So I need a decent cassette recorder, and I'm not sure where to look. The one I have is not the best, and I'd like to have one that can record decent audio quality. Can anyone suggest a few recorders that are decent, and not too costly?
As TooCooL4 mentioned you need to be more specific of what type of recorder you are looking for: a walkman or a deck or a hifi component Also depends on definition of "too costly", I can recommend you something If you know your budget range. If your budget is below $100 then a compact hifi unit can be a good choice If you are looking for a walkman with recording capability Sony D6C is the best but a serviced d6c can cost about 500-1000 USD depends on the cosmetic condition. next option is WM-D3 which can be around 300-500 USD in restored/repaired condition. most of AIWA and Panasonic recorders are most likely faulty and I do not recommend them Less costly walkman recorders with recording capability belong to Toshiba brand. KT-V890 is a good walkman I tried the recording function and I can tell it records fine. Most of Toshiba walkman including KT-V890 are disappointing on REW and FFW function since these buttons are installed on the spools and most of the time they don't function well. So my recommendation is either get a working compact hifi unit or wait for a D6C
Most people like to record at home, in the old days we'd use a turntable, receiver (the central hub) and tape deck. The turntable goes through the receiver and the signal is taped on the tape deck. You can also tape off the radio, internet or any other source. Portable cassette players with recording are much rarer than play-only portables. Originally these were meant for ambient taping, where you used the built-in or plug-in mics to record music, voices, etc in the area you were in. Of course you could also get an RCA to mic jack cable and record from a receiver if you were in a pinch. If you want to record stuff to tape and have the room a component tape deck would be ideal but you will also need a receiver to power the speakers. Ebay is the best place to look but sites like Craigslist and Facebook Marketplace will also have local listings. 20 years ago it was very difficult to find recording portable players, the times have changed and there's many more choices now but they still weren't as popular as play-only. Home decks can be really cheap but most will need a belt to work properly, this can be just a few screws, or taking apart a lot of brackets to get to the motor and belt pulleys.
Thank you for the tips. We have a dual-deck that seems like it can record from the internet, but for some reason every we try to do anything with it it'll whirr for a couple of seconds and then stop. I'll have to check the model, I guess it may need a new belt or something of the sorts. We tried cleaning off all the areas that make contact with the cassette tape but it didn't fix the issue. I'll have to take it apart and see if I can tell what the issue is. Thanks again for the advice, it really helps.
Some decks have have sensors that stop the tape at the end by shinning light through the clear "leader" of the tape, this slows down the motor so there's not an abrupt stop. Sometimes these sensors fail but I'd look for the easy stuff first like the belts and make sure the tape counter has a belt, some of the sensors use the counter rotation to tell if they need to stop. Good luck, the deck can record from the internet but you might a reciever but you can always try going direct to the back inputs.
