Help for Vintage Reel to Reel Tape Recorder Audio Equipment Fans

ClydeSight Productions releases Web site detailing history and restoration/rebuild of Wollensak 5750 vintage reel to reel tape recorder for fans of vintage audio equipment.

[ClickPress, Tue Dec 18 2007] Vintage audio equipment is fun to play with, but it is hard to find information about the old technology. Wollensak reel to reel tape recorders are particularly difficult to research.

The old machines are still available - often in pretty rough shape - found on on-line auction sites i.e. E-Bay, and usually the seller knows nothing about the machines, leaving the buyer in a quandary.

This was the situation when neoclassical composer Tim Thompson was deciding to buy a vintage Wollensak 5750 - a "designer" tape recorder produced in the late 1960's. Wollensak was a division of the 3M Company, makers of "Scotch" brand adhesive tape. But he had an advantage -- he used to work with these machines in college, so he understood them.

He bought his machine, figuring it would arrive as a DOA (dead on arrival), and he was right. This began an adventure of research and restoration.

It paid off; Tim now has a fully functioning vintage reel to reel tape recorder. He felt that what he learned - the details of the machine and information on sources for parts and schematics - would be helpful to others, and so ClydeSight Productions has given him a small Web site to chronicle the restoration process he went through to bring his vintage machine "back to life", in hopes that it will help readers on the Internet who are interested in such equipment.

The site offers viewers quite a lot. There are sections on reel to reel tape recorders with links to how the machines work in principle, a history of the Wollensak 500 series (of which the 5750 is just one model) based on catalogs and advertisements of the time (with links to sources), sound and video samples of the restored machine, and a complete chronicle of the restoration process that illustrates with photographs the inner workings of the machine.

One site visitor, Keff Dolan, Voice Artist commented:

"I grew up around radio, my dad is an announcer. I've seen these machines, and even today, we refer to a sample as a "reel". It was fascinating to read your Web site and learn so much about this particular machine. It is a beautiful piece of equipment, and the sound is extraordinary. The photos and detailed explanations really gave me an increased appreciation for this technological history."

Some vintage audio fans and collectors may find this Web site very helpful for the information and sources it provides, even if they are not working with a Wollensak 5000 series machine. Interested audio buffs can find the Web site at: www.clydesight.com and clicking on the tape recorder image to enter the Wollensak information Web site.
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ClydeSight Productions are creators of inspiring and entertaining multimedia, music e-books and websites.

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