OMG, 120 min tapes - whoever invented them should've been shot!
I like to try and get away with C-60s, if I can manage to squeeze an album onto one.
Marco.
Site Owner/Administrator
Location: Wrexham, North Wales, UK
Posts: 110,466
I'm AudioAl'sArbiterForPISHANTO.
OMG, 120 min tapes - whoever invented them should've been shot!
I like to try and get away with C-60s, if I can manage to squeeze an album onto one.
Marco.
Main System
Turntable: Heavily-modified Technics SL-1210MK5G [Mike New bearing/ETP platter/Paul Hynes SR7 PSU & regulator mods]. Funk Firm APM Achromat with Nagaoka GL-601 Crystal Record Weight. Isonoe feet & boots. Ortofon RS-212D tonearm with Denon DL-103GL, in a Denon PCL-300 headshell, fitted with Funk Firm Houdini and Kondo SL-115 pure-silver cartridge leads.
Paul Hynes MC head amp/SR5 PSU. Also modded Lentek head amp and Denon AU-310 SUT.
Other Cartridges: Nippon Columbia (NOS 1987) Denon DL-103. USA-made Shure SC35C with NOS stylus. Goldring G820 with NOS stylus. Shure M55E with NOS stylus.
CD Player: Audiocom-modified Sony X-777ES/DAS-R1 DAC.
Tape Deck: Tandberg TCD 310, fully restored and recalibrated as new by RDE, plus upgraded with heads from the TCD-420a. Also with matching TM4 Norway microphones.
Preamps: Heavily-modified Croft Charisma-X. Power Amps: Tube Distinctions Copper Amp, fitted with Tungsol KT-150s. Quad 306.
Cables & Sundries: Mark Grant HDX1 interconnects and digital coaxial cable, plus Mark Grant 6mm UP-LCOFC Van Damme speaker cable. MCRU 'Ultimate' mains leads. Lehmann clone headphone amp with vintage Koss PRO-4AAA headphones.
Tube Distinctions digital noise filter. VPI HW16.5 record cleaning machine.
Speakers: Tannoy 15MGs in Lockwood cabinets with modified crossovers. 1967 Celestion Ditton 15.
ELP Fanboy
Location: Yorks
Posts: 16,643
I'm Nobody.
You see this Tandberg Cassette deck, i bought that nearly 28 years ago second hand, i gave it my mate about 10 years ago, he listerns to it on a regular basis with the aid of your truly, never ever broke down & to boot sound better than his CD player..
Sorry for the poor pic his camera is really rubbish
The first cassette deck Tandberg ever made if i remember.
Site Owner/Administrator
Location: Wrexham, North Wales, UK
Posts: 110,466
I'm AudioAl'sArbiterForPISHANTO.
Interesting link, Kris
I've never tried Quantegy. But looking at the brands I've tried on that site, I'm pretty sure that the NOS 1987 TDK SA90s I use (I bought loads on Ebay and stockpiled them) would outperform them. Much depends of course on how a cassette deck's heads are factory set (i.e. which brand of tape the deck has been 'voiced' with), as manual bias adjustment afterwards can only achieve so much.
I also use mid-80s NOS BASF Chromdioxid Maxima IIs and Maxell UD XL-IIs, which are also fantastic, along with some original NOS Nakamichi branded tapes.
From approx 1983-1987 is when I feel that the quality of blank cassette tape was at its ultimate best. Some of the late 70s stuff was also good, but things went downhill bigtime, IMO, after the late 1980s.
Marco.
Main System
Turntable: Heavily-modified Technics SL-1210MK5G [Mike New bearing/ETP platter/Paul Hynes SR7 PSU & regulator mods]. Funk Firm APM Achromat with Nagaoka GL-601 Crystal Record Weight. Isonoe feet & boots. Ortofon RS-212D tonearm with Denon DL-103GL, in a Denon PCL-300 headshell, fitted with Funk Firm Houdini and Kondo SL-115 pure-silver cartridge leads.
Paul Hynes MC head amp/SR5 PSU. Also modded Lentek head amp and Denon AU-310 SUT.
Other Cartridges: Nippon Columbia (NOS 1987) Denon DL-103. USA-made Shure SC35C with NOS stylus. Goldring G820 with NOS stylus. Shure M55E with NOS stylus.
CD Player: Audiocom-modified Sony X-777ES/DAS-R1 DAC.
Tape Deck: Tandberg TCD 310, fully restored and recalibrated as new by RDE, plus upgraded with heads from the TCD-420a. Also with matching TM4 Norway microphones.
