Tape deck experience

[BlueMDPicker]

I have quite a few cassettes and have been looking around for a good quality used deck. The Nakamichi RX-505 looks pretty solid (there's what appears to be a nice one on AG now @$340), but I haven't had any experience with higher end decks. If you have, I'd be interested in your thoughts. About $350 is the budget ceiling.

Mike

[madmax]

I have one of the pioneer CT-F900 decks and it appears to be all the fidelity I need. They also make a CT-F1200 I believe. Might want to look on ebay. Make sure you find a belt kit before buying one. That pretty much goes for any brand or model you buy.
madmax

[dragon1952]

I had a Harman Kardon TD4400 which was an awesome deck. I think it retailed for close to $500 new. You could probably get one for practically nothing. Here's a few on Ebay which is unusual as you don't see these that often. I sold mine last year for around $100.
http://cgi.ebay.com/HARMAN-KARDON-TD4400-CASSETTE-DECK-ISOTROPIC-HEAD-NR_W0QQitemZ5826590106QQcategoryZ4784QQssPageNameZ WDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem
http://cgi.ebay.com/HARMAN-KARDON-TD4400-CASSETTE-DECK-ISOTROPIC-HEAD-NR_W0QQitemZ5826590106QQcategoryZ4784QQssPageNameZ WDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem
http://cgi.ebay.com/Harman-Kardon-TD4400-Cassette-Deck-Transcription-NR_W0QQitemZ5826841668QQcategoryZ4784QQssPageNameZ WDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

[thehaens@cox.net]

There are a lot of good recs here. I have always like the Sony Decks, and have had good success with mine, albeit, it doesn't get much use...

You can try the TC-KA3 ES............I bought mine new years ago for about 450.00 on close out, but I am sure it can be had for about 200 or so nowadays....

It has a pretty trick calibration feature on it that puts out a test tone, and you can calibrate each tape individually.

Or if you want to spend a little more cash, I doubt there are any decks out there that match the vintage Nakamichi "Dragon".....

Scott

[madmax]

For me a 3 head deck is really nice because you can record and playback at the same time. That way you can set it up to make a recording as good as possible. I remember using a sony that had a special form of noise reduction which amazed me at the time. It was called HX pro or Dolby hx or something along those lines.

[heiney9]

I've owned several Nak decks, older versions when they were still made in Japan and all I can say is I've never heard a better deck. Granted I had a Dragon for awhile, also an RX-505 which I demoed (for several months) way back when I was selling audio. I've also owned a Bx-125 and Bx-300 and all are exceptional. Currently own a measley CR-1A which for an entry level 2 head deck is not too shabby. Haven't used it in years, though.

The nice thing about the RX-505 over the RX-202 is those were still built in Japan not Tiawan like the 202. The build quality seems to be a bit better, sturdier. That auto-reverse feature is very sweet and a great piece of engineering. Very little trouble from what I remember.

One thing with Nak decks that is always noticeable is when you make tapes on a Nak deck their head design (most notably) the azimuth angle is much different than any other cassette deck out there (read better, more precise) and consequently when Nak recorded tapes are played on other decks there is a noticeable roll off of the high frequencies. Used to annoy the hell out of me when I made tapes for my car player 15-20 years ago.

$350 for the RX-505 is average if it's in good shape and perhaps has manual and box. As you may already know parts are scarce but not impossible to find and there are several dedicated Nak-aholics who can repair these, but it's not cheap. If properly maintained they should last along time, perhaps a life time. Very well built and engineered. Too bad cassettes aren't popular anymore. I swore I was going to be buried with my Dragon, what's the point now??

H9

[heiney9]

Here's THE Nak link for info. I don't think you have to register to get info, just click on "NAK" in the left margin. Hope this helps

http://www.naks.com/

H9

[BlueMDPicker]

Thanks all for the info/suggestions.

I pulled my old Technics deck out of the store room today, popped the hood, and threw it in the trash. There wasn't anything in there that looked worth the effort. So, I'm on the prowl.