So what's special about these Maxells?

[VintageSteve]

Seems like the bidding on these is ridiculous:
http://www.ebay.com/itm/2-NEW-SEALED-NOS-MAXELL-UD-35-180-MASTERING-REEL-REEL-TAPES-Japan-/330657774636

What's the draw here? Rare "collector" versions or just naivety? *scratchchin*

[Des-Lab]

Shill bidder. Look at the history.

As far as special, well nothing really. But that variant of UD does come with the relatively rare three holer (http://www.tapeheads.net/albums/showimage.php?i=534&c=30) reel.

[Lance Lawson]

A perfect example of Maxell costing more than the current production tapes. I wonder about the awareness level of the person who eventually buys them. There are a fair amount of reel to reel users who are unaware that brand new tape is still being made.

[PioneerRT-2022]

It is sad to say, but some people have their head just for the hair and simply go with what others say and without making their own tests, and sometimes they do happen to have money, so go figure. I don’t really know what the deal is, but even if you don’t like or want the RMGI formulations, how about the Quantegy tapes. Something is not right for sure. *bigthumbdown*


.

[Des-Lab]

I don't believe those bids are legitimate. So the pricing comparison is moot since I doubt they'll lead to a successful monetary and goods exchange.

That said, I still think that NOS Maxell and Quantegy tapes retain their value quite simply because 1) they are known, respected, and trusted brands, and 2) the new tapes remain clouded with skepticism and doubts as to their long term viability.

A LOT of folks were badly burned in the Ampex/Scotch SSS debacle and are understandably reluctant to expose themselves to it again, especially since documented and proven failures from both RMGI and ATR already exist.

Trust is something that a company must work long and hard to build. Once lost, that ground becomes 10X harder and may be impossible to ever recover.

Look at once proud names and what they went through. Ford and GM struggled for nearly a generation to rebuild their reputations. Others, like Pan Am and TWA never recovered from a tarnishing and eventually ceased to exist.

[ke4mcl]

*eyepop*

theres a couple of those still stacked in the planetarium somewhere. i need to convince my boss to have a cleanup! *bigthumbup*

[Dogface1956]

Shill bidder. Look at the history.

As far as special, well nothing really. But that variant of UD does come with the relatively rare three holer (http://www.tapeheads.net/albums/showimage.php?i=534&c=30) reel.

For my education what to you see in the bid history that tells you this is shill bidding? I don't see anything unusual, one bidder B**J has put in several max bids:

Initial Bid 92 Max Bid 107
Initial Bid 112 Max Bid 148
Initial Bid 152 Max Bid 174
Initial Bid 179 Max Bid 203

In between each of the Max Bids another bidder put in another bid, but B**J came back with a higher bid. I don't see anything here that shouts out shill bidding? It just appears to me that B**J for whatever reason really wants those tapes.

I have noticed that people throw "shill" bidding around here a was wondering what they are basing it on. Hopefully they understand that everytime someone puts in a bid that is higher then the initial bid, but lower then the max bid that it will show that person with the higher bid placed a bid, when it was just eBay automatically increasing the bid until the bidding passed their Max bid, that is not a shill, just the way eBay does it's thing.

For example if I placed an initial bid of 100 and a max bid of 200, and someone came along and bid 125, my bid would increase to 126 and it would show my user name as making the bid, if the next person bids 175, my bid would go up to 176 and so on, until someone bids over 200, then the user name on the bid would change.

Jeff

[vidguy]

Look at the "percentage" for the bidder - B**J
78% of all his bids were with that seller.

A classic sign of "shill" bidding.

[oldaudioscho]

Look at the "percentage" for the bidder - B**J
78% of all his bids were with that seller.

A classic sign of "shill" bidding.

I had a theory, but the above quote may have cancelled my idea. Could it possibly be a collector? Those guys seem to have deep pockets when they find something they desire.

[Des-Lab]

Collectors are serious bidders and generally don't nibble away one dollar at a time.

I would give that theory a lot more credence if it reached that amount via two or three large bids as opposed to the sixty or so small ones we are seeing.

[Mark J]

There are 2 Maxell UD35-180B sealed tapes ending in a day or so. Wonder if these tapes will sell for as much as the non-back-coated. tapes?

