Reluctant sale of my extremely rare and beautiful Scully 284 / 280 8-Track 1-Inch Multitrack Tape Recorder.

Identical machines to this were used on classic recordings by Jimi Hendrix, The Rolling Stones and at Stax / Muscle Shoals studios etc.

Contains 8 fantastic mic preamps which were recapped around 6-7 years ago.

The electronics all work fine and the transport is basically in working order but will definitely require some patience and dedication to get it running 100% smoothly. I haven’t fiddled with it for years and it currently has a tendency to speed up or slow down during playback or recording - not by huge amount but noticeable. 

Perfect head alignment is also essential for good recording/erasing and the act of transporting the machine will almost certainly mean it will require a fiddly, full recalibration. Instructions for this procedure are in the included manual. 

The transports on these are very simple compared to most tape machines and I’m sure it could be brought back to excellent working order. I had a new pinch roller made for it a while ago and I believe the capstan motor has been replaced at some point. Also, the spacer block that goes between the the two sections of the cabinet was made by me to replace a missing one. It’s just a few bits of timber painted matte black. Otherwise everything appears original.

The machine comes with the even more rare remote-control unit! This could do with a bit of a tidy up as few of the 3-way toggle switch caps are either missing or broken and the plastic stop button insert is missing. These inserts do show up on ebay as do numerous other spare parts for these machines.  

I vaguely recall trying the remote when I first got the machine and it did work. However, I haven’t tried it for maybe 20 years so cannot guarantee that it is problem free. Part of the awesome 60s fake wood laminate is coming away at the side of the remote but could be sorted with a bit of glue. 

11 x boxed reels of BASF PEM 468 tapes included. These have mostly never been recorded onto but a few may have some print-through from old recordings.

Also comes with a box of spares which includes a second complete set of heads, a pair of playback amplifier cards and quite a few spare relays. If the relays ever go bad, I believe they can simply be opened up and cleaned with switch cleaner. Original user manual with schematics also included.

The machine easily splits into two sections (the rack of preamps and the base with the transport). It’s all very heavy and will definitely need a small van to shift it. Collection only from near Pershore, Worcestershire!

Runs on 110V using (supplied) converter for UK voltage. 

I will try to answer any questions and serious buyers are welcome to come and check it out (not to haggle on price!) before bidding.