Hi all, 

I am an avid record collector, I have found myself buying a lot of cassette tapes to go with my collections and am looking for a nice slick slim high quality cassette player, it would be nice if it had radio but not essential same for record function, I like the idea of dual headphone jacks too.

I have these in mind so far 

WM-EX670

WM-EX631

WM-F2097

This one looks nice but a bit chunky, wm-2

I don't mind paying a little £30ish I would go more if I really like something but looking for something shiny and neat but high quality.

Any advice would be great. Also I don't want to be waiting 6 months to see one for sale. I want to buy the next few days if possible. 

I do like the nice looking Sony models but with the hundreds of model numbers I'm struggling to find something with a good set of features.

how about this ?

it`s new and boxed ...

Not bad.. I would like something with a few more features though. I like fancy stuff and being new isn't important to me

Much better deals on used stuff

I like the Gum Stick battery and radio, and High end playback would be nice.

Edit:

These are sweet!! Not very compact but awesome! I'll look for a cheaper one first and if I get good use out of it I will get one of these 

WM-D6C 

This will be ideal for converting tapes to digital or recording from vinyl to cassette.

Edit: 

Looks like I found an ideal one!! This is a beauty!!! I want this so much! so stylish! right up my alley! The hunt begins! 
AIWA HS-JX505 

mmmh ... i had D6C ... believe me, its way to fatty for daily use...

being new SHOULD be important for you, if you don`t plan to start as collector or restorer. and if you just searching for one nice device for listening your vinyl record sound uncompressed on the street. you want it fast, so thats the fastest way... and even in the new and boxed pieces maybe rotten belts inside...

you can be lucky with just buying an old walkman, and it runs without problems once you push "play"... but mostly, that old mobile cassette players are 10 to 30+ yrs old. and mobile mechanical means: they`ve been used as daily rocker... it`s like buying an old mechanical wristwatch, which has been never serviced by a watchmaker...

if money is no problem, just ask for a specific model here or buy it in the bay, and write a pn to retrodos or dottor walkman, or any other person, which is good in restoring. buy a device and send it to a restorer...

if money IS a problem, there is no FAST ... hunting for a good device is like every hunt ... you need time, knowledge and patience...

If you are very very patient, you might find a wm-ex5.

Cheap if it features only the unit with a gumstick battery.
Remote earphones are a plus, but controls are on the device itself.

@mvickers

Hello and welcome to the forum.

I see you are interested in the Sony WM-D6C and the AIWA HS-JX505. Both are nice choices for very different purposes. The Sony is a very capable recorder, the AIWA has a nice warm sound. Don't expect to record from the AIWA however, as the quality is not so great. Unlike the Sony, the AIWA has Dolby for playback only.

D6C

You will struggle to find a fully working D6C for 30 GBP on ebay, so you may need to look other places like loot or gumtree to see if any turn up on there by chance. However this is such a well known model and good working examples are more likely to end up on ebay and go for over 100 GBP at current demand.

JX505

One of AIWA's best selling walkmans. It is also known as the HS-JX50 (Japanese version), the HS-JX2000 (gold boxed version), and the HS-EX50 (Japanese gold boxed version). The Japanese ones have an additional TV band. The older revision of this model has a bi-azimuth contoured amorphous head mechanism allowing you to accurately adjust the azimuth in either direction. Newer models came with fixed heads and the azimuth on them is non-adjustable. Prices do vary from anything from 20 GBP upwards depending on cosmetic condition, the number of accessories included, and the alignment of the planets. They pop up on ebay about once every couple of months.

Sadly the JX505 (like many AIWA walkman from the 90s) suffers from capacitors that leak electrolyte. Symptoms of this are low volume and high pitch squealing when Dolby B is engaged. It is possible to replace the capacitors, and if there isn't too much corrosion on the PCB, the JX505 is able to live again. Also with the digital tuner you will want to replace the failed internal memory battery which is soldered onto the PCB, otherwise every time the batteries are swapped out you will lose all the preset stations. If I haven't put you off already, that gumstick battery you wanted to use is no longer available. It is a sealed lead acid battery and is not compatible with the newer NiMH gumstick batteries. You might get lucky and find one still working (I managed to revive two batteries), but don't expect them to last forever.

GearWheel, you make a great point about the internal hardware I didn't think of that. Thanks for the heads up! I have no problem sending a unit for a service, or if there is good service manual I can do it myself. I am a PC and Laptop engineer so I'm sure changing a belt or capacitor would be doable. I will get new if that is possible with the devices I have now chosen. Money is not unlimited here unfortunately but I am not skint either so I can buy at any time, I just don't want to spend a lot if possible.

