The cheap '90s stereo systems that spawned today's cheap cassette decks
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 19 ต.ค. 2024
- The cheap new cassette decks sold today are the last remaining vestige of cheap White-Van-esque 1990s stereo systems that also originally included an amplifier, tuner, CD player, and equalizer, sold under many different brand names around the world.
Entry-Level Cassette Deck Buyer's Guide: www.amstereo.or...
#cassette #RetroTech #AnalogRecording
"Cheap speakers not a scam I promise" gave me a chuckle
A friend had some of these years ago, thin gray carpet with the waffle grilles. They were three way. What I do recall is the foam crumbled on the woofer, and when opened, there was no insulation or crossover - just two pathetic little capacitors. The 10 inch woofer was running "full range" and rated 10 watts max. Pathetic junk.
I totally loved all in one Aiwa, Kenwood, Pioneer, Sony... The 90s were great for all in one mini systems, great mini systems with three way speakers!
Yeah they have to get the mold from somewhere. It's cheaper than creating something new. Also saves costs when massproducing it under different brands in different chinese factories. I just wish they would actually copy the built quality of the original tapedecks too.... I mean.. the Chinese CAN produce quality if they want to.
Hi, Yes that applies to almost anything, i work in a industry in Australia that has shrunk form 300 odd staff to almost 50, same 10-12 numbers in admin but the factory is basically down from 290 to 40
We manufacture about 3 types of products in the catalog and import the rest from Asia, they have most of our dies and moulds, but have also copied some and sent back the original.
The quality of the products is first rate and on par or better than was was made on site here 1940-1990.
What the customer receives is as good in quality as what was locally manufactured.
The price difference between junk and 100% quality is very little - lets call it 15-20%
They can make junk and they can make a excellent item, but 9/10 they will manufacture what the customer asks for and pays accordingly.
Ohh and the highest best quality items is about 20-30% landed in our warehouse for the cost one 1 made in house
Regards
George
I know that playing or recording cassette tapes is not really popular or economical these days, but it does make me a bit sad that this is what we are left with for new cassette decks. Last October, I managed to snag a very nice JVC TD-W203 dual cassette deck from a local second hand store. Everything works as it should on it and the sound quality is quite good. My deck is full logic control and was made in 1989 or 1990. It's way better than these new ones. I only paid $8 for it, too.
I have a JVC TD-208 and it works perfectly. I make very good recordings with this deck
You can hardly go wrong with JVC.
I really wish they'd start making decent-quality cassette decks at a reasonable price again
Not gonna happen, to make a decent quality deck these days would cost millions in R&D, millions for promotion, quality tapes would need to be made again for people to buy, mostly type 2, type 4 are too expensive to make again, this is exactly why none of any high standard are made any more, you're best bet is to buy an older high end deck that needs service and service it and enjoy it, that's what I do, I buy HiFi equipment that doesn't work for cheap and bring them back to life, I've got lots of great stuff that way.
@@nickfatsis9607 And also, there just isn't mainstream appeal for tapes like there is with vinyl now - the vinyl comeback was a huge success and now you have teenagers buying new record players. Unfortunately the same nostalgia doesn't seem to exist for tapes, I don't think we'll ever see a really high-end not-tanashin-based cassette deck ever again. There's just no market except for an incredibly small and niche one.
That would require huge investments in technology and production. The market is rather small and the public is not so quality-demanding as used to be.
The TEAC W-1200 (a.k.a. TASCAM 202mkVII) is a decent-quality cassette deck and I think $299 (TEAC's price for it on eBay) is reasonable.
@@vwestlife I see. I stand corrected then. Perhaps more companies should follow TEAC's lead...
I still have my JVC set I bought in 94. Still works perfectly.
nothing like sitting back with a slice of pizza and soda enjoying a new vwestlife video on a monday evening!
I was going to comment about these decks being available in the German Conrad electronics chain stores, but you have done a great job researching this already. I was in Conrad for the first time in 2006 I believe, and they had one of these component tower systems on display, it was silver (not sure if they also had a black version available) and branded X4Tech. There was the cassette deck, CD player, tuner, equalizer and amplifier. No matching record player. Some years ago, maybe around 2010 or so, Conrad prominently revived the brand Renkforce which used to be the store brand of another electronics chain store called Völkner that Conrad had taken over in 1990. Since the revival of this brand, they have replaced the X4Tech branded silver system with the Renkforce branded black system. I need to go back and double check, but I think they do still offer the complete system to this day, and not just the cassette deck.
He was right with the Renkforce brand, but not with "Soundwave". I never ever have seen any Soundwave component at Conrad, and I have plenty of old catalogs, dating back until 1989. And I regularly visit the Conrad store in Dortmund since the mid 90ies.
