I get great sound daily from analog tape, playing back anything from production master dubs to factory pre-recorded reels. There are various factors that determine sonics with reel tape, such as: head gap, head quality, tape speed (of course), electronics mods (such as mentioned previously, by-passing coupling transformers, etc.), tape quality, mechanical modifications, and even the quality of the recording. Now some of the drawbacks: 1)Back coated reels require occasional "baking" in special ovens which cost $400 to $500 new, though I found one for $275 used. 2) Real production master dubs are quite expensive, as you can imagine, and are nearly impossible to find. 3) you have to play through an entire reel to hear the last song, otherwise you risk stretching the tape. 4) Good heads are expensive, great ones are worse. The best Saki heads run around $1500. 5) it takes several minutes to reel the tape onto the machine, prior to play. 6) Many of the Ampex ATR models are mechanical nightmares, and require constant maintenance. (I have 2 for sale now, want one?). I'm not trying to discourage anyone, just inform them of what they will experience, as I have already. Is all of this worth it? Hell yes!
