Hello. Looking for a Walkman!!

I am looking for a decent Walkman ‘Player’ only really.

I know of the D6C & D3 but can not afford these as way too expensive.

Any good players anyone can recommend?
Thank you!!!

 

Welcome to Stereo2go TrackShern

Try WM-DD33

 

You need to include your price range that way I can help.

 

Hi there. Tried looking for a WM- DD33 bit too expensive on eBay. Nothing more than £200 really.
Appreciate the insight people!!

 

Okay then Sony WM-22, it may look cheap but it's a good basic player.

 

Thank you but cannot find one in decent condition on eBay. Was anything good in the WM-EX range? I’m happy to pay upwards to £200.

 

I know nothing about the EX models.

 

No worries. Any and all recommendations for a budget of £200 and below. Greatly appreciated

 

Welcome!

You mentioned EX series.
Strictly seen not all being EX-series, but using an EX-head:
I know most will shake their head internally and scream "hold up!" when I say so (for a reason), but I heard the green button Walkmans can have a good audio quality, are compact, and have at least a partial metal case. All of them share similar design aspects and their price is usually (far) below 200. Playback only devices.
Disclaimer: It's not something I can confirm from experience, but something I read here and there when people had functional ones. I'm still in the process of collecting resources and frankensteining 2 green button ones into a single functioning one (both defect...), but if you like tinkering, it might be an exciting and rewarding side project.
And that's the point and possibly big downside to most:
Always expect to recap them, because the capacitors likely didn't survive in those. Alternatively the clutch gear have may cracked due to material wear, which is definitely the bigger issue. Recapping is easier than mechanical repair in my opinion.
Aka these are a maintenance heavy purchase that will need checking and repair most likely. Many of them have Dolby B (some C), of course a metal tape switch, and a 2 level mega bass switch, autoreverse switch and autostop and most run on a single AA battery with an ok-runtime. So their feature set is fairly ok. However, there are some which use a gumstick to have an entirely flat bottom and support an optional AA battery extension. Affordable, fairly compact, look nice, supposedly sound nice when working, but got technical issues... might explain their price. Maybe you'll have a stroke of luck and find a maintenanced one for less than 200.
Example devices: WM-150, WM-2091, WM-EX48
Should you be tempted or decide to look into them, this thread is a gold resource you should at least skip through.

PS: Should you not want to wear it in your pocket or can't (small pocket size for example), they have no belt clip. This means you'll need the case for it, which does have a loop for your belt.

 

Wow thank you for a very comprehensive reply & one I will digest moving forward.
So...I guess there’s no easy answer as there are so many.

I recently purchased and had to send back a WM-D3 as there was a warbling sound but I believe that was due to the tape counter clicking (so he said) causing it. I think it may have been the drive though seller said it had recently been repaired so who knows. It’s so difficult to know which to go for isn’t it ?

 

Yes, indeed, there's a lot to consider. But you'll know it once you look at a model and think "I want it, no matter what". That's the point of no return. I've certainly had it with my DAT walkman and I've looked for quite a while until I found it.

But as for analogue tape, I myself settled for a WM-2011 for the time being. The audio quality is sort of "average", it's really nothing extraordinary, the only features it got is autostop and a type 2 tape switch.
It's solid and bulky (albeit light), you have to flip the tape yourself to listen to both sides, rewind and forward aren't the fastest out there, but it's doing its job well for 1.5 years now. It was merely a "temporary solution" until I got one of the two WM-2091 fixed that I got here. As time passed the WM-2091 are still work-in-progress and the WM-2011 has played its fair share of tapes! Well, it may be bulky, but it does have a belt-clip at least, so it's still quite portable.
However the WM-2011 is a bit flimsy to take apart. It has clips. Yes, you read right. So it's easy to screw up and break the only things holding the case together when you get to the point where you have to exchange the belts if you don't have the right tools. It also needs 2 belts, not just one as is the case with e.g. the Walkmans with green button architecture. At least it got a certain late 80s aesthetics and loyalty that I appreciate so far. Definitely good enough for type 1 as is and ok enough for the few type 2 tapes I got.
I'm not sure how often they're usually being sold with defects, I may have had a stroke of luck there. I believe with a bit of patience you can get a serviced one for fairly cheap on ebay though.

Apart from that, do you know retrospekt?
That site offers some Walkmans as well. Currently there's not all too many models available, but while they're a bit more pricey than what you might find on ebay for same or similar models, I heard they're all well serviced, cleaned and fixed where possible. It could be something to think about or to explore models you didn't think of yet. If you want a detailed list of Walkmans and their feature sets, check out walkmancentral.
There's also of course walkman-archive, which is a site hosted by our admin here and really worth checking out in general.

Also does it have to be Sony? I'd understand if so, I myself am very drawn to them, but if not, there's good alternatives out there as well. I heard the older Aiwa models can be pretty neat.

 

I shall certainly look at those models you speak of Sly. I am pretty much looking for Sony brands after all they did invent it but that’s not naysaying the other brands.

I have indeed looked at Walkman archive and Walkman central. Both amazing resources too. It’s just finding one that’s of good quality and in my price range. I’m really appreciative of the feedback though. Thank you!!

 

I got my eyes on this one https://walkmancentral.com/products/wm-ex618

Anyone know if this is a good buy?

