Is idler drive better than belt drive or direct drive?

@oldhvymec  You can still get recording tape including cassettes- talk to the good folks at ATR.


If you get some Silica Gel packets and a plastic bag, throw in the packet when you store the tape in its bag in its box. It lasts a lot longer before you have to bake it!

By the way - tapes have massive droppoff in high frequency over time, not to mention bleed through ( from layer to layer ). I used to import Reference recordings - talk to Keith Johnson about tape quality, there is no decent tape made any more since the 60's.

If tape is properly cared for the highs will hold up just fine. Regarding the tape quality thing, what Keith was talking about is tape shedding. Tapes made on acetate don't shed much and so they store better than tape made on polyester. That change happened in the late 1960s. But if polyester based tape is stored properly (low humidity) then it won't shed. By baking a polyester tape at the right temperature you can reduce shedding dramatically. But beyond that, tape made today dramatically outperforms any tape made in the 1960s or before!

When he changes from TT to Tape, you don’t want him to go back to TT!

@mglik 

If the LP was not a direct to disk then this is very easy to see. Of course a lot depends on what was used for playback of the LP in the example.

Better off with Reel to reel in the analog realm, going REAL low...

Keeping in mind of course that the LP has superior LF response when compared to reel to reel.

What is important is that the turntable have a robust drive that does not slow down when the stylus lands in the groove and the like. So the motor should have a bit of torque! You'll find that the most respected machines have this quality and this is true of vintage machines like the Garrard. They usually also have a platter that is effective as a flywheel.

Its also important that the 'table have an effective plinth; effective in that it is both dead (well damped) and rigid in such a way that the bearing of the platter is very well coupled to the base of the tonearm. This insures minimum coloration on account of vibration.