If I remember correctly, the Soundwave components were available through "Quelle" or "Otto". Back in the days I owned a cheap spectrum analyzer/Equalizer from Soundwave. I never really used it as a Equalizer, I just hooked it up to the line out of my amplifier to get that fancy VFD spectrum analyzer display to work xD
@@DgaDM Thanks for the correction re: the Soundwave brand.
The Wharfedale hi-fi system shown is not a "real" Wharfedale system. The brand name has been licensed to Argos in the UK to slap on low end consumer items. Sorry if this has been mentioned elsewhere in the comments. Sadly I think the licensing of the Wharfedale brand could be undermining the company's legacy and reputation as I'd imagine lots of people buy these things with the branding on them and never know it's low end stuff or end up disappointed that it doesn't turn out to be a high end system. High end Wharfedale hi-fi systems are still available though online and in proper hifi stores.
One time I was looking at Bose wave clock radio cd players at a London Drugs store in Calgary Alberta, it turned out to be a a knock off item. There was a disclaimer on the box saying that it was not affiliated with Bose in any way. But the design looked like the real thing. I think LD and the cloned/fake bose radio company got sued by Bose for infringement. Bose radios are about 800.00, perhaps more. I think the fakes were about 60.00
honestly when it comes to tape or vinyl go with equipment from the 70's and 80's. The build quality and sound production is superior to anything you can buy new today at a decent price.
As long as you stay with the well known Japanese brands. There were plenty of cheap and cheaply built stereo components in the 70s & 80s.
Agree! Now using a Yamaha KX-260RS cassette deck I bought at a local thrift store in 2020-2021!
And I have a 1989 Aiwa stereo system that sounds amazing
The Wharfedale back when they used that "Brandy" font really cheapened their image. I remember seeing a lot of products in an Argos catalogue years ago, and only learned about the true origins of the name much later. Such a shame those once well-respected brands have suffered cheapening - even Nakamichi, once renowned as "the Rolls-Royce of cassette decks", couldn't escape that. Though thankfully, Wharfedale are once again going back to their roots, and have ditched that "Brandy" font logo in favour of resurrecting a variant of the W-in-a-square logo they once had.
I have lots of old cassette decks. The one I use is in an old rack system. Thanks for the video.
nice mate
Some guy I was lucky enough to be gifted it to a friend who was getting rid of all his stuff to live in an rv and travel the US.
A proper tape monitoring loop has also vanished from most if not all brand name stereo receivers. TEAC's AG-790 is one of the few exceptions I'm aware of.
Holy nuts! You're amstereo.org? Cassettes + AM Stereo + Tandy 1000 SX = beyond awesome!
Thanks for doing this video! As a former Wharfedale WPA-3038 amplifier owner I had looked into the Digitech (Jaycar - Australia) and Eltax (another speaker brand) versions of that.
Great intro, I really enjoyed that overview with the cutaways.
there is no point to a Tape Monitor output unless the deck has a separate record and playback head like the decks that came with 3 heads (erase, record, playback)
There is no such thing as "Tape Monitor output". You will only have a "Tape Monitor" switch on the amplifier ... and yes that's usefull only if you are using a 3 Head recorder .
Exactly, a single playback/record head cannot monitor itself. Three head decks will have a "monitor" button to toggle between line input signal versus the actual output of the tape. Comes in quite handy for tweaking levels and bias, giving real time feedback on the adjustments.
You always want to hear what's going in! It could be distorted on the input stage.
I had that Pyle tape deck bought new about 3 years ago for $70. Flutter was pretty bad, audio had a lot of hiss, and the circuit board failed after a couple of years. Something was emitting a burning smell whenever it was plugged in, and I couldn’t figure out what, except I knew it wasn’t the power supply. I gave it to a local HiFi shop for free for parts and bought a really nice Tascam deck which I am glad I purchased.
As a 70s child, my first stereo all in one decks where “Soundesign” and “Emerson” and Radioshacks Clarinet, which was better than the previous 2. But in 1983 Zenith Allegro had powerful all in one systems with awesome sound and quality
Emerson and Soundesign are two of the worst brands out there. Clarinette was okay for a cheap brand.
I wonder if there are any warehouses left with new-old-stock quality tape decks anywhere that are still sitting gathering dust. It would be great to get an old (new) early 80s Pioneer deck with those blue luminescent lights..........
the belts are likely need to be replaced in them though. Belts in tape decks do not age well whether or not they are used, and it is a pain to to do so. LOL
Yeah belts and maybe some caps
Riskteven you guys might have to consider doing what retro computer users have taken to doing and “recap” the circuit boards (that means desolder the bad cap and replace/solder in a new one). Maybe that’s something you would consider beyond your skill set or willingness to take on but maybe there is a business opportunity for someone willing to do that for retro audio junkies wanting to keep their retro stereo amps running but not willing/able to take on the project themselves.
