• The move to the new server is done. There are some software and database maintenance updates in process. This has us passing the hat around to help out. We appreciate any donations. Seriously, even a dollar helps. The payment page may be found here - https://www.audiokarma.org/support.html

sony WM-d6c or sony tcd-d7 ?? opinions?

U

ussername

Active Member
ive been thinking of buying a sony wm-d6c cassette recorder ( analog ), but been now offred a dat player, the sony tcd-d7.

my question is..whats´s your opinions about the sound. of course DAT is digital with less hiss but isnt the sony wm-d6c as good. or better?

not sure i enjoy the DAT sound so much as nice , warm analog sound. I think Ill skip the tcd-d7 DAT. I miss good ol´analog recordings and wanna hear how a today´s concert sounds at home made by an old recorder

whatcha think of this?::thumbsdn: or :thmbsp:

what mic should I use with the sony wm-d6c?...oh and yes....anyone know if these microfones are good look at the link stealth microfones: oh maybe not accepted putting links here ok. so...its home made binaural stealth microfones ideal for concert recording, anyone used these kind of? the seller on Bay says they are better than most priced under 200$. they cost about 100
 
Last edited:
Register to hide this ad
Hey,
I use a Sony D6C and have gotten very nice results. For mics, I just got some mics by Church Audio, they are under 200 bucks and that includes a pre amp, but they took forever to me. taperssection is a nice place for this question and they also have a 'yard sale' for exactly the equipment your asking about.
I;m actually thinking of getting a Sony D5 or maybe a Marantz 430.
So, to answer your question, as if you didnt already know, yes, go analog! I thnk it is fun more than Digital, I have a Edirol digital recorder that is fine too. I dont know anything about Microfones, but I have seen the name around. On the taperssection site, a lot of people recommend the Church Audio mics for starters for the best bang for your buck and Ive heard many recordings using them and they do seem to get pretty good results. Dont buy Church Audio on ebay, it is cheaper on taperssection, just look under retail space, next to the yardsale. I think there are some used CA mics there now.
 
thanks for replying. i just listened to some DAT recordings and i just dont like them 100% really. its too much of a digital feeling over them. no loud drums. too flat sound. sounds unnatural.

Going for analog. but the mic question is still unsolved. maybe doing a trip to england on saturday for recording 2 shows. if someone from london sees this and have a perfect mic for me for a good price let me know and ill pick it up on the way to donnington ;)
 
Have made quite a few onsite/outside recordings on a portable DAT myself - i can understand why you say no loud drums, too flat a sound - some good Sennheiser MD421 got the "real sound"

but - yes - A DAT may sound too clean and flat
 
ussername said:
ive been thinking of buying a sony wm-d6c cassette recorder ( analog ), but been now offred a dat player, the sony tcd-d7.

my question is..whats´s your opinions about the sound. of course DAT is digital with less hiss but isnt the sony wm-d6c as good. or better?

not sure i enjoy the DAT sound so much as nice , warm analog sound. I think Ill skip the tcd-d7 DAT. I miss good ol´analog recordings and wanna hear how a today´s concert sounds at home made by an old recorder

whatcha think of this?::thumbsdn: or :thmbsp:

what mic should I use with the sony wm-d6c?...oh and yes....anyone know if these microfones are good look at the link stealth microfones: oh maybe not accepted putting links here ok. so...its home made binaural stealth microfones ideal for concert recording, anyone used these kind of? the seller on Bay says they are better than most priced under 200$. they cost about 100
Click to expand...
With DAT, you get up to four hours of continuous recording, whereas on cassette, you're limited to 45 or 60 mins at the outside. I would choose DAT everytime (as do the professionals) but DAT players are expensive to repair, and the TCD-D7 is not as reliable as the TCD-D8, or TCD-D100, and I would not want to be lumbered with the cost of maintaining one.
 
Last edited:
Both formats have disadvantages. DAT is very prone to needing frequent maintenance. The Sony DAT Walkman portables are among the hardest to service. The Sony Walkman Pro has the standard modern cassette issues, Type IV tape is getting scarce and expensive, Type II tapes are getting harder to find. The Walkman Pro decks are equally hard to repair as the DAT Walkman decks. For serious field recording work, I use either open reel machines or use Hard Drive or Flash Digital recorders.
 
jan_stevns said:
Have made quite a few onsite/outside recordings on a portable DAT myself - i can understand why you say no loud drums, too flat a sound - some good Sennheiser MD421 got the "real sound"

but - yes - A DAT may sound too clean and flat
Click to expand...



yep...i have many DAT recordings of live concerts. they all sound the same. flat and boring. no dynamic at all. wonder why you big DAT heads dont hear this=? maybe you havent heard good analog sound?

shows from the 70´s sound much better than the sky raised DAT recordings. hmm.

yes hard to find a recording cassette player here in sweden nowadays. Ive recorded some shows with better sony cassette walkmans earlier with this little cheap sony mic I have...it dont even have a model mark on it :yes: and still the live recordings sound amazing. very dynamic and alive. I like these shows waaaaaaaaaaaaay much more than shows done with DAT.
 
