OWNER jlaa (500E & w210 E320 & w220 S350)

[Jlaa]

With practice comes speed. I seem to have to repeat everything I do to this car! The light switch I installed 30 months ago failed - the rear foglight indicator light would not light reliably .... even though the rear foglights themselves worked fine. Both the old (left) and new (right) are made in Italy. Replacement took me 15 minutes this time.

Up inside the dash behind the light switch are some final remnants of wiring for the old k40 radar detector installed by a previous owner. I had previously removed all visible elements of the k40 but this time around I decided not to touch the leftover legacy wiring. In my experience, touching shit that works nearly always results in “shit no longer works.”

 

[a777fan]

In my experience, touching shit that works nearly always results in “shit no longer works.”

Well said.

 

[gerryvz]

Are you sure that Big Red is not somehow hexed or has the Ghost of AMPS living in it?

 

[gerryvz]

No Worries, I think the Gov sprays the stuff in a paper bag and snorts it out. He’ll never find out!

That's true, he's spending his time up in Napa flouting his own COVID regulations having private $650-a-plate birthday dinners with medical industry lobbyists. Because, #nancypelosiletthemeatcake.

 

[nocfn]

I thought it was "crumbs" over her Icecream infested estate with a very nice WALL around it... #stretch #blowout #crumbs #nice freezer

 

[Jlaa]

Are you sure that Big Red is not somehow hexed or has the Ghost of AMPS living in it?

I probably exceeded the design-spec duty cycle of the rear foglight switch earlier this year. I am sure the original designers of the switch, perhaps in the late 70s, were thinking something like “Jah, rear foglight will be used no more than 50 times a year, so let’s design this for 1500 cycles = 30 years.”

What they did not anticipate was that in the year 2020, a shelter-in-place mandate during a global pandemic would cause a fool (me) to operate that switch bazillions upon bazillions of times in testing newfangled rear LED bulbs, for lack of anything to do out of the house.

 

[Jlaa]

71,000 miles

Catching up on preventative maintenance ..... I had been busy slowly accumulating parts, and replaced the following items myself that are accessible topside. The bottom-side items I had my buddy-that-owns-the-garage replace. With my teenaged kid, I don't work under the car anymore, even with jackstands. Sobering thought --- my kid's 13 year old friend just lost her mother two days ago. Her mother had just only turned 50 years of age. Very very sad.

Anyways, I occasionally have a very very faint fuel smell if I poke my nose near the fuel filler, even with the gas cap in place. Very intermittent. The gas is still under pressure though.... when I release the gas cap, I hear the "whoosh!" Anyways, in order to prevent leaky-fuel or krispy-kruncy-car-b-qued 500E syndrome, these were the items replaced:

• Charcoal cannister
• Fuel vent system purge valve ("MOT" valve, underhood near the EZL)
• Fuel vent valve (white doohickey under the car, directly below gas tank)
• Neutral Safety Switch
• 2x Fuel Pumps (Bosch)
• Fuel Filter (Hengst)
• The following MAJOR fuel lines:

• As well as a whole raft of secondary elbows / clamps / washers / grommets --- basically everything I marked in the following three diagrams:

Here are some pictures of the parts that were removed from the car. Some observations:

• Old charcoal cannister seemed ok --- it was not full of fuel
• How does one check the condition of the old white fuel check valve? How do I know if it was still working? (@gsxr?)
• Neat to see the old check valve marked "Made in WEST Germany"
• The original Neutral Safety Switch ALSO has the inverted secondary part number!!! Like the inverted flying Jenny Stamp!

Some pictures of the new parts on the car:



Hopefully this avoids any broken-down-neutral-safety-switch or car-b-que condition later on down the road.

 

[gsxr]

Nice work, and all excellent preventive maintenance! I don't know a definitive test for the old white fuel check valve. However, I found when blowing through in each direction, there was a noticeable difference between old and new. At <$25 it cheap insurance to hopefully avoid collapsed fuel tanks.

 

[Jlaa]

I got off my butt and installed the auto-dimming / compass @2phast mirror that I bought half a year ago! I bought this mirror ultimately for disaster prevention ---- I knew I would rue the day my mechanical mirror internals explode, thus driving plastic/metal shrapnel bits at high velocity directly into my refinished veneers. Arrrrghhh!!