@@Riskteven no. caps are an issue with anything that uses electrolytics. does not matter if it's an amp, preamp, eq, tape deck. anything. caps are used in all power supplies and all electrolytics will fail. some sooner than later.
@@Charlesb88 There are companies that supply full cap kits for popular amplifiers of yesteryear.
Basically the best thing to do is buy used brand name decks from the 90's and early 2000's and refurbish them.
Conrad still sells these decks today as Renkforce TP-1000. Amazing that this originates from the early '90s.
Very interesting video, I watched it feeling hypnotized, absorbing the information fully focussed. Thank you!
I remember seeing them Wharfedale separates in the Argos catalogue as a kid. that was late 2000s They sold the shelf alongside the separates
I am always kinda tempted to get back into cassettes when you and other TH-camrs post videos like this, it a real shame that the end of line stuff for them we have is just not worth the investment right now and I am too newbie to really want to look at older stuff and gamble that it still works.
Consider the TEAC W-1200 ($299 on eBay), which is nearly identical to the TASCAM 202mkVII I reviewed.
@@vwestlife I will check it out thank you. :)
@@dimensiongamer534 I would rather STRONGLY suggest to get older tapedeck for $30, you would NEVER think cassetes could sounds so good.
@@vwestlife Seeing you repeating same thing over and over again makes me think... modern TEAC is both mechanically and electronically total disaster, not worth even $20 and for sure i wouldnt pay $299 for it. Its quality is ~0 and nothing more... I do suspect you ARE aware of that right ? WHy you still trying to spread those false informations, make people around spend a lot of money for hardware that should be wiped from humanity history rather than recommend it... YOU are aware of its very low specs ? YOU are aware of its terrilble sounding ? YOU are aware of its 4th grade cheap mechanism ?
Get a JVC Cassette deck they're good too!
I read your post on the Tapeheads forums where you said the genuine Tanashin mechs have been discontinued since 2009. Assuming that's true it really leaves two possibilities; either some companies have large stockpiles, or Tanashin is willing to do special production runs for certain customers.
Wharfedale licenced their brand for use on everything except speakers to Argos, a catalogue retailer in the UK and Ireland. Generally applied to Turkish made kit but not exclusively.
I was surprised when Wharfedale started associating themselves with low-end gear. I checked at the time and they were still producing quality speakers at the same time. I also remember Currys PC World producing white goods under the ‘Grundig’ brand.
The whole system was sold in Argentina under the Onward brand in the early '00s, the deck alone was also available as Pyramid here.
Techmoan told me I could press the buttons however I want!
same
😆😆😆
I think it depends on whether it is is mechanical buttons directly linked to the mechanism. If that is the case, it seems logical that you can stress the mechanics by switching directly between functions without using the stop button.
Saw that too. I don't mind erring on the side of safety.
I believe he said that's only the case on certain decks, definitely not the lower quality, oldest or newer ones..
The Ariston branded components were sold in the UK by Richer Sounds. It still amazes me that such a prestigious name can be so cheapened over the years! Once up there with Linn - now down in the pile with Pyle!
So many brands seem willing to cash in a hard built reputation for a feq quick bucks, it is really sad. Marantz was/is also a good brand that shouldn't have their name anywhere near this crap.
Remember “Sherwood” also from Richer Sounds?
@@AmigaA-or2hj I certainly do. And their DJ brand Synergy. Their Cambridge Audio A1 amplifier was thoroughly decent, and for some reason they sold a plastic-faced version as the Ariston AX-910. Odd!
Yup. Renkforce is a very familiar brand if you're German and often drop by at Conrad for some electronic components, cables or devices. Or when you read their catalogs. And i think i've seen some similar dubious brand Audio Component system back in the days at another German electronics store called Azert Radio. A bit like Conrad, who too have huge stores. Kinda like Radio Shack. I remember them selling everything from Radio tuners, Equalizers, Turntables and also Cassette Decks.
Excellent detective work!
Here in the UK, Bang & Olafson was the gold standard with Denon coming a good close second. Back in the eighties "separates" were hugely popular ranging from the ultra cheap Amstrad "deck" hi fi to some serious Technics and Pioneer kit. Nowadays I just use a Denon micro hifi, it has a very good CD, radio and cassette, extremely good speakers with no wow or hiss on anything played back and bought it broken for ten pounds it needing a new drive belt in the CD and a thermal fuse replacing, not that it gets much media in it as I just hook my fone up to it and channel through the fone.
The Wharfdale brand was licensed by Argos to produce & sell audio equipment WITHOUT speakers. Personally I think it was a mistake. Argos was a retailer who did not display anything in store to any degree. Instead they had a catalogue and all a small counter where you placed an order from the catalogue. The goods were held in a warehouse behind the counter and they were picked to order. It meant that they could stock 1000s of items from toys to curtain rails to tvs etc. It was a place to go for good value but not high quality. Wharfdale continued and still continue to make their excellent speakers but I fear that the licensing of the brand name has 'cheapened' the image of the brand.
