Hey Mejias I'll be releasing some music on wire format, you know the tape decks that used to use solid wire to record on so you better go buy one of those also lol I'll only be using the highest grade of wire of course and because it's audiophile grade, I'm afraid the recordings will be priced at $100 per song but then since it's the only source for my music you would be an idiot not to rush out and buy it anyways.

Dude!If you want one go for it!I used to do the cassette thing. I had an Akai. Decent deck.I haven't listened to my tapes in years. I've been looking for a new disc player recently. I may buy a Cambridge Audio universal player.I don't see myself going back to tapes & yet I found myself looking on ebay after reading this blog. Huh?!If you were to review decks on here, I'd check them out.

Ugh, Stephen, you got me thinking about the Cassette Era, and I ended up posting a bloody essay about it on the Stereophile forum. Herewith, my 2 cents regarding your quest. Late-model Yamaha decks in really swell condition can be found on eBay for the price of lunch. They'll take a beating and keep going, unlike other high-end decks, and the motors seem not to seize up with disuse. I ran 3 of them almost daily from the late 1980s to 2000, and all 3 still work and sound as good as I've ever heard a cassette deck sound. If you want a deck really built like manly pickup truck, go for a Tascam 112 or 122. Or the Denon DRM-555, which was still being sold new as recently as 3 or so years ago. My brother has the Sony TC-WE475; pretty pretty plastic-y and cheaply built, though it gets the job done. I'd hold out for better though.I'm glad to hear that some musicians are checking out of the whole CD vs. Download angst and going for an easy-to-use format with no DRM issues. Good luck!

I notice someone else commented on the unreliability of the Nakamichi gear they'd owned. My experience has been the opposite. I've owned a range of Nakamichi cassette decks from the 480 on up to my present Dragon which is still running to the original specification on the original heads after decades of heavy use. Some years ago I bought a new transport/head mechanism as insurance in case the mechanics of the Dragon finally wore out. Well, the spare part is still sitting un-opened in it's packaging ( and no, I won't sell it!) A game I enjoy playing with the Dragon is fooling audiophiles they're listening to CD. Amazing how often, if I use a well recorded metal tape, they fall for it. Cassettes an inferior technology? Well maybe but but I'm still getting a lot of enjoyment out of mine - best money I ever spent on a piece of gear in fact I'm now picking up cassettes at garage sales for peanuts.

My TP-114 will be connected to my K-406 for another 15 years. Perhaps death of either will separate the relationship; or desire for a better pre-amp. AM baby; you'll be missed. And the ergonomic remote. And the occasional D- (talk about a longevity code in a model number!) CD connected... dual cassette deck = fool cheap dreck. Save your money and time and buy a better product.

Whatever deck you choose, take into consideration that one of the big limitations on fidelity is the original recording or duplication itself. The best decks of the cassette era were capable of recording quality that far surpassed what you heard from store-bought prerecorded cassettes.Given that you seem primarily interested in listening to pre-recorded indie releases, the duplication quality likely will vary quite a bit. Some of the old Naks had adjustable azimuth alignment which can help squeeze the best fidelity from a tape. Otherwise sound quality can be the luck of the draw depending on how well aligned the source recorder was.BTW, I've had decent luck with the Denon 555 mentioned above, as well as my Pioneer CT-W606DR which has digital NR that can be better than Dolby, believe it or not.

Well I jump on the tape wagon and I got myself a 87 Denon DR-M30HX. I don't like using NR and honestly tape noise is not an issue for me at all. I got myself a copy of DSOTH for like one buck and it is amazing. It is close to vinyl quality without the ticks and pops but not quite there.I'm happy with my purchase since I got myself a good deck and it will give my turntable its run for its money.

Oy Vey! The more I read around these blogs and forums, the dumber I get. Is this magazine interested in high performance audio, or has it become a stomping ground for complete nuttiness? The articles are blather, randoming droning on about this useless thing versus that useless thing. Two pages of blather about some deaf old man who makes things up about some oddball perception on things that are priced so into the unkown arena. There is nothing anymore to do with high performance audio. It's all irrational boredome. It's worse each month. Who are these bores? Including the forum members, the writers of prose with ZERO audio knowledge. One writer, actually uses test equipment John A. All the others blather on relentlessly about mind numbing imaginary artifacts, that can't be.

We're supposed to be going forward, not BACK Stephen. Why the heck would ANY musician only release their music on cassette?? There is no logical reason.

