What is the best Reel To Reel machine ever built?

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.

John Stephens built the very best sounding professional deck ever built.

Just try to find an owner willing to sell one.

Hello Eckart,

Sam, oh yes you are a lucky owner of a A820. May I ask you and Mike if are using the A820 at 30 ips?

I have some 30 ips, half-track, half-inch master dubs around. Also, I have some 24-track master tapes that I imagine were recorded at 30 ips...Hmmm -- maybe, a Studer A827 in the future?? Hehe :-)

Vbr,

Sam

Hello Sam,
We did not talk about the Nagras and the MCIs so far.
I have also not seen any comments about the big Sony machines.

when the big DASH machines were introduced they did quite some good recordings, e.g. for the ECM label. The problem seems to be that the digital sources are getting rare.

best @ fun only

Hi Eckart,

I haven't any direct experience with either the Nagras or MCI's, but I'm quite interested in the Nagras for location recording.

-Sam