They should be careful stacking them like that since it can cause Pyles
pun tastic
I'll stick with my old high end Sony double deck that even includes Dolby S. Bought it off of Ebay reconditioned and still works great!
Oh damn! Lucky!
Yup. I have a mid '90s Yamaha deck. I've got the service manual and spare belts. I'm not going to be letting that one go in a hurry.
Very good review and read your buying
guide, much of which I am aware of.
I had the older Ion silver dual deck, and
it wasn't too bad. I did sell it at a club
auction for $25.00.
The Pyle unit I had a couple of years
ago was cheaper, at about $75.00 from
Walmart, was pretty bad. The keys
would pop up on play and record, fighting
the tapes being too tight for the motor mechanism. I contacted Pyle, and it
would have cost about $20.00 to send
it to them for repair. So I tried to return
it too Walmart, but was refused for
being past their 90 day limit for return.
I just left it there abandoning it.
More recently. I obtained the Silver
Teac W-1200 from Japan for much
more, with solenoid touch controls,
which works and records well, with
none of the problems I had with Pyle.
Re dimensions: are you saying these tape decks lack depth? I’ll see myself out…
rrrriiiigghhtt........ I'll be here all week!
Looking forward to the modern day comparison, I'm considering buying one of these (Renkforce brand here in Germany), as we listen to cassettes quite extensively in the past few months and I'm afraid of wearing the heads of my 3-Head Pioneer deck down. Want to save it for recording because it has all the fancy recording features that you can't get anymore.
I know I should bite the bullet and spend the money for the Teac one because they deserve it, but there is quite a big difference between spending a hundred or four hundred bucks. Would be nice if they de-cheapen these multi brand decks a bit.
I am so glad to have my Radio Shack's Optimus Stereo System from the late '90s (5.1 Surround / Dual cassette deck / 6 CD cartridge changer / Direct Drive TT -this one from 1985- / 3-way tower speakers -also from 1985-) still in excellent condition.
The reason so many companies are making their products lower and lower quality is because they are more concerned with keeping their shareholders happy instead of their customers. Sometimes it is so bad that some products are almost as junky as something home made.
"Soundwave" was also sold in the UK from one of the mail order pay monthly catalogues with high interest payments.
I just came across your channel , I most say I remember those cheap decks in the 80's and I remember when walmart sold the cheaper tower stacks with speakers , I think they were sound design or something like that. Anyway I like seeing videos like this I collect 80's and 90's receivers and boomboxs
“Vector Research” is the brand that made the best receiver / cassette / EQ combo. Really cool mini shelf system that had the ability to clip a handle on top, and latch the speakers onto the sides. Nice little boom box, Voltron style!! Best dead giveaway that it’s a crap tape deck? IF it doesn’t have a dedicated cassette tape type selector switch, for metal / chrome and normal. I’d make no considerations if I can’t throw in my old super heavyweight TDK metal tapes and remain confident that the machine knows it. Those old TDK metal / chrome tapes would likely weigh those plastic decks down enough to keep them from sliding back on the shelf! Thanks for sharing this, good insight!!
I have a sansui double cassette deck and a technics FM tuner. Found it in a pawn shop. I'm in love with them
I am working on upgrade circuit board for the Pioneer CT-F500 tape deck, that will have some very new features, as these 40 year old units are commonly available today. I am working on the prototype at the moment and the plan is to make an upgrade kit available in the new year. This project is all about making a high end cassette decks in the 2020's that is able to show there is still development happening today with this technology. I will be posting updates as this project as it takes shape over the coming months, as there has been some interest aready for this idea.
I had a Sansui EXACTLY like one of these for a little while and I wondered why it felt so cheap! Will edit this comment later when I find the model no.
I cannot believe anything else is in the news right now when you have seriously BLOWN THE LID OFF this scandal! This should be front page news 😀
In seriousness, thanks for the diligent research and interesting content, even for those of us not about to buy tape decks. Still fascinating to hear you tell the story.
I’m from the other side of the tracks, and I will agree that they would sale a rack system like that over at Joe’s Shack, and I just called Joe. He said that he sold the crap out of these, along with guy’s in different color vans bought a lot of these. Then we got to talking about back years ago, and his old shop. Good days.
Pfft! I know a genuine Panaphonics when I see one. And look - there's Magnetbox and Sorny!
Yeah, but do either of them come with a durable outer casing to prevent fall-apart?
And a 2 prong wall plug!
They are much amaze and many quality!
I've seen a "Techniks" CD player with close approximation of font.
@@Fluteboy We see that in Indonesia but they're branded as "Tecnix".
I keep rewatching this video and forgot about the follow up video that was supposed to happen.
I had the original ION TAPE2PC (black) and the pressure required to depress the buttons was awful.
