Most PRACTICAL, yet good sounding REEL to REEL ???

Tandberg not only made nice reel Machines, but made some really killer sounding units, with many very unique features, and were also very beautiful looking units, but I can also remember back, that many were reknown to be problematic, and very finnicky also.

Sony was another machine that had looks, features, but my personal finding that they too, were a basket of problems, picking up RFI, rewinding like washing machines, and had a tendency to be unreliable.

Some of the old Roberts were great, but at this stage of the game, it won't be easy finding a worthy unit.

As another mentions, the TEAC 2300 Series, and its bigger brother, the 3300 Seies would be a good place to start, have really good sound, generally held up very well, their prices for a very clean unit won't set you back too many dinero, and some parts can be found.

If you have no plans, or desires to run the larger 10" reels, nor record, or playback at 15ips, then the 2300 series machines should fit the bill nicely.

No doubt, many of the tapes you are seeing at the shops are only 3-3/4ips speed, and some may be 7-1/2ips.
You'll need to make sure the machine you wish will utilize both these speeds.

Some of the better 3300 series machines had 7-1/2ips, and also 15ips, and could use either 7", or 10" reels.

Virtually all were four track-two channel stereo machines, some had auto-reverse, and even one of the 3300 machines was a two track, meaning generally, that no pre-recorded tapes could be used on such a machine, and although the two-track was no doubt the best sounding of the 3300 series, this machine will have limited use due to its two-track play-record only feature. Fine for dubbing from CD, or LP, but won't play pre-recorded tapes you find. Mark

I'd also consider a Revox A77 deck or possibly one of the better Akai decks with the extremely long life glass heads.

I'd second a Teac. I also own a 2300SD, and think it's a fine deck - and any decent local tech should be able to lube it up & adjust it for you. You can also do it yourself if you want to try - e-mail me for a great source for Teac belts, pinch rollers & lube kits. There is no doubt that a Revox A-77 will sound better, but they're a lot more expensive to buy and maintain. You first have to decide what you're going to play back. If you are buying 7 inch pre-recorded tapes at tag sales, a 7 inch deck like the Teac 2300 series - or even a clean A-1230 - will do fine. Most 7 inch tapes available are recorded at 3 3/4 or 7 1/2 inch per second, and a small Teac deck will do a fine job at playback. If you find some 10 inch reels, or want that capability, then you're in the Teac 3300 series or Revox A77/B77 territory. If you go looking for a Teac, be careful of the models that end in "40" 2340, 3340, etc. Those are 4 channel deck, and although they will do what you want, they're overly complex for simple playback. I've owned & used quite a few Reel-toReels in my time, and would be happy to answer specific questions if you want to e-mail me.

Good luck in your search, Ed

From my experienc most of the decks that utilized one motor and hence rubber belts to activate takeup reel and other functions do not have a good chance of working properly with the correct speeds. Almost all need complete lubrication of drive parts as well as belt replacement. This goes even for the early Tandbergs and the Ampex models designed and manufactured by their home products division.

You have a better chance of success purchasing recorders with three motors. The Teac recorders fall into this category as do the Revox and the later Tandberg recorders which could utilize the large 10-1/2 inch reels. If you find a 3-motor recorder which you can see by examination to have low mileage because of its clean overall condition, you stand a good chance that it will work properly. If you find one in a garage sale or Thrift Store and can try its operation, even if it cannot be hooked up to a system, if the tape movement appears normal and the vu metters read signal, there is a good possibility that you have a preperly working recorder.

You have ambarked on an interesting challenge which can provide great satisfaction but requires a lot of time as well as patience. Good equipment with a library of tapes makes an interesting collection of appreciating collectibles. The tapes recorded at 7-1/2 ips are also sonically superior because they produce a very wide dynamic range.

Have fun!

I've seen several Tascams at local junk shops and have always had the best luck with them. Badluck with Revox. I've never used a Tandberg or Akai, although I have heard good things about the latter. The TEAC's are ok as far as reliability, but they don't sound so great. Many of the Tascam's are quartz clocked. You should do a little research in the pro-audio world though - some of the reel to reels record stripes on the wrong side, and play back that way as well - carry over from the mono era. So basically you would only get half you music (as in: out of one speaker with some analogue bleed). It is also not possible to say that one company designed this way and another never did. If you were to pay top dollar, this would not be a problem, but if you are going for curiosity and cheap, you have to worry about it.