Reel to Reel: Treasure or Trash?


My late father gave me an old Crown 800 reel to reel machine and a collection of jazz tapes. Other than the sentimental value, the thing is ugly and huge and will need some $$$ to repair/restore. Could this thing sound any good with a little TLC? How would I use it? Does anyone care about this format anymore or am I just wasting time and money?
joel_clurmanf183
I still use reel to reel. How many tapes do you have and what condition are they in ??
I have had reel to reels in my system since the mid 60's. I still enjoy the wonderful analog sound they produce. I also have a DAT and CDR for digital. While the DAT and CDR make exact copies of digital I think something is lost when you use analog as the source. I do make cd copies from lps for the car but when I want that analog sound for my home system I listen to lps or my reel. New blanks are still available and it's not too difficult to find used reels at good prices. You can also find pre-recorded reels out there but they are starting to become expensive. Good luck.
Rec -- thank you. The main thing for me is the sentimental value of the machine. Does anyone know if the Crown 800 is a good one? Is it worth anything if it is repaired? Also, if I don't have many tapes or wish to go and find them, what the hell would I do with the machine? Would it be useful or musical to archive LPs? Thanks for the advice.
I have an Akai professional 1/4 inch half-track with a separate tube amplification/power supply unit. The vinyl I've recorded to tape becomes somehow "improved". I agree. It makes no sense. But when I play the tape against the vinyl it was recorded from, the tape is FAR better. I think it removes the background noise of the turntable but I'm not sure. I guess the most important question is: How much do they want to repair the Crown open reel recorder and what exactly is wrong with it??? Keep me posted.
My father had hundreds of pre recorded reel to reels. Last I saw them they were just sitting in boxes. Next time I swing by my mothers house I will grab them and let you know what they are. I have no use for them.
Perfectimage,what type of music are your reel to reels and how much do you want for them?
Ill have to check. The only thing I can remember is there were some Beatles but other then that I dont know. I wouldnt want hardly anything for them but I dont know what two decades in the cellar has done to them. I also dont have a reel to reel myself to try them out. Ill swing by ths week sometime and pick them up.