We're supposed to be going forward, not BACK Stephen. Why the heck would ANY musician only release their music on cassette?? There is no logical reason.I tried answering that question here:
http://blog.stereophile.com/stephenmejias/why_cassettes/There are some interesting comments after the post, as well. Maybe going back is a way of going forward.

Cassette tapes, especially metal and chrome tapes, are the best way to make recordings from analog sources like high-end turntables and reel-to-reel tapes. Cassette tapes sound great in cars stereos like the Lexus's Mark Levinson car stereos and the Acura's OEM'd Alpine car stereos. The recordings sound smooth without digital artifacts. It's good that there are still New Old Stock (NOS) high bias blank tapes for sale at mom and pop record stores. The best cassette decks being made today are the Tascam 202mkV, Tascam CD-A750, Tascam CD-A550, and Tascam CC-222SLmkII. Get one while you still can.

I see that I have the final word here, which is the way I like it. Now that Stephen has reminded me why he wants to listen to cassettes on his hifi, I say IT IS WHAT IT IS, BABY. WHAT ARE YOU GOING TO DO? Some really great bands started out as nobodys, which is the way they like it. Limiting yourself to cassette won't make you famous though, any good producer will tell you that. Audiogeeks are a strange bunch. So territorial of their own superior understanding of audio equipment---though they usually can't play a lick of music and don't have an education in electrical engineering to appreciate the difficulties involved in creating the illusion we so love. Stereophile is about the advancement of the music reproduction industry. It let's me know about new developments in the Hobby. Is there room for improvement? Yes, of course. Is cassette the answer? No it's not---but there are some qualities to analog reprodction that hopefully can be brought into the next generation of digital reproduction.

Why the heck would ANY musician only release their music on cassette??Ultimately, I feel it doesn't matter why they're doing it. All that matters is knowing that they are doing it and having a desire to appreciate the work. My question remains: If a favorite artist releases an album on cassette, would you want to hear that album?My answer to that question is yes.

I have a Nakamichi DR-3, a two-head deck. Good motors, sounds great. The only purpose of a third head is to monitor the recording in progress. You don't need to do this if you just clean the heads first. There's a bunch of them on ebay including a number with "buy now" links so you can definitely lay your hands on it if you really want it.

Hi Mark.
I'm looking for a deck that offers azimuth adjustment, such as the CD-1, DR-1, or CR-7a.

How could you all continue to write after I had already posted the final comment? You people have no respect. I mean, really...don't you read other peoples comments or just your own. Anyhoo, after mulling it all over in my head, the problem with analog equipment is reliability. In a Hobby filled with Obsessive-Compulsive behavior, the mere fact that the analog source inherently decays rests firmly in the back of one's mind. Be it the needle, the record, the tape, or the tube---the unavoidable law of entropy prevails. Does it sound as good as it did yesterday? Is something going wrong? Do I need to put a new needle on? Are the heads getting dirty? Is the tape getting to old? For the Audio Enthusiast, analog just isn't good for your well-being. And when did a record get more expensive than a CD? Well, these are just my thoughts, for what little it's worth. Maybe this cassette thing is getting a little stale. It's like hashing through a used stereo magazine. These decks mattered 20 years ago.

Once in a while on eBay you will run into an honest seller who bought the deck new and took care of it. It's best to buy from someone who bought it new and is the only owner. I have found two Sony TC-K615S (has Dolby S) at very good prices and both are like new. They are made in Japan (important) and produce high quality results with premium cassettes (you also have to shop eBay for these).With such a deck you can skip Dolby because the tape is so quiet. And they are great fun to play around with. Tape decks required user involvement and that was a great part of the fun when making recordings.

With my apologies to the Audio Dufus for continuing this thread, come on Stephen, the real reason you want a tape deck is because you're under the apparent shared dilusion that it will make you seem edgy and hip and this will somehow help you bag a hot woman. It won't my friend. It just makes you look like a 'tard, and those bands you're listening to on cassettes, also 'tards. In fact I wonder why the blatantly obvious hasn't already crossed your mind, if these so called bands are releasing music on cassette tapes, there's probably a very good reason for this...I can only hope you no longer have that fine Exposure amp if this is what you've sunk to. It deserves a better fate!

