Here is a 1995 WM-FX315. It is a plasticky player with the mechanism mounted directly on the circuit board. But it has decent sound, and it has Dolby NR. Sony produced many variants based on the same "platform" from 1990 to at least 1999. The cheapest ones were sold for about $25, the most expensive for about $70.
This one is a 1998 WM-FX455, it is a newer slimmer generation with metal chassis. Sony used this chassis for its cheap Walkmans until it stopped Walkman production in 2010 (some say Sony was making them in China up to 2012).
Several years ago for a period I was using at work the WM- FX455 for the convenience of the immediate access to preset stations , very trusty with minor flow a couple of buttons sticking but it was an easy fix. WM-Fx315 is one of the most well equipped in this series very reliable and robust and as you pointed it sounds good. I like the form of this platform and there is something for everyone from the most basic features up to autoreverse and Dolby even rechargeable batteries (WM FX-309). In 2014 I compiled a photo list for this series to help organize my collection but the list might missing some models and/or versions :
I think I already mentioned in another thread, that I think that Sony made too many different models that are not different. Your photos are a case in point: what is the difference between the FX305, FX309, FX315? The FX309 says "rechargeable". Does it mean it simply came with rechargeable batteries that can be swapped with regular non-rechargeable? Does it mean that when the batteries are inserted and the walkman is connected to a power adapter, it charges the batteries? Cannot see the difference between the FX305 and FX315, or between FX303 and FX313. The FX141 looks just like the FX101, but a different color. Maybe the electronics was improved, I saw a version 1.3 in the FX141 service manual dated by 1999. Still, it seems there were more models than a natural rate of improvement required. I have an FX101 that I bought 26 years ago, a very basic player, but it still works, does not sound "rubbery", and I haven't even changed the belt. I also have an EX19 in which I did change the belt, bought it from Marian. The EX19 is interesting in that it is very basic, it does not even have radio, yet it does have Dolby. I like it squar-ish look with a larger window so I can see the take-up reel rotating. It is an early model in this family made in 1990, so some features are different from later iterations, like the cassette door mechanism is different, the battery cover is slightly different, the cogwheels are made from black plastic and lubricated. Later models have cogwheels made of a more slippery white plastic and are not lubricated. In 1990/1991/1992 booklets Sony rated these models from 40 Hz to 15,000 Hz. Later they stopped publishing detailed specs, but I assume that later models still used parts that are at least as good as on the early models. Most of these 1990-1999 walkmans that I have show W&F in the range of 0.15%-0.22% WRMS, not stellar, but not completely horrible. Elsewhere I've seen official specs for DD models within 0.08% WRMS, so was somewhat jealous but it looks like actual values are worse, up to about 0.15% WRMS. Only one unit that I have is worse than 0.3% WRMS, and changing the belt did not help much. Also, most of them have clear channel separation, forward and reverse, and only one has wrong azimuth, which, sadly, cannot be adjusted. But given that all others don't have this problem, I'd say Sony made them well enough.
FX-305 , FX-309 , FX-315 have minor differences to radio section destined for different markets. FX-309 was also equipped with rechargeable battery .
I actually refurbished one of these about 2 years back, I have issues with the forward and reverse of tapes playing together which was down to a tiny piece inside the mechanism that acts as a switch being warped. They have a great amount of features and I took it on holiday with me to Portugal, got lots of use out of it!
Here are the photos of the 1990-1999 generation. WM-EX19: single direction, no radio, Mega Bass, two-way tone controls, Dolby NR. WM-FX101: single direction, manual radio. WM-FX315: auto-reverse, manual radio, Mega Bass, two-way tone controls, Dolby NR. WM-FX407: auto-reverse, digital radio, Mega Bass, Dolby NR. WM-FX425: auto-reverse, digital radio, Mega Bass, Dolby NR. My favorite is the FX407. The FX425 technically is the same, but looks less chunky, also the one I have is noisy, mechanically.
Some of these, or variations on them, were my Walkman staples back in the day. I have an FX103, FX251, FX415, FX421, each of which I am trying to bring back to spec. Wow and flutter is the challenge. I have tried belts from a few sellers on eBay and had varying success. Ordered a set from Marian, whose belts for these models are a little thinner than the original Sony. Have not got around to putting these in yet. Any other tips? Do you grease the mechanism? Oil the capstans (which is difficult, as they don’t seem to be removable)?
I quite like the plastic-y feel of these, they don’t feel precious and are good for everyday use, as there is less fear about getting them a bit battered around. The sound can be surprisingly good for such cheap models.
