Does anyone still use an external NR device?

[danj]

I used to use an external Dolby B device and still pull my TEAC AN60 out of its box and hook it up. I do this mainly so the device will stay viable and functioning. So far, so good for a device that is at least 35 years old and still functioning perfectly.

Anyone here still using a Dolby encoder-decoder, a DBX unit, a DNR, or another noise reduction add-on box?

 

[JURB]

I had a couple of high end Marantz receivers that had Dolby built in. Actually I liked having it, and liked being able to calibrate it to each tape. By the seat of my pants of course but it made them sound good.

 

[goat67]

I like my Phase Linear 1000 Series II

 

[savatage1973]

Even though my TEAC X1000r has built in DBX type I noise reduction, I still/always have used it with an external DBX 224 external type II noise reduction unit.

 

[aldena007]

I use a DBX 228 mainly for by DBX encoded disc.

 

[danj]

Back in the day I used a TEAC AN-80 with my Sony TC-366. Later on I sold the deck and noise reduction unit to a friend and purchased a TEAC A2300SD, which is a R2R with built-in Dolby B. Sometime in the distant past I acquired the AN60 but only used it for a few months when I had to playback some tapes on the Sony cassette deck I owned that had a bad Dolby chip and couldn't be adjusted. That AN60 allowed me to properly playback some of my older cassettes without having to listen to tape hiss, which was quite bad back in the early-to-mid 70s, especially before the advent of type II tapes.

I currently have a 3-head Pioneer cassette deck from the early 1990s. It's non-encoded recordings are much quieter than the wonderful TEAC A360S deck from 1974. I do wonder, though, if most of that is due to the newer design of the deck or more modern tape formulations.

 

[pdm4606]

Wollensak 4765 with FM Dolby...

Can be used for any signal output. I used it years ago for FM then found LP's and other tape machines benefited some. Running through the FM Dolby circuit doesn't mean it is Dolby. Just a dynamic noise reduction.
Cuts some high end slightly and noise.
Very uncanny silence on some LP's, CD's, tape and FM.

Paul

 

[dherrick]

I use a dbx 224 type II noise reduction unit with my Sony TC-K555 deck mostly for decoding previously encoded tapes made years ago. Still works and sounds great.

 

[mklessig]

I have a dbx 224 that is used mainly for reel to reel (teac a-6600) and occasionally for cassette. Also have a Phase Linear 1000 languishing in a closet somewhere, just don't have the room in the cabinet.

Mike

 

[vfr800fiman]

I still use my Teac AN-300 with my Teac A-3340S RTR deck (they kind of go together).
I do prefer the DBX 224 encoder/decoder setup I have over the Dolby though.

 

[landsberger]

I use a dbx 224x for some of my cassette decks and dbx 150x's (Type 1) for each of my reel to reels.

 

[sKiZo]

Found a new use for my dbx SNR-1. Come to find out, it also does a nice job of "cleaning" vinyl hooked between the outboard phono pre and the receiver. You can lower the noise floor significantly without impacting the music.

Try it ... you'll like it!

 

[jimbo2k]

Yeah

DBX 224 hooked in the workshop system. jim

 

[vga911s]

Yes I have 2 Nakamichi NR 200 noise reduction units. One is hooked up to my Nak 680 ZX and the other is hooked up to my Nak600 II

 

[OvenMaster]

I just realized this moment - 15 years late - that I could have used my Panasonic RP-966 NR unit with my TEAC A-100 cassette deck... the TEAC's built-in Dolby circuitry never worked on the left channel and I hadn't realized it until it was much too late. Instead I trashed the TEAC after discovering that the main PCB had huge gouges across most of the board's traces and swapped it for a BPC Sony dual-well deck that ate belts.
:gigglemad

 

[SaSi]

I have a dbx224 that I use through a dbx200 program route selector with some older decks that don't have dbx. I also have a Behringer denoiser 200 and a Sanyo N55 DNR hooked up.

The Behringer is single ended so it can process recordings that have no NR and noise. It is also used with LPs. It makes a great job to clean up surface noise and even some crackle.

 

[sKiZo]

Denoiser?

Fascinating!

I've got a 224 but never had much in the way of dbx encoded records to use it with. I did find out you can use the 224 loop on the 200 as another standard processor loop by jumping the i/o ...

