The late 70s thru the early 80s was the peak of analog home stereo gear. The "cheap" model in a line may have lacked fancy features,but were still respectable quality. This deck is a perfect example.
It's simplicity makes it extremely reliable. I bought one at the time because it was about the only mechanical (i.e. "piano key", not "soft touch") deck available, thus there is a lot less that can go wrong with it.
You mean, in the later years of this model around '87? There still were quite a few but most were those double decks with rather low quality, boombox style mechanisms. This is probably one of the last if not the last true HiFi one.
@@westelaudio943 Yes, though it may have been a couple of years later than that. I don't remember, but I do know that the Rat Shack version of it was available until 1990. I also remember paying about $90 for it only to see the same one as a Sharp at "TV And Stereo Town" on sale for $60 not long after.
My father bought this Tape Deck in December 1982 along with a Kenwood KR-810 receiver, a pair of Becker ProA303 speakers, and a BIC/Advent 40Z record changer. It sounded great for being one of the lower wattage/lower end systems out there. This tape deck is the sole surviving component of that system and it still sounds good a few years ago after being stored in a tote in a basement for several years. I have a 1998 Kenwood double cassette deck that has sounded muffled for years in comparison. I should pull the RT-100 back out sometime to see if it still holding up since it went back into the tote about 4 years ago.
Early 80s cheap deck = fewer functions = fewer parts = less to go wrong. Piano key transport controls seem to be lasting longer than the full logic stuff that came out a few years later (if the wrong chip fails, you've got a 19 inch black doorstop). I have a Technics RS-M205 that was made around the same time. It will probably outlast me.
My RS-M205 was my first piece of decent stereo equipment (a step up from the cheap discount store gear). I haven't used it in probably 25 years, but I bet it still works!
I presently use a Technics RS-M205 myself. A durable, reliable, deck which performs very well. I bought mine second hand around 7 years ago, paid $19 for it.
@@LapisandHamtarolover Those types of systems can be awful sometimes, as some use a complex arrangement such as a rotating shaft behind the keys which is triggered in different parts by the keys. A lot of moving pieces, and they can get pieces out of position - can be difficult to get things back to activating in the right position/order.
@@KentTeffeteller I think after the apocalypse, the only things left surviving will be cockroaches, Twinkies, and bottom-of-the-range 80s cassette decks.
Just for fun, the background song during the Chevrolet promo speech tape is C Palmer's "Byte by Byte" which was also used as a theme song for a period of time in the 80s by the Computer Chronicles.
Sharp was an OEM for a wide range of better ranked name brands back then. A lot like Voice of Music had been a decade before. Audiophiles screeched tot the heavens, not knowing that a lot of their oh-so-much-better equipment was re-labeled Sharp.
Sharp's home computers were generally well liked on the Japanese market. The X68000 line in particular seems to have been well loved to the point of demanding a fair amount of cash in modern collector markets...Though they have the same issues with early SMD caps as Mac II-era Apple machines tend to.
Fisher was structured the same. Their mid-range Studio Sound stereo racks were really in actuality relabled Sanyos, just with some features watered down from the original Sanyo model. They are immensely reliable and very well built. The amps weigh nearly 30-40 lbs at least, all mechanical, capacitor and diode based. I paid $100 each unit to have a local authorized Fisher repair shop (since the 80s) repair them for me (found the shop by googling what repair centers were still around in my area from the back of the instruction manual from 1985) back in 2015, and never regretted it a bit. They continually work as they should, and as long as you keep them ventilated properly in the rack cabinet, will never fail. I plugged in a USB desk fan into the back of the amp with a wall socket adapter and it makes the fan come on to suck the hot air out of the cabinet whenever the amp is on. Works very well. Don't even need it but it makes me feel better with that going. Now their cheap tabletop units they made through the mid and late 90s as home hifi's fell out of fashion, ehh those are mostly forgettable. Not sure who made them but they were made at a profit loss for sure.
3:10 "Hi, I'm Stewart Cheifet and this is Gary Kildall. Gary, the new 386 Chevrolets will soon be on the market, but which operating system will they be running? Well Stewart, the manufacturer is offering the standard 'just driving' option, bu there's also the 'playing cassette tapes while you drive' option from DRI that we're hoping will soon catch-on. Wendy Woods has this report...
That cutout is a similar size and shape to a ferrite antenna with a mount underneath,, which makes me think that Sharp reused a mold from one of their earlier receivers to save a bit more money. BTW am I the only one who heard the Computer Chronicles theme at 3:10?
sharp stuff was better than many, one problem is they often used 'house coded' ICs ,some were just remarked common types, luckily, but many unique, and trying to find the equivalent was difficult
I still have my Sharp Optonica stereo components from the late '70s, still going strong. They got high praise at the time and can still hold their head high these days.
"Optonica" was Sharp. I absolutely loved Sharp's MD-MT15 MiniDisc recorder. That thing went with me everywhere. I wish I still had it to the point that I may just find another one on ePay just for fun. What a fun little device that sounded quite good.
My MD from Sharp works great. Needs a couple of micro screws, the light in the remote is out, and the jog wheel quit working. Everything else is good. Even the li-ion battery is okay.
So glad you indicated "Stan LePard's 'Velkommen' (better known as the Windows XP installation music)" in the description. It was driving my crazy why that song was familiar to me!!! LOVE!
The cutout might be to stuff the excess RCA cable length, given that a lot of people probably used these in a stack where the cable only needs to be like a foot long
Looking at the whole thing, I think Sharp may have used that back panel for a number of devices, especially considering how large the flat area of the input section is; I'm betting that the back panel was used for some of their cheaper receivers and that was where an AM bar antenna mounted and folded into.
@@slightlyevolvedagree, likely same mold was used with minor changes for receiver with integrated fold out radio antenna. One could google HarmanKardon 330B to see such antenna.
It's either oddly designed cord stowage, or perhaps a spot for an AM aerial to store when not in use? It's probably a stock mold used for many different decks though.
The original theme song for the Computer Chronicles used in the Chevy promotional tape! Also I wouldn’t really call that tape deck a loss leader for electronic stores, since it’s mostly an entry level tape deck by Sharp. It’s not like Radio Shack selling Tandy products like batteries and computers accessories, that makes them shop more often at their stores.
@@Zedek the original song “Byte by Byte” was used for lots of 80s marketing programs, they probably had the same marketing client. Also Zenith is a more popular theme song, but it wasn’t used in this video.
Nice to finally hear it in stereo. haha I just kept waiting for "WELCOME TO THE COMPUTER CHRONICLES! I'm Stewart Chefeit, and this gem of a fellow is Gary Kildall. Gary, what're you playing with, there?" "Well, Stewart ..."
I have the Realistic SCT-35 and it’s been my daily driver for playback in the workshop.Has a lot more treble than my other decks. Purchased mine “as spares” was listed “motor running constantly” and also haven’t had to do anything to it. Notice the VU LEDs are all red on this one, instead of green to red on the Realistic.
