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Vintage Tape (Audio), Cassette, Wire and Magnetic Disc Recorders and Players Open-reel tape recorders, cassette recorders, 8-track players etc.

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Old 10th Feb 2009, 2:49 pm   #1
Growlerman
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Default Best Portable cassette player

Hi

After playing around with mp3 and wma I have returned to using the humble audio cassette and have been putting some of my records on tape to play in my van as well as at home.
I tried an Asda mono radio cassette machine but the transport failed after about 18mths so I have been using my 10yr old Hitachi mono radio/cassette player as there is no much choice in new boomboxes with cassette player. I have tried a couple and find the tape decks very poor with very audible wow and flutter, my Hitachi is much better.

What older cassette radio machines are worth seeking out? I'm not bothered about stereo or Dolby but it must be easily portable and contain built in speaker(s) and have a resonable tape deck.
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Old 10th Feb 2009, 2:56 pm   #2
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Default Re: Best Portable cassette player

Most Japanese machines from the early 1980s will be fine, e.g. from Sony, Panasonic, Sharp, Toshiba, Hitachi, etc.

Many later machines are fine too.

Be prepared to fit new belts and give the mech a good clean though.

Avoid anything too flashy, e.g. autoreverse, double decks etc.

If you find something potentially suitable, ask us about it here (but don't mention specific eBay lisitings, of course).

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Old 10th Feb 2009, 3:08 pm   #3
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Default Re: Best Portable cassette player

Thanks Nick

I remember the big "Ghetto Blasters" in the 80's, my gran had a wonderful Hitachi stereo one that I persuaded her to buy. Built like a tank with a powerful sound but it was large!

I can't remember anybody making a compact mono unit of high quality only Sharp with features like apss.
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Old 10th Feb 2009, 3:17 pm   #4
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Default Re: Best Portable cassette player

My choice would be the SONY CFS-201L from 1998 onwards, I bought one new in 1991 and it's still going strong although a bit battered now. They had a long production run, Plenty at bootsales, I got a mint white one for £1 recently, Good sensitive radio with shortwave and the tapedeck seems reliable, Makes excellent off air recordings, Best with TDK "D" tapes. .
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Old 10th Feb 2009, 3:19 pm   #5
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Default Re: Best Portable cassette player

I recently repaired a few late 80s-early 90s sony boomboxes. SONY CFS-w350L, CFD-565L, CRD-Z130
all solid as a rock, detachable speakers and light. just needed new belts, contact spray, some mechanical adjustment. Easy to dismamntle and service.
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Old 10th Feb 2009, 3:48 pm   #6
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Default Re: Best Portable cassette player

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Originally Posted by mickjjo View Post
My choice would be the SONY CFS-201L .
Yes, basic but very reliable. I found one on bin day years ago, needed a new output IC (£1 or so), perfect ever since.

Not convinced about its recording abilities though. Doesn't it have a horrid PM erase "head" too


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Old 10th Feb 2009, 4:44 pm   #7
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Default Re: Best Portable cassette player

Didn't Sharp do a series of radio/cassette machines prefixed by QT? What are they like?

I have seen them turn up at bootfairs for a couple of quid.

Would I be right in steering away from the Philips machines as I believe that the tape decks were largely made of plastic? I remember one range of Philips shoebox recoders having plastic head blocks, The plastic would break and you'd loose any azimuth adjustment 'cos the head just flapped about!
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Old 10th Feb 2009, 5:14 pm   #8
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Default Re: Best Portable cassette player

Quote:
Originally Posted by Growlerman View Post
Didn't Sharp do a series of radio/cassette machines prefixed by QT? What are they like?

I have seen them turn up at bootfairs for a couple of quid.

Would I be right in steering away from the Philips machines as I believe that the tape decks were largely made of plastic? I remember one range of Philips shoebox recoders having plastic head blocks, The plastic would break and you'd loose any azimuth adjustment 'cos the head just flapped about!
I have a black Sharp QT-250 as my bedside radio which I've had from new. Very good sound for a basic model (separate tweeters) and I've had no real trouble since I bought it around 1985. The original belts are still going strong.

I don't think any particular brand is bad, it's just that the quality started to go downhill after the mid 80s as affordable CD players arrived and cassettes moved to the bottom end of the market. As a good rule of thumb, anything with twin decks is something to avoid, though they're not all rubbish.

The Sony stuff from the 1990s was above average but still not as good as mid 80s models.

Paul
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Old 10th Feb 2009, 6:07 pm   #9
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Default Re: Best Portable cassette player

I would tend to agree with you. I'm after something with a decent tape deck made with metal as a lot of the chinese made machines these days have plastic tape mechanisms no flywheels and thus problems with pitch stability.
I'm not even worried if it's mono as I'm tending to listen to recordings of UK dance bands of the 1930's and early jazz with a bit of 1940's swing music.

