Talk to me a about reel to reel tape

I'm starting to plan out a system. It will include CD/SACD/DVD-A, BluRay Audio and a record player. I haven't figured out all the exact pieces yet, just the functionality I want. Should I consider a reel to reel tape player? Why or why not? What can be expected as far as resolution?

What models are recommended?

 

Depends on the machine you buy and how much money you want to commit.

 

You can buy new tape from ATR, I really wish someone would step up to the plate and start to manufacture new Reel to reel decks for audiophiles. I have heard that the reason this doesnt happen is that they are just too expensive to make. And that they would start in the many thousands just for entry level. I find this hard to believe...
I would Love a new Studer 2 channel deck for playing music.

 

Open reel tape is not for the general listener of commercially released music because there is hardly any and because realistically you need to be able to maintain a machine. If you have or have access to a tape archive worth the candle, if you intend to record for your own amusement or for audiophile small scale releases, or are just fascinated by mechanical things and like playing with them tape can be a lot of fun but be prepared to pay in time and money.

Some of the better consumer machines are halfway decent but a true professional machine is going to be much better. Prices are starting to go up. Studer or Ampex are the realistic choices but there are Presto, Scully, MCI, 3M and a few other machines out there. There re also semipro machines like Crowns that are somewhat decent.

Studers are beautifully made, as are Nagras, but the support is mostly European and even more expensive than an Ampex. Ampex 350 or 440 machines are still somewhat supported for pro, revenue producing use, and are all electromechanical. There are also the ATR series but the transport itself uses intricate digital electronics few audio people understand at all and I try to steer anyone not a good digital electronic troubleshooter far away despite the very good performance they can turn out.

 

I think a new Ampex 440 transport alone would cost at least five grand today unless they were to be built in ten thousand quantities. Not counting electronics or heads.

 

Well, there are two companies that refurbish old machines for audiophile use, and those start in the thousands.

J-Corder updates old Technics machines, and United Home Audio updates old Tascam machines. Or you can get old studio machines and get them refurbed. Pricey and bulky all around.

Perhaps the op would just like a nice quarter track deck to play back pre-recorded tapes and do some non-critical recording. I'd just get a nice Teac for that.

 

If you don't already have a tape library, I'm not saying you can't build one but are you really going to spend hundreds/thousands on a machine you may only have a few tapes for in the end because the ones worth listening to will cost you hundreds themself as well?


If you're stubborn like me, go for an Otari Mx5050 bII. Very versatile deck with nice upgrade options if you're a bit of a modder, and can handle pretty much any 1/4" tape you can throw at it - 3 3/4 IPS quarter track consumer tapes on small plastic spools to 15IPS 2 track studio masters on big pretty metal reels. It can be had pretty inexpensively, which is a plus considering any deck you get will NEED to be gone over by a qualified technician and brought up to spec.

 

If you don't live in a music industry town there are no "qualified techs" in most cases and if you do you will want to put one on retainer if you have no onboard staff that can do this. It's not like you can look in the phone book any more.

 

Reel to reel is rewarding but does require some mechanical skills to maintain the machine. The heads will require relapping as they wear. Reel to reel decks lose their full frequency range as the heads have become worn quite a lot, since full tape to head contact is lost. The same is true for cassettes.

Here are a few Decks I recommend for home hifi use:
For playback of 4 track stereo pre-recorded tapes, and near professional home recording on high bias tape (expensive and subject to sticky shed syndrome)
Teac 4010 (7 inch reel only)
Sony TC-755
Teac A3440 (a 4 track multitrack deck compatible with 4 track stereo)
Pioneer RT 909 (also capable of recording with std bias tape)
Pioneer RT-1020 (more robust than the RT-909 and sounds better, at prices at a fraction of the RT-909.. go figure)
Sony TC-255 and TC255 and TC-377, these are among the best sounding playback decks, extended low range below 40 cycles that other decks do not reproduce flat out.. not to be underestimated. All of these are idler wheel drive and always need to be serviced, so only purchase a properly serviced deck. These decks are compatible for recording on vintage standard bias tapes which are cheap to obtain

