Whether a fist time buyer or a seasoned cassette tape
archivist – what are the most important specifications of a cassette tape deck?
By: Ringo Bones
Given that the “lowly” cassette was the only egalitarian
music medium for the budding audiophile back in the mid 1980s, it is easy to
say that most of us have his or her own view when it comes to what
specifications make a great cassette tape deck. But if you ask me, what I will
rank from the most to least important goes as: (1) frequency response, (2) wow
and flutter, (3) signal-to-noise ratio, (4) speed accuracy and (5) distortion –
although some audiophiles may rank distortion higher as the most important
specification.
Frequency response that’s flat- i.e. within ±3dB - and
extends from 30-Hz to 18,000-Hz – could be considered impressive. But you
should pay attention on how flat the response is, a frequency response
specification of ±6dB
is not impressive. However, if the specifications were ±3dB and applied to a
range of 30-Hz to 16,000-Hz would be considered acceptable. Better still would
be a much flatter range of ±2dB
over such a frequency range. A high frequency range that extends to 19,000-Hz
instead of just 16,000-Hz will not make an important difference to most
listeners – especially “older” audiophiles.
The wow and flutter should measure no
higher than 0.05% peak. Although, people who are more sensitive than others
when it comes to wow and flutter might require a tape deck with better
specification in this department– i.e. 0.025% or lower.
The signal-to-noise ratio should be at
least 75dB or better when using Dolby C noise reduction. And the deck should
offer better S/N ratio results when a more advanced noise reduction system is
used – like Dolby S.
Speed accuracy that that will deviate no
more than 0.5% from correct speed. While some engineers consider such deviation
in pitch is inaudible to most people, vinyl LPs are mastered on a device whose
pitch deviation is under 0.2%.
Low distortion is of vital importance, especially
if you exclusively play recorded acoustic instruments because it is much easier
to hear distortion creeping in with a violin recording – than with a Gibson Les
Paul played through an overdriven Marshall stack.