I recently picked up a Realistic SCT-29 (same lookin unit) which was in a neighbors shed for 30 years; it came right to life! Some of the physical keys actually got stuck so i opened it, unstuck'ed em, and sprayed some contact cleaner around, but man, it works absolutely perfectly! Super impressed with the layout and how neatly the electronics were arranged, and the quality of the original components. it sounds fantastic! Great unit!
I was like "I recognise that track at 7:30" and was trying to think where from. Then read the description and was like ahhh yes! Of course! The XP OOBE! Although, usually you only got to hear that if your system had audio drivers installed by that point (or came setup by OEM who'd set it to do the OOBE on first boot with installed drivers (and whatever bloatware they'd install)) :)
I really like these decks, simple but they work well and very reliable. I'd be really interested in seeing a video of your entire stereo equipment collection. It would be interesting to see some of the pieces that have appeared in videos but not videos of their own.
Interestingly enough, I’m currently in the market for a good working cassette deck for my stereo system (since the Pioneer cassette deck that I bought at a yard sale last year is starting to have some various issues)… thanks for the video! I also love the 8-Bit Guy clip you included with that jingle!!!
Hah, love the super-indie cassette releases you demo'd. I'm just 30 miles from Northern Minnesota. Looks like Ted Feyder is still playing in the region; he had a gig in Two Harbors, MN just a couple weeks ago. Two Harbors is home of the nearest Culver's restaurant to me. Important facts!
I had a Sharp deck that was a step or two up. It had soft touch controls. The motor was always on with power because it engaged the mechanism when a button was pushed. It was sold at Radio Shack under their label as well.
We probably had the same deck, it was very reliable and sounded good. For years, I was very happy with it, until CD´s were the new fancy stuff instead of mixtapes 🤗
I have this deck. Although it is definitely cheap, it is dead nuts reliable and the record and playback quality is a damn sight better than the cheapo decks today. Made plenty of decent sounding type ii tapes with it that sound fantastic even when played back in higher end equipment.
*The Rat Shack version of that was my brother's first cassette deck!* (My first was the earlier *_Soft Touch_* SCT-29.) My assumption was that the cutout in the back was a place to stow the cord if you weren't using it. That notch kinda cut out at the bottom was for the plug. If not that..... *¯\_(?)_/¯* My brother's deck had the odd habit of randomly recording a sort of deep "woof" periodically on the tape _while playing!_ No, it wasn't a random sound coming from the amplification electronics. It became a permanent part of the tape because it was there when you played it back on a different deck! Wild, huh? Took it in to the local Radio Shack store, and they dutifully sent it off to the service center for repair, but they couldn't even identify there was a problem. Still, it ran fine, except for those occasional "woofs". My brother just gave up on the deck, got a Yamaha CD player, and switched to CDs. He sold the cassette deck at one of my mom's garage sales. P.S. I have some of those Realistic Type II Metal Supertapes new-in-wrapper. And P.P.S. I never knew Windows XP had Installation music. All the XP machines I ever used were PCs at work or ex-business PCs I got used with the op sys already installed on them.
A low cost deck that still works without a problem? Can’t say the same for a lot of new stuff today. Even with a plastic housing, it’s nice to see that they didn’t skip on the metal for the tape transport!
Well $100 from 82 as the same buying power 2023 as $326.39, so not really a low cost deck when you think about it that way, as I remember my mother paying about $500 for our first Panasonic top loading VCR around that time which is $1,631.97 in 2023. 😅
Well yeah, $100 back when it was new was definitely a lot more. Considering it still works to this day though, I’d say you’d get your money’s worth and more out of it!
@@TheOriginalCollectorA1303 Very true unlike the 4K Sony 7.1 surround sound receiver/HDMI switcher I had to junk at work today due to a bad power transformer(no place has the parts in stock online) that's only a few years old, and the original remote stopped working in less than a year!!
@@CommodoreFan64 That’s unfortunate! I’ve got some 90s and 2000s Sony HiFi equipment and they work just like new, not to mention the cool designs since they are older. The new stuff looks the same everywhere, I definitely prefer the hardware I’ve got compared to a modern receiver. And don’t worry, no HDMI nonsense with these, instead it’s got all of the composite and component inputs I’d need hooked up to a Sony Trinitron!
Cheap but good cassette deck, not bad at all! I briefly had the younger brother, model RT-10, which is almost identical in everything except for three green leds for each channel in the "sharpscan" display instead of only red leds. Also in the RT-10 there's no cut out in the back of the unit.
This was my first "real" tape deck back in 1985. I used it extensively in the following 7 years producing mixtapes, dubtapes, mastertapes etc. it never let me down until (finally) speed control got sluggish. Thank you for bringing back the memories.
Had a Wega tape deck with sluggish speed control (if that's what I think you mean). You had to always hold the pause button slightly depressed for it to play at the right speed. Hindsight is 10/10, I bought the same deck on eBay out of nostalgia, had the same problem - and it was the belt. New belt, runs great.
I bought the earlier Sharp RT-10 at Laffayette Electonics for $69 in about 1982 and used it for 20 years. It made such good tapes that all my friends had me make tapes for their cars.
Wow-This brought back some great memories for me as I purchased that model of Sharp cassette deck back in the early 80s. Got many years of good use out of it and even brough it with me on my move from Indiana to Florida. For an entry-level cassette deck the RT-100 hade some nice features like metal tape capability. Amazing that the RT-100 you found for $9.99 is in such great shape after all these years!
The same NE646 Dolby chips are used in my Technics RS-M260 - a three-head deck, with soft touch controls. There are four of those ICs in it - two for the playback circuit, and two for the record one. Unsurprisingly it sounds about as good as an entry-level deck, just with the added convenience of tape monitoring during recording.
Nice to see vintage stuff still working. I've got 2 cassette tape decks with headphone sockets, but no volume control. Pretty point less as you just have loud music blasting in your ears. I have used headphone sockets to connect to an amplifier though, which seems to work fine. Great vid, keep up the good work.
I've never been any sort of audiophile. but these videos make me want to start going to thrift shops to see if I can put together a serviceable component system.
I had the Radio Shack version. Someone gave one to me in 1992 when they didn't want it. I kept it for 20+ years, still ran perfectly fine when I gave it to the Goodwill when I got a Sony dual cassette deck for $10. (Still have that one!). Wish I had kept this deck as a backup!
From Sharp minds come Sharp products. I think that was their slogan back in the day. I love how a cheap deck from the 80's bought from a thrift store for $10 still outperforms most of the Chinese made junk that's being sold now for a lot higher price.
That recording test music was also in Encarta World Atlas 2001. Need to fire it up again now, it's more nostalgic than the Windows XP welcome music to me.
