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From: ben@moncol.UUCP (Bennett Broder)
Newsgroups: net.audio
Subject: Re: advice requested on brands of cassette tapes
Message-ID: <555@moncol.UUCP>
Date: Mon, 4-Nov-85 09:57:21 EST
Article-I.D.: moncol.555
Posted: Mon Nov  4 09:57:21 1985
Date-Received: Tue, 5-Nov-85 23:12:22 EST
References: <3063@sdcc3.UUCP>
Organization: Monmouth College, West Long Branch, NJ 07764
Lines: 22

>>I just bought a cassette deck and am unsure which tape to buy.  Next
>>to the TDK SA there is a note that this is a reference tape.  Does this
>>mean this is the best tape?  
> 
>"TDK is the reference tape" denotes that other companies base their
>tape quality on TDK obviously.
>it's like IBM PC's, they are the standard which most companies
>base their software.  they must be doing something right if others
>compare to IBM PC's.  same for TDK.
>personally i use nothing but SA because i've had bad luck with
>Maxell.  but, BASF "standards" seem to be higher than TDK.

Not quite.  'Reference tape' in this context usually suggest that the
equalization, bias and dolby tracking were optimized for a particular
tape.  Since Maxell tapes have a rise in the high frequency response,
they sound bright on a deck equalized for TDKs.  Maxells usually work
better on older decks, whose heads have a high frequency rolloff.

Ben Broder
..ihnp4!princeton!moncol!ben
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