Tapes - (Types I - IV) Topic - (opinion, experiences, recording, dubbing, etc.)

Started by SumofTotal, October 10, 2019, 11:58:28 PM

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SumofTotal

I actually don't see this as a topic on the forum.

Curious what other peoples experiences are with the various cassette 'Types' with regards to NOISE/pe/etc.;
Although I know that basically Ferric is the only one with 'consistent' availability currently, I personally have an interest in hearing about the other out-of-circulation 'Types'

I am relatively aware Chrome's of improved clarity of high-end frequencies and comparatively, the loss of definition in Ferric just in 'home dubbing' my own work. However, Chrome is alleged to have some pitfalls in compromising the low-end although I have not experimented enough to recognize this.

Anyway, add whatever input you have on cassette 'Types' and noise

XXX


RMBLRX

As a layman, this is probably the most informative resource I've found on the matter: Cassette Comeback

Type II is what I use for 4track, as I believe is generally the standard (i.e., what the machines are biased for), but for stereo recording, I think super-ferric type I's are generally regarded well (for which there are a couple of newly produced versions and plenty of old-new-stock available).  All the other types seem like pretty fringe items of fascination, which probably very few machines can handle properly (I don't know what the hell typeIII is off the top of my head, but that seems to be the case with Metal, which can be cool but hardly worthwhile for the cost).

SumofTotal

Quote from: RMBLRX on October 14, 2019, 01:03:27 PM
As a layman, this is probably the most informative resource I've found on the matter: Cassette Comeback

Type II is what I use for 4track, as I believe is generally the standard (i.e., what the machines are biased for), but for stereo recording, I think super-ferric type I's are generally regarded well (for which there are a couple of newly produced versions and plenty of old-new-stock available).  All the other types seem like pretty fringe items of fascination, which probably very few machines can handle properly (I don't know what the hell typeIII is off the top of my head, but that seems to be the case with Metal, which can be cool but hardly worthwhile for the cost).


Thank you for your information and the provided resource, very helpful information for me personally.

As far as Type III; I've seen a few mentions of it on various cassette audiophile sites its also known as 'FerroChrome':

Type III was a commercially failed experiment, based on mixing type I and type II. They thought they will get the best performance of both tape types, but also they had their weaknesses. They were in the market for very few years and then disappeared.

(from Walkman Archive - http://walkman-archive.com/articles/cassette-walkman-faq-01.html )

I'd previously seen a page with more detailed history of the brief Type III lifespan - but I cannot locate it now. If found, I'll post link if anyone cares.