It soon started chewing up tapes which I discovered was caused by the tape walking across the pressure roller and then winding itself around the spindle, indicating some misalignment problem.
I did not manage to fix it and eventually dumped the deck.
I do remember that the recording was poor,but the playing back was quite good.
I am looking forward to watching the new version to see if there are improvements.
Thanks.
Alba and bush brands in the uk. Crown was another cheap brand in uk.
Crown was also a cheap brand in greece, even though they were having decent stuff
I remember Amstrad making some iffy hi-fi systems in the UK in the 80s/90s too. I did really want their 4-track recording studio/music system they released though back in the day. The Amstrad Studio 100 I believe it was called. It looked like a mixing desk stuck onto the front of an 80s midi hifi. Ridiculous but also pretty cool looking.
My first stereo was a Crown from 1994. Had a record player, double cassette deck, CD and analog tuner. It was... acceptable. The CD player died halfway through the first disc. I got a warranty replacement that still works. The CD player actually was attached like a component, as I could remove it from the rest of the system when I disassembled it. The tuner sucked. The cassette deck sucked (but for a 10 year old it was more than OK). The amplifier is now inside a SEGA Hang On machine replacing a replacement for the original one and the CD player is now part of an otherwise mid-1970s stereo system.
@@senilyDeluxe wasnt crown sold by Freeman's or Kay's catalogue?
I feel like the Crown brand was also used in the US, mostly on car stereos and portable cassette players
Great info and examples... Thank you for the video... Much appreciated...
These days Marantz cassette decks are just over-glorified by "audiophiles" for it's "superior sound quality" and "low wow and flutter", wherelse it's just a rebranded Pyle or Ion deck with a shiny, luxury looking paint job.
Yep. But don't tell that to r/audiophile. They love their Marantz branding
There are two different Marantzes. The original high-end Marantz brand still exists, but these cassette decks are sold under the Marantz Professional brand, which is owned by InMusic Brands -- who also owns ION, Alesis, and Numark.
@@vwestlife Appreciate the knowledge
@@tarstarkusz Just bought a Yamaha A-S 1200, for a serious penny. Worth it. If you consider inflation and adjust for it, you get proper gear still.
@@vwestlife InMusic Brands is local here in Rhode Island. I actually have a friend that works there. If you have any questions, let me know and I can try to pass them along.
I just got myself a onkyo ta-2000. Wich was a mid range deck in its time. So far im quite happy with how it sounds. i dont think ever heard any high end decks.
This was fun to watch
I find it interesting that there is still so many makers of audio cassette decks, while the VCR has been universally discontinued. I don't think that's the natural workings of a free market, but some kind of pressure to reduce competition with TiVo, etc.
I personally think what really killed off the VHS VCR was the extermination of analog TV along with the VCR's time-shift recording capacity from analog over-the-air TV and analog cable. In the USA, in early 2007 the FCC forced videorecorder manufacturers to become "tunerless" (lline-only recording) unless an ATSC tuner was included, which at the time was rather costly. At the same time, cable TV operators began eliminating analog service, so those "cable ready" VCRs were rendered useless. VHS VCR-only units disappeared entirely. Tunerless combo VHS-DVD units continued in production for a few years.
Check out the 1991 Sony TC-D505 deck, part of the Sony LBT-D505 system. The design is identical to the ones you presented, and I think that's where these cheap brand copied it from. Funny thing, for the upper models - TC-D607, 707 etc Sony changed the design, and we're stuck with these awful machines.
Касетата си е касета за всички любители. Този носител е много по-добър. Със най-траен запис. Ще го разберете, но ще мине време. Тези компресирани записи, цифрови и т.н. не са дълготрайни. Не може смачкан формат, да го "разпънеш" и да получиш същото качество.Има много хубави и качествени декове. Касети също се произвеждат. Трябва да потърсите повече. Насладете се на нещо, което не се забравя. Със Здраве.👍❤️
My solution is to hook a VU meter up to the cassette deck and play a commercial tape and adjust the VU meter. Once calibrated to a commercial tape, put the VU meter between the source and the tape recorder and then you have a visual monitor so you know what is going into it. If the source doesn't have a volume control, then get an inline headphone style volume potentiometer too hook up between the VU meter and the tape deck.
I think that at @9:33 number 12 in owners manual is Dolby Noise Reduction ( DNR ). Great video. I didn’t know Marantz also had those tape decks.
DNR = Dynamic Noise Reduction, not Dolby.
@@vwestlife oh, I see. Thanks for clarifying that sir👍🏻
6:40 That socket is not really for remote control. There is no physical way of remotely controlling a tape mechanism with no solenoids! What these connectors usually were for was something called 'CD SYNC'. You pressed Record on the tape deck and the CD would start playing a few seconds later. Aimed at those making copies to listen to in the car or in a walkman.
It is a remote control on/off feature. It applies power to the deck when you switch on the amplifier.