Hi, @C83, the FX251 is from a newer generation with metal frame. Yes, this Walkmans have surprisingly decent frequency response, but W&F - not so much. Belt With one of my Walkmans, I tried a thicker belt I bought elsewhere, and then Marian's belt, and Marian's thinner belt improved W&F by about 0.03-0.05% WRMS. I was happy with the result, closed the cover thinking that I was done. But then the Walkman started squealing! First I thought it were the motor bearings. After tinkering with it, I put a thicker belt on, and the squealing disappeared! I played several tapes with the thicker belt for several hours, no noise. So I kept the thicker belt, even though the wow & flutter with thicker belt are worse. My theory is that when the original belt has turned into messy goo, I had to clean up the mechanism very thoroughly, and I think I failed to do that. Also, the flywheels are made of two plates glued together, so there is a gap between them right in the groove of the flywheels, and it is very hard to clean all the gooey stuff out of it. I think that I did not clean it completely, so the thinner belt sort of fell further into the groove and into the goo gap and started slipping, at least this is what I think was the problem. The point is, the Walkman stopped squealing with a thicker belt. I suppose another hint that I haven't cleaned it up completely is that after several minutes of playback it starts to slow down, I guess the belt just starts to slip. I think that if the original belt can be easily removed and you can clean the belt path completely, a thinner belt would work better. The difference is not drastic, but it is there. I must say that I have some Walkmans that play fine with a thicker belt, and some that still warble with thinner belt. You never know. Grease I bought synthetic grease and used it sparingly mostly to reduce noise - these Walkmans are noisy. The original Walkmans in this family used grease, but after Sony switched to a more slippery plastic it stopped greasing them. If your Walkman has white gears, they have probably not been greased. I have not oiled anything. I thought about it, but then decided against it. Did not want to spill the oil everywhere, also the watch oil that I bought is specifically design to NOT permeate through seals, so to oil it properly I would have to disassemble the capstan, and I would certainly have broken it. Anyway, it is not a collectible model to try that hard.
Excellent information @CDV - thank you so much! A couple of my units I got the old belt out of there before it turned to goo - was just soft and stretched. So I am hopeful I can get these working nicely with the new belts and a good clean. I also think most of the ones I have use the newer white plastic gears, so will maybe leave off grease and oil and try first without. By the way: great videos you put together on these models!
That's great! But orchestral piano music - a tough wow and flutter test for this unit, and one it does not pass too well by the sounds of things! Same with my units of this era: fine for rock and pop but not so great for jazz or classical.
I agree, not the best device to play classical or any other slow strings or piano. In the script that I have written I said something like: "Depending on your tolerance to speed variation, you may consider this perfectly fine, acceptable, barely acceptable or not acceptable at all. I think it is OK. I can hear some wobble, but it does not irritate me much. I am going to keep this Walkman in my collection. Not bad for a design that was supposed to be disposable." My wife did not find anything wrong about this classical piece. So clearly there is different level of tolerance to W&F. With regular pop/rock stuff it fares much better. The video was supposed to have a voiceover, but after I went looking for background music, I found a piece that worked much better without voiceover. So, I just popped in the classical cassette instead of beating around the bush. Also, featuring a DAAD cassette allowed me to make a link to my other video about digitally recorded... well, digitally mastered cassettes, see below. At the end of this video I use the same FX407 to play a short piece of Skid Row's Monkey Business, those several seconds allow to gauge the frequency response and the silence in the pause that follows. Digalog, Cobalt tape, Dolby B. Mega Bass has been turned off. Here is the full track on YouTube:
You’re right, it is partly about tolerance and perception, and I wonder how much wow and flutter I was prepared to put up with back in the day when I was buying these players new. Possibly didn’t notice it as much because it’s just the way it was, and I was too busy rocking out to the music. However, I do think original Sony belts and new mechanics made a difference over trying to restore their performance today - with aged parts and non-OEM belts.
Sony Walkman WM-FX435 goes rollerblading. Music in the first half of the video comes from the Walkman, recorded on Zoom H1 digital recorder. Music in the second half comes straight from Youtube audio library. Measured W&F 0.15%-0.17% WRMS. Everything works except auto-stop. Amazing how smaller this model is compared to the FX407, which just one year difference: 1995 vs 1994. A new platform with metal frame. Works almost twice longer from the same set of two AA batteries.
I had a couple of these, each of which I couldn't bring back to spec. My problem was the speed... it would never hold my adjustment long term. I would get it adjusted correctly, and then the next day it would be off again. I have absolute pitch, so this really stinks. Replaced belts, greased transport, and recapped, to no avail. The problem ended up being the motor itself combined with a poor speed governor. I though it was very telling that these units came with holes in the case to adjust speed without having to take apart... Maybe you can provide insight with this, @CDV . It was a WM-EX102. I agree with this, some Walkmans in my collection feel like I have to wear gloves when using them. It's fine to admire them and use them lightly, but you just worry about breaking or scarring them from everyday use like you mentioned. These units feel like you can grip them tightly and even hit them against things and they will not show scratches/wear easily. Good daily drivers, and I'm glad to see that someone cares about them and is giving them love and attention!
Exact same experience here. I had two of these FX models that I cleaned up and replace the belts on. Both exhibited this unstable speed afterward; I would adjust and all would be good but then next day they would have inexplicably sped up or slowed down. Sometimes the speed would change in the middle of playing a tape. I tried a drop of isopropyl alcohol on the speed adjustment potentiometer, then adjusting back and forth a couple of times before setting the correct speed using a 3000Hz tape. On one of the Walkmans this worked and the speed held, on the other it continued to jump around...
This is my Sony WM-EX304. I think the main difference with (at least) models FX-305, 309 and 3015 is that the one of the EX line doesn't feature a radio. Unfortunately mine has the plastic part of the Dolby switch broken. But it works. I must turn it on or off using a very thin screwdriver.
