Problems : left meter display doesnt light up-when push play, it moves to stop-heads turn erratically-plenty of corrosion all around play deck-when powered strong humm sound-rewind gives awful sound-wind forward not working-everything goes straight to stop-when I keep my finger on play, gibberish sound comes but nothing resembling music-The machine has got remote control facility but it did not come with remote control when I bought it from EBAY. Can it be that it is set on remote control and needs to be cleared for manual operation?

Faruk Burhanouglu, February 2008

Tandberg TCD-330 cassette deck. Tandberg design incorporates the use of plug in boards of a modular type based on function. Any erratic behaviour of the deck is almost always due to oxidation of the plug in connectors. Part out the deck and label all the wire plugs (the meter board comes right out AFTER loosening the pushbutton board first and removing the left and right button caps). Use proper dialectric on reassembly (it's also a good time to align the spindles, get the three contact switches cleaned (one for door close, one for record enable, and one for I can't remember) and replace the rubber. Get the pinch rollers to contact at the same time and basic azimuth correct - the deck should work. Then it can be tuned further. Use the correct 10V .05A bulb - the resistors on the meter board will burn otherwise. Ned

Ned, June 2008