- Joined
- Jun 18, 2024
- Messages
- 24
Hi all,
I searched the forums and didn't find a thread for tech recommendations (for those of us who are not up to snuff to repair our own stuff), so I figured it would be helpful to start one. Figured the focus could be on those we positively recommend rather than those we urge others to avoid (unless that's allowed/cool on here), since the absence of a name/shop on here would, eventually, imply either a negative experience or no experience with their work anyway.
For myself, I'm wondering if anyone has any good recommendations for techs or shops who do good work on Nakamichi tape decks. I know of Willy Herman of Willy Hermann Services, Jeff Galin of ES Labs, three other techs on AK and TH (Perry, Dan, and Tim, not sure if they're on here as well), and a Chicago-based tech hailing from Greece who used to work for Nakamichi tech service in Greece in the 90s (he goes by 'Bobby') who are all reputed to do great work and who have all the necessary gauges, tapes, and jigs for Nak decks. I have a deck (CR-7A) Bobby serviced and it runs great, and he's currently got one of my ZX-9s and my 505 for overhauls. I'm also on the waitlist for Dan and Perry, in case I end up needing to send another deck out for a tune-up. I opted not to go with Willy only because his waitlist is over a year long, and ES Labs is far out of my budget.
These names I gleaned from another forum, and I started to get the impression that they were the only options available. But I've found other techs/shops that purport to work on Naks that never get mentioned on said forum, so I'm wondering whether there might be a sort of implicit, predominant philosophy of tech service on said forum that is possibly controversial with other reputable techs, such that some names who also do solid work don't get mentioned there. Or maybe these techs really are the only solid options, in which case it'd be good to confirm that. In any case, I'd like, if possible, to expand the list of possible techs I can take my stuff to since each (understandably) has a waitlist running from 6-12+ months long.
In particular, there's a shop here in Michigan (Muse Electronic Services, run by Jeff Hall) that seems to do solid work, and my place on the waitlist just came up (though I now no longer have need of their services, since I'm in queue with Dan and Perry, and have two decks with Bobby), but about which I've not read anything, good or bad. I've also found a couple techs online who seem to do good work but who make claims that seem too good to be true (e.g., that they use all OEM parts, when the only person I'm aware of who has access to such parts is Jeff at ESLabs).
Maybe we could compile a list of good techs we have experience with, along with the brands and types of equipment they work on, to help those in need of service. I think it'd also be good to list techs/shops we haven't heard anything about but who perhaps seem like good local options for us, and anyone who has had experience with them can chime in.
The reason I started accumulating the necessary test equipment for servicing decks is because it seems this is a dying skillset with no practicable means of acquiring except by one's own initiative and the generous help of techs on forums like this, and eventually I'd like to be self-sufficient in maintaining my gear. But in the interim, I'd like to have a wider pool of experts I can go to when I need service, as I suspect is the case with others in a similar position.
(Note to admin: Apologies, maybe this should've been posted in 'General DIY'.)
I searched the forums and didn't find a thread for tech recommendations (for those of us who are not up to snuff to repair our own stuff), so I figured it would be helpful to start one. Figured the focus could be on those we positively recommend rather than those we urge others to avoid (unless that's allowed/cool on here), since the absence of a name/shop on here would, eventually, imply either a negative experience or no experience with their work anyway.
For myself, I'm wondering if anyone has any good recommendations for techs or shops who do good work on Nakamichi tape decks. I know of Willy Herman of Willy Hermann Services, Jeff Galin of ES Labs, three other techs on AK and TH (Perry, Dan, and Tim, not sure if they're on here as well), and a Chicago-based tech hailing from Greece who used to work for Nakamichi tech service in Greece in the 90s (he goes by 'Bobby') who are all reputed to do great work and who have all the necessary gauges, tapes, and jigs for Nak decks. I have a deck (CR-7A) Bobby serviced and it runs great, and he's currently got one of my ZX-9s and my 505 for overhauls. I'm also on the waitlist for Dan and Perry, in case I end up needing to send another deck out for a tune-up. I opted not to go with Willy only because his waitlist is over a year long, and ES Labs is far out of my budget.
These names I gleaned from another forum, and I started to get the impression that they were the only options available. But I've found other techs/shops that purport to work on Naks that never get mentioned on said forum, so I'm wondering whether there might be a sort of implicit, predominant philosophy of tech service on said forum that is possibly controversial with other reputable techs, such that some names who also do solid work don't get mentioned there. Or maybe these techs really are the only solid options, in which case it'd be good to confirm that. In any case, I'd like, if possible, to expand the list of possible techs I can take my stuff to since each (understandably) has a waitlist running from 6-12+ months long.
In particular, there's a shop here in Michigan (Muse Electronic Services, run by Jeff Hall) that seems to do solid work, and my place on the waitlist just came up (though I now no longer have need of their services, since I'm in queue with Dan and Perry, and have two decks with Bobby), but about which I've not read anything, good or bad. I've also found a couple techs online who seem to do good work but who make claims that seem too good to be true (e.g., that they use all OEM parts, when the only person I'm aware of who has access to such parts is Jeff at ESLabs).
Maybe we could compile a list of good techs we have experience with, along with the brands and types of equipment they work on, to help those in need of service. I think it'd also be good to list techs/shops we haven't heard anything about but who perhaps seem like good local options for us, and anyone who has had experience with them can chime in.
The reason I started accumulating the necessary test equipment for servicing decks is because it seems this is a dying skillset with no practicable means of acquiring except by one's own initiative and the generous help of techs on forums like this, and eventually I'd like to be self-sufficient in maintaining my gear. But in the interim, I'd like to have a wider pool of experts I can go to when I need service, as I suspect is the case with others in a similar position.
(Note to admin: Apologies, maybe this should've been posted in 'General DIY'.)
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