Direct drive motors in cassette decks have some assurance of lack of some belts but not all. Most dual capstan direct drive decks have a belt driven off the direct drive motor driving the second capstan. Often these are not too hard to replace if need be. But decks all have other belts or drive concerns . The belt that drives the tape counter digital or analogue and many decks use an idler tire to operate FF and REW. These can be PIA at times.
All vintage decks are going to be a chance buy, that's the price of old age. Most may operate fine but many will need service. I've been into cassette decks for some time now. Many bought cheap at thrifts but worked just fine others including higher end brands/models not so. If it's a deck that you like, love or coveted then it's possibly wort paying for a technician to fix or adjust for better performance.
The best era for better to TOTL deck was from oh about 1979-80 to oh maybe 1992-94.
Most of the better Made In Japan brands had good 3 head decks and would make very high quality tapes if in good working order and if used/operated properly.
All vintage decks are going to be a chance buy, that's the price of old age. Most may operate fine but many will need service. I've been into cassette decks for some time now. Many bought cheap at thrifts but worked just fine others including higher end brands/models not so. If it's a deck that you like, love or coveted then it's possibly wort paying for a technician to fix or adjust for better performance.
The best era for better to TOTL deck was from oh about 1979-80 to oh maybe 1992-94.
Most of the better Made In Japan brands had good 3 head decks and would make very high quality tapes if in good working order and if used/operated properly.