What blank cassette tapes to look for

[ra7c7er]

I've decided to record some of my vinyl to cassette for now till i get a DAC and I would like to make a couple mix tapes. I was wondering what brands and types of cassettes should I be looking for that are considered quality.

 

[getright99]

I look for high bias and metal if I can find them, I've done some good recordings with the maxell xl II's. I have a few denon metal tapes I'm saving for a special occasion...like when I can find a decent 4 track..
All that said, I'll pretty much get any tapes as long as they're sealed.

 

[getright99]

I've also been taping the rebel vinyl from the local classic rock station, using maxell UR 90's with good results. Those are normal bias though.

 

[Treker]

I am personally finding a lot of unopened Maxell XL-II's at the thrift stores in my area, with a few TDK SA's thrown in as well. I have had good results with both in the past. Metal tapes are nice, but are a bit harder to find used or as unopened NOS since they were never produced in the kinds of numbers that Type I and II tapes were produced in.

 

[spl225]

TDK SA-X and Maxell XL-IIS.

 

[Treker]

TDK SA-X and Maxell XL-IIS.

I agree. If you can find them they are great. They are just not that easy to find, or are quite a bit more expensive when you do find them. This is especially true if you end up buying them on that big auction site.

 

[oldvinyldude]

Pretty much any sealed cassette from Sony, TDK, Maxell, or Fuji will give you good results. My experience is that the CR02 cassettes are the best value. I find them on occasion for less than a buck at thrifts. I have only found 1 sealed metal one, after about 5 years of looking.

My personal preference is for a Cr02 blank, recorded on an HX Pro deck, with 'Standard' or 120us equalization, and Dolby B

 

[craigmclella]

I'm new to the tapehead scene - my favourite tape so far is a Sony UX Chrome. I have got a Sony Metal XR 60 waiting to be used, but am going to wait until my Sony KA6ES deck is trust worthy before putting a more expensive tape on.

I only buy chrome tapes - they sound better and the general opinion I've acquired through research is that they are kinder to tape heads, which is a good thing as my deck uses Permalloy heads (not the strongest variant) and I would bet spares are difficult to obtain.

 

[Alex Hayes]

The most common brands you will find will probably be Maxell and TDK. If you find those in Type II then that's great! But even a good Type I like a TDK D90 or a Fuji DR-I will produce solid results so don't turn those down if you find them for a good price. Other brands that produce quality tapes are Fuji, Sony, Denon and BASF. The only tapes I ever really pass up are oddball offbrands with names like ToneMaster or Wal-Mart brand stuff. If you look hard enough you should be able to find some good tape although I've noticed they've become a little more sparse lately. Good luck!

 

[Wigwam Jones]

Don't buy any tapes longer than 90 minutes - they're made too thin in order to support longer recording times and you can hear the difference easily. 60 or 90 only. 60 is generally too short for a typical rock album, so 90 tends to be the favorite. As others have said, the TDK or Maxell high-bias chrome tapes only. Nothing else.

 

[guiller]

Very good advice here. I would only add to the listing of brands (TDK and Maxell high bias) the Basf CrO2 tapes and second the advice of looking for 60 or 90 minutes tapes only.

 

[michaelhigh]

Use high-bias c-60's in multitrack cassette recorders (off-topic but important just the same). They last longer, because the tape stock is thicker. You will be rewinding a lot to get the tracks right, and mixing requires lots of rewinds and locates too.

 

[Kahoona]

I look for high bias and metal if I can find them, I've done some good recordings with the maxell xl II's. I have a few denon metal tapes I'm saving for a special occasion...like when I can find a decent 4 track..
All that said, I'll pretty much get any tapes as long as they're sealed.

++ on the XL II's. That was my preferred medium back when I did that.

 

[Raynie]

Sony Metal-SR are the best and were fairly common in the mid-late 80s. Maxell XLII90 are second and were the most commonly used, having a good price point ($2 per). TDKSA90 were good as well, equivalent to the XLII. XLIIS and TDKSAX were good but I could never distinguish them as better from their cheaper counterparts.

Don't bother with anything else. Fuji and Denon were budget-priced and inferior. For Sony, don't buy their cheaper line of CD-IT or UX chrome tapes. They are inferior.

I used to be a Dead taper and owned over a thousand 0-2 gen boards and aud tapes.

 

[scottstevens]

I typically find Maxell XLII's, I always pick those up. I don't bother with the normal ones unless some high bias ones are mixed in the bag (at thrift stores). Once I get my Nak deck cleaned up I'll start playing around with recording.

 

[BOUXY]

I presently have over 50 New unopened 60 & 90 Minute Tapes from all major brands like Sony/Fuji/Maxell/TDK/BASF and counting.All from local thrifts for Pennies on the Dollar/PEANUTS for each!They all sound great as I use the ones I opened for use daily!Finding them almost everyday that I look

 

[ra7c7er]

Thanks for the information guys.

I found my first blank tape score and a little extra. All sealed all from the same place.

Maxell UR90 x 5
Memorex MRX I 60x 1
RCA RC90 x2
TDK D90 x1
TDK SA90 x2 (still in 2 pack)
TDK Head Cleaner
D.J. Jazzy Jeff and the Fresh Prince - Rock the House

I know from what you all have told me only the SA90s are high quality but for the price, 25 cents for all, I couldn't pass them up. Stopped at one garage sale today and I am glad I did.

 

[Jody Thornton]

Sony Metal-SR are the best and were fairly common in the mid-late 80s. ...

I have three Sony Metal SR tapes. Would you want them?

 

[chef free]

I went through hundreds of tapes in the late '70s and early '80s. I went with type II CrO2 Maxell and TDK brand. I preferred TDK because they were about 3-4 minutes longer than specified, also Maxell tapes smelled weird.

 

[kevzep]

Yeah TDK SA/SAX, Maxell XLII, BASF CR-S II......I don't use Metal Tapes, they are really hard on the Heads, they will shorten head life significantly...