Hello mattsca. I am an open reel enthusiast. I'm into it mainly because of my age (68) and my manner of collecting music. I buy everything of whatever artist I like. Historically that meant reel to reel. I have several hundred studio quality original master tapes. I don't play these tapes back through my main system. I have three reel to reel decks. A Technics 1506. A Sony TC850 and a Teac X2000M. What these machines have in common is they all have 1/4 and 1/2 track heads and they play back at 15 IPS. The 1506 deck also plays back at three speeds making it the most versatile. These decks were all top of the line at the time of their release. I transfer the tapes into a computer with a studio grade sound card. Most of the tapes that I own are too fragile to use for regular play back. If you're considering getting into reel to reel you need to consider what tape you are going to buy. It is a GREAT time to get into it depending on what genre of music you listen to. Right now on EBay a guy is selling studio master tapes for $40.00 each! I bought several from him. I love Mason Williams music. I bought the studio master tape from his 1963 LP "More Hootenanny". I was thrilled to get it. I needed to stop the deck after each song to clean the heads and tape path. It's a pain in the neck. It's worth it to me as I'll never hear these songs in pristine studio quality otherwise. Just some more things to consider. Also, machines of 1980's vintage will need updating and regular maintenance. I enjoy it all immensely! Good luck. Joe
Open Reel Curious
I am relatively new to audiophile level listening, with a respectable SS system, streaming mainly, with some discs and vinyl in the mix as well. But I am intrigued with open reel. Yet I am also a bit intimidated. There is clearly a learning curve regarding equipment, calibration, tape types, etc, not to mention a pretty major expense.
It seems like there are only a very few places to listen and learn - Brooklyn, LA, Vancouver, BC…? Anyone know of places in Chicago or Detroit where one can go to hear high-end open reel demos and talk to knowledgeable people in person? Anyone have any advice, like “Run! Run far away!” lol.
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Here is a list of R2R pre-recorded tapes: https://thereeltoreelrambler.com/resources/where-to-buy-music-on-tape/ I still maintain a 15ips 2T tape copied from the original master can be the ultimate in terms of SQ, albeit at a vey high cost. One of my favorite sources of R2R tapes is Acoustic Sounds: https://store.acousticsounds.com/s/462?x=y&banner_id=317 There tapes, copied from the original master (or copy of), can sound about as good as it gets. In addition to a Revox PR99 Mk2 I also stream from an Aurender N10 and play records on a high end TT (Michell Engineering GyroDec, SME IV and Clearaudio Maestro V2 Ebony MM cartridge). A good R2R tape is often far superior to streaming or an LP in terms of SQ. |
I purchased a NOS Revox A77 4 track many years ago, only a display piece at this point. Why? While I powered it up and listened when first received, the cost and hassle of replacing caps or entire boards is one thing, cost of software another, finally I already have nice vinyl and streaming setups. I hardly listen to my vinyl as it is, high end streaming sound quality doesn't have to play second fiddle to fine analog sources. |
+1 @fa8362 |
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