Sharp seemed to use high quality components in a lot of their stuff. We still use a 40 year old Sharp Carousel II microwave that works perfectly and even the soft touch keypad shows almost no signs of wear. Like Sanyo, their gear got sold under different names.
I had a Tandy/Sharp microwave I bought in the 80s while working for them I only got rid of it about 5 years ago as it was just too big for our new kitchen.
Things were a lot more expensive and weren't built down to a price in those days. I just checked the 1982 Argos catalogue and there were only two Microwaves in there. One was a Sharp 5600E. £179 (in 1982 money) for a 500W Microwave with a mechanical timer.
Sharp was a high quality made brand back in the days,i have high respect for this company and their products.as someone mentioned previously below,they were making products for many brands like realistic,radioshack and few others i can't remember now.people say that sharp was a low end brand in the audio segment but i will disagree with that.i have owned sharp and optonica(their higher end brand name) cassette decks from the lower tier,similar to the one you've showed here,mine were rt-31h which sounded incredible with warm and punchy sound and optonica rt-5200 which after i changed the head with higher quality one,suddenly transformed into fantastic sounding deck,very similar to my nakamichi bx-2.anyway sharp was an highly underrated brand which has made some really great gear and did not follow anyone but had their own filosofy!
I have one of those Sharp decks.. still works. However, it doesn't have the recessed area in the rear and the motor doesn't constantly run. A small leaf switch engages the motor when either "play", "fast forward"" or "rewind" is even slightly pressed.
I actually had that same exact cassette deck from Sharp. I paid about $100 for it back in 1982. I couldn't pass up the deal. It was a "playback only" deck for me, because I already had a Harmon-Kardon tape deck that made excellent recordings. I ended up giving the Sharp tape deck to my brother, who ran a DJ business at the time. He liked how the tape deck played tapes. I don't think that Sharp deck was ever used for making recordings, by me or by my brother.
My grandad had a Sharp RT-12 cassette deck which looks just like this one but has "soft touch" mechanical controls and green/red LEDs in the VU meters. It's still in my dad's shed and probably still works!
Years ago I briefly had a Sharp RT-100, and I agree, there is really not much in these that could go wrong. Especially when compared to the predecessor, the RT-10. I do prefer the look of the RT-10, but it has idler wheels that can cause problems, such as one tiny one that is installed on the capstan itself and provides friction for another idler wheel that drives the take up reel in playback mode. This RT-100 replaces the idler wheels with gears, which should last a lot longer than idler wheels.
Nice find, nice video! This was one of my first cassette decks and the first that could record on metal tape, I used it with a Technics SA-110 receiver and one of the early Technics P-mount turntables--humble stuff but great step up from low-end all in one systems for a then-college student on a shoestring budget! The old Sharp deck is long gone but seeing this I miss mine. It was still very usable when I gave it to a friend after "upgrading"" to an NAD 6125 which was basically a worthless POS. Upgraded from it to a Nakamichi BX-150 which was a real revelation in how a cassette tape can sound but had its typical Nakamichi issues. Looking back I didn't realize how good this basic Sharp deck was for the money--nothing great for specs or features only the basics but you still got more than decent performance for the price. I still have an old Scotch Metafine cassette in my tape collection that I bought at the same time as the deck and used as a "mix tape" though we didn't call them that back then LOL! That early metal tape didn't have the standard metal tape notches so cannot be used for recording in a deck that has auto tape type sensing e.g. my Technics RS-M245X--I need to dig that tape out and give it a listen, and hear what all I recorded on the old Sharp deck some 40 years later. :)
Always found Sharp kit to be well put together and reliable. I still use one of their late 90s mini disc portables. The Optonica brand was higher quality still. Shame they were never recognised for the great products they were.
Maybe the cutout was used to house the power cable during shipping? They could maybe cut down on shipping costs just a little bit by stuffing the wire into that space instead of having to use a bigger box, and since this was clearly a budget deck every penny counted. Just a guess.
It's a shame because Sharp Electronics in the early days (70s and 80s) had basic no frills electronics, but they were robust and well built. Their VCRs and televisions weren't bad either. But just like so many other companies, the demand for high quality audio components dwindled and now Sharp is basically limited to TV's and those ""All in one" stereo systems. Also, love that you collect those cassettes and CD's that come with certain vehicles at the time. When I bought my 03 Corvette ,it came with a Dealer CD which has parts and other information about the car. And the GM Delco Bose CD, which can be used to test your radio and CD player. Just a lot of interesting little "perks" companies used to give you for your purchase.
This was one of the first seperate cassette decks my parents bought, it came with a Pioneer SA-550 amplifier, some nice Celestion Ditton 15 speakers with the gold edging on the grills and our first CD player which was a Philips CD-450. Our Sharp RT-100 has a slight problem with the auto stop where often it stutters for a few seconds before the play button finally clunks, it's had it's belt replaced at least once but the record function no longer works on it. But even in the 90s buying secong hand hi fi seperates was cheaper and in many cases better than many of those all in one mini systems which were more mainstream among consumers. My Dad also bought another bigger Sharp cassette deck similar to this one but it also had a built in clock with loads of tactile buttons which were not part of the cassette deck but it also had a built in alarm which was handy for reminding my mum to pick me and my brother up from school and you could probably also timer record on it. In 2000 my parents finaly bought a brand new cassette deck with soft touch controls which is a Yamaha KX-393. My Dad has the Sharp RT-100 and our first CD player hooked up to his Quad amplifier and B&O speakers and the other Sharp cassette deck is in the loft as that one also started having problems which is why my parents bought a new one.
I got the exact same model in the late 80's for £5 in a charity shop. My mum claimed as it was easy to use and looked good. Plus, I only had 2 music cassettes at that time. (I have 3 now LOL).
@@frankowalker4662 In the U.K. Reel to Reel and 8 track had dies out by the mid 1970s. In contrast, as I like to point out, Ford were still selling new cars with cassette players here in 2008.
@@MrDuncl I am one of the few people in the UK with an 8-Track recorder and a reel to reel in use in the lounge. It's probebly just me and Techmoan LOL.
I have a Realistic SCT-29, an almost identical deck except for the asthetics. It might be slightly higher end because it does have a volume adjustment, though it's in the back. My father bought it new from RS in the early 80s, and he used it extensively, and then I used it extensively, and the only thing wrong with it is the rewind is starting to slow. Both of us have since gotten some other more expensive decks, but none have beaten the operation and reliability of that SCT-29.
This was my first cassette deck (I still have it, though I don't use it anymore). The only thing I ever had to do with it was replace the motor, which was very easy to do.
I'd say that "cut out" on the back serve a purpose for cable storage and/or tucking away the line wires while the deck is placed in a rack or on a shelf among other components.
