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The Barbarian
31-01-2015, 12:19
This is easy for me as i would not bee seen dead with a machine that does not use Moving Coil VU's.. as much chance of that as you have me owning a Pick-Up arm with a sprung loaded Anti-Skate :D

My fav is the '700 Mk.II' {The one im presently looking for}

Audio Al
31-01-2015, 12:47
Dragon for me one day :eyebrows:

Macca
31-01-2015, 13:20
I'd have to say Dragon too. It's all the buttons, I think. Plus they sound pretty good - for a tape deck ;)

http://i903.photobucket.com/albums/ac233/Macca_photos_2009/Nakamichi.jpg (http://s903.photobucket.com/user/Macca_photos_2009/media/Nakamichi.jpg.html)

The Barbarian
31-01-2015, 13:30
I can see this topic being an utter waste of time

Audio Al
31-01-2015, 13:31
I can see this topic being an utter waste of time

:)

TheMooN
31-01-2015, 14:15
In the spirit of the game ~ Nakamichi 680ZX.

Alfonzo
31-01-2015, 14:29
How's about a CR7 - meant to perform better than the dragon and much less busy on the facia

The Barbarian
31-01-2015, 14:36
Don't those level displays bother people? Sorry but i would choose one of the big Tandbergs over a CR7 Or Draggers

Audio Advent
31-01-2015, 16:07
You have my cassette-deck respect! I love the look of those Tandbergs too and apparently they're right up there with the Dragon on sound quality.

However, the level meters don't bother me and I much prefer the look of the Nakamichi 700 ZXL above those with old-school meters.

http://www.audioscope.net/images/nakamichi_700_zxl-2.jpg

Level meters form a practical point of view can often be less accurate over time due to their mechanical nature, drift of tolorences, accuracy dependent on how fast those peaks are (overshoot) and magnetic field vulnerability? (the last one a guess). Digital ones being quantised is the downside of them.. In reality though, how accurate do they need to be for home use? Average peak is the most important and as long as a meter can do that (not many anaolgue ones do - Aiwa 6900 does) then it's down to taste in looks - digital ones win on that score with me!

Audio Advent
31-01-2015, 16:09
Is that photo in my post above not showing for anyone else? Can't see why it's not for me ...

Edit:the url needed the full http:// bit too

The Barbarian
31-01-2015, 16:13
Aye that's a ZXL version of the 700 i want but as i say i cannot be doing with those kind of meters

walpurgis
31-01-2015, 16:20
Tape? In this day and age?

The only tape I use is for wrapping parcels. :D

Audio Advent
31-01-2015, 16:34
There are still releases on cassette you know! Sometimes The Wire magazine will do a "latest cassette releases" review. And many cassette pre-recordeds can sound great on a good deck (and are cheap).

It's a matter of taste with meters but give the red glow of a good led display any day. Plus those type of meters can be more individual to the deck design, analogue meters looking exactly the same other than the bit of paper behind the needle and often just some facia space found to plonk them. That said the Aiwa 6900 meters I've used are great with their second peak-hold needle and a warm bulb glow is always comforting too.

prestonchipfryer
31-01-2015, 16:35
581. Had one back in the 80s. My father bought it new in 1979 from a shop in Christchurch and it then came to me. An excellent deck with all the adjustments for differing tape formulations. The adjustments were achieved by a tiny screwdriver to adjust the small pots, fiddly but well worth it for a very good sound and it had proper VU meters.

http://i766.photobucket.com/albums/xx309/prestonchipfryer/Nakamichi581_02k_zpsiagum5fz.jpg (http://s766.photobucket.com/user/prestonchipfryer/media/Nakamichi581_02k_zpsiagum5fz.jpg.html)

The Barbarian
31-01-2015, 16:45
Tape? In this day and age?



This day & age means hoot to me it's all about back then. i have boxes of pre-recorded tapes i have to make a home for, perfect listerning for when im busy pottering about. I must admit i am a bit of a Akai fan boy i use a Black 'GXC750D' at the mo but have a silver one too, alser have AKAI 'GXC-570', 'GXC-735D' & 'GXC 510D' machines that are in need of repair when i get around to it.. I'll get some pickkies up when they are all finished & looking Minto

Audio Al
31-01-2015, 16:57
Tape? In this day and age?

