[vidguy]

I do too, I will admit DAT makes me nervous. It's so fragile, every time I use it, I worry about drop-outs, head wear, ect.
I got so freaked out when my Sony started in with all the drop-outs, I had just bought it, only used it for a couple of days. The DAT cleaning tape did nothing to help, even after 3 passes, so I had to manually clean the heads, very, very gently. Not a lot of dirt came off, but when I put the tape back in, everything is fine now.

My DA-40 has 24 hours Drum time, I'm using it only for recording right now, to keep the heads longer, and using the Sony for playback.

I thought about the DA-45HR, as it's 24bit, however none of the tapes would be playable on anything else, so I've decided to pass.

[DuckTape]

well, bottom line, 24 hrs is phenomenal, it's virtually brand new