[Toonartist]

What I've got coming up is the 2A3 amp, then my HY69 headphone amp (a super Aegis circuit), then my LCR phono stage. After that, who knows! Got several other maybe designs in the back pocket, but those are the ones that are 100% happening. The Aegis project really took it out of me, so I'm happy to wait patiently for the transformers for these three builds.

But until then...tapes. Look I got a vintage bag for my tapes.





I think I've bought my last Japanese cassette, we'll see if I can control myself long enough to actually have the whole lot shipped to me before buying another.

I used to have loads of those BASF PRO II tapes both 60 & 90. They were my favourite at the time... probably still in the loft but all used of course!

 

[whirlwind]

Seeing all of these tape pictures is making me jealous, I think my wife sold pretty much all of mine at a garage sale years ago.
Not sure how many, in the hundreds, all with music on them.

It is cool following this, brings back great memories.

 

[Toonartist]

Memories are funny.... I just suddenly remembered the smell of a new tape as you peel the cellophane off

 

[L0rdGwyn]

Honestly, it's a really good smell a lot of these old rare tapes are becoming collector's items.

 

[L0rdGwyn]

Here are some high end tapes I have coming from Japan.

x10 1988 Maxell XLI. These were discontinued in the USA for a period of time, so this particular version is only available in Japan.



x10 1988 Sony HF-ES. One of the best super ferric tapes. In the Sony lineup, second only to the HF-Pro which had a ceramic tape guide. HF-Pro are very expensive, $30 per tape typically. Oh but I do want a few...



x11 1985 Sony HF-ES. Earlier, more desirable version, mostly for aesthetics and collectibility. I do love the mid to late 80s tapes with the large window. Got into a bidding war on these, but ultimately I prevailed.



Lot of high-end Sony tapes: 2x 1991 Sony ES-II, and 12x 1991 Sony ES-IV. ES-IV is one of the best metal tapes made, and this particular model was only made in Japan.



There are others, but those are the big lots I purchased. Per tape, getting really good deals on these buying outside US eBay. I am counting the days on the Revox deck, it's been two weeks since I ordered, was told roughly 8.

 

[L0rdGwyn]

Drafting @zach915m 's 2A3 amp chassis. Here's where we're at at the moment.

All subject to change. To make sure I get the layout correct the first time, I build out all of the interior components in AutoCAD and make sure they are going to fit in three dimensions. As it stands, chassis dimensions are 18" x 14" x 3.25". The Monolith Magnetics transformers sure do take up a lot of space! I opted to put the interstage transformers dead center at the front of the chassis with the 5687 sockets on the sides.

Similar to what I did with the 45 amp, RCA inputs on the front of the chassis, as well as the milliammeters. Plan is to use a Goldpoint rotary switch for headphone impedance selector. I'm going to mount the Goldpoint near the output transformers on the interior of the chassis, then couple it to the front panel of the amplifier with a 6mm wide rod and shaft coupler.

I won't be able to finalize until the transformers arrive, which should be shipping any day now. The orientation of the signal transformers in relation to the mains / filament transformers in the back of the amplifier is important as you want to minimize magnetically coupled noise. Most critical is the relationship between the interstage transformers and the mains / filament transformers. So, I'll have to do some testing when they get here to make sure this orientation is going to work, otherwise I'll have to make some adjustments.

Also made some edits to a few PCBs that will be used in the amp. Will order those shortly. Assuming I get the transformers in the next two weeks, should have this done by early September.

 

[DetroitVinylRob]

Here are some high end tapes I have coming from Japan.

x10 1988 Maxell XLI. These were discontinued in the USA for a period of time, so this particular version is only available in Japan.



x10 1988 Sony HF-ES. One of the best super ferric tapes. In the Sony lineup, second only to the HF-Pro which had a ceramic tape guide. HF-Pro are very expensive, $30 per tape typically. Oh but I do want a few...



x11 1985 Sony HF-ES. Earlier, more desirable version, mostly for aesthetics and collectibility. I do love the mid to late 80s tapes with the large window. Got into a bidding war on these, but ultimately I prevailed.



