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Yamaha KX 380 cassette deck

nbaptista

pfm Member
I can get this deck or a KX 500 for a good price.It’s just for fun, however I would like to get a good deck with a nice sound.The KX 500 is older, so I don’t know if is the better choice.It is from the eighties and the 380 is from 90’s.
 
Yamaha made mostly ordinary decks, which both the KX380 and KX500 are. If you want a nice sounding cassette deck, you should aim for a Nakamichi. Something like a Nak 480 will have a far superior transport (dual capstan + pad lifter) and sound pretty good. If you have a (pre)amplifier that will allow you to monitor off tape whilst recording, then a three-head Nak will be even better.
 
Yamaha made some excellent tape decks.

I've had a KX-300 from the late 80s since new. I think it was a step up from the bottom of the range. It's a very good sounding deck that I've been very happy with. Despite being a 2 head deck, it makes great recordings, particularly with chrome tapes. I preferred TDK SA and SA-X. It even came with a remote. I'd expect the 380 to be either a mild evolution or simple facelift of the 300. Search the internet for more about it.

A friend, impressed by my 300, bought a 500. It has a few more features. I'd be inclined to go with this model over the 380.
 
look for a KX580se far better than the other yamahas
I would never go down the cassette route again horrid format
 
I have a nearly unused Yamaha KX393 that I bought to transfer a few valuble family tapes to mini disc. The sound and stability was ok. I will have to dispose the it some time or other.
 
Yamaha made some excellent decks and some of their more affordable units were surprisingly capable. Both KX-380 and KX-500 are very good units but I’d go with the 500 personally.
 
But the Yamaha KX 500 is from 80’s,I’m afraid that it has much use, what do you think?As it is a better quality model than the kx 380, maybe have a longer lifespan,I don’t know.Would you help me?
 
After all the years of obsoletion etc of parts I would personally favour Tandberg above all others. Nakamichi's top few decks (CR7E, Dragon, Tritracer 1000) are in another league to all others but the best Tandberg decks are not that far behind and much more serviceable. British made NEAL decks are also right up there in performance IMHO but failed capstan pinch rollers can be an issue.
 
Depends a lot on how cheap, cheap is.
There are a ton of decent decks from the 80s and 90s going for peanuts.
I was never a fan of the Yammy decks although the mentioned 580se was a good example.
The NAD deck 6240 or 6100 were excellent, sharing Yamaha's "play trim" which can be handy.
Other than that a plethora of Denons, Technics etc. are available for just a few notes. Technics are the dark horse here, some blinding decks that sell on for nothing but are excellent and long lasting.
If you want something cheap to tinker with the above pool is where to look.
If more serious then the likes of Nak. are essential but much more expensive, even now.
I have two old Denons collecting dust, DRM44HX and a DRS810, both 3 head and adjusted to match. It's been some time since I messed about with the cassette format.
 
I owned the kx580se and I loved the sound had Dolby b c and s. At the time I ran it with a NAD integrated and a pair of TDL Electronic RTL 3. My first hifi. Remember running the tape deck against my brothers Meridian MCD which was stunning compared to the Philips cdp. Different presentation. Surprised I ever sold the tape deck. It was not a Nakamichi dragon but at its price point was brilliant.
 
I owned the kx580se and I loved the sound had Dolby b c and s. At the time I ran it with a NAD integrated and a pair of TDL Electronic RTL 3. My first hifi. Remember running the tape deck against my brothers Meridian MCD which was stunning compared to the Philips cdp. Different presentation. Surprised I ever sold the tape deck. It was not a Nakamichi dragon but at its price point was brilliant.

I still have and use a Yamaha KX 580SE.
It's never put a foot wrong! Plays and records perfectly.
 
My Yamaha kx 500 is faulty.I don’t know if I should send it to repair or buy a kx 480 that is a 1994 model, unlike the kx 500 that is a 1988
 
I currently have around 8 cassette decks I'm about to list.

Of the Yamahas, find one with Play Trim. It works very well and you can get a lovely sound by "tuning" it.

I have 2 with play trim, including the lively 580SE.

I may moved into 3 head decks as I wanted to tweak the recording as they happened (2 x Technics and 1 x Aiwa).

I also had a 3 head nakamichi 300E. It sounded stunning, but the aiwa was close behind.

All decks will need belts at this age. I found Technics the most reliable, and ones with dbx noise reduction sound very hiss free.

OP, you don't mention what price you have been offered for the Yamahas but you can get a decent deck for £40. I sold my Nakamichi for £300 last year, to give you an idea.

I'll list my current ones on here very shortly but it'll be best to buy locally, preferably demo'd.

Also, try and find some nice TDK SA tapes to get the most out of recordings.
 
All good advice regarding Yamaha KX850SE and TDK SA - (I have and have used both) excellent sound given the limitations of the medium.
I have only used the cassette deck a couple of times. Not been used for years and that was to transfer some old tapes to CD, this thread has made me wonder whether I should dig it out of storage. What is the advice re a good supplier of belts, should they be necessary ?
 
Thakker belts from Germany.

I've never had a Thakker belt that did not have too much wow&flutter. Often it is just better to deeply clean the original belt and use that.
 
Hi Werner - any do's and dont's regarding cleaning (solvent/type of cleaning fluid if any?)

I use a cotton bud, soaked in CD lens cleaner (isopropanol I think). Do all the heads and rollers, but sometimes I use an Allsop 3.

Sometimes, its easier to take the cassette door off but is still possible in situ.
 


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