I've got a BeoCord 5500 tape deck that seems to be suffering from an interesting problem. When I play certain tapes on side 1, a few minutes into the tape, the sound quality deteriorates as if the tape seems to be slowing down - it almost sounds like the belts are slipping; but if I turn the tape over in the player and play it as if it were side 2, it plays fine.

Could this be a belt issue? I'm confused, because I would half expect it to happen regardless of the direction, since the 5500 (I believe) has a single belt driving both capstans.

Anyone have any suggestions as to what else it might be? Perhaps one of the capstans needs lubricating/cleaning?

Is a belt replacement and lube/service something a keen amateur could do (I've not plucked up the courage to open up the deck yet) - or should I enlist the services of my local B&O service engineer?

This seems to be more of an issue with longer tapes, as I have some tapes that play fine on both sides - So perhaps its slipping because of the extra tape mass on the longer tapes?

Thanks,

Richard...