Thanks! Looking forward to your Cassette Deck Guide. I had to go vintage via eBay to get a decent 3-head cassette deck with advanced noise reduction and auto tape type selection. The only new cassette decks from major audio brands like TEAC, Marantz and TASCAM are just rebranded and slightly different cover designed versions of the cheap Ion and Pyle decks you have reviewed in your videos. Sad...
Look again at the TEAC and TASCAM decks. They have absolutely nothing to do with the decks I showed in this video!
Ha! Conrad Electronics! Here in Germany they are well known, the still sell quite a lot of odd stuff, which makes them great :D Greetings from northern Germany!
Tricky dickie's here in Australia rebadged that amplifier, my school had a load of them, this would have been around 2005,6. I think Jaycar still sells it to this day, I remember seeing one in store not long ago
Tricky Dickies rebadged and added his name to everything, i still have is thick catalogs from 1983-1988 somewhere
Interesting to watch the price drop in the same item each year, especially PC items like the rebadged Wizard PC and the other Apple clone
Same with local Tandy catalogues
Regards
George
I have 2 great decks the first one is a JVC TD-R421 and the other is JVC TD-W 354 one is a single deck and the last one is a dual deck with DOLBY B & C NR HX feature these are well built.
Never buy a tape deck that praises itself for having an "Auto Stop System" 😊
The quality of the Ion can compare with many cassetedecks out of the eighties....not the best...but the frequences...till 17.000 is enough for a good sound,even in an expensive equipment.
I have a deck from the 70s that has "Full Auto Stop" in big bold letters (Its a Pioneer by the way) because in the 70s it was a big deal. On a recent deck though there's literally no need for it to specify
I remember that my parents all in one thing has "automatic tape selector" or something like that on the front of it (it has 2 decks but only 1 set of tape controls)
@@pineappleroad There was a time when the front panel of every hifi equipment was filled with fancy names like "Full ISPS Logic System", "Auto Servo Logic", "Super APSS" or whatever. It was just like the prints on T-Shirts: It meant nothing or it just was one more tiny capacitor worth 2 cents somewhere in the electronics.
@@pineappleroad automatic tape selector was out of the time that the type metal tape did not yet exist...only ferro and chrome...
Argos used to own Wharfedale and produce their cheaper electronics under that name - they now do that with the British brands Bush and Alba. All through this time, Wharfedale was still manufacturing high-end speakers under it's own brand, whilst simultaneously licensing the name to Argos to stick on boomboxes, radios and hifi systems.
Hi back in the day before internet there were only expensive magazines, my music teacher advised - ignore the technical mumbo jumbo on the sticker or items ( and says the speaker output is meaninglessly as some are peak?? or only for a short burst then it distorts Does anyone remember 20 watt Pioneer car speakers mid 70's and 5 years later they sounded no different to 40/80/100 watt )
Anyway, he said, take your favorite cassette tape that you recorded songs of the radio and a genuine recorded artists tape to the shops, ask to play them back, and you will HEAR the difference between each cassette player, the amount of bass and treble adjustment, hiss , feedback, hum, quality and loudness of speaker, and pick the best you can afford.
Best advice ever, years later i bought a 3 in one mini system ( Aiwa ) , and later a full component setup ( Sansui ) and done exactly the same, i took my car cassette tape and a OEM music CD and played them back - that did i buy - of all things the best item was a portable Philips AZ8050 3 in 1, i still have it , still use it and it sounds great - not sure of the tape quality but at the time it was good, the CD / AMP / speakers were the best even compared to items x2 or x3 the price ( i think i paid $140 AU in @ 1995 )
Maybe lucky or i just have low expectations, but i am still very happy with it.
Since after 2000 and when WIn XP came out i have a decent PC and surround sound setup, CD ROM and DVD playback is fine as is compressed formats, my CD collection has been saved as MP3 then MP4 and also lossless
Hmm edit - i went searching for a photo and found it is also a cold on USA Ebay as a Magnavox 8050 ** i dont know if that is good or bad ** :)
Regards
George
Rebadging things for Americans is very common, and Magnavox is a pretty well known brand over here. A lot of Japanese products were rebadged by American companies in the mid-late 20th century as there was (apparently, I'm too young to know firsthand) some kind of weird skepticism or fear about Japanese electronics. Giving it to an established American brand to sell was the best way to get your product overseas at that time. So, it's neither a good or bad thing, really; quality stuff can be rebadged just as easy as the shite.
My parents back in 1992 (? no tsure but around that time) had a decent Sony component system. Turntable, Spectrum EQ, Tuner, Amp, Single Cassette, 5 disc changer, came with 4x 2-way speakers i believe. They had it until 2009 when the changer went out and we were given a new system and they donated the Sony system to the Goodwill. Many memories of making countless mix tapes off the turntable, radio and cd changer but mostly the turntable as CD's were still too expensive and more people have vinyl collections lying around. I remember never having good quality blank tapes and most of the time I would just record over self help tapes or educational lessons on tape and of course they were of very low quality. One time I bought one blank tape for 10 bucks but it was pointless cause my cassette deck was just a simple recorder with no type IV setting.
