Otari or Technics Reel-to-Reel ?


Hi.
I am thinking about getting one of those in the future. I am sure I would want Studer but they are too expensive for me. I want the deck to be able to record on 7.5 and 15 and to play on 3.75, 7.5 and 15, both half-track and quater-track tapes.
I would be recording from vinyl making compilations and listening to studio recordings whenever I could get them.
I would be prepared to pay to have it properly cleaned aligned and calibrated.
I actually never delt with RTR, but in my heart I am a tape man not vinyl man.
What would your recommendations and advice be? I would appreciate any input based on knowledge and experience.
inna
I don't know about RTR decks, but I demagnetize my Nakamichi head once a year maybe using Nak device. Frankly, I hear no or almost no difference, not sure.
In any case, I would experiment with that too. Things like that will not discourage me. I will also use Last head treatment and Last tape treatment. Walter from Last factory said I could use safely head treatment fluid for pinch rollers too if not too much. He has been using both for his own valuable tapes.
I am a tape head, I'll get it right, no worries.
Good thinking, Inna. Except that those Last tapeproducts are, to me, ungodly expensive. I have both and reserve them for stuff like fixing squealing tapes. Which is not to say they don't work.

Incidentally, in my Otari comments I should have noted that they apply to my own deck (Model MX-5050 BII-2) and maybe not to other models.
Dopogue, that's most likely the Otari that I will get.
Expensive, well, it depends on how much you need. But nothing good in this hobby is exactly inexpensive.
Servicing and shipping RTR deck will be quite expensive too.
Five years ago I sent my Nakamichi 682ZX to Willy Hermann for big service. It cost me about $650 including shipping both ways. Bought it used for $450 15 years ago. Is $1100 for fifteen years a lot? I don't think so. Otari will be more expensive , I guess, but it will sound much better! And will be more fun.
' Make sure you're not thinking about anything else when you record.'
This is an excellent advice, I fully agree. I do exactly that when recording. And to continue along the line - do not listen to the music while recording, just monitor, listen to later.

Correction: Demagnafication is after each recording session, which will be more than one reel. Here is something that can easily slip your mind; your recorded tapes must be a good distance away from the demagnetizing process, or those tapes will be damaged by the demagnetizer. It's little things like this that require planning, meaning that you might walk through your recording session the night before.

I played some tapes this evening, and rediscovered they are well worth the effort.