[Des-Lab]

There are 2 Maxell UD35-180B sealed tapes ending in a day or so. Wonder if these tapes will sell for as much as the non-back-coated. tapes?

I'm guessing you are referencing this listing (http://www.ebay.com/itm/2-NEW-SEALED-Maxell-UD-XL-35-180B-Reel-Sound-Recording-Tape-10-Metal-NOS-/350516275940?pt=Vintage_Electronics_R2&hash=item519c65eae4) for a pair of UD-XL's.

As of this message, the bidding is up to $62 with ≈ 33 hours left to go.

Can it go higher?

Yes, I do think that this one can still have some legs, even though those are the oldest of Maxell back coated tapes that come with the Double M reels. I am predicting a sale price in the $100-$125 bracket. Maxell back coated tapes are for the most part definitely hot, with a $60-$75 selling price apiece being the average for quite some time now. Party party party. Though not quite like the good old days of 2003-2005 when $100 and up was the norm.

[oldaudioscho]

Des, Let me ask you something about the people who are purchasing these tapes since you are among the elite in regards to these Maxell tapes.

Are these (people) recording purist with a very discriminating ear for the finest quality of playback on a R2R, or is there a possibility that these are people who think they are going to get maximum results from their decks regardless of the quality of the deck or what tape that machine may be set fore? Tks.

[Des-Lab]

Des, Let me ask you something about the people who are purchasing these tapes since you are among the elite in regards to these Maxell tapes.

Are these (people) recording purist with a very discriminating ear for the finest quality of playback on a R2R, or is there a possibility that these are people who think they are going to get maximum results from their decks regardless of the quality of the deck or what tape that machine may be set fore? Tks.

Thanks for the compliment. Anyway, I think you basically asked the same question twice. And my view is that the answer is twofold. First, yes you are correct. Many if not most decks that audiophiles are using were set up with Maxell tape in mind. With the possible exception of Sony, which had its own line of tapes, pretty much everyone used Maxell as a primary tape. None of the other tape makers (TDK, Memorex, Scotch, etc.) really caught on to any significant degree. At least not in the 10" market. Scotch was a big player in the 60's 7" market, but from the early 70's on, Maxell was *THE* name in tape for the home hobbyist.

My other response has already been answered. Because of the previous paragraph, Maxell still enjoys a solid reputation not just for it's almost universal compatibility, but equally important, it's trusted and folks know that Maxell tapes won't fall apart. NOS examples today that are 30 years old are still in like factory fresh condition. Barring abuses in storage over that time, those tapes even if opened today, can be easily expected to last another 20, 30 years or more in actual service. Neither RMGI nor ATR can make that claim. Plus, there's still something to be said about the aesthetic retro-cool factor of the reels. I offered this idea (http://www.tapeheads.net/showthread.php?t=10948) as one possible way for one or both makers to try and get a bigger slice of the market by reducing the appeal of NOS in that regard. Not surprisingly, both makers have soundly rejected the idea and at best, ignored it and at worst outright ridiculed it. Even though I still firmly believe that the numbers can substantiate my proposal.

Another idea I floated right around the same time I tried to lobby (http://www.tapeheads.net/forumdisplay.php?f=120) Maxell into bringing back their R2R tapes (http://www.tapeheads.net/petition.htm) would be for RMGI and Maxell into entering some sort of joint marketing agreement whereby under license, RMGI would produce tapes under the Maxell name and logo. That is, RMGI or ATR could, using their existing facilities and equipment, sell tape sold as a "new" Maxell tape reviving the old model numbers (or creating a new one) packaged in a Maxell-like box on a Double-M reel. Or perhaps even better, using those facilities to actually re-create old Maxell formulas. In exchange, Maxell would receive a royalty for each tape sold. No doubt from a legal perspective, it would be a challenge, and RMGI might not exactly warm up to an idea of paying someone else for selling their own tape, but if sales of Max NOS are any indication, the massive jump in sales would be more than enough to offset those costs and net RMGI or ATR a tidy profit that they otherwise wouldn't get. To dumb it down even further to illustrate my point, ask most folks about RMGI and a good number of them will say "Who"?. Then ask about Maxell and they'll all say the same thing: "I wish they were still available".

