Can we finally put Reel to Reel out of its misery? Put it to rest people.

As I stated many moons ago Vinny, I do NOT rpt NOT call myself an " audiophile".
Never have and never will simply because what truly constitutes an " audiophile" is still an area of huge debate.

I enjoy music reproduction and have many forms of media to that end.

Fortunately I do NOT have a working 8 track or any tapes for it.
Or Elcaset or DAT tape or minidisc.

Do have and regularly use;
Vinyl, cassette, R2R, CD, SACD, BluRay, Streaming.

All have their plus and minus aspects.

If you do not care for R2R yourself that is just peachy but you should avoid denigrating those who do.

Not denigrating it but i just feel its a dead end format because the good techs and original critical parts are impossible to find like special heads, motors, mechanisms, high grade audio tape and so on.  True R2R Techs are the hardest to find and when you do they are handcuffed by no available original parts. 

I have to add to this conversation, yes many high line MFG PUT OUT A GREAT CASSETTE PRODUCT, BUT R2R 1/4 and 1/2 inch tape will always reproduce a top quality reproduction that cassette could not 

Vinny.

I will grant you that SOME parts for SOME machines especially the more obscure brands and models can be hard to find and yes likely some cannot be repaired economicaly at this stage.

However there is a great aftermarket support for a lot of machines, check out the Swiss ads on eBay for Revox units and parts, heck I bought a complete overhauled Revox b77 hs machine from a Swiss seller shipped to the USA for less than 1k all in.

And yes finding a GOOD r2r tech is a little more challenging but not impossible but be prepared for a wait as obviously the good ones are very busy.

Dead as is no interest or support is not truly the case, a more niche market for sure but still very much alive and kicking albeit to a special type of enthusiast, it is certainly not plug and play like CD.

Vinnny, I have never been out of the R2R game. I recall my first reel that I purchased from Tipton appliance in the early 70's; they had a room with nothing but R2R decks lining the walls; Pioneer, Crown, AKAI, Sony, TEAC; many different models of each brand, all brand new and looking so beautiful; I purchased an AKAI that was a combination 7 inch reel, 8 track, and cassette deck. Naturally it was a lot of fun, but hard to get replacement parts.

Parts and repairs are no problem when you stick to the main stream names and models.

But if you got in that might make the hobby crowded, so please stay out.


    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DiHXuxBjxtU