Lot of high-end Sony tapes: 2x 1991 Sony ES-II, and 12x 1991 Sony ES-IV. ES-IV is one of the best metal tapes made, and this particular model was only made in Japan.



There are others, but those are the big lots I purchased. Per tape, getting really good deals on these buying outside US eBay. I am counting the days on the Revox deck, it's been two weeks since I ordered, was told roughly 8.

Congrats on your score! I too look for fresh tape to feed my hungry Nak. In cases like this have you ever considered the utilization of a snip software? The bid drops in just seconds before the end of an auction and doesn’t give anyone time to manually respond. Setting your limit ahead of the game, with the Bay’s proxy bidding working for you can take out the psychological need from your opponents to incrementally keep pushing the limit. I set a high price limit that looks at how bad I want something/how rare it is in the marketplace. I then “set it and forget it” as Ron Popiel used to say! At the end of a year, I wind up, possessing most of the things that I really wanted, and was willing to pay for, and often for far less than my upper limit. But each auction may vary. It also keeps me from going out-of-control and incrementally pushing my own limit beyond reason.

 

[L0rdGwyn]

Congrats on your score! I too look for fresh tape to feed my hungry Nak. In cases like this have you ever considered the utilization of a snip software? The bid drops in just seconds before the end of an auction and doesn’t give anyone time to manually respond. Setting your limit ahead of the game, with the Bay’s proxy bidding working for you can take out the psychological need from your opponents to incrementally keep pushing the limit. I set a high price limit that looks at how bad I want something/how rare it is in the marketplace. I then “set it and forget it” as Ron Popiel used to say! At the end of a year, I wind up, possessing most of the things that I really wanted, and was willing to pay for, and often for far less than my upper limit. But each auction may vary. It also keeps me from going out-of-control and incrementally pushing my own limit beyond reason.

Thanks! Yes, I do use a proxy site for eBay, but what I've found is the market for certain tapes on eBay is still much more competitive than in Japan. I use a proxy service for Japanese auctions as well. Unfortunately, Yahoo Auctions Japan has an option for sellers such that an additional 5 minutes is added to the bid clock if a bid is placed below the 5 minute mark, which prevents bid sniping. It's honestly more fair. Despite that I've been able to get some very good deals on tapes! It's interesting though, what is available / desirable in each market seems to differ. For instance, on US eBay TDK SA-X seem to be fairly common and don't command very high prices, whereas they seem to be quite scarce and expensive in Japan. The opposite is true of tapes like TDK AR and Sony HF-ES, which seem to be very common in Japan but scarce in western markets.

I'm only just now taking the deep dive into cassettes, I have a Revox B215 on order (refurbished by Revox themselves), should be here in a few weeks

 

[DetroitVinylRob]

Thanks! Yes, I do use a proxy site for eBay, but what I've found is the market for certain tapes on eBay is still much more competitive than in Japan. I use a proxy service for Japanese auctions as well. Unfortunately, Yahoo Auctions Japan has an option for sellers such that an additional 5 minutes is added to the bid clock if a bid is placed below the 5 minute mark, which prevents bid sniping. It's honestly more fair. Despite that I've been able to get some very good deals on tapes! It's interesting though, what is available / desirable in each market seems to differ. For instance, on US eBay TDK SA-X seem to be fairly common and don't command very high prices, whereas they seem to be quite scarce and expensive in Japan. The opposite is true of tapes like TDK AR and Sony HF-ES, which seem to be very common in Japan but scarce in western markets.

I'm only just now taking the deep dive into cassettes, I have a Revox B215 on order (refurbished by Revox themselves), should be here in a few weeks

Ah, I get it. TDK SA-X90 and SA-XG90s seem to be my decks sweet spot. So that’s what I hunt for. Haven’t felt too confident bidding on Yahoo Japan. It been a minute since I worked/lived there and could shop directly for deals.

 

[DetroitVinylRob]

My current (good smelling) stash.