I've not seen it in a while as it's in storage, but I have a variant of this. Can't wait to play with it all again. We'll soft start and service everything as some of the gear hasn't been used in years. Great vid
@ 7:53 I never thought to hear that music again... This theme was the startup music when you first had installed Windows XP on a machine that has a compatible soundblaster. I think it is called "I love you". Went back to memory lane Big time. 🙂
I've noticed that the tune played at 7:52 is actually a mix of the out-of-box tune that came with Windows XP when running it for the first time after installation. Super cool and nerdy if you played this intentionally for this connection. :)
I don't think I will ever lose interest in your channel as long as you visit that thrift store every single week and buy yet another cassette deck to bring back home!! Hope you do have space for all of them and you'll give me a tour when the time comes for me to visit America!! 😂😂😂 Keep up the good work and take care...
There is definitely something to be said for how well a lot of the simpler models hold up over time. At first that cutout area had me wondering as well. As you went over the mechanism, the notion of storage for the power cord came to mind.
Great video, thanks! The Supertape MII casstette is apparetly rebadged Denon HD8, which is great, but also a special - it requires a deck with calibration feature for the best performance as its metall alloy/ cobalt dopped ferix oxyde combination tape characteristics are far away from standard type 2.
I had the RT-10 which, as far as I can tell, was pretty much the same with minor cosmetic differences. It may not have been fancy, but it sounded pretty good!
Good find, despite the plastic has some good quality belts, which is rare for something of that vintage. I wondered whether the cutout was for the mains or phono leads, maybe when being transported.
ปีที่แล้ว +2
Superbe video. I would like those stores exist in Patagonia Argentina
A “loss leader” is when a retail store takes a loss rather than a profit to get people into the door. Different retailers have different definitions of a “loss” though
I think that term was used here when milk as in the normal cow full cream milk was $1 a Litre, it was considered a loss leader for the supermarket. We can't get it for that now as it all went up anyway.
My middle school had this deck, we used it with our Peavey PA mixer to play music for the "talent" show. Yes, that open space in the back is weird. Maybe if the deck was also sold as part of a system with a cabinet, it was for hiding wires or somehow connecting it to the cabinet?
Hah wow the GM tape's stock music was the same music from Computer Chronicles. That music really is the perfect like 80s "computers" music haha, with enough of a enterprisey business sound to it that strongly matched the show, which was often more of an advertizement for various systems and services than anything.. but i guess what're you going to do back then for a public television program trying to show cutting edge tech. :/ That cut out almost looks like where something like an AM bar antenna would go but i dunno why that would be part of the cassette deck. I remember late, cheap VCRs often having big cut outs but that was because it would be a few grams less material or whatever, where this _adds_ material. Also the drums from that windows XP music reminds me of Tom's Diner. A company like Sharp probably owned a lot of the production for most of the cassette deck's components that they could basically precisely design things to a cost and make the right compromizes. A lot of companies that try to do the same from third party components usually came out with junk because they just have to accept what compromize they could get.
The belts aren't the problem believe me, I have a Sharp RT-1144 which uses the same mechanism and it was a complete pain to get working. The belts were easy to replace but it also uses two idler wheels and one of the tyres had also turned to goo, so ended up replacing both of them as well. However the deck has a small rubber idler in a metal housing that the capstan shaft passes through and it too always turns to goo and that is a bugger to get to, clean and replace. Once I had managed to do all of that one of the gears broke, another very common fault but replacements are available for that as well as it is that common. Finally it needed a new pinch roller as well as calibration. Taking the deck apart requires almost complete disassembly, patience, several coffees, lots of notes and photographs of where metal bits go and what gears do what. Got there in the end but I wont be tackling another anytime soon and certainly prefer working on late 80s and 90s decks.
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That's the first time I've ever heard the Network Music track "Byte By Byte" used in something other than The Computer Chronicles.
...For The Computer Chronicles, Maria Gabriel.
@@GeckonCZThanks to you this track now resides in my playlist 😅
LOL same. Apparently it's just one of those generic corporate royalty free music tracks.
Me too! Holy crap that made me smile.
i knew it sounded familiar, i watched the one where david crane demonstrates his ghostbusters game on c64
Back in the days we used these decks as a jingle machine on a FM pirate station in the Netherlands.
Never failed!
Haha. The David Murray cameo. Brilliant.
The late 70s thru the early 80s was the peak of analog home stereo gear. The "cheap" model in a line may have lacked fancy features,but were still respectable quality. This deck is a perfect example.
It's simplicity makes it extremely reliable. I bought one at the time because it was about the only mechanical (i.e. "piano key", not "soft touch") deck available, thus there is a lot less that can go wrong with it.
they were very good
You mean, in the later years of this model around '87? There still were quite a few but most were those double decks with rather low quality, boombox style mechanisms.
This is probably one of the last if not the last true HiFi one.
@@westelaudio943 Yes, though it may have been a couple of years later than that. I don't remember, but I do know that the Rat Shack version of it was available until 1990.
I also remember paying about $90 for it only to see the same one as a Sharp at "TV And Stereo Town" on sale for $60 not long after.
My father bought this Tape Deck in December 1982 along with a Kenwood KR-810 receiver, a pair of Becker ProA303 speakers, and a BIC/Advent 40Z record changer. It sounded great for being one of the lower wattage/lower end systems out there. This tape deck is the sole surviving component of that system and it still sounds good a few years ago after being stored in a tote in a basement for several years. I have a 1998 Kenwood double cassette deck that has sounded muffled for years in comparison. I should pull the RT-100 back out sometime to see if it still holding up since it went back into the tote about 4 years ago.
Early 80s cheap deck = fewer functions = fewer parts = less to go wrong. Piano key transport controls seem to be lasting longer than the full logic stuff that came out a few years later (if the wrong chip fails, you've got a 19 inch black doorstop).
I have a Technics RS-M205 that was made around the same time. It will probably outlast me.
The M205 have a more advanced piano key system in which it's soft touch piano key instead of a hard depress push down button.
My RS-M205 was my first piece of decent stereo equipment (a step up from the cheap discount store gear). I haven't used it in probably 25 years, but I bet it still works!
I presently use a Technics RS-M205 myself. A durable, reliable, deck which performs very well. I bought mine second hand around 7 years ago, paid $19 for it.
@@LapisandHamtarolover Those types of systems can be awful sometimes, as some use a complex arrangement such as a rotating shaft behind the keys which is triggered in different parts by the keys. A lot of moving pieces, and they can get pieces out of position - can be difficult to get things back to activating in the right position/order.
@@KentTeffeteller I think after the apocalypse, the only things left surviving will be cockroaches, Twinkies, and bottom-of-the-range 80s cassette decks.
Just for fun, the background song during the Chevrolet promo speech tape is C Palmer's "Byte by Byte" which was also used as a theme song for a period of time in the 80s by the Computer Chronicles.
Sharp was an OEM for a wide range of better ranked name brands back then. A lot like Voice of Music had been a decade before. Audiophiles screeched tot the heavens, not knowing that a lot of their oh-so-much-better equipment was re-labeled Sharp.
