Opinion on Nakamichi azimuth tape decks please

My memory matches Ktrogers'.

The Dragon was unique in that one channel(left if I remember correctly) of the playback head fit two pole piece sub assemblies with independent coils and gaps into the space normally occupied by one pole piece. Since both sub assemblies read the same track on the cassette, it followed that the head azimuth was correct when the output of both sub assemblies was in phase. A tilted head would cause one sub assembly to read the track a few milliseconds ahead of the other, resulting in phase difference.

The Dragon used a phase detector and servo system to continuously adjust playback head azimuth to maintain zero phase error and thus near perfect azimuth alignment.

This also means that you get great results from Dolby B and C noise reduction, since they magnify treble loss resulting from azimuth misalignment. Also tape playback quality is the same in both tape directions - this is usually a problem for auto reversing decks.

The record azimuth alignment featured on other Nak decks simply allowed one to adjust record head azimuth to match the playback head azimuth. It assumed that the playback head azimuth was correct, and provided no help for tapes recorded on other machines.

Excellent info above! On a budget, Naks may not be the best choice. They are antiques. There are only a few shops that can work on them (ESS is probably the best), and you might be shocked what it can cost to repair a Nak, especially a Dragon (over $2000 for a full rebuild). Even if you find one in really good shape, you will still need to spend at least several hundred dollars to get it calibrated, and belts, idler wheel, and perhaps capacitors replaced. They all need work, after all this time.

Lloydc,
Do you know how I could get a hold of ESS? Tried to google it with no luck.

Thanks.

Markpao, sorry, I meant Electronic Service Labs (ESL) www.eslabs.com/nakamichi.htm. Google "nakamichi repair" and they turn up.