Nakamichi DR-10 Tape Decks
Nakamichi DR-10 Tape Decks
USER REVIEWS
[Apr 10, 2002]
jayhawks
Audio Enthusiast
Strength:
Dynamic range, frequency response, sonic imaging and separation, build quality
Weakness:
Rewind/fast-forward a bit slow A very solid, warm-sounding machine; an absolute pleasure to use and listen to. With cassettes in the bargain bin at record stores now, this machine gives a real alternative to spending $12-$15 per CD. An A/B comparison between identical Miles Davis tunes on CD and tape, for example, revealed only a slight difference in sound quality, not what I would call inferiority. I haven''t recorded anything of my own with the deck yet but expect excellent results from high-quality blank tape. |
[Mar 22, 2002]
David Seeker
AudioPhile
Strength:
Simply, the finest cassette deck in the world. The best from any other manufacturer doesn''t come close.
Weakness:
Not quite as good as it could be! Slight upper-mid emphasis, slight very low bass roll-off. Irritating necessity of having to manually select tape type - but you get used to it! A little update - I''ve now used this thing for about 4 months, and it does get used every day! It is superb, but flawed. If the audio electronics were as good as they should be it would be near perfect (within the limits of the medium). The most astonishing thing about this deck is the quality of the heads, which are, without doubt, the best in the world. Forget Aiwas, Akais, Sonys etc., I''ve heard them all and none come close to the quality of this machine, even allowing for its slightly dodgy audio side. My good friend has an Akai GX95 II Reference machine. I used to think that cassette reproduction couldn''t get any better than that - but I have been proven wrong by this amazing beast. It is in a different league, despite the fact that the electronics on the Akai are more transparent! Strange, but quite obviously true, when you listen to them both. Basically, what it loses to the Akai in transparency it more than compensates for by being able to make near perfect recordings (apart from a little hiss, which is almost unnoticeable - the music sounds so good), even on ferric tape. This brings me to another incredibly impressive aspect of this machine. You can use cheap ferrics (TDK D, Maxell UR - I even tried some REALLY cheap Sony mulitpack tapes) and make recordings that are fundamentally better than those made with TDK SA on other decks. This is due to the superb heads and transport. You might think I''m exaggerating, but ask any other Nakamichi user and they''ll know what I mean. That''s not to say that using SA isn''t worthwhile - it is - but it''s amazing what you can achieve with such cheap tapes, and it makes you realise that the limiting factor with other machines is not the tapes, but the machines themselves. Using SA it is virtually impossible to tell the difference when switching from source to tape during record. I''ve had many three head decks over the years, and none have been able to achieve such remarkable performance. The DR 10 doesn''t use Dolby HXPro either. It just doesn''t need it. The frequency response goes up to 21Khz, even with ferrics - and it sounds it - there isn''t the usual ''cassette sound'' top-end roll-off that you get with other decks. At £299 this machine is an outstanding bargain. It seems rock solid and very well built. You will not regret buying it. Similar Products Used: Aiwa, Akai, Sony, Yamaha, TEAC etc..... |
[Mar 22, 2002]
David Seeker
AudioPhile
Strength:
Simply, the finest cassette deck in the world. The best from any other manufacturer doesn''t come close.
Weakness:
Not quite as good as it could be! Slight upper-mid emphasis, slight very low bass roll-off. Irritating necessity of having to manually select tape type - but you get used to it! A little update - I''ve now used this thing for about 4 months, and it does get used every day! It is superb, but flawed. If the audio electronics were as good as they should be it would be near perfect (within the limits of the medium). The most astonishing thing about this deck is the quality of the heads, which are, without doubt, the best in the world. Forget Aiwas, Akais, Sonys etc., I''ve heard them all and none come close to the quality of this machine, even allowing for its slightly dodgy audio side. My good friend has an Akai GX95 II Reference machine. I used to think that cassette reproduction couldn''t get any better than that - but I have been proven wrong by this amazing beast. It is in a different league, despite the fact that the electronics on the Akai are more transparent! Strange, but quite obviously true, when you listen to them both. Basically, what it loses to the Akai in transparency it more than compensates for by being able to make near perfect recordings (apart from a little hiss, which is almost unnoticeable - the music sounds so good), even on ferric tape. This brings me to another incredibly impressive aspect of this machine. You can use cheap ferrics (TDK D, Maxell UR - I even tried some REALLY cheap Sony mulitpack tapes) and make recordings that are fundamentally better than those made with TDK SA on other decks. This is due to the superb heads and transport. You might think I''m exaggerating, but ask any other Nakamichi user and they''ll know what I mean. That''s not to say that using SA isn''t worthwhile - it is - but it''s amazing what you can achieve with such cheap tapes, and it makes you realise that the limiting factor with other machines is not the tapes, but the machines themselves. Using SA it is virtually impossible to tell the difference when switching from source to tape during record. I''ve had many three head decks over the years, and none have been able to achieve such remarkable performance. The DR 10 doesn''t use Dolby HXPro either. It just doesn''t need it. The frequency response goes up to 21Khz, even with ferrics - and it sounds it - there isn''t the usual ''cassette sound'' top-end roll-off that you get with other decks. At £299 this machine is an outstanding bargain. It seems rock solid and very well built. You will not regret buying it. Similar Products Used: Aiwa, Akai, Sony, Yamaha, TEAC etc..... |
[Feb 02, 2002]
Gary Fryer
AudioPhile
Strength:
Nakamichi discrete heads, stable transport. ''Lust factor''.
