Your review is very thorough and well-prepared. There are limits to how much resolution I can hear via my desktop PC's soundcard and Harman/Kardon powered speakers, but it seemed to me like the RTM Fox sounded more concise and open without NR and noticeably thicker using Dolby B. By contrast, it sounded like there was little difference between non-Dolby and Dolby recording with the UR or Capture. I haven't bought my first RTM Fox tape yet. I recently bought up a lot of Maxell UR tapes which apparently are being discontinued by some retailers in my area of the US, and I'm struck at how competent the Maxell UR tapes can sound when properly calibrated on a unit like yours. Certainly I'm looking forward to picking up an RTM Fox to try out. As a new RU-vidr, please keep at it. Your video presentations are straightforward, rational and well-conceived. It takes time and practice to reach the camera sophistication of Techmoan and VWestlife, you are already part-way there and don't get discouraged . Thanks very much.
Thanks for the kind words! Correct, that's what I'm hearing too. The only difference would be the hiss level goes down, so for both Capture and UR, I think it's really worth using Dolby B at minimum if you have players that can decode it. Even if you don't, the boosted treble on a non-Dolby player still sounds pretty good.
Thanks! I like how it turned out as well. I'm not sure how sustainable it is for me to continue to do this. It' takes way more effort and time. I was experimenting because I have some free time now that I'm on vacation. But my typical videos are just straight shooting on a camera, may be some light cuts, and I just upload to RU-vid.
I could be wrong but I think you are supposed to set record level to peak at the DD logo when using noise reduction or Dolby does not track correctly but I cannot confirm this is true on all decks.
I mostly have given up on folks over at Tapeheads in the cassette forum. I have completely rebuilt/rec caped my Teac C-3X and calibrated it to Maxell UR. I have made some tapes for Tinman, one of the techs over there. He can't hear a problem with my tapes. I won't pay the prices they want for tapes no better then UR. The Fox tape looks to be lower bias tape anyway. Your vid proves my suspicions of these new tapes are not much better IF NOT any better. Sure get out the distortion meters and set up but hearing it, hell it ain't that big deal. I mostly do work for folks on Teac reel to reels but the cassette folks are nuts.
Hi Zeddie! you did an excellent job in this video and I agree with your conclusion. after seeing this video I have ordered the RTM FOX too. And it is very nice to see you finally! Best Regards, Moshe.
RTM Fox high frequencies sounded a bit more rolled-off than on Maxell UR to my ears but UR added some metallic 'overtones' that didn't sound quite natural. I wasn't listening critically though, just using the Grado Labs SR60i headphones and PC's internal soundcard. Maybe it's just me but why does the Fox have to be so expensive? It's 4€ and 5€ for 60 and 90 minute versions respectively. If it's based on the BASF Ferro Extra (FEI), that tape cost a lot less than that, even when calculating inflation into it. That being said, it's still the best of the three. Cheers!
@@TechieZeddie That's absolutely true. Still, one has to take into consideration the majority of sales nowadays are done online which saves a LOT of money but also, did RTM really do much research? I'm not trying to devalue their efforts, but the formulation was developed by BASF and they likely bought the machinery from EMTEC. All of that being said, I'm grateful someone is still investing something in the format and it certainly serves it's purpose to keep the new-old-stock prices in check, to a degree anyway. Cheers!
@@antunkatona5674 I have no idea how much research they did, but the only other new cassette manufacturer is Spliceit's Capture Series. I sure hope Maxell continues with the URs...
That's an awesome tape deck!!! Motorized tape door, press play or next track, the door automatically shuts and starts playing the tape. I got a similar deck but it's a dual well deck. I also have a Technics brand dual well tape deck which also utilizes a motorized tape door. You can program which tracks to play on tape and which tracks to skip (RMS) like you would on CD player. You can even repeat tracks. It automatically detects which type of tape you inserted. (Obviously with the sensors that line up with the holes on top of the cassette shell.) That's a very nice decks you own.
Thanks! It's become a common feature of most decks around this price range. I find it interesting to see this feature on older piano-style key decks, where it must physically stop the FF or REW when it senses a gap. There is no way for it to fine tune (go back or forward a bit if it overshoots) since it's not full logic controls.
I just got one of the RTM Fox tapes, but unfortunately my deck doesn't like it. It hates anything Type I, especially BASF Type 1's, and it appears it's based on their best Type I formula. I'll have to wait until my deck is back from the shop; my attempts to make it more friendly towards BASF Type I tapes completely screwed it up for EVERY tape, so now someone has to set it right again. It taught me a painful lesson: I'm no better at tinkering with electronics at 53 than I was at 33 :)
@@TechieZeddie I had a Sony KA-2ES and I'm currently using a Denon DRM-740. It hates both of them. I had the exact same problem with the BASF Ferro Extra I. It was a little better with the ones with German tape in them; the Saehan ones were almost unusable. I'm still holding out hope, though, since I really do like BASF cassettes and this uses a BASF formula, and even if I can't give it everything it needs bias-wise, it's still plenty usable, especially if you throw some Dolby S on it.
@@TechieZeddie I’ve used all of them. I like the Japanese versions of all of them. The newer ones, I’ve had a lot of problems with, especially the Maxell UR. I had to stop buying them; I one brick of five tapes one time, only one of them was usable. The others had missing channels, railroading, and on one of them the tape completely detached itself from the take up reel when I rewound it. I actually used more Type 2 s than anything.
So that's what you look like! You look nothing like you sound!.... I thought all three tape sound fine. We're talking about the classic Maxell UR versus these two newcomers. It's great to see the manufacturing new cassette tapes in the first place. They are all normal bias and the real deal will come when they start to manufacture good quality type 2 cassette tapes. Let's wait until we see that happen! Nice video by the way!
