Reel to Reel is Alive & Well!


Finally after years of being seduced by the allure of reel to reel, I bought a TEAC A-3300SX deck that had been kept in grade B+ or perhaps grade A- condition for some 45 years.

One challenge though: nothing to play on it, and no blank tapes. I happened upon a copy of “Best of Cream” on 7” reel at 3-3/4 inches per second, and ordered it up. So today I received the tape in the mail and listened to it tonight to much delight. The music was alive again, rich, open and detailed. As someone else here likes to say, it seemed that tape does indeed breath, with vibrancy I’ve not heard even from vinyl.

This was so satisfying after waiting all three years. I can’t wait to receive another iconic classic “Days of Future Passed” by the Moody Blues, on its way hopefully in a day or 2 I’ll have it and report back.

So yes, reports of the death of reel to reel have been greatly exaggerated. I encourage anyone else who’s on the fence to indulge in this beautiful format.
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Showing 3 responses by sleepwalker65

The tapes were through fleabay. Noise wasn’t a concern, but I have to say this was only the first listen. Too bad the recordings weren’t at 7-1/2ips. 
Yes, half track masters are pretty much the final frontier for dedicated audiophiles. I may even break down and buy a half track 15 IPS machine if I can’t find all of the music I want in quarter track. Disposable income is a limiting factor though :-(
The tape medium, even at 3-3/4 IPS quarter track captures something I’ve not yet heard from vinyl. For instance, there’s piano on “Badge” that I heard plain as day for the first time in my 54 years. I was blown away! By the end of the week, I should be in receipt of “Days of Future Passed”,  also 3-3/4 IPS quarter track, and I am so looking forward to that!  So, I don’t think I’m going to get that same experience from recordings made off of vinyl or streaming, but I’m up for giving it a try once I have some blank tapes.