cassettes CAN sound better than vinyl.

even on a nakamichi deck, i could tell that there was a mild haze over the music compared to the original LP, esp. if it was DD or digital master. but i have heard elcasets which my ears could not distinguish from the original. the elcaset sounded to my ears like top-grade consumer R to R. 

@pokey77 

That Teac deck looks insane! Spendy when new also! Looks like one recently sold for $1500.

I’ve had a couple MCS receivers pass through my hands, and they were very decent units, and held their own against contemporaneous gear from the likes of Pioneer or Kenwood.

I actually just gifted my brother an MCS 6601 turntable this year. Solid performer.

I still use and love my dragon. Have own since bought new in 83. I recorded a ton of live radio broadcasts that still sound really good. I also ran sound for bands and we were able to tap into the boards at concerts and record major acts with out them knowing. I always felt the cassette was way under valued in its day and even more today. It is close to an album and I don’t have to clean snd flip every time I listen!

Great thread! I love using my 682ZX and CR4 machines. The dolby C with then newer chip in the CR4 is incredible. Very quiet. This is as far as tape technology got for me. I love the sound of tape and I can hear it on a good system. I like it because of that. Best source to record from is vinyl. I also recorded ALL my LPs onto HQ tape. Some still sound great today on the Nakamichi machines. The best part was grabbing a tape and just putting it in and pressing play. The record takes effort to clean and set up each time to sound good. I take care of my vinyl so it takes longer. Anyway in a perfect world I would now have a Dragon. 

@rfnoise


I had several MCS systems. The first was a 10-watt receiver with a matching cassette deck, belt drive MCS TT, and some small book shelf speakers. The second was a 33-watt receiver with a much better cassette deck, MCS 3-way speakers, MCS direct drive turntable, Realistic 5-band EQ, MCS headphones, etc. They were great systems and they truly got me hooked on hifi. I think that MCS held its own against other brands of the time. Pretty sure I bought all my stuff on layaway as I mowed lawns to save for the next stereo!

That Teac cassette deck was $1,000 new when I bought it (got it through the military catalogue for around $600ish). Surprising that they are now $1,500 used. I'd be afraid of it breaking! But it sure sounded good back then. Auto reverse, Dolby B, C, Metal, dBX, etc. It was pretty cool for sure.