#Soundesign tapedeck and recordplayer full size#
#Soundesign tapedeck and recordplayer manual#
#Soundesign tapedeck and recordplayer portable#

It has three heads, a full manual calibration feature and a stable drive mechanism. The DR-M24HX was made between 1988 and 87 and is highly regarded among tape ‘heads’. It also has the distinction of beating the highly regarded Sony WM-DC6 Walkman Pro in a What Hi-Fi test back in the day.ĭenon is still a player in the audio business, with a range of stereo and surround amplifiers that are generally good quality.

#Soundesign tapedeck and recordplayer full size#

The DX-57 is an early nineties model with three heads, full size headphone jack and the option to adjust bias for different tape types. Now primarily associated with electronic instruments Akai was once a tape specialist with a large range of models including reel to reels. Below are a few of the better models that are available second hand, happy hunting.

If you can find a good servicing company most models can be kept running. I visited a hi-fi show in Warsaw recently and discovered that they still use tape recorders from the seventies and had a beautiful wall of the things on display.

On the whole cassette decks were made in Japan where the standard of engineering is very high, this is why so many vintage models are still in use, and if the price is right it can be worth getting a tape deck repaired. Some may recall the mangled mess that a faulty tape deck can make out of a cassette, that’s obviously something to avoid. If you can listen to a tape deck before you buy it do so, and if you can’t make sure there is the option to return it if there’s a problem. While there is a lot to be said for buying newer models, that is those that are from the late Eighties onwards, many of the earlier or vintage models can be good if they have been looked after. When buying a used tape deck it’s worth bearing in mind that they are complex mechanical devices and that the older they are the more likely they are to have problems. A few used hi-fi retailers stock tape decks too, prices will be higher but should come with some guarantee which is useful which older models. Inevitably the most popular market place is eBay but there are quite a few on Gumtree and Preloved as well where the prices are a little better. However, as cassette was a massively popular format up until the late nineties there are plenty available second hand and often for giveaway prices.

#Soundesign tapedeck and recordplayer portable#

Today very few tape decks are still being made, in fact in our search we couldn’t find any non portable types on the market. The format is particularly popular in the experimental electronic field but also chart-topping releases are finding their way on to tape again. Tape decks or recorders are becoming increasingly popular as an alternative form of analogue source following the rather unexpected cassette comeback. With news that tapes are in fact not dead, Jason Kennedy rounds up the best cassette players for home listening and advises on what to look out for when buying vintage.