They just don't sound the same played on an Ipod
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Old 10th Feb 2009, 11:05 pm   #10
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Default Re: Best Portable cassette player

Philips did indeed make some plastic mechs in the mid 80s on, but I am amazed by their robustness. I've been using a 'double deck sound machine' for the last 7 or so years for language teaching purposes and it has been excellent. It has cue and review on the decks, a good graphic EQ, separate tweeters, AC bias, counter....In all that time I think I changed one pinch roller and adjusted the clutch on the second deck (excess TU tension) .
Also remember we're talking about something which has been in heavy use most afternoons for that whole period, and which has been given a real thrashing (reoeated rewinding and replaying parts of dialogues, duplicating materials, etc., etc). I think it is a DD 6679 model - will check. Highly recommended!
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Old 10th Feb 2009, 11:11 pm   #11
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Default Re: Best Portable cassette player

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Originally Posted by Growlerman View Post
I would tend to agree with you. I'm after something with a decent tape deck made with metal as a lot of the chinese made machines these days have plastic tape mechanisms no flywheels and thus problems with pitch stability.
Wise to avoid them, all the recent mini systems I have seen, even those by sony, philips and the like, have had crummy plastic flywheels hardly deserving of the name. And awful tin mechs with parts which bend even under normal use. -really grim.
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Old 10th Feb 2009, 11:12 pm   #12
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Default Re: Best Portable cassette player

The Grundig machines up to around 1982 or so are very well made & if you connect one to a decent external speaker the sound quality is excellent for a small unit.
Philips are ok too up to around 1980 or so, they used metal mechanism chassis up until then (but you'll have to change the belts!); after the early 80's they costed everything down with plastic mechs & creaky plastic cases.
I think the best made machine I've seen is my Nordmende Globecorder 686 radio/cassette with its handwired pcb's.
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Old 10th Feb 2009, 11:12 pm   #13
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Default Re: Best Portable cassette player

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Originally Posted by Growlerman View Post
Didn't Sharp do a series of radio/cassette machines prefixed by QT? What are they like?
not bad, but a few used rubber idlers for the TU spool drive which by now need changing. this makes them need a bit more work on them to get going than some other makes.
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Old 11th Feb 2009, 2:09 pm   #14
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Default Re: Best Portable cassette player

How about the Sony TCS-2000? It looks like an ordinary shoebox portable cassette recorder but has two motors and a direct drive capstan (not even the TC-D5 or the Walkman Pro had one of those!) Wow and flutter are obviously very well surpressed and the rest of the machine isn't bad either. I can post some pictures later if anyone's interested to see one.
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Old 11th Feb 2009, 5:41 pm   #15
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Default Re: Best Portable cassette player

I'd be interested to see any pictures of the Sony.

It looks like I'll be going round the bootfairs with a real purpose now

The new Philips CD boombox we have has an awful tape deck and when I had a peek at it it was largely a plastic affair ( inc flywheels)with some flimsy tin parts and a revolving permanent magnet for the erase head. That's why I've dug out my old Hitachi which sounds better but still has too many plastic deck parts for my liking.
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Old 11th Feb 2009, 6:04 pm   #16
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Default Re: Best Portable cassette player

I have a little Hitachi TRQ-30 mono reporters style recorder here.. It's free to a good home if you want it and can arrange collection. Everything must go.

Works just fine, at one point I was toying with the idea of turning it into a "micro" guitar amp, but it's just too good of a little machine to scrap. One problem I can see for your use is it only has a mic input.

Also.. a Toshiba RT-330FL .. needs some work as the rubber bits have perished. Otherwise I remember it works and the fm radio sounds very nice. It has line in connections.. again free if it can be collected.

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Old 11th Feb 2009, 10:09 pm   #17
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Default Re: Best Portable cassette player

Baggrus

Thanks I would certainly be interested in the Toshiba.

I'm not too far away from you.
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Old 11th Feb 2009, 10:46 pm   #18
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Default Re: Best Portable cassette player

are you after a radio-cassette or just a cassette recorder?
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Old 12th Feb 2009, 10:44 am   #19
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Default Re: Best Portable cassette player

I suppose my first choice would be with a radio but it depends on what I can get. The main thing I'm looking for is battery/mains operation without separate speakers.
Oh and tea making facilities would be good.....only joking!
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Old 12th Feb 2009, 7:31 pm   #20
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Default Re: Best Portable cassette player

Tandberg did some nice rugged ones for the educational market, one of which was, IIRC,a re-badged Hitachi.
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