Otari or Technics Reel-to-Reel ?

Depending on how critical your SYSTEM is at revealing fine details (and reproducing background noise (i.e. tape hiss)), you have to pick a tape deck that is a good match. There are ALSO a number of good Teac and Tascam decks- some that offer 4 heads-
three half-track and one quarter-track (PB) head, and also some Otari machines with 4 heads as well. BUT...Make sure you aren't going to be sorry you didn't opt for a machine with auto-reverse if you hate threading tape. One-direction machines use twice as much tape for the same recording times. Tape is NOT inexpensive, but with patience you can eventually find someone who will sell a reel of used (SPLICE-FREE) tape for under $40, or even $30.
I have a few tape-project tapes and they DO sound very good, but the "super tape-nerds" like to tell me i need a $20K deck to get to the "promised land" (referring to demos that have taken place at audio shows) where these recordings will sound better than any other source material. But in defiance I have done the unthinkable- loaded them on a Teac X-2000M half-track deck (un-modified). They sound fine to my ears-go figure. Was i blown away? No, but i don't think my system has ever
sounded "better". I do wish someone out there would perhaps engineer some better circuitry to modify those machines- let's say, $1000-$3000. WHY? Because, they already are versatile enough to play most tapes, AND you can record with them also.
there are a lot of choices out there, but clearly not many that meet BOTH the prosumer and semi-professional needs of audiophiles. you either have to get a full blown professional deck (that no one wants to ship), or put up with a lot of plastic and silly features (like cheap cuing devices, rec-mute, heads that "never wear out", and a long list of questionable features listed across the head-cover). Very little or no decks fall in between these two categories.
The very lucky and well-off will make room for a console deck (Studer, Ampex, MCI, Otari, etc.) and wire outboard playback amplifiers to the PB heads. I hope they are handy calibrating and maintaining such glorious machines, or know someone that can come over once a year and do it for them. But you really need one hell of a system to match studio-grade decks' performance. I LOVE tape recorders, but this
is not something i want to deal with- even as much as i want exceptional reproduction of Beethoven and Sonny Rollins.

I own an Otari MX-55N and it's a great machine. But the MTR-12's and 15's are even better, at least mechanically (fully professional studio machines). Also, the capstan needs to be
re-lubricated every so often by removing the "deck skin", This is accomplished after removing a great deal more than just the head cover. And it uses a special oil as well. It can be calibrated but you need test tapes. All fine and well. The thick manual goes on and on and on about special adjustments, features, options, etc.
A prosumer deck has no such requirements. You clean and demagnetize and that is IT. Of course i hate the plastic and the cheap off-the-shelf components.
And THAT was my whole point- I would want an relatively easy to use machine with an easy to understand manual, but using far-better parts made to last a much longer time under use and also sound quite a bit better as well. And i hate when people tell me that even a properly working Otari or Revox, Technics, etc. sounds like crap with the "stock electronics".
Name me one machine (not the one for over $20,000) that can fill in for a great turntable, or a similar CDP that plays SACD's. Anyway, i am working on just such a project (perhaps a modified Studer A810).

you can get a Studer A-820 master recorder with additional outboard electronics for less than $25K. It's knowing how to maintain and professionally service these machines- or find someone who really knows what they're doing that can come over to your house. That (for me) presents the real challenge even if you have a large bank account.
Perhaps with the abundance of Teac decks on Ebay and elsewhere for sale, someone could improve upon THEIR parts-quality and put them out there for people with good hi-fi systems (like you and me). Akai, Technics, Revox, Sony, and others are also quite popular machines, and are now selling for a lot of money already, especially if they still work. Why can't a guy with an intimate knowledge of electronics upgrade them significantly beyond their original (read- 1980 Pioneer receiver quality) design? Anyone??