Look for an Aiwa cassette deck on ebay. The best were the models (F)660, (F)770, and (F)990. The 660 had everything you need, and nothing you don't. Sam Tellig and his cat would like this one. Three heads, dolby b/c, hx pro, settings for all tape types, and the recorded sound was indistinguishable from original FM broadcasts or records. (My hearing measured by an audiologist is 5 db more sensitive than average). The 770 had another feature or two, and the 990 had too many. The most common failing on these cassette decks was a broken rubber belt(after 20 years usage), but you can get complete sets of belts from mcmelectronics.com for $10 or so, an easy repair. Aiwa also made a model WX220, with dual transports, great for mixdowns. When we compare technologies--red book CDs, 24/96, vinyl disks, open reel or cassette--is it the technology that matters, or is it the execution of the equipment manufacture and the care taken to produce a quality recording? So, forget the Nak, get an Aiwa. They're so good....

My advice is as the above. I bought a Nak. 582 on a well known auction site in 2004 and had it serviced by Naks. U.K. agent (cost about 2/3 the auction cost of the deck). It was well worth it. If you are serious about cassettes then a Nak. is the only answer. All other makes are mere facsimilies. Any 3-head model with bias control from the 70/80's would do the job (if in essentially good condition). Suggest 581/582, ZX7/9, BX3.

"I'm looking for a deck that offers azimuth adjustment"I agree. Azimuth is so important. I remember constantly tweaking with a small screwdriver back in the days when I had a deck. I would have loved to have a little knob on the front with the word "azimuth" above it! But I was a poor college student...

Paul: Yeah, that screwdriver tweak is exactly what I'm trying to avoid.

Just found me a Nakamichi CR-1A in super minty condition. It's screaming for my old Bel Biv Devoe tapes.

One of the greatest lessons I ever learned came in the 8th grade via Bel Biv DeVoe: Never trust a big butt and a smile.

Anyone know if there were commercial big label (or small) pre-recorded albums wideley released on metal type IV? I am aware of albums released on BASF chrome, but at 120μs

Many of the bands I like only release their new music on reel-to-reel tapes or 8-tracks.

I have several decks at home, Nakamichi CR-7, DR-10, a Revox B215-S and a Sony Walkman Pro so you could say I've got it bad for the humble cassette.Vinyl is my primary listening source, tape is great for archiving, making mixtapes, portability and frankly sounds spectacularly good when you can record onto something like a TDK MA-XG, Maxell Metal Vertex, SSMM and That's Suono blanks.Last weekend I managed to pick up 450 blanks, lightly used Agfa/BASF/Maxell/Memorex/TDK and That's.Sealed blanks are not difficult to find but are becoming increasingly expensive, thank goodness for the Phoenix Audio Tape Company, who currently produce a chrome and metal tape.There are a few companies still manufacturing decks but, of course, nothing like the halcyon 1980s but you never know: cassette is cool once more, it's popping up in advertising, fashion and the indie scene.What's all this fuss about digital anyway? The best site for the cassette afficionado bar none is Tapeheads.net

For those who think digital is going forward think again, as much of the downloadable stuff, if not all of it sounds worse then a cassette, the entire internet seems to be filled with low bitrate mp3s.This is the whole reason I love my CDs and ultimately making good old mixtapes. There is nothing that sounds as good as a Maxell UD or Hitachi UD or SR, recorded on a Sony TC FX211 deck. I mix my CDs in Sound Forge, and then roll the mixes off on to a good maxell or TDK tape with NR. When the selections are played back with the NR off, there is a special kind of sound that beats mp3 by a million miles.If you love tape like I do, and have a passion to enjoy music the way it should be experienced, then checkout tapeheads.net, and http://www.phxaudiotape.com.

I have 6 decks. They are Yamahas and Naks. I just bought a Nak LX-5. It isn't so much going backwards as it is not being a sheep and following everyone else. The tape medium gives you a different sound than digital. You control your peaks and not someone else. The warmth of the music from a tape is a lot different than the sound you get from a CD that has been mixed so that on some it doesn't even sound like something you want to hear twice.To all the nay sayers. Make a tape on a nice deck with a nice tape and see what you get. It sounds better than any CD that is for sure. I'm glad companies are starting to make tapes again. I'll have to check out the forum mentioned above.

@speakerman1. do you realize how idiotic you look making comments like "I'm glad companies are starting to make tapes again. I'll have to check out the forum mentioned above." when it's you who is repackaging old tape stock and selling it, and it's you that runs www.phxaudiotape.com?