This mini-project involves tapping ignition-switched wires from the sunroof switch. As the auto-dimming / compass mirror comes with "vampire taps" i.e. "t-taps," I had been procrastinating doing this .... because I hate, nay, I DESPISE vampire taps. I hate the way they cut through the insulation and invariably chew into a few strands of the copper wire underneath. BE GONE you POS amateur-hour wiring tschochkies!!!!

So I didn't do anything .... for months.

Today I got the motivation in an hour of down time to install it, so I did it. I chucked the vampire taps though --- stripped back the insulation on the brown wire (ground) and black-white wire (switched 12v) with the best wire strippers in the world ( Amazon.com ) and Tesa taped everything back up for a nice finish.

a) Cutting away 30 year old MB Tesa tape to expose the wires underneath is a pain
b) This project was easy but for the fact that I had to irritatingly copy (for completeness' sake) what was irritatingly installed by the original MB dealer when they put in the phone ....... they were supposed to not re-install the third mini sunshade when putting in the ceiling phone controls .... but they did. They made it fit, even though it has no functional use. So I did.
c) But it is impossible to use the sliding "gap tool" to keep the spring compressed with all this crap in the way ---- so I had to irritatingly remove the ceiling phone buttons AND the 3rd mini-visor just to be able to use the "gap tool" to install @2phast's awesome mirror ...... and then reinstall the useless phone buttons and the useless 3rd mini-visor ---- just because.

Here are some pics --- all done! And I can rest easy that there will not be any rearview mirror shrapnel embedding themselves in the walnut veneer under my watch!

 

[nocfn]

I have the mirrors in both cars. Too damn hot when I got these to jack around with pretty so I used the choppers and only had to wipe down a few sweat drops as a result.

 

[Jlaa]

I have the mirrors in both cars. Too damn hot when I got these to jack around with pretty so I used the choppers and only had to wipe down a few sweat drops as a result.

Hah. Discomfort and sweat breed impatience, which usually leads me to take shortcuts that I will regret later down the road. I need to increase my tolerance levels of discomfort and sweat so as to not take shortcuts!!!!

BTW those choppers / vampire taps are so evil!!!

As a corollary, I used to solder and heat shrink every wiring project in automotive land, but I've given up on that approach too (even with joy-to-use Kester Lead Solder) because --- I hate the results in an automotive application. I always end up with this unnatural little section of EXTREME hardness / brittleness where I soldered a connection ...... and if I soldered multiple connections in a harness all next to each other, I have to individually heat shrink each connection and then wrap the whole bundle of soldered joints and I rapidly end up with this huge cluster-F of super hard and brittle blobbiness....

And, in automotive applications, we are supposed to ensure flexibility to promote vibration resistance. I mean, there's a reason why unstranded wire is never used in mobile applications right??

So lately, every mobile wiring project I embark on that requires me to tap wires sees me using this approach:

But this requires the use of my absolute favorite wire stripping tool ever. I've been using this now for seven years and I LOVE IT. It automatically adjusts for any gauge wire and ALWAYS works. It make stripping wire in the middle of a run easy-as-pie:

IRWIN VISE-GRIP Wire Stripper, Self-Adjusting, 8-Inch (2078300) - Wire Stripping Tool - Amazon.com

IRWIN VISE-GRIP Wire Stripper, Self-Adjusting, 8-Inch (2078300) - Wire Stripping Tool - Amazon.com

www.amazon.com

And, I should mention that I HATE HATE HATE electrical tape. It always seems to devolve into a sticky mess if you try to unwrap/rewrap it, and that day will certainly come, EVEN if you have wrapped everything nice and tight and intend never to touch it, because the end WILL start to un-stick ...... and this occurs even with high quality 3M Super 33 tape...... let alone junk-quality-no-brand 99 cent roll tape you can find at the big orange.

So Tesa vloth tape is what I use now. Love it. So easy to work with, and so OE-like looking. This one for interior use: Amazon.com: Tesa 51608, 15m X 19mm Adhesive Wiring Loom Cloth Tape Original Isoband 5 Pcs Pack: Office Products

And this one for engine bay / exposed to elements use:

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01I2MLN2Q/

BTW, I should give kudos to @2phast -- Thank you for putting a molex on the end of the rearview mirror connection. So nice and professional looking. This is exactly what I would have done as well. Little details like molex connectors are worth SO MUCH when it comes to reliability and ease of serviceability. I molex everything where I have an opportunity to as well.



