TDK or Maxell?
Nikon or Canon ?
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To effer's list, I would add:Saul MarantzHenry KlossAvery FisherEdward VilchurPeter WalkerJon DahlquistRichard SequerraJohn CurlBruce MooreConrad and Johnson Arnold Nudell....and this only gets us up to about 1980, and I've undoubtedly left out some great designers, thinkers, and all around eccentrics that have made this hobby a labor of love. |
I used the best cassette tape to make decent recordings on Tandberg deck (don't remember the number) and Nakamichi ZX7. Problem-So many recordings given to me were made on cheap-ass cassettes (molded/no screws, cheapest ferric oxide) non-dolby for me to transfer to digital format. Those tapes sound worse than VHS tapes look on my 4K TV. My cassettes still sound really fine but not as good as my Tandberg 9000/Technics 1500 RR 7.5 ips tapes or DAT tapes-those are amazing! |
@deadhead1000 oh shoot. I had a nakamichi ZX5 that died in 2014. what a shame. sounded so good. |
@r27y8u92 I forgot to mention that. I recently got a brand new Tascam CD-a580 that was a cassette player and CD player, and can actually take audio from CDs and CTs and put it on a flash drive (pretty cool). I don't really use the Tascam as my main cassette deck, but it does sound very good (for CDs too). |
@ricmci thanks. yeah, I have a Nakamichi LX5 at a repair shop right now, and I am really exited to get it back. I also found a JVC TW-330 cassette deck at a throft store for $15. I brought it home, and deck B (the recording deck) played tapes too fast. Thats at the shop now too. I also found a Sansui A-5 amplifier at a Goodwill. $4. SOunded really great. Unfortunately, I go to turn it on one day, and nothing happened. fuses were fine. Didnt know what it was. That is also at the shop. |
You have a good system. However, I'd like to mention there would be a better system. That is your system + CD player. Why?, CD music is far better than those from LP records. I'm not saying a kind of digital vs analog. Very long time ago,
Herbert von Karajan said that musics from cd were really better than those from LPs. He had tremendous power of acknowledging which sound reproduction was better. Period! LP sound = good, but a lot of nose (surface noise, vibrating noise, phono stage noise, etc). I do have many LPs, why? The LPs don't have CD versions (usually 1960 - 1980). So, I have to keep them, not because of superior sound! CD playing system is SCIENTIFICALLY superior to LP system! |
leemurray2007, I suggest that you should rename your thread: self demonstration of the Dunning-Kruger effect. Not agreeing to agree, I don’t disagree to disagree. Just a few random questions for you: have you ever heard of Nelson Pass, Dan D’Agostino, Michel Reverchon, Marcel Riendeau, David Reich, Jim Winey, Jason Bloom, the list could go on and go on. Let me guess, you might answer: no, no, no, no, no, no, no. |
In the 1980's I bought a Nakamachi cassette deck because I wanted the best available. It sounded magnificent when it was new, but it wore out in only one year and cost more to repair every year that to replace it, something I was not willing to do. I expect components to last and easy to repair and maintain. |
This is too funny. I had one of these back in the day. When it finally stopped working there were no parts available to repair it. Oh well. It was a nice looking unit though. Kyocera D-811 Cassette Deck Review price specs - Hi-Fi Classic (hifi-classic.net) |
Even though, back in the 80s, except for Nak. none of these brands would make my Best of list, a good many young audio enthusiasts found all of the brands listed by leemurray2007, to be an affordable solution for enjoyable listening. I have to agree about the Nak, cassette players. After having trouble with my Tandberg deck, eating tapes, my dealer set me up with a Nakamichi ZX9. It served me flawlessly for ten years and on metal tapes, made incredible recordings. After being boxed and put into storage for nearly 20 years, I got it out, had it cleaned and serviced for sale and it performed with no issues. After recently finding my old collection of tapes that I thought had been lost in a move, I'm kind of wishing I had it back. Jim |
The Harmon Kardon CD401 cassette deck was every bit as good as the Nakamichi. They only made it for one year, but it had Dolby B/C and HX Pro noise reduction, three heads, and you could bias the deck to match the tape as it had an adjustable bias circuit. When used with metal particle tapes and the HX Pro noise reduction it provided phenomenal recording and playback. |
Good list. No one comes close to Nakamichi for tape decks now a days. Some of us still love our old bootlegs and Nakamichi decks may be the best we have. I don't know anything about B&O spinners but techhnics is obviously top of the food chain. The receivers you listed are quality. Not quite MR-78 but respectable in any discussion. Don't let the naysayers put you off. Stand the test of time equipment. You should feel proud to own them if you do. |
I disagree. How do you know? Did you compare "every" level of every brand before picking your "list of the best makers of audio equipment?" How much money and time did it take to come to your conclusions? I'd say it would take a walloping lot of both for you to have any authority on the subject. And even if you were correct (which you aren't) it's just your opinion, what sounds good to your brain. More truthfully you should say "in my opinion this is the list of blah, blah, blah..." There'll always be someone to disagree! That's what you asked for, right? To hear from those of us who disagree? |
Bang and Olufsen is a lifestyle brand, not a hi-fi gear maker. I heard their $90,000.00 Beolab 90s one day which proved a massive let down. Also, their Beolab 18s. Two 4" Scanspeak mid bass drivers and a dome tweeter in a fancy, polished aluminum tube with a wooden "acoustic lens" + wireless tech for 12 grand USD. lol B&O prefers branded retail stores because it's best if their sound gear is not subjected to A/B comparisons with competitors' offerings. |
P 05129: Cassette tape was doomed when it started: not enough tape to record on,
heat if using in a car, and the 1.7 ips speed. I have had reel to reel
decks and 3 3/4 speeds sounded terrible too, 7.5 ips was listenable but
the magic occurred at 15ips. I thought the cassette format was fine for my purposes - extreme portability. I had a Nakamichi RX202 auto-reversing deck and an LX7 one-way deck after my original 1000 eventually failed. I used the RX202 to record a weekly 2-hour FM radio program with cool music that broadcast after I went to bed. I used TDK 120 minute premium ferric tape - they worked fine despite warnings. From those tapes I selected my favorites, bought their CD's and made mixes on my pro-level CDR/RW recorder and played on my home system with the aid of an early, inexpensive MSB upsampling DAC and for playing in my car. I gave away the RX202 when I moved to an area that had no decent FM but still make CD mixes on the pro-recorder. I can ill-afford today's reel-to-reel decks let alone deal with the unwieldy process of playing different music. |
if the list is meant to be decent makers of vintage production equipment, you could do worse. Say, a Technics SL1200 or B & O linear tracking table? Nakamichi Dragon I notice the list has no speakers. How about some Bose, Cerwin Vegas or JBLs. . . probably many of those paired with the listed brands back in the day. I still use an 80s Yamaha integrated. Is it the best? Nah, far from it. Is it decent sounding, trouble free and paid for? Yes. High end stuff is like comparing Ferraris or Porsches to a Ford, Chevy, Honda or Toyota. Ultra high end stuff is like comparing a Formula 1 car to a daily driver. At least price wise. Sometimes there's something to be said for Honda, Ford, Chevy, Toyota. |
