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Why is high bias tape disappearing?

gmku

gmku

Super Member
Banned
Not even 2 or 3 years back, I could find this in my university book store, in drug stores, Target, wherever. Now it's scarcer than hen's teeth. Are there not enough of us tape heads out there to support this?

If you have a source for good high-bias tape, please share?
 
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Check your local GoodWill (and the like) facilities.

I find sealed NOS Type II cassette tapes there ALL THE TIME. I must have (40) 60 and or 90 minute tapes hoarded at my place... and most of them are TDK, as well :)
 
Really!? Maybe I just don't frequent GoodWill enough, but I've never been lucky there. A nice London Fog trench coat once--but never anything good in the electronics sections.

Are there decent retail sources left, brick and mortar or online?

And what's the story behind the disappearance, anyway? It just seems kind of wild to me that there isn't some demand yet for these tapes. I can't be the ONLY one.
 
I don't think there's a big enough market out there to warrant manufacturing costs any longer (kind of like KodaChrome film).

I'd give anything to be able to go back in time and purchase a bounty of METAL tapes. I remember they were sold everywhere when I was in high school in the 80's. To be honest, I had know idea they were actually the best quality... I honestly believed they were to be used with HARD ROCK and METAL... and that's why I bought them (true story).

I still have quite a few used ones from back in the day, but they were recorded on a boombox from FM radio, so it's not as though I was actually utizing them to their fullest potential.

As previously mentioned, keep checking GoodWill, Value Village, Salvation Army, and even garage sales. I have NOS Type II tapes on my shelf that were purchased at every one of the aforementioned locations... most of which cost $.25 to $.50 each max.

I also see a ton of Type I tapes, but I never bother with those, even at $.10 each.
 
I get most of mine on ebay and check this out http://www.totalmedia.com/store/pro...l?manufacturerId=51&showCategories=1&cat=1233 and also here http://www.batteriesandbutter.com/M...=PROD&Product_Code=TDKSA-90&Category_Code=tdk

I've bought TDK-SAs from both these places. Prices are decent and tapes arrive packed good and arrive in decent time.

Oh, and I'm not affiliated with either place. I dont know if they carry Metal tape. I dont use metal anyway and personally dont think its worth all that extra money. Hope this helps ya
 
Ive had good luck on eBay. I bought 60 sealed maxell Xl iis for $64 plus shipping and 100 used maxells and TDKs for $30 plus shipping. I should have bought more of the used tapes - he had about 700 tapes listed in lots of 50.

I've also been checking out thrifts. Haven't found any good new tapes but I've always found at least one decent used tape for about a quarter.

Mark
 
The Akai GX 60 and GX 90 type 2s are still being made i believe. In any case, the Batteries and Butter website has them and they've gotten decent reviews here on AK.
 
I don't think they make them anymore. There is not a demand anymore. I buy mine used at Goodwill, Salvation Army, Garage Sales and Flea Markets.
 
Last month I bought a sealed box of TDK SA at the local GW outlet for 50¢ a tape. New type II tapes do show up but not nearly as often as the TDK D, Maxell UR, and Sony HF type I tapes do, and even those aren't exactly a common find.

About a year ago I got a whole box of Maxell XLII C90 and gladly paid $10 for it. I have maybe 50 new tapes, which is probably a lifetime supply.
 
Fuji DR-II is fairly common ( at least in England). They must be making it somewhere.
Ray
 
I found TDK SA-90 tapes at Office Max (online only) for a very decent price and their shipping was blazing fast. :thmbsp: As you know TDK tapes are now a product of Imation but they sound good to me. :music:

Oh and they figured to about $1.50 each plus shipping.
 
danj said:
Last month I bought a sealed box of TDK SA at the local GW outlet for 50¢ a tape. New type II tapes do show up but not nearly as often as the TDK D, Maxell UR, and Sony HF type I tapes do, and even those aren't exactly a common find.

About a year ago I got a whole box of Maxell XLII C90 and gladly paid $10 for it. I have maybe 50 new tapes, which is probably a lifetime supply.
Click to expand...

Didn't realize I had local competition...:D
 
gmku said:
Not even 2 or 3 years back, I could find this in my university book store, in drug stores, Target, wherever. Now it's scarcer than hen's teeth. Are there not enough of us tape heads out there to support this?

If you have a source for good high-bias tape, please share?
Click to expand...

Large listed corporations need to maximise profits and they are not going to do this by sentimentally producing multiple products for a format that has effectively been dead for at least 10 years.
The enthusiasts at RMGI are keeping open reel alive, maybe we could persuade them to revive old BASF/AGFA cassette formulations too...?
 
koltrast said:
Large listed corporations need to maximise profits and they are not going to do this by sentimentally producing multiple products for a format that has effectively been dead for at least 10 years.
The enthusiasts at RMGI are keeping open reel alive, maybe we could persuade them to revive old BASF/AGFA cassette formulations too...?
Click to expand...

I'm afraid that won't ever happen :(

usual reason ............ not enough demand
 
koltrast said:
Large listed corporations need to maximise profits and they are not going to do this by sentimentally producing multiple products for a format that has effectively been dead for at least 10 years.
The enthusiasts at RMGI are keeping open reel alive, maybe we could persuade them to revive old BASF/AGFA cassette formulations too...?
Click to expand...

well, then, the smaller corporations could keep cassettes alive, right? They'd do well to serve this niche, I would think.
 
That would be nice if we could have a quality guarantee. There are still a few small cassette producers in business but none of us trusts them like we did Maxell and TDK. Also, a good part of the trust we put in those brands lies in the fact that their 30+ yr old tapes are still good. We'll never get to test the current stuff like that, or at least we'll never again have an alternative if such a test fails.
 
Another plug for eBay. Used tapes do not seem to go for very much (except for metal tapes). I just picked up 51 type II tapes and 11 metal tapes for a total of $27 (plus shipping). And $20 of that was for the metal tapes!

Mark
 
This company still makes type II tapes. If you want the Chrome tapes, you have to order a minimum of 100, but their Studio Master tapes can be purchased in 10s. The tapes don't look fancy, but I've heard good things about them.
 
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