 

[L0rdGwyn]

My current (good smelling) stash.

Woah, very nice. I'm starting out this journey with an exploration of super ferrics. I picked up some type IIs but not comprehensive (XLII, Axia GT-IIX, Sony ES-II). TDK SA-X is right at the top of type IIs to try out soon. I've read nothing but good things about the Denon tapes, they cost a pretty penny though.

What is it you like about cassette as a format? Do you mostly use it for ripping vinyl?

 

[DetroitVinylRob]

Well, I’m pretty analogue centric, and have had a ZX-7 from new since 1984(?) and been completely satisfied. For a long time the deck being feed by a Linn LP12 and a decent record collection fueled portable music for car and Walkmans back before cellphones and streaming. Had Willy Herman go through it about a year ago and can’t say enough good things about his work. It freshened up the deck real nicely.

Yeah, I often rip vinyl stuff, and still make mixed tapes for some friends but, not single anymore and few women have tape decks anyway so, no longer do the High Fidelity thing. Actually, my wife and I used to trade tapes decades ago before dating. Go figure. I have a bunch of live recordings as well from some shows that we went to so it’s nice to be able to play those.

I think it’s just that tape captures a performance really (right) nice to my ears and I’m still, perhaps hopelessly, kind of (zero and one) challenged.

For my ears and deck the SA-X90’s have always hit a sweet spot sonically. Overall, they have proved best. The XGs are a true luxury item, perhaps, with adjustable azimuth record head they are unnecessary. The Nak tapes sounded similar but were cost prohibitive, and a long time ago, perhaps in the late 70s I believe, Audio magazine, actually wrote an article that described what the “reference tapes” were used to design particular tape deck brands of the time, and so why they often sounded better used in those decks. We tried many of those, and mostly agreed.

As for the Denons, it’s been a while but I recall them having a very uniformly good performance, and holding up fidelity wise over time, just not having that final “air” on micro-detail and micro-dynamics. Again, defaulting to the favored SAX. Tried a number of metal types with mixed results. Ferrox type II rock.

 

[L0rdGwyn]

Well, I’m pretty analogue centric, and have had a ZX-7 from new since 1984(?) and been completely satisfied. For a long time the deck being feed by a Linn LP12 and a decent record collection fueled portable music for car and Walkmans back before cellphones and streaming. Had Willy Herman go through it about a year ago and can’t say enough good things about his work. It freshened up the deck real nicely.

Yeah, I often rip vinyl stuff, and still make mixed tapes for some friends but, not single anymore and few women have tape decks anyway so, no longer do the High Fidelity thing. Actually, my wife and I used to trade tapes decades ago before dating. Go figure. I have a bunch of live recordings as well from some shows that we went to so it’s nice to be able to play those.

I think it’s just that tape captures a performance really (right) nice to my ears and I’m still, perhaps hopelessly, kind of (zero and one) challenged.

For my ears and deck the SA-X90’s have always hit a sweet spot sonically. Overall, they have proved best. The XGs are a true luxury item, perhaps, with adjustable azimuth record head they are unnecessary. The Nak tapes sounded similar but were cost prohibitive, and a long time ago, perhaps in the late 70s I believe, Audio magazine, actually wrote an article that described what the “reference tapes” were to particular deck brand of the time, and so why they often sounded better used in those decks. We tried many of those, and mostly agreed.

As for the Denons, it’s been a while but I recall them having a very uniformly good performance, and holding up fidelity wise over time, just not having that final “air” on micro-detail and micro-dynamics. Again, defaulting to the favored SAX. Tried a number of metal types with mixed results. Ferrox type II rock.

ZX-7, very nice. Well I'll take your word for it and grab some SA-X sometime soon. The SA-XG are insanely expensive nowadays, >$200 per tape. I think they've reached collector's item status. Maybe I'll happen across one at a thrift store some day

 

[CJG888]

He’s the ZX-7 was a good deck. And the RX-505 was too cool for words back in the day…

 

[CJG888]

Maybe I should start hoarding tapes in case I ever go back in…