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Pro Rackmount CD Recorder for Under $300?

M

MH321

Member
Hi, I'm looking for a used pro rackmount CD recorder for under $300. I know there are other threads on this, but i'm wondering what's the one to get for January 2014, as prices are usually falling on the used ones all the time?

I need one that is durable, sounds great, and long lasting. One that can be played over and over, and keep going. I would really like one with CD Text, and one that has analog balanced inputs and outputs and AES/EBU connectors would be awesome.

Curently considering:
Marantz CDR631 (is the screen on these badly made/ too dim?)
Fostex CR500
Tascam CD-RW402 (Dual deck)
HHB Burn-it 830 and 850
TASCAM CD-RW5000 (but probably doesn't do text)
TASCAM CD-RW900SL (no xlrs. I read it has a blurry screen?)
Otari CDR-18

Any other model suggestions are welcome


Thanks for your help
 
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None available new for that. Try double that as a start. AES/EBU capable and XLR try $1200 or so new upward. Half that for refurbed or used. Go Tascam, don't even consider the others. Otari is likely good. Marantz very finicky. HHb is also. Fostex are OK.
 
He said used, Kent. All good units but I am quite partial to Otari stuff. I have no experience with HHB.
 
Even used, XLR analog and AES/EBU is expensive. Those features are pricey. HHb are finicky, didn't age well. I have never owned an Otari standalone, but Otari gear is usually great quality and durable, so, I'd consider them. Marantz is finicky about what discs they work with. Usually, XLR I/O for analog and AES/EBU digital will double or more the price of any CD recorder alone.
 
I bought a fostex CR500 for just $90 shipped. Are there any blank cd brands you guys reccomend? I'm not sure whether to go with cd-r, or cd-rw yet for music recording. Which would be best?
Thanks
 
Amazon has the Tascam 900 for $260. I've owned mine for a couple of months now and it's been a nice unit.


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk HD
 
900 as well

kmulkey said:
Amazon has the Tascam 900 for $260. I've owned mine for a couple of months now and it's been a nice unit.


Hey Kmulkey,

I'm looking at the 900 as well. B&H Photo has the same price, but Amazon has that easy return thing.

As a non-technical person, I've been reading reviews until I'm brain dead. One likes X, the other hates it. I've seen people have problems with the 900, but with everything else too, especially the consumer stuff. Hard to know what to believe. I come from the days when I recorded FM and records to a cassette. Super easy. All this digital is way more complex.

I want to put my records on CD. I've thought of either the 900 or use my laptop.

I own a vintage stereo system with an 80's Sony direct drive TT and a high end 70's Marantz receiver, neither with USB. So I thought TT to receiver to audio interface device to my laptop to Audacity then burn to CD. But I read how complex Audacity is. For me that whole process sounds daunting.

The other idea is the 900. I already own a DVD player that plays CDs. It would be cheaper to go the laptop direction. I'd only need to buy the interface and cables I think. I don't know what sound quality I'd end up with or if I'd get lost in the complexity of that method.

Sorry to go on, but that's my story. Any thoughts for a non-audiophile that loves good music?
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I've had a Tascam 900 for about a year and very happy with it. One big plus together with the quality of the recordings is that it takes regular data CDs. Music CDs sometimes are a bit hard to get and cost a bit more. And probably in the future will be harder to get and more expensive. The only complain I have with it is the slot loading sometimes doesn't work well. I sent an e-mail to their customer service and got no reply.
 
odelj48 said:
I've had a Tascam 900 for about a year and very happy with it. One big plus together with the quality of the recordings is that it takes regular data CDs. Music CDs sometimes are a bit hard to get and cost a bit more. And probably in the future will be harder to get and more expensive. The only complain I have with it is the slot loading sometimes doesn't work well. I sent an e-mail to their customer service and got no reply.
Click to expand...

Could you say more about the loading slot not working well? What does it do? I wonder why they went to that instead of the tray.
 
I can't imagine a cd recorder being any easier to use. I owned a few of the Philips models in the beginning of this century and this unit works as well and is probably easier to use for a single deck unit.
 
Ceemajor7 said:
Could you say more about the loading slot not working well? What does it do? I wonder why they went to that instead of the tray.
Click to expand...

It happens ocassionally, I'll say about 5% to 10% of the times. When inserting the CD about 3/4 of the way, instead of it just pulling it in, it just won't go in anymore, as if there was something in the way. This is addressed in the manual which states when this happens to pull the CD out and hit the eject button. This has worked well all of the times except once when no matter how many times I pushed the eject button it just wouldn't go in. Since it was still under warranty I forced the CD in, something seemed to snap inside and it went in. Since then it has worked "normally". That's when I send an e-mail to Tascam"s customer service and got no reply. Thanks Tascam.
 
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I chose the Fostex over the Tascam 900 because of the balanced xlr connectors, the AES/EBU connectors, the settings/controls seemed more advanced, and also because it can record 24-bit CDs, in addition to plain audio CDs.

It can record up to 24-bit/96kHz, compared to standard CD 16-bit/44.1kHz, and you can put in song titles, and could be good for recording vinyl and other sources for archival/preservation purposes. However, 24-bit discs won't play in standard CD players, but can be opened on a PC. Using BWF format uses up more recording time, but blanks are cheap.

The only big disadvantage for me is, I read that you cannot put in CD-Text on the Fostex, you can only put text in for BWF format discs. The Tascam 900 has the CD-Text read-write capability, but lacks balanced connectors and 24-bit recording. The Tascam 901SL has xlrs, but it's way too expensive for me. My Fostex hasn't shipped yet, so I can't tell anything more about how it is. You can get one off ebay for under $200 used.

I've read a complaint about the Tascam 900 screen being blurry, and also about worse build quality and sound than its predecessor, along with problems with the slot loader.
 
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