Great content Yamaha dvd c-900 laser eye bad and need motor with belts what’s my options on getting parts to fix very hard to find ??
You havent lived until you have had a integated amp!
Oh man, I haven't heard anybody mention (Nobody Beats) The Wiz in years. I thought I dreamed that entire company.
Also one of these infamous brands: As a kid in the late 80's i had a Supertech branded stereo "tower".
2:37 Hahaha :D i'm surprised they didn't also miss spell High Fidelity as "High Fiddelty"
Don't give them ideas.
Any 80´s deck is cheaper and betther then any one of this post years 2000.
Generally yes. And if it was a robust system in the first place, a little TLC should keep it going for many decades. But even the quality brands back then did not always produce bulletproof stuff. I've heard for instance that Technics used a soft plastic gear that stripped its teeth permaturely.
I hope you're right bud.
@@mauritsvw I personaly fix my vintages, change electrolitic caps, search for problems, I spend weeks studing a circuit, folling the sound path. I have tape decks since the 80´s, and today they perform better then before. For me, they play like CDs, in terms of sound quality.
@@ArturArocha Nice! I've still got my whole cassette collection, starting from the early 70's, and luckily have a good quality Technics deck (RS-AZ7) in as new condition to listen to them. As you say, a good recording on a good deck rivals the sound of a CD.
By all means, I'm no expert, but I agree. By the time I was born cassettes were almost entirely replaced by CD's meaning I didn't really grew up with them except my CD player could play cassettes and I had one tape (which I played over and over until it ate the tape lol).
When I bought my first turntable (JVC L-A31), I decided to go vintage from the beginning. It's definitely not anything high-end, but for me, someone who grew up in a time when everything is made out of plastic, it had amazed me (and continues to do so) that 'old stuff' is so durable. Same goes for my cassette player (from the 80s, like my turntable), all still works like new from the box, and in my experience (and opinion), if the previous owner took good care of the equipment, vintage HiFi is not only cheaper, but also better built than their new, cheap and plastic-made counterparts.
We have some X4-Tech stuff. It's pretty good actually
I still have a Kenwood Spectrum 88 rack system & I guess i'll be looking into the dual deck.
Overall it's a very nice unit with plenty of power; 155 wpc rms into 8 ohms at not more than 0.015% THD. I just don't see them using subpar components matched with higher quality components, they weren't cheap.
I guess it's just the re-released products that are effected (hopefully) but i'll do the research.
A good friend of mine got bought a 'Cascade' music system in about 1988. It was an all in one with no CD player. It had a record deck, a radio, a graphic equalizer and I think a double tape deck. I'm not 100% sure where it came from. It might have been "Boots' a toiletry supermarket in the UK. I'm not sure which format he used it most for. Possibly radio, tape and record player - in that order. It always made me laugh how it had a ridiculously complex multi-band graphic equalizer - but the actual frequency band width was pathetic.
A year later I got a Hitachi portable Super-woofer TRK-3D8. It was the second best one they did at the time, although I've seen some with a CD - it might not have been sold in the UK. The best (available) one had two bass speakers - whereas mine had a large central one. At 15 years old it was a fantastic thing to have. There was a lot of great music between 1990 and 1993. The sound was clear and it had a good 'thump' to the bass. I recorded a lot of songs of the radio in excellent quality. The radio was super and much louder than the tape player. There was an input at the back for a CD player, but I never got one to go with it - funny how your mind gets occupied with other things. It went everywhere there was a plug, in the garage, bedroom, kitchen and bathroom! It stopped working just before 1998. It was probably fixable for the radio, but I slung it. The tape buttons were beginning to get very brittle and a few of them were already knackered.
My replacement came in the form of a 1975 ITT KA-2015 music centre, put with Tannoy Mercury bookshelf speakers and a Yamaha CD-493 'Natural sound' CD player. The ITT will get repaired, but the speakers and CD player still work great! I have a couple of Panda brand portable DVD / tape / radio / USB players. Much lighter than the Hitachi, but little bass - unless you plug in a set of decent desktop speakers in them.
Go back to the 80's.
I still have two original decks.
awesome! congrats on the web page!
The Palladium Brand was also or even mostly sold by via "Otto Katalog". Soundwave by Quelle Katalog. Palladium even sold the famous Pioneer Urushi high end series under their brand etc, so not everything was cheap or bad quality, it depended on the price. Some Palladium suff was really good. Look for "Palladium and Urushi"
That owner's manual actually does mention the dolby noise reduction and show it on the diagram. It's just marked as DNR, it's #12 on that list.