Weakness:
Remote available ONLY via Nakamichi receivers. Corners cut in audio stages. Not as well built as previous Naks. This deck cost me £299 sterling. It was originally priced at £799. I considered this purchase carefully, compact cassette is after all soon to be ''laid to rest''. After much soul searching and a re-count of my tape collection (itself collecting dust in the ''junk room''), I finally took the plunge and bought one (fulfilment of a childhood dream to own a Nak). This deck sounds fab. Solid transport, good heads - though as previously mentioned it is let down slightly by the quality of its audio stages (It doesn''t even have gold-plated RCA''s). Yes it''s true, the linear tape counter is next to useless, there are no frills and no uneccessary logos or paragraphs of marketing ''techno-nonsense'' silk-screened to it''s subtle exterior. Bottom line is simply, if you''ve got some old tapes you''d like to play or transfer to a digital medium, at this price you can''t go wrong. You simply have to pay more now to get similar performance from another manufacturer. Similar Products Used: AV Engineer - too many to mention! |
[May 18, 2001]
Will
Audio Enthusiast
Just want to let you people out there to know that this player is on sale for $299 anywhere. I am seeing a lot of geniuses out there bidding at over 3 to 4 hundred $$ for a new or refurbuished one at ubid.com!!! Be smart! |
[Jun 22, 2001]
ashraf qashoqa
Audio Enthusiast
Strength:
build quality,the most important features,sound quality,no decoration in the shape.
Weakness:
slow forward and rewind,very sensitive heads, I bought this deck for around 750$ from California,usa (you can get it cheaper)on 20-4-20001. this deck is made for people who are really intrested in recording cassettes whom dont like digital technology. after opening the box of the deck I was surprised for the heavy weight because nakamichi says it weights 5.4kg in fact Ididnt put it on a balance, any way I had alow end two head onkyo 6310 which was written on it 5kg but the dr-10 weights twice. Similar Products Used: none for the same price |
[Dec 12, 2001]
Les Howard
Audio Enthusiast
Strength:
Sound quality, stable transport, good build quality
Weakness:
operation, no remote,tape tuning, tape counter I was in 2 minds whether to buy this machine, the Aiwa machine still works quite well, but I had always wanted a top rate tape machine, and always ended up with cheaper types. Similar Products Used: Sony, Aiwa, nakamichi. |
[Dec 11, 2001]
David Seeker
Audiophile
Strength:
Heads, transport, build.
Weakness:
Audio electronics, ease of use. A great mechanism and the best cassette deck heads in the world. What lets it down somewhat is the quality of the audio electronics, which are not transparent. You lose some very low end and the upper mid becomes a little shrill. Similar Products Used: Sony,Akai,Yamaha. |
[Nov 19, 1999]
Jamil Taylor
Audio Enthusiast
Strength:
Sound reproduction
Weakness:
None This tape deck replaced my DR-3 (which is now labeled DR-8). It offers three tape heads instead of the two that my old Nakamichi had. This allows monitoring of tape audio as it is being recorded. Other than that, it has identical features that the old DR-3 had. Similar Products Used: Nakamichi DR-3 |
[Jun 02, 2001]
Haroon Rashid
Audiophile
Strength:
Recording controls -- very clear sound, makes bad recordings sound better, and good really great -- nice look
Weakness:
Bias Control for recording doesn't make much difference -- No Remote -- No search for selecting a particular track My Sony cassette deck broke down (thankfully) and I needed to get a new one. I still have over 500 or so tapes from the good old days, and would be very reluctant to trash such a valuable collection. Similar Products Used: Sansui, Sony, Akai |