One of the problems with music streaming services is that many of them don’t seem to be focused on, you know, music. Spotify is trying to compete with Audible and podcast platforms, planning to charge a lot more for decent quality audio (after already raising prices and alienating musicians in the process), Tidal is moving more towards social media, and everyone seems to be implementing AI.
And there are many more problems with streaming and digital music in general, from artists’ tiny royalty payments to issues of ownership and disappearing music. So perhaps it’s no surprise that more of us are turning away from the best music streaming services and turning to old-school audio formats; not just vinyl, but CDs and cassettes too.
That’s something TEAC has noticed: its TEAC AD-850-SE combination CD player and cassette player/recorder didn’t get much attention when it launched the latest model in 2022, but over the past year or so it’s sold out as soon as new stock comes in. In some cases, eBay sellers are asking a lot more for used units than new ones, so I’m looking at a Japanese listing, for example, that will get you one for almost $950. The US RRP is $549, and in the UK it’s £489.
If you can get your hands on one, I think you have exactly 50% of what you need for a very satisfying sonic experience. All you need is an amplifier and a turntable – something like the Pro-Ject Juke Box E1, which has both in one package and can also include speakers if you don’t already have them. I just reviewed that one and it’s a lot of fun.
Brand new retro
Although it is relatively new (at least compared to most CD players or cassette players) and includes modern features like USB recording and playback, the TEAC looks like exactly the sort of kit I would have drooled over in the ’80s or ’90s: it supports chrome and metal tapes (I could bore you to death with those and why a Sony metal tape was definitely better than the best TDK chrome tapes), it has lots of knobs, because knobs are part of the fun, and it has pitch control so you can turn Metallica into munchkins. You can even use it as a karaoke machine.
There’s just one problem, for me anyway. I don’t have tapes anymore. I used to have tons of them, strewn across every surface and in every conceivable car recess, but I got rid of them all in favor of CDs—and then I got rid of CDs in favor of rips, downloads, and streams. I’m buying CDs again to fill out my collection, but for the stuff I really want, I swallow my disgust at the price and buy them on vinyl instead of tape (like most people, judging by the popularity of the best turntables).
But if you have plenty of tapes lying around, this particular deck, or something like it, could be a good solution to the streaming dilemma: you can use the USB to digitize your cassettes so you can listen to them on your smart speakers or phone, and if you talk out loud about the endings of the songs, you can pretend it’s the 80s and record your new songs from the radio. Once digitized, those songs are still yours – and you don’t have to pay a subscription to listen to them.
If you’re looking for something a little more portable, we recently covered Fiio’s new smart portable options: first the Fiio CP13 portable cassette player and then the new Fiio DM13 portable CD player.