And BTW this molex-style-pin-crimping tool is the complete shizzle. After getting this tool some time ago I've been Molexing EVERYTHING AND ANYTHING POSSIBLE. The phrase "If all you have is hammer, then everything looks like a nail" applies. Love IT LOVE IT. Hours and hours of molex entertainment with this tool:

IWISS SN-28B Crimping Tool for AWG28-18 Dupont Pins - - Amazon.com

IWISS SN-28B Crimping Tool for AWG28-18 Dupont Pins - - Amazon.com

www.amazon.com

Just a picture of me going to town with Molex-style-connectors for a different project ....

 

[nocfn]

yes to tesa and molex!

 

[2phast]

Hah. Discomfort and sweat breed impatience, which usually leads me to take shortcuts that I will regret later down the road. I need to increase my tolerance levels of discomfort and sweat so as to not take shortcuts!!!!

BTW those choppers / vampire taps are so evil!!! View attachment 130361

As a corollary, I used to solder and heat shrink every wiring project in automotive land, but I've given up on that approach too (even with joy-to-use Kester Lead Solder) because --- I hate the results in an automotive application. I always end up with this unnatural little section of EXTREME hardness / brittleness where I soldered a connection ...... and if I soldered multiple connections in a harness all next to each other, I have to individually heat shrink each connection and then wrap the whole bundle of soldered joints and I rapidly end up with this huge cluster-F of super hard and brittle blobbiness....

And, in automotive applications, we are supposed to ensure flexibility to promote vibration resistance. I mean, there's a reason why unstranded wire is never used in mobile applications right??

So lately, every mobile wiring project I embark on that requires me to tap wires sees me using this approach:

But this requires the use of my absolute favorite wire stripping tool ever. I've been using this now for seven years and I LOVE IT. It automatically adjusts for any gauge wire and ALWAYS works. It make stripping wire in the middle of a run easy-as-pie:

View attachment 130362

And, I should mention that I HATE HATE HATE electrical tape. It always seems to devolve into a sticky mess if you try to unwrap/rewrap it, and that day will certainly come, EVEN if you have wrapped everything nice and tight and intend never to touch it, because the end WILL start to un-stick ...... and this occurs even with high quality 3M Super 33 tape...... let alone junk-quality-no-brand 99 cent roll tape you can find at the big orange.

So Tesa vloth tape is what I use now. Love it. So easy to work with, and so OE-like looking. This one for interior use: Amazon.com: Tesa 51608, 15m X 19mm Adhesive Wiring Loom Cloth Tape Original Isoband 5 Pcs Pack: Office Products

And this one for engine bay / exposed to elements use:

Tesa's Most Advanced High Heat Harness Tape 51036 Mercedes, BMW, Audi, VW: Amazon.com: Industrial & Scientific

Tesa's Most Advanced High Heat Harness Tape 51036 Mercedes, BMW, Audi, VW: Amazon.com: Industrial & Scientific

www.amazon.com

BTW, I should give kudos to @2phast -- Thank you for putting a molex on the end of the rearview mirror connection. So nice and professional looking. This is exactly what I would have done as well. Little details like molex connectors are worth SO MUCH when it comes to reliability and ease of serviceability. I molex everything where I have an opportunity to as well.

View attachment 130363

Actually have switched to mini Molex connectors a while ago. Thanks for the comments.

The T-Taps do work just fine and are easily reversible and easy to use for most people. They are also properly sized for the wiring inside the map light.

 

[darek_u]

TESA 51608 - I've been using it for quite a while. After 8 years from applying on my new 944 interior harness it still holds well - it's not dry and, first of all, it did not turn into sticky mess... It is still nice and dry to touch.

 

[darek_u]

This stripping tool is very tempting... I just have to digest the fact that wire connection would not be soldered and insulated with shrink tube... Ooooh I don't know...

 

[gsxr]

This stripping tool is very tempting... I just have to digest the fact that wire connection would not be soldered and insulated with shrink tube... Ooooh I don't know...

