What is the best Reel To Reel machine ever built?


Everyone who has listened to master tapes or dubs knows about the well balanced sound they provide. But it is also important to have a fine tape recorder or playing machine to enjoy the tapes' qualities in a good system.
Maybe my question was raised once before but the relevance of the topic is now greater as the tapes are back to more and more audiophile friends, especially those who are owning excellent phono chains.

I have seen many big & professional machines being recently offered and sold on e-bay, Audiogon and other platforms and I am discussing within a small group which machine is really the "holy grail" among the R2Rs. So why not here. I am interested in findings.
thuchan
Well, while I certainly agree regarding mechanism and transport, I have good reason for recommending the C-37 especially for home use 2-track playback. Carefully serviced, their built-in amplification is about as close as you can get for the best possible in tube-based RTR playback.
Sure - there are customized ss based playback amplifiers by notable audiophile origin (Cello etc.), but they never moved the earth beneath my feet.
A top-notch C-37 may have more hiss in playback than most japanese RTRs of the 1970s/80s and certainly can't compete with Nagra either, but then you will have a very hard time getting the dimensionality, soundstage, micro-color and "live-feeling" a C-37 can provide.
After all we are talking home use playback here - not recording, not pre-mix master taping.
My vote for playback - and meant for that purpose only.
Another point - easy access (at least in Europe...) to NOS/NIB original parts. Tube-based plug-in devices can be serviced quite comfortably too.
Lastly and maybe of relevance - I am not bias on tubes.
My power amps are SEFets, battery powered - for good reason.
Cheers,
D.
Most studios in the US with functioning tape machines have newer Studers. There were still a few new ones for sale as recently as a few years ago. Sadly, most of them sit in the corner unused. There are a few engineers who still insist on them, but its getting to be a very small number-mostly engineers with private studios of their own. The pressure and speed (and budget) of the modern studio/client combo makes it a tough decision and a big commitment. Its so cool to see Stevie Wonder Innervisions liner notes and see a friend (who now works at JBL) listed as "Tape Operator".
i almost traded my Dobbins Garrard 301/Loricraft for a 220v 50hz C37 from Europe....but in the end i did not want to deal with the power converter issues. so i purchased the 'American' C37, the Ampex 350. which, like the C37 in Europe, has lots of parts available and has that tubed output. and i purchased an additional set of Ampex 351 output electronics to be able to use that too.

which is better in that light? C37 or Ampex 350/351? many different opinions on that. lots of great music was mastered on both.

i do think that neither of those machines are the 'one answer' for all tapes. and the tape transports of either are crude and abrupt compared to the A820/A80/ATR-102.
Dear Mikelavigne, yes - most great european generated music - classical as well as jazz and rock, beat etc. - was recorded on Studer - most american on Ampe(re)x.
The voltage conversation isn't all that great deal at all - this does frequently scare many audiophiles on both sides of the pond to give vintage gear from the "other side" a try.
Unless one wants to actually record / master new recordings on his own behalf, I still think it is about playback quality when talking about RTR for home use.
Cheers,
D.
having never heard a Studer C37, or an Ampex 350/351 for that matter, i can't say whether they might sound the best for playback. in fact; those i know that have the most experience say to me that those 50's and 60's machines actually make the best live recordings, but more contemporary machines sound better for playback.

i do think that quality of transport matters to the sound. it's not the only thing, but it's part of the picture.

i think we will see more custom electronics coming to market as the RTR audiophile movement matures. also; perceptions of specific output electronics is extremely context driven. i've had many tell me that the King/Cello sounds wonderful in my system, but maybe not as good in other contexts.....and i've heard the opposite too.

so there is more than one viewpoint as well as method.