Sharp's home computers were generally well liked on the Japanese market. The X68000 line in particular seems to have been well loved to the point of demanding a fair amount of cash in modern collector markets...Though they have the same issues with early SMD caps as Mac II-era Apple machines tend to.
@@MxArgent In 1982 Sharp were big enough to start sponsoring Manchester United FC. Many people believe that peak Sharp and peak MU coincided.
Sankyo OEMed a tonne of those tape transports
Fisher was structured the same. Their mid-range Studio Sound stereo racks were really in actuality relabled Sanyos, just with some features watered down from the original Sanyo model. They are immensely reliable and very well built. The amps weigh nearly 30-40 lbs at least, all mechanical, capacitor and diode based. I paid $100 each unit to have a local authorized Fisher repair shop (since the 80s) repair them for me (found the shop by googling what repair centers were still around in my area from the back of the instruction manual from 1985) back in 2015, and never regretted it a bit. They continually work as they should, and as long as you keep them ventilated properly in the rack cabinet, will never fail. I plugged in a USB desk fan into the back of the amp with a wall socket adapter and it makes the fan come on to suck the hot air out of the cabinet whenever the amp is on. Works very well. Don't even need it but it makes me feel better with that going.
Now their cheap tabletop units they made through the mid and late 90s as home hifi's fell out of fashion, ehh those are mostly forgettable. Not sure who made them but they were made at a profit loss for sure.
3:10 "Hi, I'm Stewart Cheifet and this is Gary Kildall. Gary, the new 386 Chevrolets will soon be on the market, but which operating system will they be running? Well Stewart, the manufacturer is offering the standard 'just driving' option, bu there's also the 'playing cassette tapes while you drive' option from DRI that we're hoping will soon catch-on. Wendy Woods has this report...
Thank you!!!! This was my first tapedeck. Brings me back to my youth. 🙂
That cutout is a similar size and shape to a ferrite antenna with a mount underneath,, which makes me think that Sharp reused a mold from one of their earlier receivers to save a bit more money.
BTW am I the only one who heard the Computer Chronicles theme at 3:10?
I knew that music and just couldn't place it! Thank you.
Good catch!
I guess the TH-cam free music library is a lot older than I thought.
Stuff made by Sharp may have not been the best, but they were built to last! Their minidisc players were legendary!
sharp stuff was better than many, one problem is they often used 'house coded' ICs ,some were just remarked common types, luckily, but many unique, and trying to find the equivalent was difficult
I still have my Sharp Optonica stereo components from the late '70s, still going strong. They got high praise at the time and can still hold their head high these days.
I found one of these in 2019, i was surprised the belts were still good. Not my main cassette deck anymore, but i still have it.
"Optonica" was Sharp.
I absolutely loved Sharp's MD-MT15 MiniDisc recorder. That thing went with me everywhere. I wish I still had it to the point that I may just find another one on ePay just for fun. What a fun little device that sounded quite good.
My MD from Sharp works great. Needs a couple of micro screws, the light in the remote is out, and the jog wheel quit working. Everything else is good. Even the li-ion battery is okay.
So glad you indicated "Stan LePard's 'Velkommen' (better known as the Windows XP installation music)" in the description. It was driving my crazy why that song was familiar to me!!! LOVE!
I remember it being the welcome music for the Windows 95 Internet Explorer Starter Kit
The cutout might be to stuff the excess RCA cable length, given that a lot of people probably used these in a stack where the cable only needs to be like a foot long
Yeah, I used those spaces for cable management. I'm not sure if that was their intended purpose but it's what I used it for.
Or maybe to stuff the power cord, when not in use? But, yeah, some kind of cable management, I'd think.
Looking at the whole thing, I think Sharp may have used that back panel for a number of devices, especially considering how large the flat area of the input section is; I'm betting that the back panel was used for some of their cheaper receivers and that was where an AM bar antenna mounted and folded into.
@@slightlyevolvedagree, likely same mold was used with minor changes for receiver with integrated fold out radio antenna. One could google HarmanKardon 330B to see such antenna.
It's either oddly designed cord stowage, or perhaps a spot for an AM aerial to store when not in use? It's probably a stock mold used for many different decks though.
The original theme song for the Computer Chronicles used in the Chevy promotional tape! Also I wouldn’t really call that tape deck a loss leader for electronic stores, since it’s mostly an entry level tape deck by Sharp. It’s not like Radio Shack selling Tandy products like batteries and computers accessories, that makes them shop more often at their stores.
I knew I heard that track!! Heh! I know the second one is called "ZENITH" from the OMNIMUSIC label...
@@Zedek the original song “Byte by Byte” was used for lots of 80s marketing programs, they probably had the same marketing client. Also Zenith is a more popular theme song, but it wasn’t used in this video.
Nice to finally hear it in stereo. haha I just kept waiting for "WELCOME TO THE COMPUTER CHRONICLES! I'm Stewart Chefeit, and this gem of a fellow is Gary Kildall. Gary, what're you playing with, there?" "Well, Stewart ..."
@@nickwallette6201 I miss that show! That show was so fun and educational, Stewart and Gary Kildall were great hosts!
I have the Realistic SCT-35 and it’s been my daily driver for playback in the workshop.Has a lot more treble than my other decks. Purchased mine “as spares” was listed “motor running constantly” and also haven’t had to do anything to it. Notice the VU LEDs are all red on this one, instead of green to red on the Realistic.
Yup, the SCT-35 is the Realistic equivalent of the Sharp RT-100H.
Thanks! My first Cassette Deck was a Sharp RT-10. It was a gift from my dad in 1981. Looks very similar to RT-100.
I had the RT10-E too , only difference I can see (looking at google images ) are the mic sockets and headphone sockets where opposite
I recently picked up a Realistic SCT-29 (same lookin unit) which was in a neighbors shed for 30 years; it came right to life! Some of the physical keys actually got stuck so i opened it, unstuck'ed em, and sprayed some contact cleaner around, but man, it works absolutely perfectly! Super impressed with the layout and how neatly the electronics were arranged, and the quality of the original components. it sounds fantastic! Great unit!
My first cassette deck and I still have it. 😃
I remember these. It worked well and was a great entry level deck that is much better than almost any new modern cassette deck.
I was like "I recognise that track at 7:30" and was trying to think where from. Then read the description and was like ahhh yes! Of course! The XP OOBE! Although, usually you only got to hear that if your system had audio drivers installed by that point (or came setup by OEM who'd set it to do the OOBE on first boot with installed drivers (and whatever bloatware they'd install)) :)
Oh wow that GM Cassette has the same song used for the theme in The Computer Chronicles!
A note about your Supertape Metal Type II, that tape was actually manufactured by Denon for Radio Shack, it's excellent tape!
Kinda surprised at the lack of comments regarding the steamtown tape!
