Well, there are European PD issues of this stuff, and many (not all) of Baxter's exotica albums are on iTunes. Why wouldn't there be a market for, say, well-mastered twofers of the better albums? Collector's Choice has reissued titles that are far more questionable from a simple marketing standpoint.
I won't begin to speculate on whether this was the case here or not, but there's been recent discussion on the Ampex list about tapes that were not slit well. That is, the tape may always be exactly 1/4", but it won't necessarily always be in a straight line. The proximity of the tape guides to the heads would factor in to how bad of a problem it would be. http://home.comcast.net/~mrltapes/mcknight_azimuth-and-interchannel.pdf
Here's a couple more numbers: ZD-76, THE KING AND I (Film Soundtrack) ZD-91, CAROUSEL (Film Soundtrack) These two are complete albums--more or less. Edits were made within tracks (first part of "The Carousel Waltz" is dropped, the dance music in "Getting to Know You" is dropped) to make the running times slightly shorter. I'm guessing these edits were made to make them fit on one reel, because these are exceptionally long albums and the reel is full almost out to the outer edge. When the stereo LPs were issued later, these edits were retained, and it wasn't until the CD era that the complete original mono LPs, in stereo, were released. It's funny that these are (more or less) complete albums but they're still in the "ZD" series. From looking at the price list in the first post, I would have guessed that the prefix (and price) was assigned by how long the album was (i.e., how full the tape reel was). I notice THE MUSIC MAN (also a long album) was a "ZF" (more expensive) tape. Wonder why they dropped tracks from some of the others?
Wonderful system you have! Guess what I'm getting at is that the cost isn't so much in the initial purchase price, it's the shipping and resto/servicing/mods etc (with their round-trip shipping) that follow. Therefore one might want to make sure it's a model one will like. One of the last (thus "newest") make/models was the Teac X-2000 and X-2000M. See this page: http://www.vintage-audio.com.ua/en/cat/96/1366.html There was also an auto-reverse iirc, X-2000R that an audiophile would likely want to avoid. Even with this example, if you added the packaging etc you'd be shipping around a good sized box weighing ~50lbs.
There's an Otari MX5050 B2 listed on eBay for $830. The seller claims it is in excellent working condition. Shipping would be about $183 to Canada, which means I'd be paying $1013. If I'm serious about getting into tapes, would this be a fair price?
Sounds like an awful lot. But I've not been looking into reels for years. I suggest stepping back, asking around and identifying some specific models of interest to you. You might search for threads in the hardware section and/or start your own thread to find out more. Perhaps you can discuss it with some more up to date and knowledgeable about the particulars than I. Member Rolf Erickson is very knowledgeable and used to sell some units here for $200-300 iirc; he last posted in January but perhaps you could get in touch with him.
Sounds like a BAD deal. Price is nothing special (and sounds high, to be honest). Chances that there's something that isn't working properly are high. Cross border considerations make chances of other issues high. I'd try to score one locally, if possible. If you can't, the price should be great. This price isn't great.
Hi George, In my opinion that is too high! I paid $400 for my Otari about 4 years ago they are still available in that range, you just have to be paitent. By far the Otari MX 5050 BII -BIII are the best bang for buck decks out there!!! Try to find a reliable seller with excellent feedback and go from there.
Seems very high to me also. I would suggest talking to local used musical instrument stores and see if they have any leads. You could also try local studios and radio stations to see if they have anything kicking around. You would then likely need to have service work done, but many machines used in pro environments were serviced regularly. They might require some new parts, but that is likely for any deck that's been sitting unused for a long time. I managed to score the deck below for $100 about 5 years ago. In beautiful shape, heads and all. The only issue was a part in the capstan servo control electronics which I was able to diagnose with the help of the excellent service documentation. Whatever you buy I would strongly suggest looking for a unit that allows playback of both 2-track and 4-track recordings.
Thanks everybody. I appreciate all the feedback. I just have to be patient. My uncle has a TEAC that he'll part with for next to nothing, but it's an auto reverse unit, and the verdict is still out on whether it will playback in half-track. He's bringing it over on Sunday...if it works, maybe it will serve until something better comes along for a reasonable price. What are these Capitol tapes going for on eBay? Anyone come across WHERE ARE YOU on eBay? If so, how much?
I've purchased two or three copies on Ebay, and I think the most I paid for one was about $85. Be warned, though: buying reel-to-reel tapes on Ebay is a 110% crapshoot, with maybe 3 of 10 tapes in truly acceptable condition. If it's a title you really want, be prepared to pay $$ for it, and be prepared to weep a bit when it plays poorly. EDIT: It's typically worse (condition-wise) with 1/4-track tapes than 1/2-track tapes. With 1/4-track tapes, even if the tape is in perfect condition, it may well still sound like poop, just because many of them were poorly made in the first place. Matt
Good to know. Are half-track and quarter-track tapes both made of quarter-inch tape? Was quarter-inch always the standard for home consumer use?
Why would you bake blank tapes? If a blank tape is no good, just throw it away. Better yet, demand a replacement.
I'd had a "Two-Fer" of Buck Owens called "Tiger By the Tail" and one other (I forgotten which one it was-I'd gotten it stolen before I'd even had a chance to play it by the staff of the ACLU (Adult Controlled Living Units)! Dirty Bums! It had a Tan reel with Gold foil label.
If it is auto reverse, it is most likely 3 3/4- 7 1/2 IPS 1/4 track. Which all but a very small handful of Teac machines are.