You can add a dot of solder at the wraparound joint. It wouldn't affect flexibility much if you didn't let the solder wick into all 3 wires.

@Jlaa, you are dangerous to my Amazon account. Grrr. Two more items added to the cart, dagnabbit. BTW, the OE MB Tesa tape is now NLA? WTH? (link) I wish Amazon would list the width & length of the Tesa roll - if it's there, I'm not seeing it.

At the risk of getting flamed, I do use VampireTaps™ for some non-critical, interior-only electrical work... like the mirror power, and Valentine-1 power, above the dome light. If the vamptap fails (which it hasn't, on any car, in 15+ years) it would just be a minor nuisance until I had time to repair it. Now, for critical components, or any high-current application, vamptaps are definitely not recommended. YMMV, etc.

 

[maw1124]

This was one of my the first and remains one of the most useful mods on my car... it brings the car forward 15 years to be able to open the garage doors in the FL rain and heat without the extra device in the car... people tend to drive mine when I'm away, so for them to be able to hit a button and open the garage has been fundamentally great... that plus the real stereo... enjoy @Jlaa



maw

 

[Jlaa]

This was one of my the first and remains one of the most useful mods on my car... it brings the car forward 15 years to be able to open the garage doors in the FL rain and heat without the extra device in the car... people tend to drive mine when I'm away, so for them to be able to hit a button and open the garage has been fundamentally great... that plus the real stereo... enjoy @Jlaa



maw

@maw1124, you overestimate my fondness for modernity. Mine doesn't have the garage buttons. I still like to exit the car and open the garage without a clicker ---- gives me the ability to scan my surrounding on my two feet for threats......

 

[Jlaa]

You can add a dot of solder at the wraparound joint. It wouldn't affect flexibility much if you didn't let the solder wick into all 3 wires.

@Jlaa, you are dangerous to my Amazon account. Grrr. Two more items added to the cart, dagnabbit. BTW, the OE MB Tesa tape is now NLA? WTH? (link) I wish Amazon would list the width & length of the Tesa roll - if it's there, I'm not seeing it.

At the risk of getting flamed, I do use VampireTaps™ for some non-critical, interior-only electrical work... like the mirror power, and Valentine-1 power, above the dome light. If the vamptap fails (which it hasn't, on any car, in 15+ years) it would just be a minor nuisance until I had time to repair it. Now, for critical components, or any high-current application, vamptaps are definitely not recommended. YMMV, etc.

a) You are welcome! Which amazon TESA tape do you need length info for --- the exterior one or the interior one? The interior one is just ---- a shitload .... cuz it has 5 rolls.

b) What do you mean you use vampire taps? Didn't you tell me that you have degree in electrical something or rather? FOR SHAME!!!!!

 

[2phast]

@maw1124, you overestimate my fondness for modernity. Mine doesn't have the garage buttons. I still like to exit the car and open the garage without a clicker ---- gives me the ability to scan my surrounding on my two feet for threats......

myQ Chamberlain Smart Garage Control - Wireless Garage Hub and Sensor with Wifi & Bluetooth - Smartphone Controlled, New Design, myQ-G0401-ES, White - - Amazon.com

myQ Chamberlain Smart Garage Control - Wireless Garage Hub and Sensor with Wifi & Bluetooth - Smartphone Controlled, New Design, myQ-G0401-ES, White - - Amazon.com

www.amazon.com

I use one of these, negating the necessity of having Homelink in your car (I actually have six Homelink channels in mine) plus it has the added convenience of letting you know when the garage door is open or closed.

 

[Jlaa]

myQ Chamberlain Smart Garage Control - Wireless Garage Hub and Sensor with Wifi & Bluetooth - Smartphone Controlled, New Design, myQ-G0401-ES, White - - Amazon.com

myQ Chamberlain Smart Garage Control - Wireless Garage Hub and Sensor with Wifi & Bluetooth - Smartphone Controlled, New Design, myQ-G0401-ES, White - - Amazon.com

www.amazon.com

I use one of these, negating the necessity of having Homelink in your car (I actually have six Homelink channels in mine) plus it has the added convenience of letting you know when the garage door is open or closed.