In my fairly long comment I implied that it wasn't that bad.
I really like these decks, simple but they work well and very reliable. I'd be really interested in seeing a video of your entire stereo equipment collection. It would be interesting to see some of the pieces that have appeared in videos but not videos of their own.
Interestingly enough, I’m currently in the market for a good working cassette deck for my stereo system (since the Pioneer cassette deck that I bought at a yard sale last year is starting to have some various issues)… thanks for the video! I also love the 8-Bit Guy clip you included with that jingle!!!
Get a three head unit, if you are patient enough you should be able to get one locally for a good price
Hah, love the super-indie cassette releases you demo'd. I'm just 30 miles from Northern Minnesota. Looks like Ted Feyder is still playing in the region; he had a gig in Two Harbors, MN just a couple weeks ago. Two Harbors is home of the nearest Culver's restaurant to me. Important facts!
I had a Sharp deck that was a step or two up. It had soft touch controls. The motor was always on with power because it engaged the mechanism when a button was pushed. It was sold at Radio Shack under their label as well.
We probably had the same deck, it was very reliable and sounded good. For years, I was very happy with it, until CD´s were the new fancy stuff instead of mixtapes 🤗
MY MAN THAT MUSIC OMG you hit me with XP nostalgia❤❤❤
I have this deck. Although it is definitely cheap, it is dead nuts reliable and the record and playback quality is a damn sight better than the cheapo decks today. Made plenty of decent sounding type ii tapes with it that sound fantastic even when played back in higher end equipment.
*The Rat Shack version of that was my brother's first cassette deck!* (My first was the earlier *_Soft Touch_* SCT-29.) My assumption was that the cutout in the back was a place to stow the cord if you weren't using it. That notch kinda cut out at the bottom was for the plug. If not that..... *¯\_(?)_/¯* My brother's deck had the odd habit of randomly recording a sort of deep "woof" periodically on the tape _while playing!_ No, it wasn't a random sound coming from the amplification electronics. It became a permanent part of the tape because it was there when you played it back on a different deck! Wild, huh?
Took it in to the local Radio Shack store, and they dutifully sent it off to the service center for repair, but they couldn't even identify there was a problem. Still, it ran fine, except for those occasional "woofs". My brother just gave up on the deck, got a Yamaha CD player, and switched to CDs. He sold the cassette deck at one of my mom's garage sales.
P.S. I have some of those Realistic Type II Metal Supertapes new-in-wrapper. And P.P.S. I never knew Windows XP had Installation music. All the XP machines I ever used were PCs at work or ex-business PCs I got used with the op sys already installed on them.
A low cost deck that still works without a problem? Can’t say the same for a lot of new stuff today. Even with a plastic housing, it’s nice to see that they didn’t skip on the metal for the tape transport!
Well $100 from 82 as the same buying power 2023 as $326.39, so not really a low cost deck when you think about it that way, as I remember my mother paying about $500 for our first Panasonic top loading VCR around that time which is $1,631.97 in 2023. 😅
Well yeah, $100 back when it was new was definitely a lot more. Considering it still works to this day though, I’d say you’d get your money’s worth and more out of it!
@@TheOriginalCollectorA1303 Very true unlike the 4K Sony 7.1 surround sound receiver/HDMI switcher I had to junk at work today due to a bad power transformer(no place has the parts in stock online) that's only a few years old, and the original remote stopped working in less than a year!!
@@CommodoreFan64 That’s unfortunate! I’ve got some 90s and 2000s Sony HiFi equipment and they work just like new, not to mention the cool designs since they are older. The new stuff looks the same everywhere, I definitely prefer the hardware I’ve got compared to a modern receiver. And don’t worry, no HDMI nonsense with these, instead it’s got all of the composite and component inputs I’d need hooked up to a Sony Trinitron!
@@CommodoreFan64 Back in 1986 the people I bought my first house from had a £600 Panasonic HiFi stereo VCR in their £24000 house !
the opening is for storing the power cord. And yes, these type of entry level decks seem to work forever without refurbishing! Great vid as ever!
Cheap but good cassette deck, not bad at all!
I briefly had the younger brother, model RT-10, which is almost identical in everything except for three green leds for each channel in the "sharpscan" display instead of only red leds.
Also in the RT-10 there's no cut out in the back of the unit.
The cutout is probably for the cords, which maybe allowed for a smaller box for shipping.
This was my first "real" tape deck back in 1985. I used it extensively in the following 7 years producing mixtapes, dubtapes, mastertapes etc. it never let me down until (finally) speed control got sluggish. Thank you for bringing back the memories.
Had a Wega tape deck with sluggish speed control (if that's what I think you mean). You had to always hold the pause button slightly depressed for it to play at the right speed. Hindsight is 10/10, I bought the same deck on eBay out of nostalgia, had the same problem - and it was the belt. New belt, runs great.
I bought the earlier Sharp RT-10 at Laffayette Electonics for $69 in about 1982 and used it for 20 years. It made such good tapes that all my friends had me make tapes for their cars.
Well done for getting a great bargain👍. I had one in the eighties and I’m sure out the box the power plug was in the recess at the back for a UK plug.
I wish there were thrift stores like those in my area.
This is the cassette deck I use to record all my cassettes, this is my daily driver and I love it
My first deck. Press pause it would stop on a dime. Used it to edit LPs recordings into remixes
Wow-This brought back some great memories for me as I purchased that model of Sharp cassette deck back in the early 80s. Got many years of good use out of it and even brough it with me on my move from Indiana to Florida. For an entry-level cassette deck the RT-100 hade some nice features like metal tape capability. Amazing that the RT-100 you found for $9.99 is in such great shape after all these years!
The same NE646 Dolby chips are used in my Technics RS-M260 - a three-head deck, with soft touch controls. There are four of those ICs in it - two for the playback circuit, and two for the record one. Unsurprisingly it sounds about as good as an entry-level deck, just with the added convenience of tape monitoring during recording.
Nice to see vintage stuff still working. I've got 2 cassette tape decks with headphone sockets, but no volume control. Pretty point less as you just have loud music blasting in your ears. I have used headphone sockets to connect to an amplifier though, which seems to work fine. Great vid, keep up the good work.
I have the Sharp RT30 from around 1983. Still piano key, but a few mkore features & APSS. Still works perfectly.
Richard. UK
I've never been any sort of audiophile. but these videos make me want to start going to thrift shops to see if I can put together a serviceable component system.
DONT DO IT!!!
I started down that path 5 years ago and now I have amps and speakers and equalizers and tape decks all over the house.
Even the caps all look to be OK, no sign whatsoever of bulging, pretty amazing. I miss being able to buy Japanese built AV equipment.
I had the Radio Shack version. Someone gave one to me in 1992 when they didn't want it. I kept it for 20+ years, still ran perfectly fine when I gave it to the Goodwill when I got a Sony dual cassette deck for $10. (Still have that one!). Wish I had kept this deck as a backup!