[PioneerRT-2022]

I have to give my opinion in this matter and this is what I feel and remember you too can make your own test and if Maxell is your tape; well poor you because it is only getting worse.


In my opinion RMGI formulations is without any doubt a better tape when compare with Maxell tapes regarding the quality of the recording. I listen to my recordings and I make my own test; I don’t go with what people say, I need to experience it. Regarding how long the RMGI tapes are going to last, well remember they have the same Basf formulation, so I am not worry about it, as I never had any problems with them, Basf or RMGI.

Maxell is a good tape that can last a very long time, but I don’t know why every time I get an used Maxell tape the recordings they came with are crappy, could it be the person that recorded the tape?, are they really serious when recording on a Maxell tape?. In my case I won’t pay that amount of money for a Maxell tape, back coated or not, it just don’t make any sense for me.

By the way you can always calibrate your machine for the tape of your choice and if you have money you can always send it for calibration, or get a machine that can handle a better tape but paying that amount of money for a tape, because you machine is calibrated for it? I don’t think so.

It is also true the Maxell tapes can be easily calibrated, because they don’t demand much and most machine can handle them, as well as LPR-35 and SM468, and how about Quantegy tapes, they are without any doubt way better tapes than Maxell and they don’t have problems, but more difficult to obtain for sure.


The fact is Maxell will no longer produce tapes, no matter how much people want them to, but those people have to realize too the there are more choices out there and LPR-35 is an excellent replacement and many are very happy with it.

In my case quality is extremely important and NO I cannot get the best recording out of a Maxell tape, so there is nothing special about them if you ask me. This picture will tell you more and those are just the ones I have recorded on + some Basf, RMGI and 3M 996 tapes that I have in boxes.

By the way the Maxell tape you see there in the middle doesn’t have music in it and I will probably sell it like I have done with the ones that have crossed my way or should I wait a little for that last one?, I guess in 5 years it will cost a fortune. I was very glad for Basf and now for RMGI fand I really hope the new company will get stronger. At least I am supporting them. *bigthumbup*

http://img12.imageshack.us/img12/7822/p1010001nzk.jpg (http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/12/p1010001nzk.jpg/)




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[nitrous]

Wow, those 2 reels of UD 35-180 noted in the OP went for over $100 per reel!
Amazing.

[VintageSteve]

Wow, those 2 reels of UD 35-180 noted in the OP went for over $100 per reel!
Amazing.

I'm hoping this is a "blip" and not a trend.... 'cause if it is, I'm going to be sorely tested not to sell my sealed Maxells..*devil*

[Rat44]

WOW.
Somebody must of really wanted those bad.
You could have bought 2 brand new rolls of LPR for that .

[Des-Lab]

Well I'll get to "1022's post later on. Also, stay tuned for an upcoming test report on the "new" LPR-35.

Meanwhile, I need to get started on supper. I'm making ribs. Yum.

[Mark J]

The two UD35-180B NOS tapes that I mentioned and Matt linked sold for 91 plus shipping. Well below the cost of the OP-linked non-back-coated tapes and right about what Matt said they would sell for.

[Dogface1956]

Look at the "percentage" for the bidder - B**J
78% of all his bids were with that seller.

A classic sign of "shill" bidding.

No those are automatic bids, when someone puts a max bid on an auction and someone bids under that max bid, it moves the bid up, that person did not place 78% of the bids.

You have to understand how eBay works.

Jeff

[Dogface1956]

Collectors are serious bidders and generally don't nibble away one dollar at a time.

I would give that theory a lot more credence if it reached that amount via two or three large bids as opposed to the sixty or so small ones we are seeing.

You don't know how eBay works, the person with the max bid is not nibbling away one dollar at a time, someone else if increasing their bid $1.00 at a time, but it is still under the Max bid of another bidder, so it is increasing that persons bid $1.00 at a time.

Jeff

[VintageSteve]

Same seller has another two identical reels listed. Out of curiosity, I've added it to my watch list for entertainment. *yes*

[PioneerRT-2022]

Those are probably the same tapes, they think people don't see that. Very sad.