ARRHGGHGHGH!!! Any "IoT Connected Home Wifi Enabled Smart Remote Access Device" can die through the intense heat of a thousand suns before I will ever install any of that "super compromised crap just waiting for some 13 year old knucklehead to discover a shit-ton of same day vulnerabilities" connected stuff to my doors.

 

[gsxr]

a) You are welcome! Which amazon TESA tape do you need length info for --- the exterior one or the interior one? The interior one is just ---- a shitload .... cuz it has 5 rolls.

Um. Ooops. I missed that there were interior & exteriors. I ordered the single roll of exterior tape earlier today. Will get the 5-pack of interior with my next order. Interestingly, the OE MB (NLA) version has no Tesa number visible. I'm curious to compare the OE to OEM. (Also curious if you have stock in Amazon?)

b) What do you mean you use vampire taps? Didn't you tell me that you have degree in electrical something or rather? FOR SHAME!!!!!

LOLZ - yeah, sort of, but I also factor in appropriate ROI including labor & time. For a 0.5A non-critical circuit that never sees movement, daylight, or moisture... vamptaps may indeed get used. <ducks> Now, if ANY of those variables change, the connection may be terminated differently. Did you see the overkill I did for the 150A alternator wire terminals? Pics are in the stereo/alternator directory.

 

[maw1124]

@maw1124, you overestimate my fondness for modernity. Mine doesn't have the garage buttons. I still like to exit the car and open the garage without a clicker ---- gives me the ability to scan my surrounding on my two feet for threats......

Except I was only ever talking about my fondness for modernity, @Jlaa... yes and yet, on your owner thread, you overestimate how much attention I'm paying to yours...

maw

 

[Prometey]

great car, gladly read the forum thread and extracted useful information for myself. Thank you

 

[Jlaa]

Took a three hour round trip drive down Hwy 1 with my teenager yesterday. Sigh. Teenagers, especially those that just entered their teen years, are so tough. We had a great bonding experience - just my daughter and I. Mom wasn't there --- daughter ran point on DJ responsibilities and we were cranking Bob Marley's "Stir It Up" on all along the California Coast.

Near Pescadero Beach we stopped and looked for sea life --- snails.

My daughter much prefers the 500E over the sport beetle --- perhaps when I am gone and I give her the 500E, she will remember it fondly as a conveyance in which she got to hang with her dorky dad.

 

[Jlaa]

2021-7-26 - 71,200 miles

Minor adjustments lately.

The fader wheel gave static when rotated, so I De-Oxited it and now it sounds perfect. For what it is worth, since I have the rear speakers wired as L-R (Left Minus Right) for the Left speaker and R-L for the Right speaker, both with a 20msec delay, I use the fader wheel as a way to adjust the intensity of the Haas Effect: Haas Effect: What It Is and How It's Used - Produce Like A Pro



The threaded aftermarket gearshift was loose, so I used the "two wrench trick" to grasp the nut and tighten it. I was quite satisfied with myself for using this method (small wins + me being an inept mechanic):



Finally this is for @kiev - Looking here, it appears I also do not have x6/1 electrical connector! I bet you never want to hear "x6/1" ever again! But, now you can enjoy full illumination from all your troubleshooting!

 

[sheward]

I don't think anyone who knows that "two wrench trick" can use the label "inept mechanic"

drew

 

[Duh_Vinci]

@Jlaa just browsed through all the pages, wow how much work/upkeep you have done to minute detail to get it where it is!

 

[RicardoD]

My daughter much prefers the 500E over the sport beetle --- perhaps when I am gone and I give her the 500E, she will remember it fondly as a conveyance in which she got to hang with her dorky dad.

I hope so, my wife and kids make me feel like my E500 is a brass era car museum that only grandpa's drive and are begging me to walk into any dealership and get a modern car. "Nobody understands the air conditioning system!" my wife pleads to me.

 

[gsxr]

... "Nobody understands the air conditioning system!" my wife pleads to me.

Huh? The AC system is almost too simple! Set the desired temp, pick AC on or off, and a fan speed... and just let it work as the MB engineers intended.

I think some of the problem is people want the HVAC system to work immediately (now... NOW! It's not cold enough, turn the temp whel colder!), and/or want more direct control and don't trust the aforementioned engineers. Which I understand, as I'd prefer the manual climate control instead of ACC...