Preamps: Heavily-modified Croft Charisma-X. Power Amps: Tube Distinctions Copper Amp, fitted with Tungsol KT-150s. Quad 306.
Cables & Sundries: Mark Grant HDX1 interconnects and digital coaxial cable, plus Mark Grant 6mm UP-LCOFC Van Damme speaker cable. MCRU 'Ultimate' mains leads. Lehmann clone headphone amp with vintage Koss PRO-4AAA headphones.
Tube Distinctions digital noise filter. VPI HW16.5 record cleaning machine.
Speakers: Tannoy 15MGs in Lockwood cabinets with modified crossovers. 1967 Celestion Ditton 15.
ELP Fanboy
Location: Yorks
Posts: 16,643
I'm Nobody.
Kris i find those Quantegy open rel tape tapes are not as good as the original Ampex versions..456 was great all round tape..Originally Posted by Kris
Senior Member
Location: A Strangely Isolated Place in Suffolk with Far Away Trains Passing By...
Posts: 14,540
I'm David.
Until the air moisture got the the adhesives IIRC
I can't go on and I can't go back, I don't feel so matter of fact,
I tried and tried to make good sense, What's the good to try it all again?
Senior Member
Location: Hadrians Wall
Posts: 313
I had a couple of tapes that needed baking. I stuck them in the airing cupboard for a week or two. Played ok after that, not too much shedding. ( I hand wound them slowly before playing).
Mesmer
Location: France
Posts: 3,209
I'm notAlone.
When I was in Greece, we made tests between 1975 and 1983 :
All tapes existing were tested, and best tapes (S/N, THD, IMD, FR) were TDK AD (1st), TDK SA and Technics RT-XA ex-aequo (2nd).
Interestingly enough, TDK AD was best without Dolby.
Don't have the printed issue(s) anymore, but I can try to find them, if you're interested.
Dimitri.
In a time of deceit telling the truth is a revolutionary act.
George Orwell
Site Owner/Administrator
Location: Wrexham, North Wales, UK
Posts: 110,466
I'm AudioAl'sArbiterForPISHANTO.
That would be interesting, Dimitri. I'm curious too of which vintages of tapes you considered the best amongst the examples from '75 to '83
I agree that in general TDK were always the most consistent, but I also have a soft spot for some BASF and Scotch.
Marco.
Main System
Turntable: Heavily-modified Technics SL-1210MK5G [Mike New bearing/ETP platter/Paul Hynes SR7 PSU & regulator mods]. Funk Firm APM Achromat with Nagaoka GL-601 Crystal Record Weight. Isonoe feet & boots. Ortofon RS-212D tonearm with Denon DL-103GL, in a Denon PCL-300 headshell, fitted with Funk Firm Houdini and Kondo SL-115 pure-silver cartridge leads.
Paul Hynes MC head amp/SR5 PSU. Also modded Lentek head amp and Denon AU-310 SUT.
Other Cartridges: Nippon Columbia (NOS 1987) Denon DL-103. USA-made Shure SC35C with NOS stylus. Goldring G820 with NOS stylus. Shure M55E with NOS stylus.
CD Player: Audiocom-modified Sony X-777ES/DAS-R1 DAC.
Tape Deck: Tandberg TCD 310, fully restored and recalibrated as new by RDE, plus upgraded with heads from the TCD-420a. Also with matching TM4 Norway microphones.
Preamps: Heavily-modified Croft Charisma-X. Power Amps: Tube Distinctions Copper Amp, fitted with Tungsol KT-150s. Quad 306.
Cables & Sundries: Mark Grant HDX1 interconnects and digital coaxial cable, plus Mark Grant 6mm UP-LCOFC Van Damme speaker cable. MCRU 'Ultimate' mains leads. Lehmann clone headphone amp with vintage Koss PRO-4AAA headphones.
Tube Distinctions digital noise filter. VPI HW16.5 record cleaning machine.
Speakers: Tannoy 15MGs in Lockwood cabinets with modified crossovers. 1967 Celestion Ditton 15.
Trade: A.N.T Audio
Location: Cheshire UK
Posts: 198
I'm Alex.
Marco,That would be interesting, Dimitri. I'm curious too of which vintages of tapes you considered the best amongst the examples from '75 to '83
I agree that in general TDK were always the most consistent, but I also have a soft spot for some BASF and Scotch.
Marco.
have a look here.
Cheers
Alex
ELP Fanboy
Location: Yorks
Posts: 16,643
I'm Nobody.
Marco
The below are the ones i prefered with this design label
These MA-R diecast jobbies here at the bottom were the best constructed tapes eva, totally silent in winding..If i remember i used to pay near on a fiver each for them from Moorgate Acoustic back then
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