DNR = Dynamic Noise Reduction, not Dolby.
@@vwestlife Oh, interesting! I wouldn't have known. Thanks for the info.
First saw these branded as Ariston in the early 90's sold by Richer Sounds!
They made washing machines too, alongside awful adverts.
@@tonyjones9442 don't think it was the same company though
In the seventies Ariston made proper hifi components. A refurbished seventies Ariston deck, the Rd 11, can still fetch £500 today because it is still a great front end for a hifi system.
I have that t exact tuner in black from Richer Sounds branded as Ariston, it's actually not bad at all
Just get something like a Sony TC-WE 435, used high-quality equipment for a low price. Requires new belts every 10-15 years and that's it. Fixed a few and was always impressed by the recording quality (On proper tapes).
I think pyramid made a deck like this too..I used to have one of their cheap amps that matched it too. The amp actually didn't sound too bad but it wasn't very powerful either. I never knew what the matching tuners or anything looked like until I seen this.
“ma, can I get a Sony Hi-Fi system for christmas?”
the Sony Hi-Fi system I get for christmas
Now I know how glad I am that I digitized all my old tapes to FLAC soon after I got my first good USB audio interface, but while my 1996 Kenwood cassette deck was still in great shape. It's fun and nostalgic to watch videos about old equipment, but the music is the main thing for me. I would hate to have to use one of these cheesy wannabe decks to listen to those un-replaceable radio shows, DJ mixes, live recordings, and albums only every available on cassette. Plus most of my cassette library was Type II or IV with Dolby B or C, so these decks don't even have the features required to play them properly. The FLAC files, however, sound as good as ever.
On thing I will state, having used cassette decks since the late 1970s, having a manual record level control is almost useless if the VU record level meter only has five leds for each channel, whether the deck is 2020 or 1980.
Take a look at a Sony TC-K71 ... now this is a record level meter! Backlit, with 15 leds / channel, starting with Inf, -40, -30, -20 dB, and one dB resolution around the 0 dB point, with Dolby reference points.
I had a 90s Kenwood dual deck that was very low quality. It also had the center detente level control, but that was because it was a multi-function control. If you pushed the knob it became a balance control. Guess that saved them $ of having to add another potentiometer & knob
Unfortunately, like many companies, Wharfedale licensed their name to Argos to put on cheap junk, only their speakers remained high end/decent because only they remained proper Wharfedale designed products. Argos also bought the rights to use the once decent Bush name on Chinese built junk in the 80s along with Alba another once decent brand name.
I have one of those 80s "bush" Chinese cassette recorders and it's not terrible for a dictation machine
I wonder if a manufacturer with vision could look to improve on the mechanism used by Teac/ Tascam and use better quality components? Obviously, it would not hark back to the glory days of cassette decks but it would provide a basic platform for those wishing to renew their relationship with tape or for newbies. Tooling costs would be lower than a ' ground up' project. Once again though, finding a manufacturer willing to do this is the issue.
The mechanism is fine. See the reviews I've done of the TASCAM 202mkVII and CD-A580.
@@vwestlife Many thanks for your response. I have indeed seen your previous video on the Teac/ Tascam deck some months ago. My only point was that if some of the components in that deck were built to a price ( for instance plastic instead of aluminium, brass etc + more shielding) then a few simple tweaks might make it a bit better. Anyway, please keep up the interesting videos. Greetings from England.
Didn't think I'd hear Argos brought up! It's a real shame that there are so few decent decks left.
That one tape deck you had questioned if it had Dolby Noise Reduction? In the screen shot of the manual its button 12. “DNR.”
DNR = Dynamic Noise Reduction, not Dolby.
VWestlife Interesting. First I’ve heard of that.
"Cartel" is exactly the same deck for turkish market. But it was maybe 20 or 25 years ago
Just wanna say I love your videos, and it's great seeing gay representation in some of these nerdier/more niche hobbies and interests. Feels like there's not that many of us sometimes! :-)
Here in Spain that ones was sold by a brand named Brigmton. You can look for "Brigmton BAM-800" in google images to see an example.
Thanks! They sold the cassette deck as the BDD-800.
@@vwestlife They sold the complete system, but is almost impossible to find (you need time)... Thanks for your comment.
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VWestlife Hey... have you ever messed around with a Pioneer CT-W606DR? It had a "Digital" noise reduction circuit that was just OK. It only worked if the hiss was subtle. If there was a lot of hiss it would introduce (what I call) a "Metallic Warble". I still have the deck but rarely use it. Just curious as to if you checked one of those out.
Yes, I did a video about it.
@@vwestlife Crap, I'm sorry. I should have searched your videos first :p
VWestlife
One of these brand new PYLE cassette decks just showed up on my doorstep today. Please let me know if you gotbyour new one already. I might be interested in working some sort of deal for you.