I’ve been looking for a new player lately and have found a few on eBay. Can ya’ll lend some advice? My first pick is a brand new WM-2091 for $57. I like it’s looks however can’t find any audio reviews for it. I’m not sure if I don’t want a radio. Second choice is a WM F-41. This has it all, again can’t get performance reviews. It’s also chunky. This is $50. My last one is a bit collector. It’s a WM F-10. Is small and seems to have good performance. This is $100. What’s your thoughts?
depends How much you wanna spend on this new walkman? This is the most important factor. You can buy a better walman compare to these 3 my advise to you is: not to buy any of them but if you decided to buy one of these 3 units then go for F10.
It really depends on the quality. As if price I’d prefer not to spend more then 150. I know you can find some broken DD units for that price but I like the nostalgic button on the side.
for 150 dollars you can buy a better model. Forget about all 3 models that you mentioned originally. - If you want to have a durable walkman buy a WM-F5. This model is a DD walkman, A yellow or black version is usually between 50-100 dollars. You can buy a new central gear kit from @mihokm for 30 dollars to fix it. If you decide to buy this model make sure it works. - If you want to have a collectible walkman buy a wm-BF22. This model is a basic walkman, probably when it came to market was less than 5-10 dollars. It is well known as "Dude's walkman" or "Big Lebowski's walkman". It is extremely collectible and very hard to find one. On average it appears on Ebay twice a year. It worth between 30 to 150 dollars. -If you want a good sounding walkman buy a Sony EX walkman. There are many models fit in this category. Examples are EX600, EX610, EX621, EX677, EX615, EX900, EX910...... Among EX series the most collectible one is purple EX9 (chameleon walkman). The price range for this category depends on the model itself. but you can choose many EX models with your budget.
Im not quite concerned with the durability as my dad gave me his Sports Walkman AF 54. It’s more of a nostalgia thing. So for time I’ll lean to your recommendation of the EX line and look for that Dude Walkman if I get the chance. Is there any EXs I should avoid or all they all generally good? @Boodokhan
Ah yes, I’ve watched this many times. It was a good basic guideline but many of the models are expensive. Or take away from the classic feel by adding those remotes.
Another item I’d like to note is the importance of the buttons on the side for that nostalgic feel. Not the buttons on the front or back that take less space.
. AF54 is not comparable to F5 except for the walkman enclosing material. F5 quality is better than AF54 but anyway its your choice If you like the buttons to be on the side of the walkman then Sony EX series are not appropriate choices for you I recommend three different brands 1st choice: Toshiba KT-G710 This walkman in used condition is about 80-220 dollars (depends on the color). Its is a beautiful walkman, easy to change the belt, durable and keeps its value. It sounds good as well 2nd choice: Sharp JC-k10. This model has equalizer built in. It is about 50-175 dollars (depends on the color of walkman). Changing belt on this model is easy as well 3rd choice : Kenwood CP-V5 (known as Antivirus walkman). It has very interesting shinny enclosure. You can find one for about 65-140 dollars All the above 3 walkman units have the buttons on the side of walkman There are several Panasonic walkman units that meet your criteria but It is not easy to change the belt on them and they come with multiple faulty parts. If you are comfortable in soldering and recapping then i can recommend some Panasonic models that can meet your criteria.
I know the most common fix is the belt for a Walkman. When searching sites they say “for parts”. Are there any clues to know if their complete broken or a simple fix?
NO, there is no way to tell whether or not is a simple fix or a complex repair. If you are not familiar with electronic repair get a "repaired/ service" walkman.
A good trick is to buy a working Walkman and immediately send it to the best repair place you can find, don’t go cheap. It will last many years and you will love it
I have a few serviced walkmans here with new belts etc including "The dudes" BF-22 in great condition. I could probably sell you something if you like, i have been meaning to list some as i have way too many now.
If you like buttons, I do, then check out the AIWA's. Most AIWAs before the 90's, where the name went lower case, are pretty nice and have a lot of buttons. Besides the high-quality build they are known for having a lot of tiny buttons. The one that's just hitting the radar and starting to spike in price is the HS-J02, it's big, kind of on the clunky side but it also has a radio. Radios are nice because you'll find the batteries go dead pretty quickly but there will be enough power for the radio. Personally I like the antenna on these models, a few years after this antennas weren't used anymore on personal players. Sony had minority ownership in AIWA dating to the late 60's but gained majority in the early 90's and turned it into a low cost brand. They had many "firsts" with portables and are highly respected, otherwise boodokhan has just about every model made and can give you great advice. I assume most of these units won't work or will work for a few minutes before stopping. Years ago you could buy them working and they'd last but almost all of the original belts have melted. I'd like to see a description of "never opened" than "parts unit" I've heard tales of parts units with missing motors or other important pieces.
@Owen Himsworth I can give you a small note on the WM-2091 (I own two and it was also my first analogue tape walkman pick after a long pause) if you like: Handle with care, they seem to be prone to age-related capacitor death. I have two, both seem to have capacitor issues preventing (proper) playback and I read about more on the net. The mechanism of one of mine also broke at random when testing it, the small loop that keeps the central gear down just snapped. While (in theory) they can be really nice and have mid-range model audio quality as far as I know, be aware of the issues that can come with it. Most offers you'll encounter are defect or with defects unfortunately, even if listed as working. This seems to go for many "green button Walkmans", many also sell them for way too high prices. While they look nice and got a nice plastic+metal case, nearly all of them seem to have the capacitor issue. On the other hand, the shared base of architecture of those with the iconic green button can have its advantages when looking for spare parts. I can assure you the sound of the buttons is fantastic though, you can hear it is mechanical and you really feel when you pushed a button, it's quite the opposite of those soft buttons. If you want it, look for one which was serviced/recapped so that none of the old capacitors are still in and get a service manual from sites like elektrotanya so you can track down issues should they arise. The feature set is also satisfying, 2x mega bass switch, Dobly b (some green button walkmans have Dolby c) and autoreverse with loop possibility. This small review is not to say they're actually bad, their inside just ages badly, unfortunately. Probably not something you'd actually want given your list in your post, but I can speak about this one from (apart from the phone thing) positive experience. Open spoiler (by clicking on it) for more info. Spoiler If you want a cheap but reliable device, a WM-2011, while lacking many features and looking clunky, is a classic low end Sony device and fairly light and sturdy. Many have probably seen one before. As for features: It has a type 2 switch and that's all. But if you really need a tape walkman at all for the time being while looking for better devices, that one's easy to get a hold of for cheap, mine was even serviced before I got it so it's basically fresh. It's a good fallback in case of defects of other devices for sure. Downside is it catches on nearby mobile phone signals, so keep this in mind, it's also held together by clips and not by screws, so servicing/replacing belts can be tricky without breaking anything. There's also a version with a radio in it. Oh and the buttons are big and on the side on those. PS: One note on fixing Walkmans: In some cases it can be enough to clean contacts, by this I mean the battery compartment (if it doesn't turn on) and things like the volume wheel (in case of volume issues). Just get some contact cleaning spray, spray the culprit, let it dry and try it. In cases of volume issues this can sometimes work, but it can also be a capacitor. However, it's always worth a shot to try this before fiddling around with recapping. This way I could easily fix a WM-EX190 audio issue where turning the volume wheel caused deafening crackling noises and where the volume was way too loud.
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