Just thought I would throw this in... But I got a Sony DTC-A6 off ebay for $125. The guy said it had low hours (but who knows!) and it was in great shape.
I've never had any problems with it, even with 90m tapes, and I use it for unpacking tapes and playback/transfers
It dosn't have many features, but I don't really care since I don't record with it. And SCMS isn't a issue since I don't do DAT > DAT anymore.
Rick