Yeah, I finally got my Nak, 25 years ago, but it was the MB-10, a CD changer. It was a demo at a shop near me that I paid something like $400 for. It was actually a pretty good-sounding unit, but I sent it to get modded for an additional $750! I still have it in my 3rd system, and it still sounds good. The MusicBank system was pretty ingenious, so much so that McIntosh paid Nak to license it so that Mac could include it on their very expensive CD changer back then. That may have been one of the last high quality products put out by Nakamichi before they eventually imploded.
Audiophile Equipment
I learned the value of audiophile equipment early in my pursuit of the high end. I had accumulated enough gear for a system and was looking for the best possible tape deck… with Dolby C. From the popular magazines… Stereo Review, Stereo Times… the Harman Kardon T392 seemed to represent the pinnacle. So I bought one. It was OK… but such a huge step down from vinyl that I was genuinely bummed, especially since it cost something like $650… a lot of money at the time.
A few months later I was browsing a high-end audio shop and, somewhat morosely, told my story to a salesman. He just started laughing. “Those things are junk… you need a real tape deck.” He led me over to the window, where there was a seven-year-old used Nakamichi 1000… huge, with wood paneling all around it… looking more like a reel-to-reel than a cassette deck. He wanted $1,200 for it. That was an astronomical amount of money… and it was old. Then he said, “Take it home… try it.”
My first real jaw-drop moment.
It had the full depth and bass of vinyl… it was simply astonishing. It made the so-called “flagship” Harman Kardon sound like a cheap plastic transistor radio and without Dolby C. All that glossy magazine talk about bandwidth and specs… page after page of marketing… well, that’s all it was. This old, purpose-built audiophile machine performed leagues above the consumer-level product.
I was hooked.
It wasn’t my last audiophile purchase… but it was my last consumer-level purchase for decades.
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@mdalton On ebay NAKAMICHI DRAGON Audiophile Cassette Deck Pristine, Overhauled US $8,500.00or Best Offer and there are ones for more $ And on Audiogone Nakamichi Dragon ***mint! $4,900.00 Hot Dang! Who knew? Reclaiming your youth is expensive. |
I also had the Nakamichi TA-3A receiver, a very fine product. I sold it a couple years ago, still working great. Regarding the fall of Nakamichi, much later I bought a five disc carousel changer, not the MusicBank model, and it may not be up to their past standards. It still sits in my base somewhere.
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