The only tape I use is for wrapping parcels. :D

Geoff

Wash you mouth out now ! :doh:

Tape I love it :D

walpurgis
31-01-2015, 17:12
I admit, I used to like a reel to reel deck. Never quite came to terms with 'compact cassette', even though I had a few Tandbergs and Teacs, etc., which were supposed to be excellent.

Barry
31-01-2015, 17:33
You have my cassette-deck respect! I love the look of those Tandbergs too and apparently they're right up there with the Dragon on sound quality.

However, the level meters don't bother me and I much prefer the look of the Nakamichi 700 ZXL above those with old-school meters.

http://www.audioscope.net/images/nakamichi_700_zxl-2.jpg



Level meters from a practical point of view can often be less accurate over time due to their mechanical nature, drift of tolorences, accuracy dependent on how fast those peaks are (overshoot) and magnetic field vulnerability? (the last one a guess). Digital ones being quantised is the downside of them.. In reality though, how accurate do they need to be for home use? Average peak is the most important and as long as a meter can do that (not many anaolgue ones do - Aiwa 6900 does) then it's down to taste in looks - digital ones win on that score with me!

That's one handsome looking cassette deck Sam. Agree with you regarding level meters: the ballistics of many 'analogue' meters have difficulty capturing the peaks. They need to have a very fast rise time and a slow decay. Digital LED bargraphs displays are better as most have a peak hold facility.

To answer the OP, the two decks I have are a Nakamichi BX-2 and a Nakamichi BX-125. I enjoyed using them equally, but now both are "retired", as I no longer use cassette as a music source.

The Barbarian
31-01-2015, 17:42
I can react with a moving Coil VU a lot quicker than i can a LED meter.

Barry
31-01-2015, 17:47
I can react with a moving Coil VU a lot quicker than I can a LED meter.

If the "VU" meter has the correct ballistics, then I would agree with you. The meters on my Ferrograph and Nagra machines have the necessary ballistics.

Personally I would prefer to use PPM style meters.

Marco
31-01-2015, 17:56
Ballistics? Woss ‘em, den?

Sounds like summart from an episode of Columbo! :eyebrows: ;)

Marco.

Barry
31-01-2015, 18:02
Ballistics? Woss ‘em, den?

Sounds like something from an episode of Columbo! :eyebrows: ;)

Marco.

'Ballistics' refers to the damping of the meter movement. To monitor recording levels, the meter movement needs to be fast acting, so that it can respond to the recording peaks. However the decay needs to be slower, otherwise the meter movement becomes tiring to watch - which would defeat the purpose.

For those that might be interested, have a look at this (http://sound.westhost.com/project55.htm).

Marco
31-01-2015, 18:44
Ah, I see. Thanks for that - never heard of them before :)

Marco.

Spectral Morn
31-01-2015, 18:52
I have a CR5e and a DR10


Regards Neil

TheMooN
01-02-2015, 11:23
Should you have no requirement of commercial media then perhaps one of these might appeal ~

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=ZbVzlDqWCo4

Or the same model from Wega ~

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=QMHwJk4XC6Q

shane
01-02-2015, 14:00
That's what always bothered me about Nakamichis. Given the phenomenal performance they managed to extract from 1/8" tape running at 1 1/4ips, just think what they could have done with 1/4" tape at 7ips! My favourite Nak is the 10 1/2" reel to reel they should have made but didn't.

The Barbarian
01-02-2015, 14:16
The Nak did make a R+R it was called the Fidela' 807' Probably one of the best R+R from the 50's

Barry
01-02-2015, 16:50
That's what always bothered me about Nakamichis. Given the phenomenal performance they managed to extract from 1/8" tape running at 1 1/4ips, just think what they could have done with 1/4" tape at 7ips! My favourite Nak is the 10 1/2" reel to reel they should have made but didn't.

Sorry to be pedantic: cassettes run at 1 7/8 ips. But otherwise I would agree with you - what improvements Nakamichi could have made by doubling the tape width to 1/4" (and hence improving the S/N ratio) and quadrupling the speed to 7.5ips (and hence improving the frequency response) makes for an intriguing speculation.

One needs only to hear the playback of 1/4" tapes recorded at 7.5 ips to realise that most cassette machines are little more than toys.

