Pioneer RT-909 Vintage Reel To Reel Tape Deck - Fully Restored

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General:
This is one of the most beautiful reel to reel decks from Pioneer (or anyone else) from the days of vintage open tape reels. Incorporating classic styling with more modern digital "Fluroscan" VU meters and tape counter.

Being an auto-reverse deck it can also play for an extended period of time, so not only is this deck great for critical listing but also for background music at your next party. 

This RT-909 was fully restored including the replacement of all wear/consumable parts including the belts, pinch rollers etc.  In addition many capacitors, resistors, and transistors were replaced for long term reliability. It also received a replacement capstan motor and speed control to ensure perfect speed accuracy.

It was then calibrated to the highest standards and all functions were found to be working as they should.  The VFD display is bright and clear with no imperfections.

This a 3-motor, 4-head, reel to reel deck with auto-reverse and repeat playback that's capable of playing and recording at speeds of 7-1/2 IPS and 3-3/4 IPS. It also accepts both 7" inch reels and professional size 10.5" reels. This deck is considered a 1/4 track machine (or 4 track).

In terms of performance we found that RT-909 is no slouch. All the tapes we played on this deck sounded fantastic - plus it recorded flawlessly.

Included with the machine is a pair of OEM Pioneer branded take up reels, plus two high quality aluminum hub adapters. Everything will be shipped in a reusable double custom box for safe transport.

SkyFi Cosmetic Notes:
Some marks and scratches on multiple surfaces as shown in our photos. Overall condition is presentable.

More from Pioneer:
The Pioneer RT-909 3-motor deck, with auto reverse / repeat playback and many more features, takes the open-reel format another important and impressive step ahead of anything available in the cassette format.

You're going to sense this the moment you see it, and hear it, in action. Features? It's another loaded deck from Pioneer. It not only accepts the conventional 7 inch reels, but also the professional size 10.5 inch diameter reels.

It gives an exceptionally wide frequency range of 20 Hz to 28 kHz (± 3 dB) and, to match this outstanding performance, gives low wow / flutter of 0.04% or better, with both specifications measured at the 7.5 ips tape speed.

It mixes microphone inputs and line inputs, another advanced professional feature. And it allows instant comparison between the tape and the original, as well as azimuth adjustments of the heads. Add up all of this Pioneer perfection and there's no doubt that the RT-909 is made for the person who has major musical ambitions and strongly professional tastes.

And yet if you've never considered making the big move upward into open-reel, because you thought they were too complicated, you'll be happy to learn that Pioneer has equipped the RT-909 with the kind of features that only an open-reel novice could appreciate. Things like exceptional headroom (and flexibility) that means this open-reel format offers more overall performance in terms of dynamic range, distortion and noise than the best of cassette formats. And much more: convenient automatic reverse / repeat playback, tape-saving 3.75 ips speed, easy to read Fluroscan meter and 4 digit counter, timer start, LED indicators, and other features.

Are you ready for the move to open-reel perfection? Pioneer has made a beautiful deck and equipped it in such a way that it performs with the ease and perfection of a cassette deck.

Brand Background:
Click here for Pioneer Home Audio History

Ownership:
Second Owner

Connections:
RCA input and output

Cosmetic Condition:
6/10 = Fair. Three to four minor scratches, or one major scratch. See our detailed rating description here.

Working Condition:
Working perfectly and tested in our lab.

Included:
Just the unit and power cord.

Packing:
Will be packed using our highly developed in-house process and custom packing materials.Specs:
Track system: Auto reverse, 4-track, 2-channel, stereo system
Heads: 2 x playback, 1 x record, 1 x erase
Motor: 2 x reel, 1 x capstan
Reel size: up to 10.5 inch reel
Tape speeds: 3-3⁄4 IPS,  7-1⁄2 IPS
Wow and flutter: 0.04% (7-1⁄2 IPS)
Frequency response: 20 Hz to 30 kHz (7-1⁄2 IPS)
Signal to Noise Ratio: 60 dB
Total harmonic distortion: 1%
Crosstalk: 50 dB
Input: 50 mV (line), 0.3 mV (mic)
Output: 0.45 V (line)

Dimensions:
18.90" x 13.39" x 12.52"

Weight:
46 lbs.

Approximate Age:
1979

Link to Manual:
Click Here

Link to Sales Brochure:
Click Here

Recommended Cables:
Kimber Kable - RCA Interconnects - Better

Kimber Kable - RCA Interconnects - Best

Testing Process:
First steps are performed to determine if the unit is a candidate for our full restoration process, or if it's just in need of a light service.

We perform a basic functionality test to ensure proper playback, fast forward, and rewind. We look for smooth operation of the motors, transport engagement, and associated rolling parts.

We then do an internal physical inspection to ensure the belts and rubber consumable parts are up to spec.

Internal components are checked to make sure there are no signs of heat stress or damage, particularly in the power supply section. Capacitors are checked for telltale signs of predictive failure including bulging, shrunken wrappers, or physical leakage. We also inspect the PCBs for discoloration from resistors or transistors that may have been running hot. On vintage units we often spot check select capacitors for value and ESR.

A light service will involve replacement of belts and rollers, external cleaning of heads, mechanism and boards, and basic record and playback tests.

A full restoration will often include disassembly of the drive system and replacement of all consumable and wearable parts including pinch rollers, belts, brakes, and bearings. We then clean, lubricate, and re-assemble the drive and perform basic mechanical alignment to ensure proper tape path and head alignment.

Final calibration will involve adjustment of the playback, erase, and record heads, along with optimization of the bias for a specific tape type. We do this with the aid of a Sound Technology 1510A tape deck analyzer plus a Nakamichi T-100 Audio Analyzer with reference calibration tapes.

Final listening tests are performed while monitoring with our reference Grado HP-1 headphones and a variety of factory and custom reference recordings We find that there is no better system for critical listening on tapes than with headphones, especially when comparing a live feed to a recorded feed.