WM-D3 'tilting for clarity' Issue

[catfishtango]

Hello, I am having an annoying bug with my WM-D3 Professional Walkman.
It seems, when I tilt the device in a certain way, I get more clarity of sound.
I do not think its the position of the cassette, since moving the tape while playing does not seem to affect it. Any suggestions would be Greatly Appreciated, I put a lot into this device so I hope it can be resolved!

Also, I plan to get new gears off of an online part store, the REW is stripped and it makes a ticking noise while playing, do you think a gear is the problem with the ticking noise?

Thanks in advance for any help.
*reelspin**reelspin*

[Scorpion8]

Sounds like you either have extremely worn tape guides, or a loose head block screw. Does this happen with every brand of cassette tape, or just some? Does the cassette rattle around inside the tape guides? If you suspect the guides, you may try putting a piece of masking tape on one side of a cassette shell to hold it in place by making it slightly thicker. If that's not it, then the head block is suspect.