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Old 8th Nov 2007, 11:00 am   #81
Electric-Hair
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Default Re: brands of tape now and in the past?

I see we are on to cassette now.

Iv got this cheapy one that was sold in Woolworths and it is Australian made. Its a ACME HXG(extra high grade) normal postion tape. And it sounds very nice indeed, reminds me a bit of the Maxell XL11's a little bit.

Iv got his other nice one that has a very colorful sound indeed but prone to dropouts, it a Philips CD MASTER super chrome tape.

You can still get cassette tapes made in china and ordered to your own spefications too. That what some of the manufucatures might have been doing and putting on their own label. The other main grocery stores in australia have their own labelled cassettes and VHS tapes on their shelves.

Anyway I tried to make my own Reel boxes using up some old post office packaging. I think you can order boxes, but there not clearly advertised here. If you got one or two empty spare reels to fill up, it worth a try. Cut a rectangle shape piece of light carboard and fold it and cut out some sides and glue. Glue does cost a few dollars, though Probably don't save too much in the end, but it personalised and might turn into a collectors item.
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Old 8th Nov 2007, 5:24 pm   #82
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Default Re: brands of tape now and in the past?

I used to use some tapes from Woolies as well that were quite good for the money. The chrome ones were quite reliable considering they saw a lot of running through Walkmans and such!

I have some TDK AR-X tapes from 1991 which are still in the original packaging!

I have a Marantz SD4000 3-head 2-speed cassette deck which I use for saturation and delay effects in my studio. It takes to TDK SF very well. It's a really flexible method as I can try different types of tape and different EQ/bias settings (they don't necessarily need to match!) to create different colours of sound. The Record Mute button is nicely placed but pretty pointless, so I'm going to remove it and replace it with a Varispeed knob someday; one that pulls out to operae, and pushes back in to go back to preset speed!
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Old 8th Nov 2007, 11:22 pm   #83
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Default Re: brands of tape now and in the past?

Quote:
Originally Posted by James B View Post
. The Record Mute button is nicely placed but pretty pointless, so I'm going to remove it and replace it with a Varispeed knob someday; one that pulls out to operae, and pushes back in to go back to preset speed!
sorry to get OT but thouight this would be useful if we're talking about tape deck mods:

http://www.b0b.com/infoedu/slowtape.html

perhaps we need a new thread if others have ideas. Ben
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Old 9th Nov 2007, 1:29 am   #84
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Default Re: brands of tape now and in the past?

Thanks for the link, Ben. The deck actually has an internal preset that I plan on wiring to one side of the switch, and the other to an external pot, so it's just switching between the two.

Back to the OP: Has anyone found problems with old TDK D tapes (grey shell) being prone to dropouts? I have a tape full of Commodore 64 programs that needs some digital restoration to get it to work!
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Old 10th Nov 2007, 11:25 am   #85
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Default Re: brands of tape now and in the past?

Hi.

I've come to this thread a little late I see, but the trend towards cassette tapes caught my interest.

I thought it worth mentioning that whilst I have encountered several problems with 'sticky shed' on reel to reel, I have never had a single problem with cassettes.* I still have some 300+ cassettes languishing in a bookcase in my bedroom(!), including around a dozen unopened TDK SA90's. The majority are TDK of one type or another and I have never had a duff one. So I still grab anything with TDK on it to this day.

*Slight fib there. I did hang on to a very high quality solid metal shelled 'metal formulation' cassette to use 'for something special'. When I finally went to use it, meltdown had occurred. Still have the casing though, which now contains TDK SA!

Also, it was interesting to note the comments re 'stretch' etc on the 'International' tape. When I was young and still had hair (long time ago) I used to buy this stuff from an 'Alladin's Cave' of a shop called THE SHOP ON THE BRIDGE in Reading. Admittedly, I only used it on purely domestic machines but it served me very well indeed and I still have recordings made on it. Transferred to digital medium of course....

Cheers,
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Old 11th Nov 2007, 10:58 am   #86
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Default Re: brands of tape now and in the past?

I remember another cassette brand............PYRAL SPRINT ! ianj
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Old 11th Nov 2007, 1:54 pm   #87
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Default Re: brands of tape now and in the past?

I remember this very old cassette from the year 1963. This is a pic from the original 1st compact cassette from Philips brand. I found it hidden in my collection.
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Old 17th Nov 2007, 8:31 am   #88
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Default Re: brands of tape now and in the past?

Quote:
Originally Posted by James B View Post
I have some TDK AR-X tapes from 1991 which are still in the original packaging!
One of these I suppose...? http://www.tapedeck.org/400/TDK_SAX90.jpg

Always packaged like, by taking off the wrapper you've spoilt it Chrome was quite expensive just for one. I must say that tapes sitting in the shop shelf are not climate controlled and might also be the same case in regards for delivery of tapes too shop as well.
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Old 17th Nov 2007, 9:49 am   #89
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Default Re: brands of tape now and in the past?

Anyway, for those who have those multitrack cassette machine's it the chrome one's that you need. Not many are making cassettes now, but still there are some old/new stock floating about.

Its either the Maxell or the TDK that are recomended for those machines and are the most favoured. But BASF might be O/K if thats all you can get.

