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From: "Mark Campbell" <[log in to unmask]>
> Hi all,
> I am seeking advice on cassette manufacture brands/batches with playback
> issues.
> AIATSIS is scoping the size of the preservation job wrt remaining
> analogue cassettes in the collection.
> This scoping is much more than mere numerical stocktaking of course
> (10,000 items 20,000 sides).
> There are a number of issues with cassettes old and new that will impact
> on sequence of operations and time required..
> One of our tentative premises which with which we will guage and
> prioritise the workload is...there are fewer issues physical mechanism
> and tape playback issues with "name brand" cassettes.
> Major Manufacturers - Analog Cassettes
> Agfa
> Ampex
> BASF
> Denon
> Fuji
> Maxell
> Orwo
> Philips
> Quantegy
> Scotch
> Sony
> TDK
>
> Now, at the risk of offending some manufacturers (if they still exist)
> the second premis is that "off-brand" cassettes will be more difficult
> to playback due to myriad reasons.
>
> Off Brand list.
> AC
> AIWA
> Akai
> ALME
> Arista
> ATNT
> Audio Magnetics
> Corporation
> Audiomaster
> Audiopak
> Audiovox
> Audition
> Baba
> Bell & Howell
> Bestron
> Boots Audio
> Capitol
> Capitol 1 (Same as Capitol?)
> Century
> Century Sound (Same as Century?)
> Certron
> Combo
> Concertape (Radio Shack)
> Contek
> Crystal
> Dak Enterprises
> Denon
> Dindy Super
> EDU-Cassette (BASF)
> Emitape
> Fujisan
> GE
> General
> Gold
> Golden
> Goldstar
> Hi-Fi
> Hitachi
> IMA
> IMT
> International Recotape Corporation (IRC)
> Jaf
> JVC
> KDK
> Lafayette
> Lebotone
> Loewe
> Lucky
> Magnet
> Mallory
> Mark
> Maxwell (NOT Maxell)
> Mei-Ya
> Melodie 2000
> Melody
> Meltrack
> Metro
> MS 600
> Music 2000
> National Panasonic
> Nivico
> Norelco
> Nulec
> Okhai
> Passport ((Manufactured by 3M)
> Pfatone
> Pilipe (NOT Philips)
> Pioneer
> Planet
> POP
> Prinzsound
> Profi Sound
> Radio Shack
> Realistic
> Rezound
> Ross
> Sanyo
> Seiko
> Sentry
> Shanghai
> Sharp
> SKC
> Smat
> Sonotech
> Soundcraft
> Superscope
> Superphonic  (Zayre Corporation)
> Super-sound von Focitron
> Supertape
> TapeMaster
> TEAC
> TEAM
> Tips
> Tony
> Toshiba
> T-Series
> TSIC
> Union 3000
> Unitape
> Universal
> Webcor
>
> Thanks for scrolling so far.
>
> If you have had an issue be it Sticky Shed, mechanism jamming, spool
> issues, windowing, grows mould like a petri dish... etc please let me
> know the brand, the date of manufacture (if known) and the issue.
>
I had for many years (and hope I STILL have?!) six Philips cassettes from
the early years of the format (bought at a PX in 1968). They all still 
worked
fine, and played as well as they ever did! In the late 1970's and early 
80's,
I used to buy whatever was (1) easily found, and (2) sold for the lowest
price for C-90's; I had and probably still have a LOT of Sony, Ampex, usw.
and I have never had any fail in home use. However, I lost a few tapes to
in-car decks; they tended to occasionally wrap the tape all but 
irretrievably
around their internal mechanisms!

I also once bought about 30 or so "off brand" (some odd Canadian brand)
tapes for a project where long-term survival wasn't necessary. Oddly enough,
I still have almost all of those, and they also play as well as they ever 
did...!

I've never own high-end decks; in fact, I have used mainly Sony cassette
decks for recording and playback.

Steven C. Barr