Martyn Miles
02-02-2015, 02:57
I owned a Nakamichi DR 3 for a while, then a Denon 790R became available for £105.
(The company seeeling it had moved on to CD duplication)
As I move in the semi. pro. world I knew the Denon was used by Broadcasters, so I bought it.
Little used, as it was in a rack of ten, I understood.
Performance?
Phenomenal !
It literally 'blew away' the Nakamichi.
I still use it from time to time and always keep a cassette in it ready to catch a radio programme.
In conclusion, I once gave a demo. to the owner of an MP3 player.
I could not write down here his exact words...

Beobloke
02-02-2015, 09:27
Although the CR-7E and Dragon are the obvious candidates, I still quite fancy a 'flip-the-tape' autoreverse RX-202, 303 or 505, personally.

Spectral Morn
02-02-2015, 10:03
Although the CR-7E and Dragon are the obvious candidates, I still quite fancy a 'flip-the-tape' autoreverse RX-202, 303 or 505, personally.

Very cool indeed. Nice bit of product placement having one of those in Nine and a half Weeks.


Regards Neil

shane
02-02-2015, 12:14
Sorry to be pedantic: cassettes run at 1 7/8 ips.

When I started writing that reply I had all the right numbers in my head. By the time I'd worked out how to type "one eighth inch tape at one and seven eights inches per second" symbolically on an Android tablet keypad, I'd pretty much lost the will to live!

The Barbarian
02-02-2015, 12:39
I loose the will to live on here most times :D

337alant
02-02-2015, 22:46
Tape? In this day and age?

The only tape I use is for wrapping parcels. :D

Don't underestimate tape, it can sound every bit as good and better than any source available today, I haven't got a top of the line Cassette deck, Just a NakBX150E but I do have 10 x Reel 2 Reel machines and although I have and excellent Vinyl and Digital front ends I find myself listening to tape more than anything else its analogue and it sound superb IMO

Alan ( Tape head)

Ali Tait
02-02-2015, 22:48
Agreed. My Tandberg can sound as good or better than the 401.

The Barbarian
02-02-2015, 22:54
Which Tandberg is that Ali?

RichB
02-02-2015, 23:24
I owned a CR-3e for a while but gave up on tape when a friend came over and found me making compilations from spotify!:lol:

Friends thought I had gone quite mad.

The Barbarian
02-02-2015, 23:51
Ive got a little Nak '500' {I shown it on here before} it's ok but does not sound as good as my simular looking & era Technics 'RS-273US'

Ali Tait
03-02-2015, 07:37
Which Tandberg is that Ali?

It's a TD20A Andre.

The Barbarian
04-02-2015, 20:27
One of my Fav 10" machine was the Tandberg '10XD'. I still have a Tandberg '9000X' i bought used over 25 years ago. Only a 7" reel machine but very reliable. However im looking for a mint Tandberg '6000X'

IuJsH2_iTPE

tommy6206
06-02-2015, 20:10
I have a Nak MR-1 but prefer my Technics RS-9900 or Pioneer CT-1250

The Barbarian
06-02-2015, 20:56
Aye those Techy 9900 units were ace. I alser thought the matching Techy 'Elcaset' was the best anorl..

Alex Nikitin
08-02-2015, 17:35
Aye those Techy 9900 units were ace.

http://www.ant-audio.co.uk/Tape_Recording/RS9900US/2_RS9900US_01.jpg

;)

And on the thread subject - possibly this one?

http://www.ant-audio.co.uk/Tape_Recording/Naks/1000ZXL/Limited_005.jpg

Cheers,

Alex

Barry
17-02-2015, 20:22
http://www.ant-audio.co.uk/Tape_Recording/Naks/1000ZXL/Limited_005.jpg

Yuck - that's far too "blingy" to be taken seriously!

The Barbarian
17-02-2015, 20:25
O no i could not live with that. The original '1000 Tri-Tracer will do fine..

Wakefield Turntables
17-02-2015, 20:38
http://www.ant-audio.co.uk/Tape_Recording/Naks/1000ZXL/Limited_005.jpg

Yuck - that's far too "blingy" to be taken seriously!


http://www.ant-audio.co.uk/Tape_Recording/RS9900US/2_RS9900US_01.jpg

;)

And on the thread subject - possibly this one?

http://www.ant-audio.co.uk/Tape_Recording/Naks/1000ZXL/Limited_005.jpg

Cheers,

Alex


:vomfest::vomfest::vomfest::vomfest::vomfest::vomf est::vomfest:

The Barbarian
17-02-2015, 20:40
:D