Here are 1/2 track 15 IPS decks for more serious recording:
Revox PR-99 or Revox B-77 (some are are 7.5 ips/ 3,75ips versions and all require balanced to unbalanced connection)
Pioneer RT-1050 (can be obtained at a fraction of the cost, tape formula versatility so you can use std bias tape, a great machine.
Teac A-6100-2T

Choosing a tape deck is not a problem. A good tech can restore these wonderful machines. The problem is the tape. Here is just a primer on tape.. much to know. There is a wealth of info online as well as in this forum:

High bias tape is usually back coated and has a more linear record characteristic.. higher tape saturation level, etc. The tape also transports more easily. The problem with back coated tape is sticky-shed syndrome. The back coating and oxide become "sticky" over time, which then the tape binds up in the machine, sometimes causing it to stop. This causes a mess, and the oxide can completely separate from the substrate. All brands of tape are now subject to this, in varying degrees. Among the worst is Ampex 456, and Ampex 499. Of lesser risk is Maxell UD tape, and BASF, although some are just beginning to fail. Higher temperature and high humidity dramatically shorten their life.

Standard Bias tape, non back coated does not develop sticky shed syndrome. Performance varies according to brand and type of formula. The high output low noise standard bias tapes perform well, and are still available used at reasonable cost. Storage conditions and age can dry out the substrate which becomes brittle, avoid acetate tape. Non-back coated tape should not be used in transports with tape tensioners, although ok on most decks on the take up side, but bypass the supply side. The non-back coated tape substrate isn't designed to come into contact with tensioners, (but ok on the oxide side) Pinch rollers are always ok, as well as head pressure pads on some of the older decks.

 

I have two decks for different purposes, a Sony TC-355 for playing 4 track stereo pre-recorded tapes, and this deck is lined up for recording on vintage standard bias tape. It is a three speed deck, 7.5, 3.75, and 1.875 inches per second. The Revox PR-99 is an intermediate step for transferring vinyl to a CD recorder or wav files. (although I do this mostly directly to WAV) I also have the option to do post-eq in analog if I feel the recording needs it. The reel to reel is hands on, so it's easier to do professional editing, ie: start a song without any lead in groove noise, and fade out any noise at the end. Miscues are always correctible by just rewinding, and recue. The tape can be then bulk erased for the next project.

Expectation is high for 1/2 track at 15 ips. The PR-99 using Maxell UD or Ampex 456 produces a perfect copy without any audible loss. You can expect a flat frequency range of 30- 22,000 cycles, +/- 2dB (50 - 18,000 +/- 1.5 dB) and a s/n of about -65dB at 15 ips. Considering most music program has a full dynamic range of 30 to 40 dB, -65dB is very good, and all of this is useable as full dynamic range. Unlike digital, tape decks allow for additional +3 to +6 headroom, for a full dynamic range of about 70 dB. With Dolby B this can be increased to 85 dB, but there is no need for it.

 

I ponder it periodically but what always stops me is the cost of a good machine and the difficulty maintaining it both of which have been mentioned. In addition, there isn't much that has been issued on it recently, the music I would want to buy that has been issued for it is quite expensive, and unlike vinyl from the same time period, a lot of the tape out there is reaching the end of its useful life regardless of how many times it was played (at least that is my understanding). So in the end I just stick with records.

 

I would add the Teac 2300S or SD to the recommended list. Or the 3300 version, 10.5" reel capacity version. I have owned both and the 2300S or SD can be had fairly reasonably at that auction site. My SD was received in good order for under $250, shipped. It is my daily driver for anything 7" or less and 7.5/3.75 ips speeds.

The one thing about many of the Teacs of that era is the "sticky" pinch roller, which doesn't always engage without a manual nudge. It isn't too hard to fix and easy to find info about it on the WWW.