Maxell Chrome - I prefer
http://www.tapedeck.org/400/Maxell_XLII-S_90.jpg

OR

TDK chrome
http://www.tapedeck.org/400/TDK_SA-X_90.jpg



some other's
That's(originally called trident) Metal tape at chrome position is very interesting.
http://www.tapedeck.org/400/Thats_MG-X90.jpg

BASF chrome
http://www.tapedeck.org/400/BASF_Chrome-MaximaII_90.jpg

phillips
http://www.tapedeck.org/400/Philips_CDone_90.jpg

Fuji chrome
http://www.tapedeck.org/400/Fuji_JP-IIX_pro_90.jpg

Denon chrome
http://www.tapedeck.org/400/Denon_HD8S_100.jpg

Sony chrome
http://www.tapedeck.org/400/Sony_UX-S_90.jpg

Agfa chrome
http://www.tapedeck.org/400/AGFA_Stereo-Chrom_90.jpg

Scotch chrome
http://www.tapedeck.org/400/scotch_xs_II_90.jpg

Memorex chrome dioxide
http://www.tapedeck.org/400/memorex_chromdioxide_90.jpg


Is there any ampex cassette? If they are they cannot be too noteworthy?
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Old 17th Nov 2007, 9:22 pm   #90
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Default Re: brands of tape now and in the past?

Ampex did make cassettes, but from all accounts they weren't that wonderful compared to the well known hi-fi brands (TDK etc).
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Old 17th Nov 2007, 10:57 pm   #91
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Default Re: brands of tape now and in the past?

Is it worth stickying this?

Cheers,

Steve P.
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If we've always had it, why is the Car Boot open? You're not sneaking another Old TV in are you...?
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Old 17th Nov 2007, 11:19 pm   #92
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Default Re: brands of tape now and in the past?

Hi,

Not wishing to feel left out, here's a 'Scotch Classic' 90-minute blank 8-track cartridge.

Cheers, Kat
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Old 26th Nov 2007, 2:16 pm   #93
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Default Re: brands of tape now and in the past?

Getting back to reel-to-reel tape, there are some goodies on this page to look at that maybe of interest.

quantegy, ampex, scotch, maxwell, sony, concertape.......and nice empty reels too

http://www.randallareed.com/Reel_to_Reel_Tape.htm
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Old 29th Nov 2007, 3:02 am   #94
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Default Re: brands of tape now and in the past?

Hi, I can get probably hold of a batch of Scotch 209 tapes on 18 cm Ø reels.

Are these worth while or do they suffer from "sticky shed" syndrome ?

Regards, Raymond
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Old 1st Dec 2007, 1:19 pm   #95
Electric-Hair
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Default Re: brands of tape now and in the past?

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Hi, I can get probably hold of a batch of Scotch 209 tapes on 18 cm Ø reels.

Are these worth while or do they suffer from "sticky shed" syndrome ?

Regards, Raymond
I think it all comes down to how well they have been stored, its a bit of a gamble and those one are many years old too are they not? New tape can be stored badly too though? Scotch make sticky tape too...mmmm....

I wound up picking up mostly new old stock of a few different brands just to get started i.e basf, scotch, ampex, TDK...ect But, I think I will stick mainly to new from now on. I have to somehow record something now.....
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Old 5th Dec 2007, 11:25 am   #96
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Default Re: brands of tape now and in the past?

Ive been going through my old cassettes of radio shows, and recording them onto cd---my deck is a Technics, superb.......... the blank cassettes are mainly tdk--Ive never had a duff tdk , even the ones from 1979...........................the scotch are terrible, along with agfa's , as they play fine, but have "lost" all their treble!! ianj
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Old 7th Dec 2007, 2:55 am   #97
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Default Re: brands of tape now and in the past?

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I.the scotch are terrible, along with agfa's , as they play fine, but have "lost" all their treble!! ianj
check the pressure pad. in most the scotch these were a glued springy pad which disintegated and hence lost tape-head contact- put the spòols into decent shells for good playback.
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Old 8th Feb 2008, 12:24 pm   #98
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Default Re: brands of tape now and in the past?

This is a very long thread......here I have is the article on "How magnetic tape is made". Iv put the individual links up for each page to make easier.

http://reel2reeltexas.com/vinAd73MakingTape01.jpg

http://reel2reeltexas.com/vinAd73MakingTape02.jpg

http://reel2reeltexas.com/vinAd73MakingTape03.jpg

http://reel2reeltexas.com/vinAd73MakingTape04.jpg

http://reel2reeltexas.com/vinAd73MakingTape05.jpg

http://reel2reeltexas.com/vinAd73MakingTape06.jpg

http://reel2reeltexas.com/vinAd73MakingTape07.jpg

http://reel2reeltexas.com/vinAd73MakingTape08.jpg

http://reel2reeltexas.com/vinAd73MakingTape09.jpg

http://reel2reeltexas.com/vinAd73MakingTape10.jpg



I better mention the groovy site the links came from "Phantom Productions"
http://reel2reeltexas.com/index.html
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Old 8th Feb 2008, 9:35 pm   #99
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Default Re: brands of tape now and in the past?

Great reading and very interesting.

Thanks Electric - Hair.

Raymond
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