Cassette vs. CD?

Discussion in 'Audio Hardware' started by FieldingMellish, Oct 28, 2009.

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  1. tootull

    tootull Looking through a glass onion

    Location:
    Canada
  2. GyroSE

    GyroSE Forum Resident

    Location:
    Sweden
    I had...and still have...and I can assure you that even today it gives both my turntable and CD player a run for the money...
     
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  3. Nostaljack

    Nostaljack Resident R&B enthusiast

    Location:
    Washington, DC
    Cassettes are still cassettes. Still lack bass, still fragile, still fluttery and wow-y. As was said, by the time it showed up, no one cared about cassettes anymore. Hence, they will always be hated by most recording engineers worth their salt, and they're not coming back to mass acceptance no matter how badly a very few wish they would. No Nak dragon, no noise reduction system, and no ceramic shell will make that happen.

    Ed
     
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  4. GyroSE

    GyroSE Forum Resident

    Location:
    Sweden
    One should never say never.....did you know that Teac once again produce cassette decks since the demand in the US has increased?

    Lets face it, cassette and also vinyl will both remain niche music formats for enthusiasts. Nothing is going to change that. So just let us enjoy what these formats can give us, in their best moments both can sound really, really good.
     
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  5. GuildX700

    GuildX700 Forum Resident

    Location:
    USA
    I wish Teac would make a killer reference deck again, the 2 decks they currently offer are fairly poor quality.
     
  6. Shak Cohen

    Shak Cohen Forum Resident

    Location:
    United Kingdom
    I have the Aiwa ADS-750 and it is a decent 2-head deck, as is the Yamaha KX580SE.
    Another deck I remember from this time was the Sony TCK611S.

    None of these had noticable wow/flutter issues, I remember reading in What Hi-Fi magazine around that time about Dolby only approving decks which met certain standards for S noise reduction.
     
  7. Shak Cohen

    Shak Cohen Forum Resident

    Location:
    United Kingdom
    You've obviously never heard or used a deck that is functioning properly.
    Did you know that there are plenty of CDs out there that are cassette recordings/transfers?
     
  8. Nostaljack

    Nostaljack Resident R&B enthusiast

    Location:
    Washington, DC
    I just continue to find it odd that we're talking about cassettes on an "audiophile" forum. I've heard them at their very best and both CD's and vinyl are far better in every way. I'm glad they've largely fallen out of fashion and I sincerely hope the negligibly increased U.S. sales tail off as they should. Much of the "cassette love" is simply based on nostalgia.

    Ed
     
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  9. Nostaljack

    Nostaljack Resident R&B enthusiast

    Location:
    Washington, DC
    With all due respect (and no snark), that simply isn't true. I already kinda gave away what I've heard. I've heard Nak Dragons, I've heard decks from Teac, Pioneer, and Sony - all of which were supposed to be the very best. I've heard and owned Sony Metal Masters, Maxell's, and the list goes on. None are absolutely awful but CD's outdistance them all by a good margin.

    I don't listen to anything that's a cassette transfer and while I'm sure they exist, "plenty" is a gross exaggeration for the stuff I listen to.

    Ed
     
  10. Dennis0675

    Dennis0675 Hyperactive!

    Location:
    Ohio
    The advantage of cassette was that it was a recordable medium and it was portable. It was never liked because of improved sound quality.
     
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  11. Brother_Rael

    Brother_Rael Senior Member

    I'm very pleased for you. None of my mates had a Pioneer SX-1980 either. I did once have a Sansui AU-717 which was a great amp. It was no better than my current Onkyo TX-NR818, gave me more hassle but still gave me pleasure. But the 818 is the better amp for me.
     
  12. The Pinhead

    The Pinhead KING OF BOOM AND SIZZLE IN HELL

    The question here would be whether the OP is talking cassette releases (mostly hopeless, cheaply mass-produced POS) or high-end recordable cassettes recorded from CD, which seems to be the case in point.
     
  13. 56GoldTop

    56GoldTop Forum Resident

    Location:
    Nowhere, Ok
    I love the committed generalists, here. :tiphat:

    [​IMG]
     
  14. Brother_Rael

    Brother_Rael Senior Member

    I used to have nostalgic feelings for old ways of doing things. They're fine, but not for me anymore. That's why the tapes went, that's why the LPs went and that's why I have what I need. Someone else's idea of what makes great audio is their thing for them to deal with. I'm sure that concept's got legs. Haven't bothered counting how many though.
     
  15. Brother_Rael

    Brother_Rael Senior Member

    Can't say as I'm surprised. Half the story. Ignorant and you post with pride. Carry on. Ah, Ignore...
     
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  16. Brother_Rael

    Brother_Rael Senior Member

    I doubt you even need to go to Metal tapes to get decent sound off a tape. I used Chrome TDKs for years. Even the ADs sounded okay. Only bought a few pre-recorded ones and one of those really was bad and none were ever particularly great. Marillion's Real to Reel on XDR was decent though. Fine for its day. Surpassed some time ago otherwise though.
     
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  17. DreadPikathulhu

    DreadPikathulhu Senior Member

    Location:
    Seattle
    I used cassettes almost exclusively in high school and purchased many mass-produced tapes. I don't think I ever had an issue with how they sounded and loved them for my car. I even would check out cassettes from the library and copy them onto other cassettes.

    It wasn't until after I graduated that I got into vinyl, which I copied to cassette to play in the car. After several years of that I got into CDs, though I maintained a nice collection of live concert tapes I'd trade for. I do still have relatively nice Sony deck that I ought to hook up so I can play them again.
     
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  18. McLover

    McLover Senior Member

    For me, the best analog is not cassette tapes. Even with all the Noise Reduction and metal tape. Not reliable enough nor consistent enough in performance. For me, open reel in half track Stereo or vinyl is the best analog.
     
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  19. Dougr33

    Dougr33 Forum Resident

    Location:
    Twin Cities, MN
    I may have missed it, but who argued that cassettes were better than open reel or vinyl?
     
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  20. McLover

    McLover Senior Member

    A few have been talking about cassette being high performance. For me, it is not. It is serviceable.
     
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  21. The Pinhead

    The Pinhead KING OF BOOM AND SIZZLE IN HELL

    I know:biglaugh:. Even 8tracks sounded better. Now if you recorded a CD onto a Cerametaxial Stabilized Adamantium XRM 60 cassette with dbx + dolbyZ it could beat vinyl......NOT !!!:laugh: .

    Not even the ElCassette caught on.:shake:
     
  22. Nostaljack

    Nostaljack Resident R&B enthusiast

    Location:
    Washington, DC
    [​IMG]
     
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  23. tootull

    tootull Looking through a glass onion

    Location:
    Canada
    Well, yeah.
    Tapes were for the car.
     
  24. The Pinhead

    The Pinhead KING OF BOOM AND SIZZLE IN HELL

    Ditto.
     
  25. JamieLang

    JamieLang Forum Resident

    Location:
    Nashville, TN
    Cassettes were the 96kbps mp3 of their day.
     
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