If this is your first visit, be sure to check out the FAQ by clicking the link above. You may have to register before you can post: click the register link above to proceed. To start viewing messages, select the forum that you want to visit from the selection below. |
|
|
Thread Tools | Display Modes |
#1
|
|||
|
|||
tape hierarchy
Hello,
I'm trying to sort out some blank tape hierarchy from lower quality to higher. Radio Shack has 'Low Noise' and 'Supertape'. TDK seems to go 'D', 'AD','SD'. How do the Maxell 'LN' and 'UD' tapes compare with one another? How about some other brands? later, ron |
Ads |
#3
|
|||
|
|||
Ron,
I get best sound from Certron blanks, runner up is Scotch. Nothing from Radio Shack could compare. Based on 26+ years of home recording experience. The Certron is really dark colored tape- techies say cuz it has more iron oxide-and produces a better signal. I've tried TDK and Maxell- they were inferior to the Certron, equal at best to Scotch. Scotch blank has by far most advanced internals- a bearing surface on the inner reel and roller wheel where it rides the spindle. Someone put their time in designing those. A cleaned/aligned high end player with proper settings and source, will make recordings on Certron blanks far better than any store bought tape in existence. The resolution and ambience are in the R2R league. That's assuming the tape is tuned up also (lube, splice, pads, etc.) Lately I've been making many recordings from old bootlegs, Capitol white shells, etc. that have missing labels- and undesireable original music on them. If I can't make out who it is, it gets bulk erased and something good put on it. The bulk eraser will make even a low quality tape sound good. I have Scotch 90's recorded in 1979 and still sound like new- 25 year old home made tape still going strong and heavily played at times. |
#4
|
|||
|
|||
trippin28track wrote:
Ron, I get best sound from Certron blanks, runner up is Scotch. Nothing from Radio Shack could compare. Based on 26+ years of home recording experience. The Certron is really dark colored tape- techies say cuz it has more iron oxide-and produces a better signal. I've tried TDK and Maxell- they were inferior to the Certron, equal at best to Scotch. Scotch blank has by far most advanced internals- a bearing surface on the inner reel and roller wheel where it rides the spindle. Someone put their time in designing those. A cleaned/aligned high end player with proper settings and source, will make recordings on Certron blanks far better than any store bought tape in existence. The resolution and ambience are in the R2R league. That's assuming the tape is tuned up also (lube, splice, pads, etc.) Lately I've been making many recordings from old bootlegs, Capitol white shells, etc. that have missing labels- and undesireable original music on them. If I can't make out who it is, it gets bulk erased and something good put on it. The bulk eraser will make even a low quality tape sound good. I have Scotch 90's recorded in 1979 and still sound like new- 25 year old home made tape still going strong and heavily played at times. damn, i thought i heard everything, up untill i run accross this post. this has got to be the biggest line of bull**** that i ever heard. i have about a thousand blank tapes of various brands & i have done benchmark tests on each brand. i also make 8 track copies off of CD's, LP's & Cassettes top use on the decks in my car & for the other players in the house. certrons have turned out to be more trouble than they are worth. certrons are notorious for their lubricant contaminating the pinch roller. they are also bad about flaking. they do not produce a wide dynamic range, they have a lot of hiss & dropouts. they are just as bad as the radio shack low end tapes. the best tape that i have found was the scotch dynarange tape. follong that, memorex (the old style using the nal style cartridge shell). maxells, BASF, TDK were also good too. but for you to say that certrons were the best just shows what kind of moron you are. -- i forward ALL post from charly nudo (trippin28track) to . for the sake of preserving alt.collecting-8track.tapes, i urge every one else to do the same. charlys nntp posting host is 172.159.31.220 |
#5
|
|||
|
|||
youre kidding right certron tapes are known to be the lowest quilty you can
get aka junk -- "trippin28track" wrote in message om... Ron, I get best sound from Certron blanks, runner up is Scotch. Nothing from Radio Shack could compare. Based on 26+ years of home recording experience. The Certron is really dark colored tape- techies say cuz it has more iron oxide-and produces a better signal. I've tried TDK and Maxell- they were inferior to the Certron, equal at best to Scotch. Scotch blank has by far most advanced internals- a bearing surface on the inner reel and roller wheel where it rides the spindle. Someone put their time in designing those. A cleaned/aligned high end player with proper settings and source, will make recordings on Certron blanks far better than any store bought tape in existence. The resolution and ambience are in the R2R league. That's assuming the tape is tuned up also (lube, splice, pads, etc.) Lately I've been making many recordings from old bootlegs, Capitol white shells, etc. that have missing labels- and undesireable original music on them. If I can't make out who it is, it gets bulk erased and something good put on it. The bulk eraser will make even a low quality tape sound good. I have Scotch 90's recorded in 1979 and still sound like new- 25 year old home made tape still going strong and heavily played at times. |
#6
|
|||
|
|||
And how long have you been recording, since last June ??
