"Lo-fi" appreciation thread

Wikipedia:

"In 1973 Nakamichi created stereo cassette decks with such high quality that eventually made reel-to-reel tape recorders obsolete for consumers. The Nakamichi 1000 and 700 were regarded as two of the finest cassette recorders made in the mid-1970s. They had three heads, dual capstan drive that reduced wow and flutter to new low levels, and Dolby-B noise reduction to improve the signal to noise ratio. The feature that really set them apart was the adjustable record head azimuth and Dolby calibration that could be optimized for each cassette tape. Many audiophiles aspired to but could not afford a Nakamichi 1000 or 700 (whose model number was derived from the list price), so Nakamichi came out with more economical two-head models such as the Nakamichi 500 and the silver wedge-shaped 600.

Nakamichi pushed live recording with their Nakamichi 550, a portable cassette recorder that had three microphone inputs: one for left channel, one for right channel, and one for a center blend channel. This recorder could run from batteries or AC and was used to make very high quality recordings in the field. All of these products were known for top-notch engineering and sound quality.

In the late 1970s Nakamichi updated their machines with the Nakamichi 1000 II, the 700 II, and other midrange and low-end models, but overall they became more complex and less reliable, and prices were raised as well. They branched out into other audio components such as amplifiers and eventually speakers, but these products were never as highly regarded by the audio community as their cassette decks were.

In the early 1980s Nakamichi came out with further refinements in a successor top-of-the-line machine, the Nakamichi 1000ZXL. Prices pushed upward again, with this machine being $3,800 at the time. The updated 700ZXL was a mere $3,000. Low-end cassette decks sold new for under $200, with the Nakamichi name on them. This time period stands as the pinnacle for cassette recorders, as from that time onwards digital recording methods began to make inroads."

Back in the second half of the 1960s we used to have a miniature portable record player at home that was even smaller than the Sound Burger (see first three photos below) released in later years (in the 1980s, I believe). It was a clamshell design but opened differently to the Sound Burger, enabling it to be more compact. It looked more like the AIWA micro portable record player shown in last three photos below. Now these record players were 'lo-fi'. Sounded OK, though.


Sound Burger promo:


Sound Burger showing storage position of the arm, and the folding lid.


Sound Burger playing an LP:


AIWA micro-portable playing a single:


AIWA micro-portable playing an LP:


AIWA micro-portable compared to an LP:

oliverstoned wrote: Wikipedia: "In 1973 Nakamichi created stereo cassette decks with such high quality that eventually made reel-to-reel tape recorders obsolete for consumers.

^ *You* don't know what you're saying - CD is vastly superior in dynamics (undisputable fact), and 30khz ... well, if you believe in astrology you might also believe that the human ear can hear such high frequencies. But I'm sure that it cannot, and that the tape decks could *not* reproduce such frequencies reliably. Why should they - there are no sources which contain these frequencies!

MikeEnRegalia wrote: ^ *You* don't know what you're saying - CD is vastly superior in dynamics (undisputable fact), and 30khz ... well, if you believe in astrology you might also believe that the human ear can hear such high frequencies. But I'm sure that it cannot, and that the tape decks could *not* reproduce such frequencies reliably. Why should they - there are no sources which contain these frequencies!

    

You're a dwarf in music and you have never heard nothing.
Numeric can't reproduce ANY frequency correctly because of the gaps and it even adds supersonic noise.

So, one time for all, please SHUT UP!!!!!

Fitzcarraldo wrote: A brand new Sound Burger sold on eBay yesterday - it was still wrapped in its original plastic bag. Not cheap, though. The last time I looked the price was $250.

MikeEnRegalia wrote: ...you're only making a fool of yourself with your childish ignorance of facts. You might as well say that the sky is green.

Ah yes - but with modern digital manipulation of images, the sky can be green; in the old days, you had to depend on unreliable & illegal chemical stimuli to see a green sky...



Sorry - different argument for a different thread - pray continue.
    

oliverstoned wrote: I don't care about your smoky THEORIES. The fact that your play 3 notes of NOISE with a bunch of friends doesn't mean nothing, if it's in the same vein that the craps you add to the site. You should not be here on this adult site, but rather on a teenage forum for "metal heads".

A couple of things:

1. You're confusing scientific fact with theory.
   
2. There's nothing "smoky" about these facts - rather the reverse.
3. "3 notes" ... thanks for confirming that you don't know much about music theory or notation to start with ... the correct term is "3 chords".
4. We had a proper home studio which back then (1993) cost more than 12,000 EUR, with state of the art equipment (expensive microphones, 24 channel Soundcraft mixer, ALESIS ADAT recorder, Tannoy monitor speakers etc. ).
5. Let's not return to the "who added what" debate ...
6. Do you even know how old I am? I'm 10 years older than philippe for example ... go figure.
   

MikeEnRegalia wrote: ^ *You* don't know what you're saying - CD is vastly superior in dynamics (undisputable fact), and 30khz ... well, if you believe in astrology you might also believe that the human ear can hear such high frequencies. But I'm sure that it cannot, and that the tape decks could *not* reproduce such frequencies reliably. Why should they - there are no sources which contain these frequencies!