Cheers!!

 

I got no experience with this model and have only really seen it on pictures, but generally it looks like it's among the better models. AVLS, AMS (from what I've seen pretty rare among analogue Sony Walkmans), remote (which I'd in that case recommend getting, note that they're rarely interchangable between devices, even if the connection implies so) and "soft" buttons on what appears to be a metal case. Dolby NR and Mega Bass are kind of to be expected in mid to higher tier models anyway. No idea about its audio quality or possible defects though, or how tricky it is to open it up for a belt exchange. Since it sports a rechargable gumstick battery, I'd really recommend looking for the external AA battery compartment, or to make sure it comes with it. You can't know in what state the rechargable battery will come after all.
I've just checked ebay to get an idea of prices and could even see an auction that lasts for another 19 hours with one for 40€ and two around 160€. In either case with remote and battery compartment. Rather surprised about the first one's price.
Makes me wonder: Where's the crunch?

Let's hope someone here with more experience will be able to tell you more about it.

 

Again thank you Sly. It's on my view at present. I will also consider a TC-D5 if anyone knows where I can get one for around the £200 mark? Doubtful but hey, can't hurt to ask. I really really want the D6C if i'm honest, or something thats similar in calibre.

If anyone here knows I'm open to hear them

Thank you!

 

You can still find a working DD33 around your price range. You need to be patient.

Sony EX series are also good quality walkman units. Not as durable as DD series.
One of the problem with most EX series is their headphone jack is very unique and you need to have a separate adapter to connect regular headphone jack to them. If you decide to buy an EX series try to buy the one that can accommodate a standard 3.5mm headphone jack like EX670, EX9, EX615...

 

Hi and welcome to S2G!

You were asking about the EX series... here goes.

I recently bought a SONY WM-EX808 from japan, and I can honestly say I'm pretty impressed with it. The sound and EQ of the unit is nothing short of phenomenal. The EX-DBB (MegaBass) and the AMS functionality is a big win as well. Also, the really nice Disc motor and reliable mechanism is a plus.

Here's my unit:


These were only sold in Japan (to the best of my knowledge), and there wasn't anything quite this nice for America back in '93 (to my recollection). As far as the EX series goes, this is definitely a top model and one that is very desirable.

So, here's the deal, these sell for around $200-$500 working, and not working about $50-$175. But that's on eBay! I got mine from an Japanese proxy service (Buyee) for just $10 ($17 after shipping). It didn't work though, it powered up, but it needed a belt, pinch rollers, and it was unit only.

Really though, ANY EX you get will need a belt and pinch rollers, because the EX series relies very heavily on the pinch rollers since it's so slim.

Honestly, if you want an exceptional Walkman for a good price, Yahoo Auctions Japan is really the only way to go. eBay is just too much nowadays.

Regarding the EX618, it's just a cheaper model of the EX line, and being made in 1995, it's a bit too new for my taste. But, you can find them for practically nothing on Yahoo auctions Japan, so you might just try it if you can score it for a good price.

A few final notes regarding searching yahoo auctions for Walkman. Make sure there is as little gum-stick battery corrosion as possible, truly untested, and verify cosmetics before buying. You don't want a Walkman someone's been in trying to replace parts, or one that's really banged up.

Hope this helps.

 

Thank you. Sorry for late reply. I have since been trying to get a WM-D6C but as you know costing too much money. You mention ‘Buyee’ Japanese proxy service but I’m unsure of those. So...the EX-808 has just as Almost as good sound output as D6C ? I’d rather pay out for one of these than the D6C if I can. I worry about warbling etc. As you can imagine, I’m still perplexed as to what to get that’s great for playing cassettes. Not really for moving about outside. Indoor use but portable. I do like the EX-808. Very much! As always, appreciate all comments and feedback thank you.

 

So Yahoo Japan is the *best* place for someone like me who doesn't belong to any physical "Walkman clubs" or have any connections with collectors, and eBay is just a hot mess now. Japan is flooded with Walkmans of all shapes and sizes because they didn't move on from cassette tapes as quickly as we in America did. So you can find plenty of good options on Yahoo Auctions Japan.

Only issue is, the sellers on Yahoo Auctions Japan do not ship outside of Japan, so you need a middle man in order to have the item shipped to them in Japan, and then they ship it out of the country to you. That's what a proxy service is, they step in the gap and ship worldwide and handle customs and all of that. There are many to choose from, but Buyee is the biggest and most well-known I would say. For any type of collecting, Anime, Walkmans, video games, I think it's important to be familiar with these services.

I'd say the WM-D6C would sound a good deal better than the EX808. It was splendid for it's time (1993), but the size and build quality of the D6C, plus the professional badge, means it would probably do better.

The D6C's EQ is pretty flat based on what I remember, but I know for a fact the EX808 has a slightly 'enhanced' EQ.

Chances are, any cassette Walkman that hasn't been serviced is going to have a wow/flutter problem. After all, belts, pinch rollers, gears, and all that stuff do go bad.

 

Hi all, thanks for your help! I managed to get a D6C in the end & it's beautiful, but have found out now that the FF & RW functions do not work. So...alas a new belt to be fitted!

I'm in UK, near London, does anyone know a trusted place to get a repair? Also, does anyone know how much this costs..roughly?

Thank you!!