 

[jdcarlson]

Outboard noise reduction

I have three Advent 100A Dual Process Dolby Units. One I use with a Pioneer 1020L. The other with a TeacX10-R. The third one is for "spare parts" to keep the first two working.
The Advent came with calibration tapes (Both reel to reel and cassette). If you played the calibration tapes and set the dolby playback levels to the calibration tape, and then recorded the calibration tone from the Advent so that it would record at the same level when played back, it worked like a champ.
It did two things:
1 - it calibrated the noise reduction for maximum efficiency. The tape hiss was reduced by several DB without cutting out the high frequencies.
2 - once calibrated, it took all of the "hassle" of making recordings. With the right and left channels balance between themselves through the calibration process, then one only had to worry about a single volume control covering both left and right channels.
IF - HOWEVER - one did not go through the calibration process diligently, the high frequencies would just disappear!
That is what I liked about the outboard units. I do not remember seeing any tape deck with built in noise reduction that could be calibrated to different tape formulations. With the Advent it was a breeze.
I really enjoyed working with reel to reel tape and the Advent units. I wish I still had the time and energy to spend with it.
But - my wife and I are looking to go to an assisted living facility. I will no longer have room for my beloved tape decks and tapes. I am sad to be without them.
I finally finished converting all reel to reel (and vinyl) to 192k 24bit digital. I know I will miss the analog sound, but a hard drive and a backup drive take up a lot less space (which will be hard to come by).
Thanks,
Jim Carlson

 

[eddisc]

I have three Advent 100A Dual Process Dolby Units. One I use with a Pioneer 1020L. The other with a TeacX10-R. The third one is for "spare parts" to keep the first two working.
The Advent came with calibration tapes (Both reel to reel and cassette). If you played the calibration tapes and set the dolby playback levels to the calibration tape, and then recorded the calibration tone from the Advent so that it would record at the same level when played back, it worked like a champ.
It did two things:
1 - it calibrated the noise reduction for maximum efficiency. The tape hiss was reduced by several DB without cutting out the high frequencies.
2 - once calibrated, it took all of the "hassle" of making recordings. With the right and left channels balance between themselves through the calibration process, then one only had to worry about a single volume control covering both left and right channels.
IF - HOWEVER - one did not go through the calibration process diligently, the high frequencies would just disappear!
That is what I liked about the outboard units. I do not remember seeing any tape deck with built in noise reduction that could be calibrated to different tape formulations. With the Advent it was a breeze.
I really enjoyed working with reel to reel tape and the Advent units. I wish I still had the time and energy to spend with it.
But - my wife and I are looking to go to an assisted living facility. I will no longer have room for my beloved tape decks and tapes. I am sad to be without them.
I finally finished converting all reel to reel (and vinyl) to 192k 24bit digital. I know I will miss the analog sound, but a hard drive and a backup drive take up a lot less space (which will be hard to come by).
Thanks,
Jim Carlson

Jim, I hope you can find space for even the X-10 and some headphones. Your equipment list is very enviable and I truly hope it all finds deserving & appreciative home(s). Best wishes for you & your wife :yes:

 

[Flatwounds]

I have three Advent 100A Dual Process Dolby Units. One I use with a Pioneer 1020L. The other with a TeacX10-R. The third one is for "spare parts" to keep the first two working.
The Advent came with calibration tapes (Both reel to reel and cassette). If you played the calibration tapes and set the dolby playback levels to the calibration tape, and then recorded the calibration tone from the Advent so that it would record at the same level when played back, it worked like a champ.
It did two things:
1 - it calibrated the noise reduction for maximum efficiency. The tape hiss was reduced by several DB without cutting out the high frequencies.
2 - once calibrated, it took all of the "hassle" of making recordings. With the right and left channels balance between themselves through the calibration process, then one only had to worry about a single volume control covering both left and right channels.
IF - HOWEVER - one did not go through the calibration process diligently, the high frequencies would just disappear!
That is what I liked about the outboard units. I do not remember seeing any tape deck with built in noise reduction that could be calibrated to different tape formulations. With the Advent it was a breeze.
I really enjoyed working with reel to reel tape and the Advent units. I wish I still had the time and energy to spend with it.
But - my wife and I are looking to go to an assisted living facility. I will no longer have room for my beloved tape decks and tapes. I am sad to be without them.
I finally finished converting all reel to reel (and vinyl) to 192k 24bit digital. I know I will miss the analog sound, but a hard drive and a backup drive take up a lot less space (which will be hard to come by).
Thanks,
Jim Carlson

Hi Jim,

Thanks for such an informative post. I wonder if there is a rec room or something where you might be able to set up a listening area? Maybe some of the other residents would enjoy listening to your tapes and may have some of their own.

Best wishes to you and your wife.