Cassette walkmans tend to have a poor reputation among many people for reliability. They are much more mechanically complex than today's digital audio players. However, the main weak points are rubber parts, especially belts.

Brings brings me to this question on longevity, or how many walkmans will still be working in 50 years,and what is the most reliable walkman.

In a perfect scenario, a walkman with tantalum/solid capacitors and a beltless mechanism will last the longest. DD walkmans come to mind, but sadly both the D6C and DD9 have belts. WM-2 based DD walkmans actually have a pretty good chance of survival with their beltless drives and simple engineering, but suffer from the silly cracked center wheel.

Availability of spare rubber parts may become a problem especially for units with very small belts. But as several CD players and consumer electronics still use belts somewhere, belt production will continue for quite a bit. Pinch rollers may be hard to come by in the future.

In my experience, 90s Aiwas fare the worst, with cap disease affecting a large amount of them. Late 90s Panasonics have incredibly small belts that are specialized and hard to find.



So far, I find that it is the Sony machines that are more likely to be working well in 50 years. Humidity and Heat levels are very high in my country and this accelerates the aging process. Meaning that all the walkmans I own can be considered several years "older" in a sense compared to those in other countries. And out of all the players I come across locally, Sony machines tend to survive better. On top of that, they are much easier to service and disassemble, making repairs in the future easier.

The walkman with the least amount of specialized perishable parts and simpler engineering will survive better. Therefore I feel the beltless DD walkmans have the best chances, provided the center gear is fixed/in one piece. The engineering is simple, and the only other major rubber parts are the capstan tire and pinch roller.

Which walkmans do you think are most likely to stand the test of time?

You pretty much nailed it there. I think you are right about DD series though.

However, cassette players are nowhere near as complex as mini-disc recorders.

Really interesting question, bub. As long as belts are around, I agree that Sony has the best shot at longevity with the Walkman. The earlier models were really made to last a long time, and aren't too hard to work on. And yeah, Tuna, I would dread having to try to fix my Sony MZ-R90 Minidisc Walkman. Wouldn't even know where to start with that.

after alot of experiences,,i have too agree 100% with the exception of the overly complex ones. i think a wm-10-30 could go close to 100 years as long as that tiny belt is available. other than that the only drawback is the ones that have been dropped. to streighten one out is usually difficult and very time consuming. the ones i have replaced the belts on seem to be nearly 100% after being finished and sound as new to me. don't forget the tps-l2. the first ones are still running with both belts changed. they take a little time to do but the average person could do the belts with a little practice. the aiwa cs-j1,i believe, is the opposite with it's complex design. it would be very time consuming for even a techniction with experience. they will be at the top of every junkbox and will be there forever.

I agree with the TPS-L2, it really is easy to get the belt replaced, and the high build quality and sturdy electronics are a plus. However i am unsure if the belt size it uses is too specialized compared to other walkmans. I have a Aiwa S-30 which is an older version of your CS-J1, and yes, to change the belt literally the whole thing has to be disassembled- it's ridiculous. However it is well made with the exception of some of the electronics: My volume pot is dying and there s alot of humming/buzzing, even after a cap change. Haven't figured that one out yet, may be a fried chip in the amp/pre-amp.

While I do not own any of the Wm-10 series and cannot vouch for that, I do have a few other similarly sized sony machines with similar sized mechanisms- WM-51 and Wm-F404. I consider them too delicate to survive, especially the WM-F404's flimsy erase head mechanism. They also tend to have extremely thin gears which have low tolerances and may warp, shrink, crack or disintegrate in time.

And a side note to collectors keeping your machines in storage for a long time (10+ years): Do remove the belts, especially if it is a 90s/late 80s unit. You do not want to open up and clean melted/crusty belts in the future, which cause the brass capstan flywheel to oxidize, potentially harming wow and flutter. Alot of the older machines I come across suffer from this, and it is not easy to clean.

One thing to take into consideration is how long the cassettes will last. I've got some tapes that are 35 years and counting which still work fine but will they start to disintegrate at some point. It seems to depend on the manufacturer as to how long they'll last. I also have some Reel to Reel tape which is about 35 years old plus some tape for my Nagra SN of the same vintage which is completely worthless. They leave sticky residue all over the heads and tape guides and the sound quality is poor.

It may be worth investing in some of the last NOS Metal Cassettes produced in the early 2000's.