[Date Prev][Date Next][Thread Prev][Thread Next][Date Index][Thread Index]
Re: [ARSCLIST] reel choices was help in fair pricing of reel to reel machines
Hi Richard,
Thanks for your reply. Interestingly, one of the satisfied MX-5050
owners I know is a radio station. What I do like about the 5050s (on
paper) is their flexibility for the price, the BIIIs (I think?) having a
1/4 as well as a 1/2 track head on the same path, as well as three
speeds. It has been a while since I have heard one, but I seem to recall
the sound as being similar to comparable Teacs, perhaps a bit fuller.
Of the few I have more experience with, the ATR-102 wins hands down to
my ears--but we are talking very different price points, of course.
Cheers,
Marcos
Richard L. Hess wrote:
Hi, Marcos,
I'm not Tom, but here are my thoughts on your question, and no, I
don't think you're being bellicose, I think you're being curious as
you'd like to learn. Of course, Tom and I have different approaches.
He is a mostly Ampex and Technics shop and I'm a Sony and Studer shop
and we both get great results that please our clients.
While only having a very limited exposure to early MX-5050s, I did own
four MTR-10s/12s and found them frustrating. They weren't gentle on
tape (the Sonys blow away most transports in many ways in that
regard), they were difficult to modify. Their adjustments didn't allow
nearly the flexibility that we have in the APRs and the A810s to use
slightly out-of-spec heads (to get the job done). The noise floor
wasn't that great, neither was the response. The adjustments are all
screwdriver pots, none are electronic and there is limited flexibility
for multiple setups (I forget the exact arrangement).
I felt I got better results with ReVox A77s in classical recordings
than a competitor got with MX-5050s. The 5050s were OK as low-cost
radio station machines.
The thing the MTR-10/12 had going for them was they held up in radio
station use and operators loved them for fast production work.
Having several APRs and several A810s by the time I made the decision
to dispose of my MTRs could have coloured my decision. I just couldn't
find a way to use the MTRs. Acquiring the only APR-16 ever made (16T
and 8T 1" and 8T and 4T 1/2" plus now 16T 1/2" and 7T 1/2" play) I
decided to standardize on the APR and the A810 platforms for transfer
work and the A807 as a utility machine (prep, etc) And, at least for
me, getting the Otaris out of my space was a good choice (and I'm glad
I didn't have them when I decided to move back to Ontario).
So, those are my reasons. Yes, they work, but there are better
machines out there.
Cheers,
Richard
At 11:48 AM 2007-01-24, you wrote:
Tom, I hope my question was not interpreted as bellicose --I'm just
curious as to your opinion on those Otaris.
I know people who own MX-5050s (I don't) and seem to be happy with them.
Cheers,
Marcos
Marcos Sueiro wrote:
Otari -- one man's opinion here -- I wouldn't take one if it were
GIVEN to me.
Tom, why is that?
Marcos
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.