 

[Prometey]

I hope so, my wife and kids make me feel like my E500 is a brass era car museum that only grandpa's drive and are begging me to walk into any dealership and get a modern car. "Nobody understand the air conditioning system!" my wife pleads to me.

my wife also reproaches me why I bought this old barn))).

 

[Jlaa]

Forgetful Adventures in ancient Becker Cassette Technology

As a recap, the other day I recorded some music on a Cr02 tape using Dolby C compression on my home cassette deck. My home cassette deck is an Aiwa AD-F770. For those unfamiliar with this deck (I would assume that would be pretty much everyone except for Mr. BigAudioSnob, excuse me, @kegmankipp ), this is a pretty darn good deck. It has Dobly B/C/HX Pro, automatic normal/Cr02/Metal selection, auto tape bias-calibration, and is certainly not an auto-reverse deck. Its not as good as the really awesome Nakamichi decks of the era, but it is a proper 3 head deck, and the recordings on this deck sound fantastic. Pushing in the "Monitor Source / Tape" button while recording something on this deck yields a nearly indistinguishable different in sound quality to my wooden ears.

Aiwa AD-F770 3-Head Stereo Cassette Deck Manual | HiFi Engine

www.hifiengine.com

cassettedeck.org

So I played the tape back on the Becker 1432.



I was careful to select Dolby C. Dang, that recording sounded like total crap. It was warbly, sounded 1/4 octave or 1/8 octave too high, and the high midrange just BLARED everywhere. I had to crank down the treble button just to make the tape remotely listenable!!! UGH!

So just as a reference check, I played the same tape back in this other, slightly newer Becker tape deck (CR-220), again careful to select Dolby C:



And my gosh, the tape didn't sound perfect but it sounded much MUCH MUCH MUCH better in the CR-220 than in the older BE1432 in the 500E and all that wabliness and upper midrange BLARING was gone.

I suspected something was wrong with my deck. Maybe tape speed was off. @sheward and @aliking very very very kindly posted me spare decks to use. (thank you thank you thank you!!!!) And while I had my center console apart the other day to tighten up the gear shift knob and to clean the fader wheel, I plugged in a spare deck. Much to my chargin, I got the SAME WARBLING! SAME UPPER MIDRANGE BLARING!!!! ARRRGHHHH!!!

I started questioning my home Aiwa deck. Does it need azimuth adjustment for the tape head? Surely all the BE1432s cannot be out of adjustment. What the?!?!?!?!

And then something dawned upon me. THIS BUTTON:



This is the Cr02 button! I totally forgot that this button existed! Defeated by the Becker penchant for making completely inscrutable user interfaces once again! My home Aiwa deck has automatic tape bias selection so I hadn't even thought about this!!!! And then when I played the tape back on the BE1432 with this button, EVERYTHING SOUNDED GREAT AGAIN! I HAD FORGOTTEN THAT SETTING TAPE BIAS WAS A THING!



And...... thinking back on it --- that upper midrange warbling was only EXACERBATED by the Dolby C compression / decompression circuit which is NOTORIOUS for doing crazy things in the upper midrange, ESPECIALLY when tape bias is set incorrectly!!!

But but but ....... I didn't set the tape bias in the CR-220. Why did that sound so normal???!?! And so I tried the CR-220 again, and I looked at it carefully. Veeeeeeerrrrryyyy carefully ------ do you notice anything? Like the LACK of anything?



Thats right! The newer CR-220 Becker Tape Deck DOES NOT EVEN HAVE THE ABILITY TO SELECT TAPE BIAS (NORMAL/CR02!!!) So the CR-220 (which is similar to Traffic Pros) is probably built to some mediocre "compromise spec" where all tape biases sound about right. And the specs --- 50Hz-14,000Hz for the CR-220 bear this out. I couldn't find the specs to the older BE1432, and, of course, the specs for the home Aiwa deck are much much better.



So for the 0.0000001% of people who still like to play with tapes (I'm pretty sure that's zero people) that's my story.

 

[kegmankipp]

I’d guess you have, but have you cleaned and then degaussed the decks lately?

