What's the best cassette deck ever?
- Thread starter niklasthedolphin
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I very much doubt the ability of the resources of this forum to judge on this subject, as no one, except one out of 19, have even got close to the answer on my question in the OP.
Question is if judgement on other audio questions is just as far from target as here?
A tad sad.
"dolph"
Question is if judgement on other audio questions is just as far from target as here?
A tad sad.
"dolph"
Really Dolph? I think you got some very good answers. Did you already have the answer and you were waiting for someone to agree with what you already knew? It seems the consenus here was Nak made the best cassette decks with the CR7A possibly being the best they ever made.
Awesome picture Amir. That looks like a great deck and I see visions of Nak in it. Honestly, when you think about recording 2 channels on a piece of 1/8" tape going 1 7/8 ips, it is remarkable how damn good sounding cassettes could be. Astonshing in fact. It is a testimony to how good analog can be that a cassette deck can sound as good as it does. And make no mistake, a cassette tape made from a really good LP front end on a really good cassette deck sounds great.
We're getting as close to the top as possible now with just THE cassette deck recorder left to mention.
"dolph"
"dolph"
I always liked and had a soft spot for Tandberg tape decks. I had been interested in their RTR machines for a long time.
Rich
Rich
Ladies and Gentlemen, be sure to tune in again next week for the Dolph Quiz Show!
Dolph, it sounds like your judgement of the forum membership is a little harsh, being based upon one subject (an obsolete medium). I think you'll find our members to be very knowledgeable on a wide variety of subjects. Take a look around and see for yourself!
Lee
Dolph, it sounds like your judgement of the forum membership is a little harsh, being based upon one subject (an obsolete medium). I think you'll find our members to be very knowledgeable on a wide variety of subjects. Take a look around and see for yourself!
Lee
I had some Nakamichis in the past, but never the 1000 or the Dragon - the best cassette deck I have heard was a Revox tape recorder, followed by the 1000. Problem with Nakamichis was that tapes recorded there were not that great played in other decks, level was lower than the standard.
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Then you must be after this Tandberg:
Yep.
This is above 3004, 3014, 3014A which all are above the best Nakamichi, Revox, Teac or any other Cassette Deck manufacturer ever came up with.
I just do not hope that majority of answers on this forum here, shows any democratic process in choosing what's the right answer.
Akai; Sharp, Pioneer?
Why not then suggest Philips as the best speaker manufacturer or Shure for stylus & cartridges, Lada for cars, Casio for wrist watches and Parker for fountain Pens.
And then there's the fact that the American market where always missing a lot of high end quality products, launched on the European market through time.
Easy to see on the market for cars. Maybe not as easy to spot on the market of HiFi, but sure still a fact.
"dolph"
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I found this description of the TCD 3014 at an eBay sales, written by seller packrat014 :
" The TCD 3014 features a microprocessor-controlled 3 head, dual capstan closed loop mechanism with 4 servo-controlled motors and Dolby B/C noise reduction. The individual motors (capstan motor, pair of motors for the belt-driven supply side and take-up side hubs, plus head bridge motor) are constantly monitored by the computer. This allows the deck to wind at fantastic speeds without risking tape damage as well as ensuring incredibly stable tape path with minimal wow & flutter. The mechanism is built on a 5mm thick pressure-rolled aluminum plate which ensures rigid support for the moving parts. It has very large flywheels of differing diameter and drives them with belts of completely different size, to minimize the chances of any resonance. The hubs are belt-driven by two separate motors and those belts are again asymmetrical. No detail was overlooked in making sure this deck had the smoothest and most accurate mechanism available at any price. Like many Nakamichi decks, the record head azimuth is adjustable from the front panel using a built-in test tone, ensuring proper frequency response on every tape you record. It also offers a tape selection switch for Type I, Type II, and metal tape types and has front panel adjustment and test tones for setting bias and record current accurately for each tape type. The level meters are true peak-reading design with slow decay and are connected to the signal path after the record equalization so they monitor the signal being applied to the record head, not coming into the record amplifier. This provides for maximum accuracy in setting optimal recording levels. In addition, Tandberg included DYNEQ and ACTILINEAR II, their two proprietary technologies to extract maximum performance from the cassette format. DYNEQ works similarly to Dolby HX Pro to extend headroom during recording, with the use of dynamic record equalization. ACTILINEAR II is a transconductance amplifier that combines the music and bias signals and converts them to pure current, allowing bandwidth so wide it can actually pass square wave bias frequencies. The build quality of these decks is also exceptional. Tandberg specified the use of expensive metal parts wherever needed to ensure stable, accurate tape handling. They also used high-grade components throughout the electronics, such as polystyrene or polypropylene capacitors. This resulted in an ultra wideband design able to pass a signal with no audible degradation in sound quality or imaging. "
BTW, Tandberg manufactured excellent tape and cassette machines, but the jewel of the crown were their tuners.
" The TCD 3014 features a microprocessor-controlled 3 head, dual capstan closed loop mechanism with 4 servo-controlled motors and Dolby B/C noise reduction. The individual motors (capstan motor, pair of motors for the belt-driven supply side and take-up side hubs, plus head bridge motor) are constantly monitored by the computer. This allows the deck to wind at fantastic speeds without risking tape damage as well as ensuring incredibly stable tape path with minimal wow & flutter. The mechanism is built on a 5mm thick pressure-rolled aluminum plate which ensures rigid support for the moving parts. It has very large flywheels of differing diameter and drives them with belts of completely different size, to minimize the chances of any resonance. The hubs are belt-driven by two separate motors and those belts are again asymmetrical. No detail was overlooked in making sure this deck had the smoothest and most accurate mechanism available at any price. Like many Nakamichi decks, the record head azimuth is adjustable from the front panel using a built-in test tone, ensuring proper frequency response on every tape you record. It also offers a tape selection switch for Type I, Type II, and metal tape types and has front panel adjustment and test tones for setting bias and record current accurately for each tape type. The level meters are true peak-reading design with slow decay and are connected to the signal path after the record equalization so they monitor the signal being applied to the record head, not coming into the record amplifier. This provides for maximum accuracy in setting optimal recording levels. In addition, Tandberg included DYNEQ and ACTILINEAR II, their two proprietary technologies to extract maximum performance from the cassette format. DYNEQ works similarly to Dolby HX Pro to extend headroom during recording, with the use of dynamic record equalization. ACTILINEAR II is a transconductance amplifier that combines the music and bias signals and converts them to pure current, allowing bandwidth so wide it can actually pass square wave bias frequencies. The build quality of these decks is also exceptional. Tandberg specified the use of expensive metal parts wherever needed to ensure stable, accurate tape handling. They also used high-grade components throughout the electronics, such as polystyrene or polypropylene capacitors. This resulted in an ultra wideband design able to pass a signal with no audible degradation in sound quality or imaging. "
BTW, Tandberg manufactured excellent tape and cassette machines, but the jewel of the crown were their tuners.
I'm sure I speak for all the other forum members when I say that I am damn glad that you've decided to post here....damn glad.
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