Topic: prepping for cassette transfers

[colors]

I picked up a nice condition Marantz PMD 430 for some cassette transfers.  I am curious what kind of prep is recommended for this deck.  Is it stuff I can do myself, or should I take it to someone?  It runs fine now, but will need fine tuning and cleaning.  I am not going to for the million dollar rig, just looking to cover all the basic essentials before I transfer some old aud recordings.  As far as lineage, should I stick a preamp between the 430 and my R44?

[runonce]

Unless you really need it for the dbx NR - Not sure I would consider that deck to be any great treat for transfers...not trying bum on Marantz or anything - surely a fine deck in the day...

But I would think any middle of the road standalone deck to be preferable...like something that still works just fine...

...I find those old field recorders to be noisy as hell...I'd be surprised if you could find a reliable tech for that thing...

For cassette transfers - the most critical adjustment is the azimuth...you'll have to change this per tape...so look for some small holes on the transport cover, and find a small screwdriver.

[jethro bo deen]

I respectfully disagree with Runonce.
PMD 430  if it within normal specs and operating as it should will be fine.
Marantz PMD-430 was a cassette deck that could hold its own with any high end cassette decks of the mid to late eighties and nineties.
The azithmus  adj  isn't as critical on transfers as precise pitch  to the recorded pitch of the source tape.
Correct me if I'm wrong,  but if my memory serves me well ,   the Marantz PMD-430  has  a  pitch adjustment to finely dial in the playback speed.
This is most useful in  transferring taped material  and is even more critical than azithmus,   however if  the tape path azithmus is too far off , then sure, you'll get less than what you should in terms of clean clarity in high freq and throughout mid and lows.
The heads on a PMD 430 were outstanding   and its S/n ratio is exceptional even without Noise Reduction when compared to mid level Cassette decks from mid '80's on ward.     That 430 will outperform any Nak   in  recording  with its dbx   and sn of 92+.     S/n with B   &  C  were  good as high end decks circa 1988.
It was a quality deck  and if it is still in good shape, should do fine!

[Brian Skalinder]

Oops!  While cleaning up spam, I accidentally deleted a post from DSatz.  Fortunately, I was able to copy the text of it from a cached page:

Just to increase the variety of available opinions: Another important difference among cassette recorders in this price class is the smoothness of tape motion. Normally I'm not part of the crowd that oversimplifies by saying that specifications don't reveal anything and listening tells you everything you need to know, but with "wow and flutter" specs that can be true, and the differences among samples of a given model can be considerable. Fast flutter doesn't show up well in the usual specs but it sure has an effect on listening quality where music is concerned.

I own one of these little decks, have had it since the 1980s, but have never used it for music recording--only documentary/spoken word recording, and it has sat in a drawer two feet to my right for the past 15+ years. So perhaps oddly, after all the above I don't have a strong opinion either way about the actual performance of the deck.

I can tell you that the dbx noise reduction system is pretty terrible if you don't have the deck's bias and record equalization set up precisely for the type of tape that you're recording on, and even then it's not particularly advisable since it can "backfire" and cause audible side effects; it was a system conceived of by True Believers who focused on only the positive side of what they were doing, and somehow managed to deny that the "noise breathing" or "noise pumping" which many people heard was real (although it clearly is). The Dolby systems had the advantage that they didn't try to be more powerful than the underlying medium could really support.

--best regards

[bonghitwillie]

it is usually best to have a cassette playback unit with variable head azimuth adjustment.

[colors]

ok I picked up a nice Nak Dragon deck.  Now I am curous what I should run to.  I am fairly certain my best bet is to go into my R44.  I also have an Onyx Satellite Firewire pre, a RNP, and a R-09.  Given this, I figure to AD conversion is best in the R44, but should there be something between the deck and recorder?  Just RCA out to R44?

[leehookem]

Do you have a sound card with RCA inputs on your computer?  If so, just run directly to the card.  Open up whatever editing program you use and hit record.

[spyder9]

ok I picked up a nice Nak Dragon deck.  Now I am curous what I should run to.  I am fairly certain my best bet is to go into my R44.  I also have an Onyx Satellite Firewire pre, a RNP, and a R-09.  Given this, I figure to AD conversion is best in the R44, but should there be something between the deck and recorder?  Just RCA out to R44?

Noise floor is one of the keys to successful analog cassette transfers.  You know the cassette is gonna have noise (hiss).  Then you ask yourself:  Self, is the recorder I'm using gonna add noise (hiss) on top of the transferred sound?  Not saying the R44 is noisy, for I never owned one.  Point is, choose your transfer equipment wisely to maximize your quality.  The Dragon was a good start......