SONY CASSETTES

If there is one brand that offered high quality, great design and superb sound it was Sony.

I always loved Sony cassettes. In fact I also loved TDK and Maxell, which were the big three in my mind. All Japanese made with very high standards but today my number one is Sony. And after all these years they are now more sought after and more praised than all the others. I did buy Sony UX and UX-S cassettes back in the 80s and 90s but I was a very solid TDK SA user and they were my main preference. Today my taste has changed and while I like Type II for clarity, I can say I prefer Type I high end cassettes like the HF-S and HF-ES, along with the TDK AD and AR. Now I'm not totally blinded by nostalgia for Sony for I'm well aware that there was a golden period for their cassettes and for me it was from 1985 to 1990. In 1985 they totally revamped their ageing range and made it look supercool, with big windows and great looking hubs. Then in 1986 they did it again with slight changes making the ultimate line up.

So let's start at 1985 shall we.

Type I

HF

This was the basic ferric with clear sound and high quality.

It was a lot better than a lot of basic cassettes back then and still is!

HF-S

A notch up the ladder and you get a sweeter treble with a nice bottom end.

These are great sounding cassettes and one of my all time favourites.

 

HF-ES

This was the pinnacle of Type I and a superb cassette with great treble often

matching Type II. These are getting harder to find and do not come cheap. 

 

HF-PRO

Loaded with HF-ES tape but with the added ceramic guide and striking white

shell this one turned heads and opened ears. An outstanding cassette indeed.


Type II

UXC

This was the entry level Type II in the Sony line up and a pretty good one it was too, quieter and more dynamic than most this was the right place to start.

UCX-S

This was a notch above and a fine sounding and well balanced tape it was too. It gave a fine sparkle to recordings and boasted a SP Mechanism II.

Type IV

METAL ES

Metal was the top tier high quality tape that hi-fi buffs with high end gear favoured. Sony metal cassettes were very good too, so this was the icing on the cake. 

ARE CASSETTES MAKING A COMEBACK?

MMMMM...PROBABLY NOT...BUT...

looking on eBay now I can see sealed tapes going for big prices! Who would have thought that a TDK MA-X would be selling for €40+ or a Sony Metal Master €100? Nobody! Since high end cassette production stopped nearly 15 years ago now, the world moved on to downloading which is now the norm but streaming is possible the new deal and soon it looks like people will not buy physical formats anymore. There are exceptions of course, am I for one am an exception, probably because at my age, 49, I've seen all the formats of the last four decades and now I can pick and choose the best of them. Okay I'm going to try to break this down for ease of understanding rather than blab on about it in one go.

(a) Why do I still like cassettes in this day and age?

Cassettes are great, and still sound pretty punchy compared to streaming or mp3.

Then you have the choices, the Types, the tweaking, the hunting for the ones you don't have. The sound tests, the Dolby B or C debate, the car stereo, the glory days of mid 80s analog technology. The designs, the big hubs, the decals, the blurb that sounds alien to some, the list goes on and on. A good quality cassette recorded well on a good quality deck can sound amazing.

(b) Which ones do I like the most and why?

Well to me it's always been TDK and Sony, with Maxell at number three. TDK made superb cassettes in the 70s and all through the 80s, while Sony did too and now I find myself drawn mainly to Sony from 1985 to 1992, especially the 1986/87 range which is in my mind the best. TDK type IVs are superb and can't be beaten for quality. I was a big TDK SA man back in the 80s/90s but now I find them a little to sterile and for some reason I'm in the type I camp for both TDK and Sony who's HF-S and HF-ES excite the hell out of me and I'm currently scouring for more of the ones I don't have.

(c) Do I still buy CDs and vinyl?

Yes, but not as much as I did say 10 years ago. I only buy an LP that I feel I really want as I've a room full of records already. As for CDs, I've been buying mainly compilation albums from artists I don't already have. I tape them of course and play them in the car on the way to and from work. 

(d) How about Mini Disc?

I also have a truck load of MDs and a lot of players/recorders plus two full size recorders. It's a great format and I also love it very much, and again the discs are all different colours which makes it more fun visually. 

(e) What am I doing now?

I'm searching for more Sony cassettes on eBay!