HiFi Microcassettes

[Scorpion8]

You usually only see microcassettes in handheld dictation machines these days, although the tapes abound and are very cheap. But apparently, before Sony's Walkman killed them, the Japanese market had some very nice hifi microcassette players. I've also heard that the format was incompatible with today's microcassette (case structure?). I do remember the scene from Clockwork Orange where the main character plays Beethoven on microcassette in his small British apartment before entertaining the young ladies.

Anybody (Rob?) have any archives of these old units that they could share?

[MacGyver]

never heard of such a thing, but i am intrigued...

[Acoustic]

Well this is not hi-fi and it's only mono... but it's more than just a dictation machine. It's mid '80's. Where I worked we got three in. One went for the demo and two to sell. They were $169 (to the best of my recollection)... they got a lot of attention but no one wanted to plunk down the $$$. I think we sent the two back for credit but couldn't send the demo... I got it for less than $100, can't remember the price, but I think it was 1/2 of the original.
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3225/2721186300_820af75702.jpg

[Jay Pemberton]

Never seen anything like that! Is that a telly screen on the right?

I recall seeing ads around 1979 or 1980-ish from Olympus (or was it Optonica?), who were touting some kind of a microcassette deck with pretences to not just hi-fi but stereo sound as well. Might have included Dolby B in it. Never seen one of those either.

[Acoustic]

Well this is not hi-fi and it's only mono... but it's more than just a dictation machine. It's mid '80's. Where I worked we got three in. One went for the demo and two to sell. They were $169 (to the best of my recollection)... they got a lot of attention but no one wanted to plunk down the $$$. I think we sent the two back for credit but couldn't send the demo... I got it for less than $100, can't remember the price, but I think it was 1/2 of the original.
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3225/2721186300_820af75702.jpg
It's a GE Model #3XM3214E. An AM/FM. microcassette and a 3"B&W TV. Runs off of AC or 7 C batteries. It has stereo AUX connections and can use the internal or an external antenna. Great for camping, taking to sports games or wherever. Tape section has a counter and below the tape door is an LED VU meter that doubles as a signal strength meter for radio or TV signal.

[Acoustic]

Never seen anything like that! Is that a telly screen on the right?


I was editing my post to tell of the features and accidentally double posted. Yes... a 3" TV. I even hooked it up to cable one time during a power outage since I thought the cable would be working... and it did.

[retrokeeper]

Hey Scorpion!! I think I do have some info on stereo microcassette recorders,I think Fisher had some portables & home decks,I'll need to find the info,that's the tough part...where did I put that literature? I know the technology did not last long,and will try to find some info.I'm also tardy on some car audio info for somebody else here at TH,need to get onto that to!! Just too darn busy this summer for some reason?! Rob

[retrokeeper]

I think JVC may have dabbled in stereo microcassette too,I'll look and see,will take me a bit. Rob

[Scorpion8]

man, I knew Rob wouldn't fail me! *Hi5* This is what I was perusing when I got the idea to ask this question: http://www.walkmancentral.com/products/bm-550

I am constantly amazed at the breadth and depth of knowledge spread amongst all the fabulous users of this site.

[retrokeeper]

Ok,here's what I found,a few more companies than I thought brought out microcassette hi-fi recorders,and there may be others,I thought that possibly Sanyo or Toshiba might have had some gear,but I couldn't find any.I'll look through some more literature I have stuffed away somewhere.Here's some scans from Sony,Panasonic,& Fisher. Rob

[Scorpion8]

Awesome. I'll have to peruse these in detail. Thanks, Rob.

[shstrang98]

JVC had one in the early 80's.

[doity]

I have had one of the blanks for years but no player to try it out with *fit*

It looks cool though in the blister pack....


http://i40.tinypic.com/6z1wug.jpg

[Scorpion8]

Never saw a mini-metal tape. That's cool. Probably what the hifi mini-cassette systems were meant for.

[Dimitar Georgiev]

the Japanese market had some very nice hifi microcassette players.

HiFi Microcassettes ?? With frequency range to max 4-5 KHz we cannot talk about HiFi. Do you have the frequency response of such microcassette recorder/players ?

Dimitar

[Jody Thornton]

HiFi Microcassettes ?? With frequency range to max 4-5 KHz we cannot talk about HiFi. Do you have the frequency response of such microcassette recorder/players ?

Dimitar

I remember Popular Science had one featured in 1981. It had response to about 14 K -/+ 3 dB. S/N was high 50s low 60s.

[Dimitar Georgiev]

I remember Popular Science had one featured in 1981. It had response to about 14 K -/+ 3 dB. S/N was high 50s low 60s.


