Trash To Treasure! A SONY Cassette Recorder Adventure.

Sponsored by "Symphonia Felina" neoclassical music collector's cassette album. Limited quantity available NOW for our YouTube audience at: Symphonia Felina Web Site! Click here: http://www.clydesight.com/csp/symfel/


This video is all about the benefit gained when I picked up a fine quality business machine that was thrown away by a careless business which abused and did not appreciate it.

SONY built (and continues to do so) excellent cassette recorder solutions for different markets. The SONY BM-11 was built as a dictation machine, but it is actually a high quality cassette recorder, probably built in the 1980's "Walkman Era". It uses standard cassettes, features "SONY-MATIC" recording, AC Bias, FOUR belts and SOLID BRASS drive components. Most of the machine is made of metal, minimizing the use of plastic. Although designed primarily for dictation, it can record and playback music (in mono, of course).

This video shows the high quality SONY dictation machine in operation - playing music - a selection from the "Symphonia Felina" neoclassical music album, and accepting dictation through both it's built in electret condenser microphone and an external microphone.

I found this machine in the trash, tossed away because battery corrosion destroyed a vital power contact on the machine, making it inoperable. It also had a stretched main drive belt which I replaced, and a dead amplifier which I "revitalized" when I restored this machine - a broken wire and "cold" solder joint was all that needed help. Although the inside of the machine is tightly packed with components, they are remarkably high quality and capable of much longer service than the business that tossed it away realized. Perhaps it was too expensive for them to have it repaired when the trouble first started? The condition of the leather case shows it did receive a lot of use, probably by traveling executives.

The mechanism is entirely unique, having a DOUBLE flywheel arrangement to assist the capstan in maintaining constant speed!

While a dictation machine is a specialty business product (often more expensive than a general consumer product), as the SONY BM-11 proves, it is not necessarily limited to dictation. This machine is an example of how SONY "thought outside the box" and used clever innovative engineering to make a high quality cassette tape recorder suitable for a variety of purposes, from dictation to music recording and playback.

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"Trash To Treasure! A SONY Cassette Recorder Adventure." is sponsored by ClydeSight Production's SYMPHONIA FELINA Gold Collector's Edition music cassette which features 17 original neoclassical compositions in orchestral style performed on Synthesizer. The cassette, produced in 1999 for fans of ClydeSight is a unique musical experience. We have a very limited supply of these first run collector's cassettes available for our YouTube audience. Hurry to ClydeSight and get your copy TODAY! (cassette recorder is NOT included) Just Google: Symphonia Felina" or click on this link: http://www.clydesight.com/csp/symfel/

The title music of the video: "Toccata Temporal" is one of the selections on the Symphonia Felina neoclassical music cassette album and is played by the SONY BM-11 and also presented as a direct feed through the computer.

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Note: The SONY BM-11 cassette tape recorder is part of the ClydeSight Collection and is NOT FOR SALE.

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Category:

Howto & Style

Tags:

• clydesight
• SONY
• cassette
• tape
• recorder
• Symphonia
• Felina
• business
• electronics
• audio
• dictation
• technology

[playa93541]

whats is the name of the song 00:07?

[clydesight]

@playa93541

HI,

Thanks for your comment on the Sony BM-11. The song is called "Toccata Temporal" from my album "Symphonia Felina and Other Mewsical Masterworks". You can read more details and find a link to get the album by expanding and reading the YouTube Video description.

Thanks for your interest.

[silver760]

Ah,made in the days when "Quality" and "Longevity" were not dirty words in the manufacturing industry.The days when products were made to last a lifetime and be repairable in case of fault.These days its a case of using the cheapest materials possible and the products must be designed to last just past the 12month warranty,usually by a week or so.Price must also be whatever the manufacturer can get away with."Made for a penny,sold for a grand",even expensive items like cars are now made the same

[clydesight]

@silver760

Thanks for your comment! Longevity and manufacturing work to opposite goals. To make money the mfg has to sell goods. If the goods last and last, no one buys replacements. So, the obvious answer is planned obsolescence. OR, the alternative, keep coming out with newer and better stuff so we buy more and more stuff.

I don't know the answer to this paradox.

[needmorebrain]

nice vid mate! Liked it!

[clydesight]

@needmorebrain

Thanks!

[clydesight]

@6452ss

I like both SONY and AIWA products. But I like to make jokes that AIWA is better, because in fact, SONY is better. The two competed strongly in the market in the 1960's. Think MAC vs PC. BOTH are good, for different reasons.

[clydesight]

@ozzycriss

Thanks for your comment! Which one is the TC 55? I assume it is reel to reel? I don't have all the models SONY made memorized!

No sound or very faint sound on playback indicates a failed electrolytic capacitor in the circuit. Chasing this down and replacing it can be a real chore, especially tiny boards.

Sluggish rewind means an idler wheel or belt needs attention. Idler wheels need to be cleaned and if the belt is stretched, it needs to be replaced.

[ozzycriss]

Great stuff good to see other s are also keeping the cassete players alive . I ve got myself a Sony TC 55 It works But Unfortunatly no sound and rewind needs a bit of push to start to spin . Any ideas on what i should start looking at , its in fantastic condition so i want to get it in top shape .

[clydesight]

@radishfest

Thanks for your comment!

Since everything works on your machine, you are wise to let it be.

"If it ain't broke, don't fix it!"

Sounds like you got yourself a nice deal in the Sanyo.

[radishfest]

these things are wonderful. a while back i found a sanyo TRC-8000a with footswitch and handset (takes up an entire suitcase) at goodwill, but i've been too afraid to take it apart since everything works perfectly. it's the only recorder i've ever used that reproduces voices as they sound to the people speaking, pretty amazing