From Sharp minds come Sharp products. I think that was their slogan back in the day. I love how a cheap deck from the 80's bought from a thrift store for $10 still outperforms most of the Chinese made junk that's being sold now for a lot higher price.
That recording test music was also in Encarta World Atlas 2001. Need to fire it up again now, it's more nostalgic than the Windows XP welcome music to me.
Sharp seemed to use high quality components in a lot of their stuff. We still use a 40 year old Sharp Carousel II microwave that works perfectly and even the soft touch keypad shows almost no signs of wear. Like Sanyo, their gear got sold under different names.
I had a Tandy/Sharp microwave I bought in the 80s while working for them I only got rid of it about 5 years ago as it was just too big for our new kitchen.
Yeah, ours is huge and weighs a ton. @@LDaQuirm
Things were a lot more expensive and weren't built down to a price in those days. I just checked the 1982 Argos catalogue and there were only two Microwaves in there. One was a Sharp 5600E. £179 (in 1982 money) for a 500W Microwave with a mechanical timer.
Sharp was a high quality made brand back in the days,i have high respect for this company and their products.as someone mentioned previously below,they were making products for many brands like realistic,radioshack and few others i can't remember now.people say that sharp was a low end brand in the audio segment but i will disagree with that.i have owned sharp and optonica(their higher end brand name) cassette decks from the lower tier,similar to the one you've showed here,mine were rt-31h which sounded incredible with warm and punchy sound and optonica rt-5200 which after i changed the head with higher quality one,suddenly transformed into fantastic sounding deck,very similar to my nakamichi bx-2.anyway sharp was an highly underrated brand which has made some really great gear and did not follow anyone but had their own filosofy!
I have one of those Sharp decks.. still works. However, it doesn't have the recessed area in the rear and the motor doesn't constantly run. A small leaf switch engages the motor when either "play", "fast forward"" or "rewind" is even slightly pressed.
I actually had that same exact cassette deck from Sharp. I paid about $100 for it back in 1982. I couldn't pass up the deal. It was a "playback only" deck for me, because I already had a Harmon-Kardon tape deck that made excellent recordings. I ended up giving the Sharp tape deck to my brother, who ran a DJ business at the time. He liked how the tape deck played tapes. I don't think that Sharp deck was ever used for making recordings, by me or by my brother.
That cassette deck is like a VW beetle, simple, cheap and reliable.
More like the Polo, more modern and more reliable in every regard yet comparatively cheap to own and maintain.
@netoe Also, air-cooled!
My grandad had a Sharp RT-12 cassette deck which looks just like this one but has "soft touch" mechanical controls and green/red LEDs in the VU meters. It's still in my dad's shed and probably still works!
Years ago I briefly had a Sharp RT-100, and I agree, there is really not much in these that could go wrong. Especially when compared to the predecessor, the RT-10. I do prefer the look of the RT-10, but it has idler wheels that can cause problems, such as one tiny one that is installed on the capstan itself and provides friction for another idler wheel that drives the take up reel in playback mode. This RT-100 replaces the idler wheels with gears, which should last a lot longer than idler wheels.
In Sharp boomboxes people use Radio Control fuel line to replace that idler "tyre".
I love you you used the windows xp install theme as the record test music! (yes IK it’s from encarta) R.I.P Stan LePard
That's the melody of Technology Connections at the start of that Chevrolet cassette 😁
Nice video especially the part when the 8 bit guy appeared at the 4:43 mark. That made my day. lol.
Nice find, nice video! This was one of my first cassette decks and the first that could record on metal tape, I used it with a Technics SA-110 receiver and one of the early Technics P-mount turntables--humble stuff but great step up from low-end all in one systems for a then-college student on a shoestring budget! The old Sharp deck is long gone but seeing this I miss mine. It was still very usable when I gave it to a friend after "upgrading"" to an NAD 6125 which was basically a worthless POS. Upgraded from it to a Nakamichi BX-150 which was a real revelation in how a cassette tape can sound but had its typical Nakamichi issues. Looking back I didn't realize how good this basic Sharp deck was for the money--nothing great for specs or features only the basics but you still got more than decent performance for the price. I still have an old Scotch Metafine cassette in my tape collection that I bought at the same time as the deck and used as a "mix tape" though we didn't call them that back then LOL! That early metal tape didn't have the standard metal tape notches so cannot be used for recording in a deck that has auto tape type sensing e.g. my Technics RS-M245X--I need to dig that tape out and give it a listen, and hear what all I recorded on the old Sharp deck some 40 years later. :)
Always found Sharp kit to be well put together and reliable. I still use one of their late 90s mini disc portables. The Optonica brand was higher quality still. Shame they were never recognised for the great products they were.
Maybe the cutout was used to house the power cable during shipping? They could maybe cut down on shipping costs just a little bit by stuffing the wire into that space instead of having to use a bigger box, and since this was clearly a budget deck every penny counted.
Just a guess.
It's a shame because Sharp Electronics in the early days (70s and 80s) had basic no frills electronics, but they were robust and well built. Their VCRs and televisions weren't bad either. But just like so many other companies, the demand for high quality audio components dwindled and now Sharp is basically limited to TV's and those ""All in one" stereo systems.
Also, love that you collect those cassettes and CD's that come with certain vehicles at the time. When I bought my 03 Corvette ,it came with a Dealer CD which has parts and other information about the car. And the GM Delco Bose CD, which can be used to test your radio and CD player. Just a lot of interesting little "perks" companies used to give you for your purchase.
This was one of the first seperate cassette decks my parents bought, it came with a Pioneer SA-550 amplifier,
some nice Celestion Ditton 15 speakers with the gold edging on the grills and our first CD player which was a
Philips CD-450. Our Sharp RT-100 has a slight problem with the auto stop where often it stutters for a few seconds
before the play button finally clunks, it's had it's belt replaced at least once but the record function no longer works on
it. But even in the 90s buying secong hand hi fi seperates was cheaper and in many cases better than many of those
all in one mini systems which were more mainstream among consumers.
My Dad also bought another bigger Sharp cassette deck similar to this one but it also had a built in clock with loads
of tactile buttons which were not part of the cassette deck but it also had a built in alarm which was handy for reminding
my mum to pick me and my brother up from school and you could probably also timer record on it. In 2000 my parents
finaly bought a brand new cassette deck with soft touch controls which is a Yamaha KX-393. My Dad has the Sharp RT-100
and our first CD player hooked up to his Quad amplifier and B&O speakers and the other Sharp cassette deck is in the loft
as that one also started having problems which is why my parents bought a new one.
I got the exact same model in the late 80's for £5 in a charity shop. My mum claimed as it was easy to use and looked good. Plus, I only had 2 music cassettes at that time. (I have 3 now LOL).