Well if a deck can get 14K-15K +/- 3dB from a microcassette I would love to get a hold of such deck.

D.

[Scorpion8]

I remember Popular Science had one featured in 1981.

Does Popular Science have a searchable online archive? That'd be a great review to get ahold of and post here.

[todd33rpm]

Well if a deck can get 14K-15K +/- 3dB from a microcassette I would love to get a hold of such deck.

D.

Amen, if nothing else just to have another piece for the museum.

Although I like the idea of going to a picnic with one and blowing people's minds. (I have done that with my PlayTape machine, because the reactions are so priceless.)

[retrokeeper]

Keep an eye out for some future scans of JVC cassette decks I'm doing in the forum listings Matt just created for individual brand names (JVC) and you'll see just such a micro-cassette deck by them that gets up to 14000hz!! Hopefully it was a production unit and not just a picture in a brochure,it does look cool. Rob

[Walkgirl]

http://i192.photobucket.com/albums/z207/1Walkgirl/Sony%20M80/IMG_2293.jpg

http://i192.photobucket.com/albums/z207/1Walkgirl/Smilies/icon_redface.gif

[ke4mcl]

thats amazing. goes to show that it's impossible to have see it all in this hobby!

[stereorob]

thats amazing. goes to show that it's impossible to have see it all in this hobby!

yeah it is man! there are so many diffrent brand names and obscure formats that flopped immediatly. like the full size cassette tapes rca put out in the 50s. or the dcc tape. very intresting. i wonder what the frequency responce on a mini hifi cassette would be....

[eric123]

My old telephone answering machine used micro-cassettes and I had a little bit of dark side of the moon in the background whith my pre-recorded message. I assume that to be able to get the best hifi out of it would depend on tape speed. My 8 track teac multitrack cassette's individual track might be the same width as the micro-cassette track width. Its got DBX and its specs are quite good and comparable to the standard cassette width. I would think a micro track would take more to amplify than a full track and so might be more noiser?

[RealHendrik]

Hi!

Sanyo has built a hifi microcassette tapedeck called RD-XM1. It has full logic drive control, LED bargraphs, Dolby B and even Dolby HX! That might be the reason how they get a frequency response up to 14 kHz at 2,4 tape speed...

http://tapeheads.net/attachment.php?attachmentid=24393&stc=1&d=1320341823

[Lapis]

Hi!

Sanyo has built a hifi microcassette tapedeck called RD-XM1. It has full logic drive control, LED bargraphs, Dolby B and even Dolby HX! That might be the reason how they get a frequency response up to 14 kHz at 2,4 tape speed...

http://tapeheads.net/attachment.php?attachmentid=24393&stc=1&d=1320341823

What about at 1.2 cm/s ? I hope it is the same as well for this deck.

[Yuko_ru]

I have had one of the blanks for years but no player to try it out with *fit*

It looks cool though in the blister pack....




*bigthumbup*

[Avisio]

Some pictures from an old brochure (1982).

I think that microcassette gear (apart from dictation machine) were sold here in Europe for just 1 or 2 years around 1982.

[Lowtone]

Do someone knows the bandwith with a normal microcassette, speed 1.2 and speed 2.4 ?

[cristo]

Mine (sony BM-577 portable microcassette dictator) is 300-3K at 1.2, 300-4K at 2.4
The desktop transcriber units are a little better at 200-4k and 200-6k respectively

Sony BM-577 Technical Specifications:
Tape System 4 Track, 2 Channel Monaural Cassette
Frequency Response 300-4000Hz at 2.4cm/sec
300-3000Hz at 1.2cm/sec
Microphone Built-In Electret Condenser
Inputs DC In, 3V; External Microphone
Outputs Earphone Mini Jack
Speaker Mono: 1" (28 mm) dia. x 1
Power Output - mW (at 10%THD
Power Requirements DC 3V with "AAA" x 2 Batteries
AC 120V 60 Hz with optional AC Adaptor
Battery Life Approximately 7 hours with alkaline batteries






Sony Microcassette Desktop M-2020 Transcriber

Specifications

Frequency Response 200 - 6,000Hz (2.4cm/sec)
200 - 4,000Hz (1.2cm/sec)
Tape System 2 Track, 1 Channel Monaural
Speaker Built-In
Inputs Mic Jack, Remote Jack for Foot Control
or Hand Mic, DC-In Jack
Outputs Earphone Jack
Power Output 300mW
Power Requirements 120V

[Lowtone]

ah, thanks for your answer *bigthumbup* it will be useful