Is Nak RX-202 worth $600-700 for full refurb?

[Couldbfishin]

I bought a Nakamichi RX 202 in the mid-80's and enjoyed recording and playback for years. Then I put it into storage. I recently pulled it out and it needs refurbishment. I contacted a company that is a Nak specialist in Connecticut and got a rough estimate.
My question is, is it worth this much to restore my RX202. I realize it was the base model back then. Would I be better off buying another model and having it restored instead?
I am not interested in buying the Dragon and paying to have it restored. It would cost more than I am interested in paying for a cassette deck. What other NAK models might I consider and why?
Thanks,
Couldbfishin

 

[damacman]

Wow, that's a lot of money. But if the unit has sentimental value ...

 

[qdrone]

Why does it need refurbishment? Does it work?

 

[MRL_Audio]

Your shopping for repair work at the wrong place. Suggest you reach out to Nakmandan or PerryinVA. No way should it cost that much.

 

[savatage1973]

That seems pretty pricey (like double what it should cost). They are not the "only game in town" that works on Nak decks. I had my Dragon refreshed a couple years back, and it didn't cost that much. I haven't priced your specific deck recently, but I'm guessing you'll have more into it than it is worth--but, as mentioned, if it has sentimental value to you, then go for it--but I'd be shopping around for a different tech.

 

[perryinva]

ESL is VERY expensive. $600+ to restore an RX-202 is crazy. You can (well, maybe could) buy a reputably restored RX-505 for that kind of money. (Of course, not from ESL).

 

[kmulkey]

I just bought a fully restored RX-505 from Perry for $650...sweet deck

 

[Jonny Ramone]

Shop around. Naks are popular, and have pretty decent parts availability. I bought a BX-300 and had a LX-3 refurbished(the 300 fully re-capped) , aligned and calibrated for probably $700, including shipping. Your deck provide fine performance , once restored.

 

[macster]

Your shopping for repair work at the wrong place. Suggest you reach out to Nakmandan or TerryinVA. No way should it cost that much.

This is great advice.

M~

 

[edwyun]

If you want to keep your RX for a long long time, I recommend ESL. But you won't recoup your money. Had my CR7A, CR4A, and T100 overhauled by ESL. Took a while and was costly but worth it. There are other techs that do great work as well. Closer to Houston would be Willy Hermann in California.

 

[kermit z]

A year or so ago I took my RX-202 to a local electronic repair shop for belts and idler tire. they went thru it to make sure it was good, not a refurb mind you, just a check up,, and I paid about 150.00. Works great and it's quite the conversation piece when the tape flips

 

[miner]

Had my ZX7 fully refurbished/rebuilt by ESL - very expensive and took 8 months. If I had to do it over again I probably would not do it. I might also add, communication from ESL was terrible.

 

[MRL_Audio]

Never used ESL because I had read plenty of feedback that went the same way. Good work, expensive and poor communication. There are plenty of other options that provide good work, a fair price and solid communication before, during and after the work is complete. Not worth the headache in my opinion.