Have you tried no Dolby at all during recording and playback? Effectively changing the language twice does remove most of the hiss, but also has some bad side effects that reminds me of Diet Coke, and it’s just not right.

Road and wind noise will eat up more of the tape hiss that you’d expect.

But a sometimes two different brands decks just don’t like to play together

 

[Jlaa]

I’d guess you have, but have you cleaned and then degaussed the decks lately?

Have you tried no Dolby at all during recording and playback? Effectively changing the language twice does remove most of the hiss, but also has some bad side effects that reminds me of Diet Coke, and it’s just not right.

Yeah! Cleaned and de magnetized but yeah, recording without any Dolby whatsoever also made an improvement. I totally forgot how much fiddling we used to have to do back in the day to make tapes that sound good!

I guess its kinda like forgetting how much fiddling we had to do back in the day to get a car started …… pump the accel 2x, pray, turn the key, pray, pull the choke, gently play with the accelerator, pray, fiddle more with the choke, etc etc…..

Road and wind noise will eat up more of the tape hiss that you’d expect.

But a sometimes two different brands decks just don’t like to play together

 

[maw1124]

Right... like "this is why we moved on from tape decks" I'm sure entered your mind at some point during these escapades... I too get nostalgic every now and again... then I remember what a pain things were... like scratched records.

maw

 

[kegmankipp]

What tapes are you using?

 

[Jlaa]

What tapes are you using?

TDK SA and Maxell XL-][

 

[kegmankipp]

 

[Jlaa]

I think I am afraid to ask what kind of tapes Mr. BIgAudioSnob uses in fear he will respond with some esoteric palladium-coated, uranium-depleted tape that costs sixty gazillion dollars per meter or something …….

 

[maw1124]

Man that just took me back... I was the guy chasing TDK-MA and Maxell XL-2S... until I figured out that my meager home deck wasn't good enough to produce the SN ratio on that ribbon... not to mention they exceeded almost all car decks... no one else knew, and my tapes sounded great... but luckily CDs saved me from myself... these are the things that got me way too deep into AV specs. Thanks @Jlaa... I hadn't thought about this stuff since the kids were young.

maw

PS... I liked the Sony Metal SR and the Maxell MX too... but I was in college and in retrospect they were too expensive for me use at that point in life... oh well... youth.

 

[kegmankipp]

I think I am afraid to ask what kind of tapes Mr. BIgAudioSnob uses in fear he will respond with some esoteric palladium-coated, uranium-depleted tape that costs sixty gazillion dollars per meter or something …….

Hey hey hey!
My Dr. calls it Functioning Autistic!

Maxell Metal Vertex were my preferred cassettes by far back in the day. But a quick peak at eBay shows they are going for stupid prices now. So I’d look for Maxell or TDK Metal at a minimum

 

[gsxr]

Right... like "this is why we moved on from tape decks" I'm sure entered your mind at some point during these escapades... I too get nostalgic every now and again... then I remember what a pain things were... like scratched records.

@Jlaa totally needs to replace the Becker trunk amps with some proper vacuum tube amps. Might take five minutes to warm up, but whooo, the warmth of the sound of Cr02 + Dobly C + tubez... but then you need papyrus-cone drivers...

 

[maw1124]

^^^ and it would completely destroy the weight distribution of MB and Porsche's work.

maw

 

[Jlaa]

Hey hey hey!
My Dr. calls it Functioning Autistic!

Maxell Metal Vertex were my preferred cassettes by far back in the day. But a quick peak at eBay shows they are going for stupid prices now. So I’d look for Maxell or TDK Metal at a minimum

Dude, yeah …….. I get it.……However….. you might not appreciate that the Becker does not have a setting for metal tapes! Unfortunately Cr02 was the pinnacle of Becker 1432 goodness. I don’t even know if the facelift 1492 Beckers can even do Cr02! @gsxr?

@Jlaa totally needs to replace the Becker trunk amps with some proper vacuum tube amps. Might take five minutes to warm up, but whooo, the warmth of the sound of Cr02 + Dobly C + tubez... but then you need papyrus-cone drivers...

