[techfreakazoid]

I was surprised that Sony still made cassette Walkmans until I read this article.  So I was going through my extensive cassette collection and realized my HTiB cassette deck and portable Panasonic cassette player (RQ-S35V) are no longer working.  I think the oils have dried up. 

 Anyway, I'm thinking about picking up a new portable cassette player so I can still listen to the old tapes and digitize select songs using Audacity.  Any experiences and suggestions on "audiophile" models with clean hp / line-outs as well as vendors, e-tailers?  I'm looking at the Sony Japan site and it looks like these are the current players.  Ideally, would like to spend less than $100.  Thanks in advance.

 

[Danneq]

I wonder if there are many people here who still uses walkmans. About 4 years ago when my Creative Zen Touch's HDD broke, I pulled out the old Walkman, and I remember people looking at me. Already then they were seen as archaic in Sweden. Here in Japan, I have seen people, mostly older men, using Walkmans.
 
Looking at the Sony page you link to and using my poor Japanese skills, it seems that they all have recording capability. Overall they seem much more modern than my old Walkman (which only is about 7 or 8 years old).
 
There's a bunch of portable cassette players on Amazon. You can read the user reviews and compare. I wonder if portable cassette players even have line out. About sound quality, I do not know. I owned other cassette players when I was younger, but I cannot compare them to the Walkman I have now (and almost never use). With a Sony, you should get as good SQ as a portable cassette player can offer...
 
This one is cheap. Radio is included and you can get about 35 hours from a single AA battery! I wish that I could say the same thing about MP3 players...
 
There is also Ebay. You can find used portable cassette players from around $5 to $300. Something like this looks much more high tech than my old Walkman. It's even got a remote!

 

[DJGeorgeT]

yes, there are still people using cassettes. Bestbuy usually had the sony walkman until last year. I haven't checked this year. I do not go to bestbuy that often. Walmart, target, etc also carry cassette recorders. It is not a bad medium, but digital is a lot more convenient.

 

[david1978jp]

To turn your audio tape into mp3,  you can get device like this.  It is easy enough if you don't want to go through whole try and error thing with an old time cassette deck.
 

 

[techfreakazoid]

Thanks Danneq.  My Japanese is non-existent so had to refer to Google Translate to determine the cassette options.  I figure I would locate the most current model off their production line since we're talking about moving parts and oils.  The models appear to be geared towards dictation and recording as opposed to music listening.  Maybe I'm on the wrong page.  Saw the Sony on Amazon earlier and noticed the price has gone up in a couple of days already.  Do you know any shops in Japan unloading their Walkmans, Aiwas, higher-end models?  Feel free to PM me.
 
@DJGeorgeT
No luck at BB and will have to check out WM, Target, mom-and-pop shops.  I agree digital is the way to go though analog tape sure has that nostalgic je ne sais quoi.
 
@david1978jp
I saw the Ion at the Shack.  Not sure about the quality of output though.  Have you used it?
 
BTW, is it me or the "upgraded" forum is much slower than vBulletin and has issues with Multi and Quote functionality?  I've been off Head-Fi for several months and submitted an earlier post that did not show up.  Had a few other windows opened so not sure if that was the issue.

 

[DJGeorgeT]

Dunno how good this one is, but it's got good reviews: Sony walkman @ Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Sony-Walkman-Digital-Weather-Cassette/dp/B001407E86/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1287977257&sr=8-1

 

[techfreakazoid]

It's funny how the price has jacked up from $29 to $42 on Amazon over the weekend.  Not sure about the SQ, but based on the specs this would be an entry-level cassette player back in the day.  Any Head-Fi'ers own / listened to the WM-FX290W and can comment on dynamic range, SNR, SQ with quality recordings on metal tapes?

 

[DJGeorgeT]

the prices jacked up today as soon as the news from Sony was made official. Some have jacked up the prices by 200%. Those greedy retailers.

 

[mootookang]

This reminds me that I have a vintage hand me down walkman from around the 80s. I should find it and see if it still works or not.