even on a nakamichi deck, i could tell that there was a mild haze over the music compared to the original LP, esp. if it was DD or digital master. but i have heard elcasets which my ears could not distinguish from the original. the elcaset sounded to my ears like top-grade consumer R to R.
That Teac deck looks insane! Spendy when new also! Looks like one recently sold for $1500.
I’ve had a couple MCS receivers pass through my hands, and they were very decent units, and held their own against contemporaneous gear from the likes of Pioneer or Kenwood.
I actually just gifted my brother an MCS 6601 turntable this year. Solid performer.
I still use and love my dragon. Have own since bought new in 83. I recorded a ton of live radio broadcasts that still sound really good. I also ran sound for bands and we were able to tap into the boards at concerts and record major acts with out them knowing. I always felt the cassette was way under valued in its day and even more today. It is close to an album and I don’t have to clean snd flip every time I listen!
Great thread! I love using my 682ZX and CR4 machines. The dolby C with then newer chip in the CR4 is incredible. Very quiet. This is as far as tape technology got for me. I love the sound of tape and I can hear it on a good system. I like it because of that. Best source to record from is vinyl. I also recorded ALL my LPs onto HQ tape. Some still sound great today on the Nakamichi machines. The best part was grabbing a tape and just putting it in and pressing play. The record takes effort to clean and set up each time to sound good. I take care of my vinyl so it takes longer. Anyway in a perfect world I would now have a Dragon.
I had several MCS systems. The first was a 10-watt receiver with a matching cassette deck, belt drive MCS TT, and some small book shelf speakers. The second was a 33-watt receiver with a much better cassette deck, MCS 3-way speakers, MCS direct drive turntable, Realistic 5-band EQ, MCS headphones, etc. They were great systems and they truly got me hooked on hifi. I think that MCS held its own against other brands of the time. Pretty sure I bought all my stuff on layaway as I mowed lawns to save for the next stereo!
That Teac cassette deck was $1,000 new when I bought it (got it through the military catalogue for around $600ish). Surprising that they are now $1,500 used. I'd be afraid of it breaking! But it sure sounded good back then. Auto reverse, Dolby B, C, Metal, dBX, etc. It was pretty cool for sure.
Tape is still the very best medium but it is not any tape in any cassette deck, it is in higher end RTR decks. That said, and I use customized and aligned Nak 682ZX with Maxell Vertex tapes, it can and does sound real good. Biggest disappointment is a 'collapse' of a soundstage compared to the vinyl source. However, in the case of my system at least, tape sounds smoother and 'nicer'. Soon I am going to try recording off the turntable onto Panasonic pro AG line SVHS video cassette recorder. Theoretically, it should sound better than the Nak or any other cassette deck, should be close to a good RTR. The 7350 Panasonic is coming my way from Quebec. I hope it works.
Some time back I had a brand new Nakamichi DR-10 at my place. It was the first Nakamichi I had ever used. I recorded a CD to a Philips Chrome cassette. The cd player was an, Audio aero prestige capitol. To my surprise the cassette identical to the CD playback in a AB comparison. It had a hint of tape warmth, else it was the same. No loss of detail, extension or dynamics. DR-10 is an entry level Nak. It was a good revelation
Ahhh...yeah... a cassette, regardless of pedigree, is by definition going to be inferior to its source (check the specs). And yes, having worked in numerous studios (CHML, CKDS,CHMR and more) AND working for Retailers (almost ten years) who carried Nakamichi, TEAC and a wide variety of the rest (Technics, Luxman, B & O, Pioneer etc...) back in the 70's and eighties I had the opportunity to compare the various tape formats of "The Day". Open Reel tapes, especially, "Originals or commercial copies" are the best. Next, CD and Turntables (roughly even) and cassettes, being copies of the originals, are always my last choice (but great for portability). This is not to say cassettes sound bad... just don't compare them to what you copied, on a highly resolving stereo... it may lead to cognitive dissidence :(
I don't think the OP is 'dreaming' at all. Back in the '80s and '90s, I made some magnificent sounding High Bias/UDXL2 cassettes that were way more clean, punchy and dynamic than anything I would have had to put the time, expense and effort into getting off of vinyl. How many thousands did you have to spend to get rock solid bass you'd get off of a high quality tape? That went anywhere. Same for reel to reel, though you obviously couldn't take that everywhere. I just think there are a number of posters who are letting a romantic BIAS and allegiance for vinyl, possibly the most difficult format in audio, lead your thoughts.
