What was (is?) the best of the best casette deck?

[jan_stevns]

Alpine (Alpage) AL 90

In my little part of the world - there was a deck, that litterarely would run in circles around all the other decks - it was Alpine's AL90

incredibly good sounding, extreemely deep bass, crystal clear heights, and very very low noise (hiss)

 

[Daunia 70]

The best i've ever heard are the Nakamichi 681/682 ZX's.
For supa cool looks (especially the 2 vu meters-2 needles on each) would be the Aiwa 6900.
The Aiwa XK-009 Excelia is pretty amazing soundwise too.

 

[MRL_Audio]

I have an Akai cassette deck with the GX head. In the more affordable price range (some of the best-of-the-best models listed above still sell for impressive sums), they're hard to beat.

+1 :thmbsp:

 

[ofajen]

If the cassette deck is made properly than the S/N ratio (ref. 3% THD) without any NR could be in order of 64-66 dB A-wtd with 70us EQ (Type 2 or Type 4 tapes) . Dolby is not really required with this kind of S/N and I personally never use Dolby for my cassette recordings.

Alex

Yeah, I only made that mistake for a year or so after I bought my 482Z and then abandoned NR. Thankfully, pretty much any original music 2-mixes or live 2-track idea recordings were done without NR. I'll take hiss over mangled sound any day.

Cheers,

Otto

 

[ofajen]

In the portable category, I'd say the Sony WM-D6C was excellent, though I never used any of the Marantz machines.

Cheers,

Otto

 

[KentTeffeteller]

None of the Dolby S machines are the best of the best machines in build quality, mechanical quality, or in sonics though good. And Dolby S has no outboard units for consumer cassette use. So, if your Dolby S deck packs up, you are out of luck. Best of the best cassette decks made, Upper class Nakamichis, Tandbergs, ReVox, and Studer. There is one 2 chassis Technics direct drive deck which belongs in the best of best class. ReVox, Studer, or better Nakamichis maintainable. Tandberg parts a nightmare on cassette decks.

 

[jammasterj13]

Would any of you guys rate some of the Kenwood models?

 

[cnolanh]

I've spent much of my life recording on cassettes using fine but not TOTL 3-head decks. In order: Pioneer CT-F900, Teac V-2RX, Nakamichi CR-3A, as well as a few others here and there. I had occasional access to a relative's Nakamichi Dragon, and of course that beast astounded me with its quality.

Then I recently got a very-low-hour Sony TC-KA3ES. That was the last TOTL deck Sony released in the US. Recordings I make on it sound at least as good as the ones I made on the Dragon, and IMHO its Dolby S circuitry does a fantastic job of nearly eliminating tape noise while preserving musical content. Also the calibration tools are excellent and have let me make the most of many different types of vintage tape. In my own experience, the Sony is the all-around best deck I have encountered.

I also have a Pioneer RT-901 in excellent condition but not restored other than its pinch rollers. It probably could use a recap because in record mode I hear a very faint hum introduced into the signal (only audible at very high volume). And of course even at 7.5ips with Maxell UD tape, hiss becomes audible. So at least for the moment, my Sony TC-KA3ES cassette deck sounds better than the Pioneer R2R. I do love the effortless sound and precise mechanics of that Pioneer, though. She's a beauty.

 

[analoghifi]

My personal Picks on The best Cassette Decks Ive ever used are:

Yamaha KX690 -
Nakamichi CR-7a -
Tandberg 3014a -
These are my Top 3 listed above, but here are a few others worth mentioning.
Aurex PC-G8AD & PC-G90AD:
Nakamichi BX300 /MR-1:

 

[Soren Hammer]

Surprised that the Beocord 9000 hasn't been mentioned yet.

- Three head design (headblock manufactured by Cannon)
- The first deck with HX-Pro (a B&O patent)
- One of the very first decks featuring Dolby C
- CCC (computer controlled calibration) - calibrated automatically to any tape in 9 seconds; calibrates bias for the individual channels, levels (0 dB is the standard of 3% THD) and tape type (an early type IV without IEC tabs is recognized correctly)
- Real-time tape counter. Very accurate (SM states +- 4 seconds for a 47 minute side)
- 10 digit keypad which allows you to jump to any part of the tape in minutes and seconds, has memory functions and a record return mode.
- Tape end feature which shows exactly how much time there is left in recording mode
- Calibration information can be stored if you frequently use the same tape model, four slot memory for the purpose.
- Built in clock which is controlled by the mains frequency. Can timer-control a whole B&O system
- The then-new Datalink standard made it possible to remote control advanced settings of the deck and execute common functions in a B&O system - B&O still produced Datalink capable products until earlier this year.

A very innovative deck with striking features and design.

 

[KentTeffeteller]

The B&O Beocord 9000 is in the best of best class. They have superb sound quality, are generally reliable and well made. Easily one of the nicest styled.

 

[captaingamez]

Would any of you guys rate some of the Kenwood models?

I don't have one but they generally sound great, not as great as a best ever but great.

What about the eumig fl1000? And the pioneer A1?

 

[stoutblock]

I have not spent a lot of time with high end cassette decks but the Nakamichi 1000 ZXL I recently acquired continues to blow me away on how well it sounds and performs. Based on input from several who's opinion I trust, the Dragon sounds even better, but at 43lbs this ZXL would be the weapon of choice if you needed to defend yourself. It is quite the beast! Really good feel and layout to it with big volume adjustment sliders and useful meters. Probably not the best bargain out there...

 

[nbarber]

It's been a while since I have fired up a cassette deck but the best one I have had the pleasure to play with is the Phase Linear 7000ll which is a rebadged Pioneer CT-A1. It sounds superb, way better than the MOTL decks I have heard but have no I have other TOTL experience to compare it to, therefore I have no subjective data to contribute.

 

[Harvey/ Ga]

In the portable category, I'd say the Sony WM-D6C was excellent, though I never used any of the Marantz machines.

Cheers,

Otto

Never saw the Sony but my little Marantz PMD 430 is quite a machine. It records almost as well as the Denons that I presently have (in my sig), and use it solo about as much as the other two in my systems.

 

[frommerstop]

I've never been a big cassette fan, but the three top home audio contenders were always Revox B215, Nakamichi Dragon, and Tandberg 3014 in the circles I ran in back in the "cassette days". I don't think there was ever a real consensus on the exact order, but a special mention goes to the Nakamichi RX models... if only because they were so much fun to watch reverse!

 

[Ultralyd]

I chose to vaccuum pack my Revox B710 mkII and my Nakamichi CR7 and Dragon decks last summer in fully serviced condition after purchasing a mint condition Tandberg TCD 910 last spring.

When ever I find a deck surpasing this level of quality, the TCD 910 will also be vaccuum packed and stored.

 

[Satch]

Although I own a Nakamichi ZX-9, I'd happily trade it against either an Aiwa Excelia XK-009:

Or a Teac Z 7000:

Pics borrowed from the net.

 

[jan_stevns]

Isn't the a law against too many buttons ???

 

[melofelo]

"best of the best" is beyond my experience and budget...but if ,like myself, you love tape and find yourself sitting in the 'cheap seats'..then i can wholeheartedly recommend the Akai GX 52