Back then a local shop was having a clear out and I was buying pre-recorded cassettes for 1/4 of the price of the same CDs.
@@MrDuncl Nice one. I only use(d) cassettes for my 8bit computers. My music was on vinyl, reel to reel and 8-track.
@@frankowalker4662 In the U.K. Reel to Reel and 8 track had dies out by the mid 1970s. In contrast, as I like to point out, Ford were still selling new cars with cassette players here in 2008.
@@MrDuncl I am one of the few people in the UK with an 8-Track recorder and a reel to reel in use in the lounge. It's probebly just me and Techmoan LOL.
Always wanted to see that tape deck on your channel thanks have a nice one ! Basic stuff are always the best because they last for ever
I have a Realistic SCT-29, an almost identical deck except for the asthetics. It might be slightly higher end because it does have a volume adjustment, though it's in the back.
My father bought it new from RS in the early 80s, and he used it extensively, and then I used it extensively, and the only thing wrong with it is the rewind is starting to slow.
Both of us have since gotten some other more expensive decks, but none have beaten the operation and reliability of that SCT-29.
I just found that exact one in a neighbors shed last year, it came right to life and works great!
This was my first cassette deck (I still have it, though I don't use it anymore). The only thing I ever had to do with it was replace the motor, which was very easy to do.
I'd say that "cut out" on the back serve a purpose for cable storage and/or tucking away the line wires while the deck is placed in a rack or on a shelf among other components.
I've not seen it in a while as it's in storage, but I have a variant of this.
Can't wait to play with it all again.
We'll soft start and service everything as some of the gear hasn't been used in years.
Great vid
03:10 - I hear the soundtrack for the "Computer Chronicles" PBS series.
I found the radio shack version of this tape deck, I should get it Tuesday Dec 12th, that is if the post office does not screw up the routing.
@ 7:53 I never thought to hear that music again... This theme was the startup music when you first had installed Windows XP on a machine that has a compatible soundblaster. I think it is called "I love you". Went back to memory lane Big time. 🙂
I've noticed that the tune played at 7:52 is actually a mix of the out-of-box tune that came with Windows XP when running it for the first time after installation. Super cool and nerdy if you played this intentionally for this connection. :)
I don't think I will ever lose interest in your channel as long as you visit that thrift store every single week and buy yet another cassette deck to bring back home!! Hope you do have space for all of them and you'll give me a tour when the time comes for me to visit America!! 😂😂😂 Keep up the good work and take care...
Is the cutout perhaps to store the power lead…?
Perhaps, but it's not so conveniently placed for that.
There is definitely something to be said for how well a lot of the simpler models hold up over time.
At first that cutout area had me wondering as well. As you went over the mechanism, the notion of storage for the power cord came to mind.
Love the 8BG cameo - appropriate too!
Amazing that this sounds so good for its age and low original price. Thanks for the video.
Dave.
The box on the back is for power cable storage. Fun video!
7:53 = Is this an Internet Explorer 4.0/Windows XP Welcome Screen reference?
Read the description to learn the source of the recording test music.
@@vwestlife OK. I didn't see the link. The last time that I've seen the Stan Soundcloud profile, I didn't see thst remix.
Great video, thanks! The Supertape MII casstette is apparetly rebadged Denon HD8, which is great, but also a special - it requires a deck with calibration feature for the best performance as its metall alloy/ cobalt dopped ferix oxyde combination tape characteristics are far away from standard type 2.
I had a lot of luck with Sharp products. I had a Sharp shelf stereo that I used for 30 years. It was really excellent.
I found this same tape deck for $15 at a yard sale in the early 90s!
I like your choice of royalty free music it's the best I have heard in weeks on here.
the empty slot/space in the back of the unit is meant for storing the power and/or connector wires ... pretty convenient is you ask me
I had the RT-10 which, as far as I can tell, was pretty much the same with minor cosmetic differences. It may not have been fancy, but it sounded pretty good!
Good find, despite the plastic has some good quality belts, which is rare for something of that vintage. I wondered whether the cutout was for the mains or phono leads, maybe when being transported.
Superbe video. I would like those stores exist in Patagonia Argentina
A “loss leader” is when a retail store takes a loss rather than a profit to get people into the door. Different retailers have different definitions of a “loss” though
I think that term was used here when milk as in the normal cow full cream milk was $1 a Litre, it was considered a loss leader for the supermarket. We can't get it for that now as it all went up anyway.
My middle school had this deck, we used it with our Peavey PA mixer to play music for the "talent" show. Yes, that open space in the back is weird. Maybe if the deck was also sold as part of a system with a cabinet, it was for hiding wires or somehow connecting it to the cabinet?
Hah wow the GM tape's stock music was the same music from Computer Chronicles. That music really is the perfect like 80s "computers" music haha, with enough of a enterprisey business sound to it that strongly matched the show, which was often more of an advertizement for various systems and services than anything.. but i guess what're you going to do back then for a public television program trying to show cutting edge tech. :/
That cut out almost looks like where something like an AM bar antenna would go but i dunno why that would be part of the cassette deck. I remember late, cheap VCRs often having big cut outs but that was because it would be a few grams less material or whatever, where this _adds_ material.
Also the drums from that windows XP music reminds me of Tom's Diner.
A company like Sharp probably owned a lot of the production for most of the cassette deck's components that they could basically precisely design things to a cost and make the right compromizes. A lot of companies that try to do the same from third party components usually came out with junk because they just have to accept what compromize they could get.
3713 is still being restored. It's at Steamtown in Pennsylvania 4:43
I like the old Sharp decks, I own a Sharp RT-1155 which is still working, i need to replace the belts in the near future, but i love them !
The belts aren't the problem believe me, I have a Sharp RT-1144 which uses the same mechanism and it was a complete pain to get working. The belts were easy to replace but it also uses two idler wheels and one of the tyres had also turned to goo, so ended up replacing both of them as well. However the deck has a small rubber idler in a metal housing that the capstan shaft passes through and it too always turns to goo and that is a bugger to get to, clean and replace. Once I had managed to do all of that one of the gears broke, another very common fault but replacements are available for that as well as it is that common. Finally it needed a new pinch roller as well as calibration. Taking the deck apart requires almost complete disassembly, patience, several coffees, lots of notes and photographs of where metal bits go and what gears do what. Got there in the end but I wont be tackling another anytime soon and certainly prefer working on late 80s and 90s decks.
True pain, but we are talking 70's and 80's here, even the cheap stuff was reliable :) @@kevinh96
Whoah Computer Chronicles music! I've also gotten lucky thrifting, an Akai CS-F21 for 11$.
It´s amazing how well it sounds. I´ve owned some more sophisticated decks that sounded worse. Great find!
The computer chronicles theme song on the tape! 🤣🤣 I love it!!
Scrubby and the Dynatones!! Fantastic album! Sounds pretty good! One of finest polka bands to come out of Buffalo!