KentTeffeteller said:
Both formats have disadvantages. DAT is very prone to needing frequent maintenance. The Sony DAT Walkman portables are among the hardest to service. The Sony Walkman Pro has the standard modern cassette issues, Type IV tape is getting scarce and expensive, Type II tapes are getting harder to find. The Walkman Pro decks are equally hard to repair as the DAT Walkman decks. For serious field recording work, I use either open reel machines or use Hard Drive or Flash Digital recorders.
Click to expand...

Curious to why you are saying that Type IV and Type II's are scarce & expensive and harder to find, respectively? The barometers that one chooses to watch have a HUGE impact on the perception of what's available, and with regard to price, well that can be highly subjective. The only reason I mention this is because there seems to be an endless supply of NOS tapes of good quality showing up everywhere, CL, eBoy, thrifts - at super reasonable prices. Didn't mean to hi-jack this thread but I find the perception of high prices and impending lack of availability a topic I have to address whenever I see it come up. Sorry.
 
I spent several years doing DAT recording at concerts all over the DC-Baltimore area. No question in my mind, I would go DAT before wasting time with cassette. However, I would advise going a different route altogether - I would go for a portable hard drive or flash drive recorder, there are several good ones available for under $500, some for under $300. I sold most of my DAT gear several years ago, as I could see the writing on the wall as far as the DAT format is concerned.

And I can say from experience, as someone earlier mentioned, the D7 is not exactly the most reliable deck ever made. DAT in general is a fussy, bitch-ass format that pissed me off about as often as it made me happy! But I preferred it to cassettes because of the far longer tape times, as well as the vastly improved sonics. If you don't like the way your DAT recordings sound, you need better mics and a better pre-amp and a better A>D converter in your rig, because that is likely the problem.
 
Love that analogue sound big time, but you don't get the quality of analogue sound I need recording live with a pocket sized cassette deck (they're not really Pro decks.) For analogue field recordings I prefer a Nagra IV-S or a Stellavox open reel field recorder at 7 1/2 IPS. If I must use cassette, an upper end Marantz 3 head Stereo is preferred and some good mic preamps. What I am saying is better Type II and IV tape can't be purchased new at reasonable prices at retail. And better Type IV tapes cost as much as me running my Otari MX 5050 B II at 15 IPS with ATR tape often.
 
Damn it, you just reminded me of an eBay auction I recently missed -- was watching it for a week and then totally forgot about it on the day, only to remember 5 minutes after it ended. Marantz PM-430 went for £60!!

However, I feel that if you're going to go digital, then don't bother with DAT. Only reason to use tape is if you want analogue sound. Digital is digital, tape, disk, solid-state memory or otherwise (assuming same sample rate/size across formats).
 
Actually I'll modify my stance a little: Apart from analogue, I actually do use tape for (intended to be) digital recordings -- I use VHS to record long radio shows which, when time permits, I digitise into my compter. However, that is merely because a) I don't have a digital recorder unless I'm prepared to tie up my computer for the duration, which I'm not, and b) because it offers excellent sound quality in a cheap medium, assuming I don't intend to archive it as it is. It's merely a convenience thing though, and even then merely a function of my own situation. I just decided to throw it in in case anyone hauled me up over my previous mentions of VHS usage for audio :-)
 
fortycoats said:
Actually I'll modify my stance a little: Apart from analogue, I actually do use tape for (intended to be) digital recordings -- I use VHS to record long radio shows which, when time permits, I digitise into my compter. However, that is merely because a) I don't have a digital recorder unless I'm prepared to tie up my computer for the duration, which I'm not, and b) because it offers excellent sound quality in a cheap medium, assuming I don't intend to archive it as it is. It's merely a convenience thing though, and even then merely a function of my own situation. I just decided to throw it in in case anyone hauled me up over my previous mentions of VHS usage for audio :-)
Click to expand...

now - why would anyone give you some hauling 'bout using VHS-Hifi as recording media ?

If the vcr is in good shape it works ... h*ck - i've used a SuperVHS (JVC-HR5500) for many years - give it a good casette, and it seldom makes you sad - did use JVC's own S-hvs casettes.

Isn't it more a Q if you would like to use existing gear, or has to go out at find gear for recording purposes ? If the last, no-one with all brain cell's at full capacity would buy antique gear, unless there is a purpose - this could easily be a wish to "get the good old analogue sound"

it would also implicate looking up the gear around the deck, mixer, mic's etc.

quite recent one of the guy's here presented his first live recording - have to say it actually delivered good warm sound.

i've used my DAT for that purpose, and also my PR99 - noone can hear which deck made the cd-master
 
hello again! ive been using sony wm-d6c and loving it. summers coming and some rockconcerts to be recorded but my current microphone is not exactly what i like ( sony ecm - ms 907 )

is there a better sony mic for live Concerts? this 907 mic is not the best for Concerts right? do i need electret condenser mic?= it+s for live recording? i would like the mic to even record the crowds screaming. not searching any expensive mic , there must be good cheapier mics by sony, used , positive for vintage. must give very rich bass

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Sony-ECM-92...286186?hash=item41c124c32a:g:B6MAAOSwB-1Y2qcl

is this something? better than 907 for my surpose or older version of 907?
 
Last edited:
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom