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Re: [ARSCLIST] MicroCassette players
One man's experience, but it's gotten the job done and rendered checks from three different happy
clients.
None of the microcassettes I've done are anything approaching high or even very good fidelity. But,
I didn't want to make them worse by using some wow/flutter prone little devil. So I tried a
Panasonic, and Olympus and a Sharp, all little units I've acquired over a getting-too-long
journalism career. Turned out the Panasonic didn't add any audible (to my wow-sensitive ears)
problems to voices and actually ran quietly enough to avoid adding any machine noise. THe battery
operation may or may not be a plus, but I run it on its wall-wart, which seems to give the motor
greater stability maybe due to more available current. I borrowed an old Olympus dictation
transcription deck from work but it was noisy (hum/mechanical resonances) and its speed was no more
steady to my ears, despite much more rigorous construction.
So don't count out the little field machines. I note the Panasonic is circa mid-90's. Motor
technology was much better then than 15 years earlier. I take the headphone output and feed directly
into the mixer, no need for a ground isolator in this case.
I did convince one client to stop making microcassettes and she had a "celebration" where she threw
out her microcassette machine and replaced it with a Sony Pressman cassette recorder (I couldn't get
her to take the step and go MD or flash). I only use microcassette these days to make a note to
myself in the car or elsewhere I have it and no paper. I do carry it in my camera bag because it's
so small, but I keep looking at those tiny new flash recorders for just this purpose.
-- Tom Fine
----- Original Message -----
From: "Richard L. Hess" <arclists@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
To: <ARSCLIST@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
Sent: Friday, June 16, 2006 11:20 PM
Subject: [ARSCLIST] MicroCassette players
Of those of you who transfer tapes - what micro-cassette players are you using?
Also, has anyone come across a mini-cassette? Is it rim or capstan drive?
The reason I ask is I've been doing microcassettes in my Dragons by reloading the tape into a
standard cassette shell. One archive found that unacceptable. Most private users are more than
happy to have the tape repaired and transferred.
I certainly don't do enough microcassette work to justify a JBR.
Yes, I know the tape plays backwards and at 2x or 4x speed, but the transfers sound very good.
Clients are pleased.
But, for the oddball request I'd like something better than a battery operated recorder.
I'm looking at the T2020 from Olympus that does both mini and micro, but I'm not sure it's the
best choice as I'm not sure there is a good speed lock since it's designed for transcription and I
see a varispeed slider.
Thoughts?
Thanks!
Cheers,
Richard
Richard L. Hess email: richard@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Aurora, Ontario, Canada (905) 713 6733 1-877-TAPE-FIX
Detailed contact information: http://www.richardhess.com/tape/contact.htm
Quality tape transfers -- even from hard-to-play tapes.