On my 682ZX, recordings on a properly calibrated Metal tape sound really damn good. Better than the best vinyl? Not better or worse. Just different. Then again, my Nak is a better cassette deck in the world of cassette decks than my turntable (a Denon DP-59) is in the world of tables. Perhaps on my next turntable upgrade, this will change. But I love having both hobbies. Tape is fun.
Analog tape, whether open reel or cassette, is Old Tech in search of a need. Put your cassette tape deck next to your FM tuner, buggy whip and dial telephone.
Tape of any sort is just a storage system. Where are you getting your music from? Commercial pre-recorded tapes which are copied at high speed? Cassette tape technology is so 20th century.
Ive got a Nak Dragon and love popping in a tape now and then. Its worry free unlike like vinyl, zero prep, it still sounds wonderful. I enjoy it and that is really all that matters. I have both analog and digital in my system, and love music in all its formats for the most part.
I have about 10 cassettes decks and 2 RtR tape recorder's. 2 Nakamichi lower numbers but they sound fantastic. I Had a big Technics 10in.RtR but traded it.I love recorder music on tape.But it depends on the quantity of the tape .Cheap cassettes sound Cheap.
My cartridge sounds good, respectable even, from the moment the stylus is dropped.
At 30 minutes it sounds better. At 60 minutes better yet. At 120 minutes, sublime. A cassette recording made at 120 minutes sounds better than the cartridge when the cartridge is cold.
So, I got the Panasonic AG-7350 SVHS VCR and tried to record. To begin with, I decided to use my Nak 682ZX deck as a source not Nottingham turntable. Maxell Vertex cassette in the Nak and TDK XP Super Pro SVHS tape in the Panasonic. Was listening through Grado RS-1 headphones and the Panasonic's headphone amp which is quite good. The source and the recording sound a little different, I do prefer the way Panasonic sounds compared to Nak overall. There is a little more noise, as expected, but there is a bit more solidity and precision to the sound. Something this pro machine and premium 1/2" tape do very right, in the direction of good RTR deck. By the way, I compared various SVHS tapes. That TDK was the best followed by Quantegy. They were also best mechanically. Next step will be recording off vinyl. And it is two hours of uninterrupted music. Not to mention that its video performance is excellent. I have many VHS tapes to play. I like this machine. Needs good service and alignment, I guess, but even as it is, it is quite impressive.
I owned numerous Nakamichi decks and used the MR1 to record a few master recordings. Technology has transcended cassettes long ago. My biggest complaint about cassette decks and especially Nakamichi is the poor reliability. I recall sending mine MR1 decks in for repair multiple times to Nakamichi and the cost was significant. All modern digital based recording devices are far superior. If you want improved sound?: Eat less cheese!!
I have both a vintage Akai reel to reel player and I also have a 1980s vintage JVC cassette tape deck. The discussion about whether tape is better than vinyl, or even MP3's misses the point of tape. There is still a niche for tape in this world. For me it is live recordings you can't get on vinyl or CD or anywhere else for that matter, except the internet. I have made tapes (reels and cassettes) from digital sources of live concerts and such. Sure, they are not hifi but they sound fine. Why would I do this? To me, the internet is incredibly cluttered and is just a vast pile of things to sort through. I like to find the gems, the ones I really want to keep, and put them on tape. Having a physical version of a concert makes me more likely to listen to it, and it also makes it far easier to find than finding something on the internet. Also, stuff can be deleted from the internet and simply vanish. I guess you can store all this stuff on a hard drive, but again, that too can get extremely cluttered. There is just something about having a physical copy of this really cool concert you found.
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