Something else I have found...if you shop carefully at the auction site, you can find used or even new reel tapes, vintage, that are cheap and will work just fine for you. I picked up a dozen used 7" for $20, shipped. There were 3 Scotch 207s in there, the prizes of the lot, barely used/worn with no shedding and even smell new. Along with those, some Scotch 150s, work fine and still quite serviceable. Do some research to avoid the tapes that shed or stick to the rollers and you can find some real deals in used tape. My TDK SA, 10.5" reels, from 1975 still runs great on my Teac 3440. Look closely at the photos on auctions and you can often get a clue how well the tape was stored and cared for (yellowed boxes, water stains, missing leaders).

I don't record much anymore, but I do use the used tapes for testing and alignment of the 3 decks that I own. I also like to listen to the tapes I have made over the years, it's just fun and brings back memories of making them and listening to them way back when.

 

I used to have a Teac reel to reel in the seventies. I recorded all my new albums then put them away. Lots of fun but these days I use a Nakamichi Dragon for tape fun. Love that deck.

 

Sgt Pepper played back on a Studer B62 is the best sounding version I've ever heard..even over the original vinyl, very fat bass- percussion, spectral vocals. The best word to described it is ballsy ..or I didn't know Pepper could rock. Jaw dropping also fits the bill.

 

So the maintenance issue is becoming a major concern. I know that I won't have a lot of time to work on a player. My time will be spent tweaking setup and once I'm happy with it.. I want to spend my time listening to wonderful music, not futzing with equipment.

 

IMO it's no worse than a turntable setup - if anything it's easier. Just in once case you're cleaning a stylus and in the other case you're cleaning heads.

It's really more the initial setup, mechanical checkup and calibration/alignment that's bothersome than anything else, but then again, what tonearm isn't?

 

Ok true. From what I was reading it seemed like more of an ongoing pain.

 

RUN!!!?

 

be careful or your basement will end up looking like mine...

 

I just don't get investing time or money in consumer decks when real pro transports are now so cheap, relatively speaking.

 

High end reel to reel is not for the faint of heart or casual listener. There are many great machines but a great machine does not mean great music. You get out what you put in. This means your source material is very important. A good quality tape or master can sound phenomenal and be dead quiet. Most fast recorded commercial tapes will be like listening to MP3 on an iPod. While I do have 4-track machines and tapes, for serious listening my go to is 2-track 15ips and tapes from companies like The Tape Project, Opus3, International Phonograph, or Yarlung. These are several boutique companies putting out low volume high quality tapes but this translates to expensive.

 

Here's one.

Roughly $6000. This is a well-regarded machine that has been around for at least 2-3 decades at this point. I believe they are now made to order rather than in regular production, and there's something like a six month lead-time to get one, but it's the one and only way to get that new gear smell out of an "audiophile"-worthy 1/4" R2R in the year 2014.

 

The option to buy new is a great thing to have, and I do highly reccomend this model, but... The prices on the used market are so astoundingly low in comparison. You could get a BII for less than $500 easily. What does $6000 really get you?

I've heard rumors that there is a new deck going to be manufactured by one of the Swiss brands, maybe Studer or nagra... For a deck with 2014 era technological refinements as opposed to what was top of the line in 1984, I'd be more inclined to spend my $6000 there.

 

That Swiss machine is not all new. It is a ReVox PR 99 a la J-Corder or United Home Audio from what I understand. A refurbished and overhauled machine with some updates. The Otari is all new, with warranty and parts/service support. I'd get the Otari if I was going for a new machine. Oh, I already have two Otari MX 5050 machines.

 

Don't go there is my advice. I have had three reel to reel machines over the space of 40+ years. I should have quit after the first time but in the 80s I bought a used Pioneer L1020. After that one crapped out after about 10 years and no one here to work on it I bought a used TEAC that could take the 10 inch reels. That one lasted another 10 years before it quit. Never again.