Teac X-3R

Description

The Teac X-3R Was the entry-level of the final X series produced by Teac.  For an entry-level machine it surprisingly included a convenient feature which reverses the playback when a sensing foil is installed on the tape. A smart, cost-cutting method of doing the reversing was to use a 4 channel play head with tracks 1 & 3 being used for forward play and tracks 2 & 4 providing reverse play.

The Teac X-3 series were good-looking and fine sounding machines for the money that didn’t feally fit the marketplace at the time. Reel enthusiasts were getting few and far between in the early 80s, with the cassette coming on strong, so those that were left were more interested in the the higher-end R-R Recorders. It wasn’t a strong seller, however the Teac X-300 and X-300R followed in 1983 with slightly better signal-to-noise specification and these last generation R-R decks continued into the early 90s.

With the X series, no other tape-recorder manufacturer released as many models as Teac did at the same time. They sure got a lot of mileage out of the X-3 and X-300 designs by making Tascam versions in 2 track (22-2) and 4 track (22-4)  and the Radio Shack TR-3000 which was essentially the same.

If you own an X series Teac you may want to read the Service Considerations detail on capstan motor issues.