[net.audio] Please Help Me Buy A Walkman

cw (08/03/82)

I am considering the purchase of a Walkman-like portable cassette
recorder.  Because I would like to dub my own tapes from records and
because I do not own a cassette deck, I need also to buy either a 
deck or to buy a Walkman with recording capacity.  If you know something
about these units, would you please advise me (and, because I think
others might be interested, post your advice to the net unless you think
it has no general interest at all).  The following are important considerations
for me:

	1. I want to have FM in the portable unit.
	2. If the portable unit does the recording, it should be possible to
	jack it from ordinary stereo preamp outputs (tape outs, probably) and
	it should be able to run from AC power (for recording stability).
	3. A portable unit that records need not record from FM.
	4. If I buy a separate cassette deck, I am not interested in spending
	any more money than necessary to record for the portable and for my
	car deck.  In both these cases, ambient noise lowers fidelity
	requirements somewhat.  Stupendous high frequency response is not
	necessary.
	5. I am very sensitive to tape hiss.
	6. I have noticed that cheap decks put a lot of wow and flutter on
	the recorded tapes; I am sensitive to it.
	7. I would like to minimize the total amount spent.

Of course, the units could be other than Sony.  Please mention the
price/value ratio if you know it and any other thoughts that seem relevant
to you.  If it matters, I listen to a lot of classical music, folk, and
(to most net readers) old-fashioned swing and show music.  No hard
rock or electronic music, only (very) classical jazz.

Thanks in advance for any help you can give.

Charles

sa (08/04/82)

	I had many of the same thoughts when I bought my portable
	cassette deck. I decided on an Aiwa HF-1. It is small and 
	thin and has stereo record/playback capability. Here is 
	how it relates to the seven points you mention:

	1. Sorry, it doesn't have FM. I believe Aiwa does make such
	   models, though. 
	
	2. For recording, the HF-1 has a built-in stereo condenser mic.
	   For external signals, such as from remote mics or 'tape out'
	   there are two mini-plug jacks for L and R. There is a switch
	   on the HF-1 to select the recording source.

	2a. There is an AC adapter available, but it is not included
	    with the HF-1.

	4. Frequency response is good. 40-16000 for metal tape and 40-13000
	   for normal tape. There is a bias select switch on the unit. 
	   The HF-1 has very good sound quality, especially for such a 
	   small paskage. 

	5. About tape hiss: sorry about this. The small portables, it 
	   seems, have more hiss than their larger counterparts. I believe
	   this is because the portables use many more IC's.

	6. The HF-1 seems pretty stable in the Wow & Flutter area. I 
	   only notice it when the unit is being jarred around. 
	   W&F increases, as you might expect, when the batteries get weak.

	7. Price is about $150 - $170. Tech HiFi here in Massachusetts 
	   recently had them on sale for $135. Guess when I bought mine. 

	Hope this info helps you in your search.


						Scot Aurenz
					   	decvax!sa

wmartin (08/04/82)

I suggest holding off any Walkman-type equipment purchase for about a year,
or maybe until early '83, after the Winter CES new equipment comes out.
This applies if you are interested in relative fidelity and eliminating
tape hiss with Dolby B. (If not, buy one of the currently-available cheap
ones.)

A recent article in one of the slick audio mags (I think it was Stereo Review)
discussed why none of the Walkman-type devices had Dolby (until the recently-
announced very expensive Sony); Dolby chips which would operate on the low
voltage available in the Walkman-type machines were just not available.
However, this is being rapidly remedied by the chip makers, and a new crop
of reasonably-priced Walkman-style machines should be available WITH Dolby
shortly.

I can't abide the idea of piping unDolbyized cassette tape his directly into
my ears with the current crop of machines.                   ^s ("hiss")

With fairly reasonable play-only machines available now for about $30
wholesale and up, I expect to get one next year (play-only, with Dolby B)
for $60 or so, from one of the wholesalers or discount mail-order sources.

Also, if you really don't care about Dolby, remember that the introduction
of it will make ALL current models obsolete immediately, and there should
be some fantastic dumps of old-model inventory at decent prices from
retail sources, so that is an incentive to hold off buying anyway!

Will Martin