Well, @2phast is already scoffing at my paper-cone drivers, which he lambasted as “extremely outdated technology” (without the obvious ‘nads-swinging-benefit of an 81 page report mind you) but yeah …. Tubez … I would totally do that in the future when/if I get a 1953 Coupe de Ville

 

[kegmankipp]

Oh damn whoops No metal setting??? Sorry. I have no clue on the CR02s

Let the Hunt commence for a TD-1200Mk2

And when you’re ready for tubes you’ll have to check out my Sprinter work van setup

 

[RicardoD]

This post would have been super helpful to 1980s Ricardo. My past self thanks you.

 

[Duh_Vinci]

@Jlaa I can not tell you how much pleasure and wonderful memories of the 80's your post has brought me! Travelled back in time for sure!

My father's friend had a similar AIWA deck, along with AKAI amplifier and AKAI speakers, I used to drool over this equipment, sound quality and his collection of tapes (while I certainly enjoyed my SHARP 666).

Normal/Cr02/Metal wow... while I have not listen to a tape since the mid 90' - unforgettable wonderful memories! CrO2 was rather rare bird in the former USSR in the 80's, and Metal - almost a "fairy tale" TDK, BASF...

One thing I remember distinctly, on Metal TDK... Thanks for the memories!!!

Regards,
D

 

[Jlaa]

Man that just took me back... I was the guy chasing TDK-MA and Maxell XL-2S... until I figured out that my meager home deck wasn't good enough to produce the SN ratio on that ribbon... ... I hadn't thought about this stuff since the kids were young.

PS... I liked the Sony Metal SR and the Maxell MX too... but I was in college and in retrospect they were too expensive for me use at that point in life... oh well... youth.

Maxell Metal Vertex were my preferred cassettes by far back in the day. But a quick peak at eBay shows they are going for stupid prices now.

This post would have been super helpful to 1980s Ricardo. My past self thanks you.

I can not tell you how much pleasure and wonderful memories of the 80's your post has brought me! Travelled back in time for sure! My father's friend had a similar AIWA deck, along with AKAI amplifier and AKAI speakers, I used to drool over this equipment, sound quality and his collection of tapes (while I certainly enjoyed my SHARP 666).
Normal/Cr02/Metal wow... while I have not listen to a tape since the mid 90' - unforgettable wonderful memories! CrO2 was rather rare bird in the former USSR in the 80's, and Metal - almost a "fairy tale" TDK, BASF...
One thing I remember distinctly, on Metal TDK... Thanks for the memories!!!

Enjoyment of mid 90s/80s Benzes evoke similar feelings of nostalgia and wonder as playing with cassettes. @maw1124, and @Duh_Vinci - I was that same teenager back in the day - eyeing others' top-shelf equipment with wonder and awe! Then later, in college, as you @maw1124, I was that same guy trying to use nice cassettes, and I came to the same conclusion as you ---- I was too poor and my equipment was too crappy to hear any difference!!!

Because of @kegmankipp's (Mr. BigAudio) ribbing, I embarked on a little experiment and lo and behold, decades later, I can now hear the difference with better equipment when played back on the MB Becker 1432!

The track in question is this:



I busted open 3 valuable new-old-stock high quality Cr02 cassettes. These three blank tapes are worth like $24 in aggregate these days!!! Anyways, these were one "tier" above TDK SA in quality. I weighed them, and as expected, the Maxell was the heaviest. The FR-II is the oldest (I think a mid-80s product) and the XL-IIS and ZII are 90s products.

.....vacuum tube amps. Might take five minutes to warm up, but whooo, the warmth of the sound of Cr02 + Dobly C + tubez... but then you need papyrus-cone drivers...

I recorded John Lee Hooker on my fancy Aiwa (that I would have never been able to afford when I was younger) from FLAC through a modern Digital-Analog Converter. Much to my astonishment, these tapes in the Becker 1432 all sound a good deal warmer than playing through Bluetooth on the same 1432 (through modern amplifiers and speakers)!!!! And they all sound much better than TDK SA. It is a very lovely sound.



Enjoy the 90 second clip of the blues on a Becker 1432 on Maxell XL-IIS.

I think I will go make some mix tapes now for proper nostalgic high-speed cruising in the 500E. With Fuji FR-IIS.

 

[gerryvz]

 

[Jlaa]

View attachment 135875

You are not allowed in my storage space, which, in addition to 500E parts, houses these:

*

*just kidding not actually mine! I think.......