Organization: The American University - University Computing Center
Date: Monday, 17 Aug 1992 14:26:37 EDT
From: <SGORDON@auvm.american.edu>
Newsgroups: rec.music.gdead,rec.audio
Subject: Aiwa AD-F810 Tape Deck Recommendation. Given!

   Even though I haven't seen a request for a tape deck recommendation lately,
I'll just volunteer this information under the assumption that someone will
find it useful.

   I've looked at many 3 head decks in the $300 range, and for the most part
was generally unimpressed with the quality offered for the money.  I was
never a big fan of the Nak (no flames please) because a friend of mine at a
Nak deck that used to pick up a local jazz radio station and it would
show up on all recordings done the deck.  I briefly looked into the Denon
710, but have also experienced some nastiness with that deck, first hand.
My housemate works in a recording studio, and they use the 710.  Within the
first 10 hours of use, it had gobbled a brand new XLIIS tape.  They determined
this to be a problem with the logic and it has since been replaced.  My friend
just purchased the same model, and again, within 10 hours, chomped a new XLIIS
tape.  Unacceptable behavior for a deck of that perceived quality.

    Now, the deck that I chose.  I was thumbing through Consumer Reports, and
read a nice write-up of the Aiwa AD-F810 and CR (March '92) and they were
especially pleased with the unit.  This model was chosen as the highest overall
quality for any of the units they tested.  CRs favorable review was not enough
incentive for me to lay out $300 for a deck.  I went to the local Aiwa dealer,
who also profusely praised the unit, and examined for myself.  The design is
very sturdy, and the button and knobs offered solid feedback and felt well
mounted.  Other initial goodies include a bias adjust knob and suggested
settings for popular tapes (TDK, Maxell, Fuji? and a few others).  The unit
came with a simple, but complete remote control.  The remote control features
all standard operations (FF, Play, Rec. . .), Monitor button, Zero Return, and
a display reset button.  One thoughtful feature that impressed me was the
defeatable display.  The display consists of a real-time counter, level meters,
 and general info (Dolby, tape type, source/monitor).  The user has the option
of viewing the entire display, just the real-time counter, or defeating the
entire LED display.  Another bonus that should be included on all decks is
a backlit tape well (absent on the Denon 710).

    My only gripe about the unit is the tape door doesn't seem to be
removeable.  But, the inards of the deck are layed out in such a way that
a q-tip will fit nicely and parts can be cleaned with neglible body
contortion.

Brief specs and info include:
B/C HX PRO

Metal Tape: 15-20khz, CrO2 Tape: 15-19khz, Normal:  15-18khz
Signal-to-noise ratio: 80db (Metal w/Dolby C ON above 5khz)
Wow and flutter: .065% (DIN 45500), .035% (WRMS).
Playback and Recording heads are super DX, Erase head is Double-gap sendust

Needless to say, the deck sounds great! and I feel comfortable playing
my non-replaceable tapes [Dead boots :-)] in the unit.

I paid $300 taxes, tags, title, and freight for the unit.  From what I
understand, this price resulted from an overstock and in general may cost
a bit more.  If there are any questions about things that I neglected to cover
drop me a line, and I'll be happy to respond.


Newsgroups: rec.music.gdead