Kin, that is nice and simplistic but just to basic in functions IMO, Thanks though. Looks tough to find too so no for me.

Plop, Thank you for the welcome. :-) seems real nice round here.
I think I have made up my mind. I have increased my target price in my head to something realistic. I am going for the JX505 first. That one I will drop money on if I get chance. The WM-D6C is next but time is no issue for that, I will sit back and wait for a good deal. One sold not long ago for around £65 BIN so I'm sure deals will come around. I enjoy the hunt anyways. Thanks for the advice about gum sticks! that really does suck! Sony and there proprietary formats! If you make something as important as a battery you should support it no matter what! The Sony is a no go now anyway I don't see any that are as awesome as this Aiwa JX505 for portable audio.

I will be happy for a professional to service my device if needed but would be tempted to try it myself if it's not too difficult, soldering is my specialty.

Thanks for all of the responses. If you foresee an issues with the devices I have chosen please comment :-)

Well, if you are a dab hand with a soldering iron then the JX505 is a breeze to repair. The capacitors on it are all through hole type that need replacing. The only unknown is how badly corroded the PCB is from leaked electrolyte. You will need to remove all of this as it is conductive and can cause all sorts of nasty short outs and eat through copper trace. Of course you might be lucky and only need to give it a brush down with some Bicarbonate of Soda, or on the other hand you may need to wash the PCB in an ultrasonic bath to lift the worst of any crusted on salts and corrosion.

For a taste of what to expect this is a link to my first JX505 that I tackled all the way back a few years ago ... index.php?board_oid=193392314111653483&content_oid=193392314111913109

I guess since you are expressing prices in GBP, you are in the UK in which case you will find it hard to get the parts required to perform the repair. I looked to Digi-Key in USA, but Mouser also sell equivalent parts.

As an aside since we mention the JX505, I actually prefer its more rarer brother - the Japan only HS-JL50. It is essentially the same unit albeit with a manual tuner instead of a digital one. What gives it a better listening experience over the JX505? The JL50 has a variable slide BBE instead of the two stage BBE on the JX505, allowing the listener to add just the required amount of phase correction to audio.

Apart from the D6C, have you considered the Sony WM-DC2? That is a fine player, and it has a slightly warmer edge over a D6C, giving it a slight mid lift. Most units will need either a replacement centre gear or the original gear itself repaired. Generally the electronics in these hold up very well.

hehe, well, ok, you`re good in soldering and electronics ... mmh.. the only mechanical thing i had ever to service in my notebooks was the fan...

so please don`t expect a walkman easy to diassemble. it might be a very frustrating experience. there is no possibility to upgrade something with the newest driver, or formatting anything.. its just pure old school technique with a lot of moving parts... ...

i feel not able to to a disassembling a walkman. it seems, that all those thingys want to punch me, once i open it .....

@gearwheel

Here's a little secret...

The JX505, is one of the easiest AIWA to disassemble to get to the main PCB / belt.

All is required is patience, order, a miniature cross head screwdriver, good eyesight and a steady hand.

The JX707 on the other hand ... pfft.

I know my limits I would be able to tell if the repair was going to be too tough for me, I repair iPhones too and those are very fiddly inside. I wouldn't go any further if the PCB was not fairly easy to get to. I am a PCB repair specialist so should be ok. Thanks for the heads up still

Plop's words are encouraging, parts could be an issue but I will cross that bridge if I need to. :-D

@plop: thanks for the info ...

I've got an AIWA PX347 and I LOVE it. I gather the models manufactured in Singapore ( mine was) don't suffer from bad capacitors. Honestly, the SQ from this device is excellent for the very cheap price they can be got for. The only negative is they are supposedly not worth fixing if they go "belly-up" e.g belts are tiny, hard to get and even harder to replace. 

I also have a Pana RQ-SX56 and I don't like the SQ at all. There maybe an issue with the head alignment, I might have got a bad example. 

@aob

I have a small pile of late 90s AIWA. Most of them need new belts. New belts can be got from turntableneedles.com (http://www.turntableneedles.co...LT-REEL_c_49286.html) if you really want it replacing. Be warned that you will probably need a soldering iron to get at the belt in the PX347 as is certainly the case for the SX56. Both could be serviced, if the desire to keep them going is there

I have also a few Made in Singapore units from the early 90s that need new capacitors. It would seem that AIWAs from a certain time period suffered the worst from leaked electrolyte capacitors. I need to so get off my back and order some caps

I'm such a fan of my PX347 that I might just consider getting it repaired if (when) it gives me some trouble . 

To the OP, my ambition is a Sony WM-20 but like many 30yr old high end devices they are very expensive  due to collector demand and will almost always need the attention of a good service person. Welcome to the forum.