Marantz portable cassette recorders

[petsematary]

I'm thinking of buying a portable cassette recorder. Need a sturdy pro unit instead of my crappy toy MD player and I can't afford neither a DAT/MD nor a solid state one. SO...I thought cassette might be good. They sound good and they've been an industry standard for years.

Is there anything in particular I need to think about when shopping around for a used portable cassette? What features do I need (general purpose use), what models are good? etc.

[Thermionic]

It's an obvious concern to state, but the biggest issue to worry about on a Marantz will be head wear.

I've seen occasions when a service dept has put a markup of several thousand percent on a component, compared to a direct OEM price... And then there's the labour charge...

If the heads are worn, walk away...

Sony Pro Walkmans are also a good bet, and IMHO, kick the arse out of minidisc / MP3 by a long way. In prime condition, a Sony Pro Walkman will give CDR a run for its money, but only if the machine is in tip-top condition.

Servicing costs on any tape-deck are a major concern; I had to junk an old Marantz "battleship" tape-deck (I regret if now - should've ponied up...) because the repair bill was higher than the market value...

Cassette decks are seriously expensive to service - make sure to get a low-mileage example.

Justin

[petsematary]

Yes, I would imagine they are. However, I've only bad experience w/ DAT decks (dropout, tape munchies etc) and pro MD decks are too expensive (the ones I've found anyway). Sometimes MD decks have a tendency to f*ck up if you use 'em outdoors in the winter too. They'll be "TOC writing" and then suddenly shut down without having saved your work to a file. Gaah.
And the new solid state recorders are cool but obviously quite costly too. I can only spend a few hundred dollars on this (mix excluded) hence cassette option. But of course, you're probably right. Those servicemen sure know how to charge ya...

[petsematary]

I know it's not a "real" field recorder but what do you guys think of the TCD-D8 DAT Walkman? That generation of DAT WM:s is supposed to be the best. Anyone know anything about it soundwise?

[spacecaptain]

if you want a portable cassette deck for live recording, really nothing can come close to the Nakamichi 550. it's huge, weighs a ton with the 8 D cells in it, but blows everything else out of the water. used you can find one for around $200-$300. otherwise go for the Sony D5 (i'd steer clear of the Marantz line); the Nak has much better mic pres though (and there's three of them). the heads don't really wear out on them too easily, but the motors do start to go after a while (which means they don't really rewind or fast-forward any more, but you don't need that anyway when recording on location). i recorded live shows to cassette for a dozen years or so before i went digital, and i have to say that i have never been able to get a sound as good as the Nak gave me since then! just my two cents... good luck!

[petsematary]

Thanks. Cassette one are cool, cheap and - apparently - good. But the again...DAT/MD/Solid State's are so small and noise-free... that's nice also.

Do you know which digital ones are good in terms of mic pre's and such?