|
#7
|
|||
|
|||
We never saw the Certron 8-track blanks around here, but their cassettes were
utter crap, maybe half a step above Irish brand. Certron and Irish cassettes were the cheapest things on the racks. I think they sold three for 99 cents and came in a plastic bag with no cases. Considering how lousy their cassettes were, I'd have a hard time believing that Certron could make an 8-track blank at the other end of the quality spectrum. Then again, I never used one. I usually ended up buying Radio Shack tapes, partly because of availability and partly because I was generally broke at the time. They did okay in the crappy store-brand underdash unit I had with the wedge speakers sliding around on the back seat. --Bob Farace "I only believe in fire." --Anais Nin |
#8
|
|||
|
|||
Hard to believe but true- Certrons look cheap and at one time I
thought they were junk- until I recorded on a few- the results were stunning. Look at the color of the tape and compare it. The Certrons are much darker oxide cuz they are the HIGHEST QUALITY tape actually. I was oblivious to this fact until I made a few recordings with Certrons myself-and was amazed to find, the Certrons sound noticeably better than any other blanks out there- and I've tried them all over the years. Stuff like TDK and Maxell have catchy names but are actually only average sounding tapes. A Scotch sounds very good with superior mechanicals inside- and if I couldn't get a Scotch I'd use a Memorex. The Certrons are in a league by themselves for sound- they sound the best- try one and you'll be amazed. Just be sure to bulk erase, change the pads and splice- I also lube the rollers and reel as needed. That goes for any blank regardless. No BS- after 26 years of doing this I cull the Certrons for myself. I have hundreds of blanks and if I had to houseclean and make a cut, I'd keep all the Certrons, Scotch, and Memorex- and sell the other brands. Radio Shack blanks are the WORST sounding of all- especially the red RS blanks which REALLY suck- RS blanks were overpriced and sounded like **** back in the 1970's- and RS blanks still sound like **** today. RS blanks tend to produce muffled highs and hazy sounding recordings- regardless of pads used. Any RS blanks even sealed I gladly dump for $1 each if I can. |
#9
|
|||
|
|||
Thanks, y'all. Here's a quick summary:
Radio Shack: LN, Supertape TDK: D, then AD or SD (my fave, but high maintenance transports) Maxell: LN, UD Not many others (i.e., Capitol, Memorex) seem to offer 8-track blanks in more than one grade. But what about: BASF: Studio or Performance? Scotch: Low Noise or Dynarange? (and what about their FeCr tape?) Ampex: Ampex or Plus? Well, we're gettin' there. My thanks to the collective mind, ron p.s. Certron! LOL! What about Audio Magnetics? ROFL! |
#10
|
|||
|
|||
Don't forget the K-Mart tapes. I think I still have some sealed around
here if anyone wants the finest recording experience possible! Dan DOGGIE104 wrote: Thanks, y'all. Here's a quick summary: Radio Shack: LN, Supertape TDK: D, then AD or SD (my fave, but high maintenance transports) Maxell: LN, UD Not many others (i.e., Capitol, Memorex) seem to offer 8-track blanks in more than one grade. But what about: BASF: Studio or Performance? Scotch: Low Noise or Dynarange? (and what about their FeCr tape?) Ampex: Ampex or Plus? Well, we're gettin' there. My thanks to the collective mind, ron p.s. Certron! LOL! What about Audio Magnetics? ROFL! -- Daniel and Kathy Gibson http://www.katestrackshack.com "Kate's Track Shack -Your Internet Home For Inexpensive 8-tracks!!" AND... http://drnooseandjambone.com "DrNoose And Jambone - Do It To The Optigan!" |
Thread Tools | |
Display Modes | |
|
|
Similar Threads | ||||
Thread | Thread Starter | Forum | Replies | Last Post |
IRON MAIDEN-NUMBER OF THE BEAST-mint tape ebay $10 | trippin28track | 8 Track Tapes | 0 | July 22nd 04 12:54 AM |
8-track tape in a big tangled pile on the floor.. fixable? | Damian | 8 Track Tapes | 3 | July 19th 04 06:04 PM |
The State Of Tape | TC8trax | 8 Track Tapes | 6 | May 30th 04 02:35 PM |
Just A Reminder To New Alt.Collecting.8-Track-Tapes Group Members | Daniel & Kathy Gibson | 8 Track Tapes | 7 | May 17th 04 12:06 PM |
Just A Reminder To New Alt.Collecting.8-Track-Tapes Group Members | Daniel & Kathy Gibson | 8 Track Tapes | 11 | April 26th 04 12:52 PM |