Panasonic NV-FS200 issues from eBay: no HiFi, squeak, smell?
 

hello there,

I've picked up a Panasonic Fs200 from Ebay. The picture is "ok" but it has 3 issues I was hoping for advice on :

1 - the Hi-Fi audio seems not to be working properly - very distorted on left channel and very quiet on the right. Is there anything I could do as a simple check/fix? I've tried cleaning the heads.

2 - The machine makes a bit of a squeak as it takes in the tape and laces it - I guess worn belts?

3- But mostly The SMELL. It has an electronic/old smell which is quite noticeable once it's been on for a little while. What could that be and is there a way to reduce it ?

many thanks in advance for any suggestions!

t

Just a few comments:

not easy to diagnose. Quiet audio usually means a component is breaking down somewhere, not easy to diagnose without an oscilloscope and service manual.

No belts in this machine, the squeak is the soft brake on the flywheel become polished, can be alleviated by taking off the bottom panel and gently cleaning the underside of the brake with IPA. Does not really affect anything.

The PSU is caged - runs warm, but there should be no smell apart from slight warm smell. Maybe its running too hot? Could be related to the HiFi fault...

I get odd squeaking and squealing from a few of my Panasonic AG-1980P decks. :unsure:

Those are K Deck machines, but from what I have seen the US and UK K decks are subtly different. These decks don't really have any belts so noises are usually from either dry gears (screech) or contaminated pads (squeak). The bottom brake (if it has one) is easy to access by removing the bottom metal panel and it bears on the flywheel as it runs.