Tascam CD-RW900SL Professional CD Recorder Review

Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)Just got it and love it. This is an extremely sturdy unit, built to last. Buttons, panels, inputs, slot loading: everything about it is durable.
Function seems to be great as well. The keyboard input and remote are great features and (as professional gear) it is free from SCMS (and of course the "Music CD"). The gain controls (record level setting) are essential for proper transfers from analog material and seem to be very sturdy as well. Separate knobs for each channel is a thoughtful approach and they have a nice feel. Input controls are typically the achilles heel of any recording equipment (eventually the rheostats get dirty and start making noise on the source when you move them, though we may be beyond that nowadays), so we'll see about that in a few years. I do hope they are as well made as the rest of it.
This is pro quality equipment and would be equally at home in a studio rack or in a high end system. It has 24 bit converters and the quality and ease of recording is great. While it will even play MP3's (though not sure why one would need it to), it has pitch control and will also do direct digital dubs.
Of course we can also put it in the rack in the home studio, but the bottom line for a lot of what I expect to be doing with it: If you want a CD recorder to make lossless transfers from legacy analog sources (cassettes, LP's, etc.) this is the equipment to get. It's worth paying a bit more than the pro-sumer products (and it's really not that much more here). I have Sony pro-sumer stuff in my stereo system and this machine is WAY more solid than any of that. Even the patch panel for inputs (in the back) is rock solid (far better than any home or pro-sumer equipment and even than most of the "pro" gear I've seen). Some other brand may some esoteric specs that are a little better or a reputation, but if it breaks down all the time it's not functional and if it costs twice as much (at this price point) you'd really have to find some feature you absolutely had to have that this one doesn't to make that worthwhile. They do make a model a step up from this that adds a few features, but I didn't really think it was anything I couldn't live without. This machine does cost twice as much as the bottom of the line consumer recorders but what they packed into it is more than worth that (much smaller) difference.

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Offering the professional recording capabilities that radio stations, post-production houses, and recording studios require, the Tascam CD-RW900SL Professional CD Recorder features a robust slot-loading transport, 24-bit A/D & D/A converters, MP3 playback, key control, sample rate conversion, and selectable CD disc reading speed.
It has a dedicated analog front panel input control, rear panel unbalanced (RCA) I/O, and S/DIFF digital I/O (optical and coaxial). Other features include Auto Cue and Auto Ready from the menu, selectable I/R remote Enable/Disable, and MP3 Action Setting (prevents accidental termination of continuous MP3 playback).


Key Features

Specifications
Recordable discs: CD-R, CD-R-DA, CD-RW, CD-RW-DA
Resolution: 16 bit linear
Sampling frequency: 44.1 kHz
Frequency converter input: 32KHz to 48KHZ
Frequency response: 20 Hz~20 KHz ±0.8 dB (playback) ±1.0 dB (recording)
Signal to noise ratio: 95 dB (playback) 90 dB (recording)
Dynamic range: 95 dB (playback) 90 dB (recording)
Distortion: 0.006 % (playback) 0.008 % (recording)
Channel separation: 90 dB (playback) 80 dB (recording)
Wow and flutter: < 0.001 % (Unmeasurable)
Analog inputs:
Unbalanced RCA pin Level -10 dBV ±2 dB (Full Scale -16 dB)
Minimum input level -19 dBV (adjustable level at Full Scale -16 dB) Input impedance 22 KØ ±10% (unbalanced)

Analog outputs:
Unbalanced RCA pin Level -10 dBV ±2 dB (Full Scale -16 dB)
Maximum output level +6 dBV ±2 dB Output impedance 600 Ø ±10% (unbalanced)

Phones: 1/4-inch; 20mW + 20mW (into 32 ohms)
Digital input: Coaxial RCA pin jack (IEC-60958 Consumer use) Optical TOSLINK (IEC-60958 Consumer use)
Digital output: Coaxial RCA pin jack (IEC-60958 Consumer use) Optical TOSLINK (IEC-60958 Consumer use)
Keyboard: Mini DIN 6 pin
Dimensions: 12.1 x 19.0 x 3.7 inches
Weight: 10 pounds

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Ion USB Turntable with Built-in CD Recording Review

Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)The ION LP turntable was much better than I thought it would be for the following reasons:
1) First of all, the sound through the headphones was nice, full, and deep - much better than I expected.
2) Recording directly to a CD made it much easier than dealing with software since I don't have the time to figure out how to effectively use the software (maybe later I will take the time to see if it makes it any better).
3) Recording to the CD was simple because the tracks are automatically separated. It also allows to manually separate tracks if for some reason the turntable missed separating a track (especially when an artist does not space out time between songs because they want the effect of a continual track).
4) It comes with a cover which many others don't (this may seem not important but it really is if you live in an environment where dust is prevalent).
5) Here's what I didn't expect which was a bonus - it comes with an internal hard drive to be able to record around 2 albums. This is very helpful because it allows you to correct any mistakes or skips that occurred before recording it on a CD. It also allows you to rearrange or erase any of the tracks very easily before recording it on a CD, so you can personalize your tracks compared to the album in a simple, easy way.
6) I am a musician and audiophile, so the most important thing to me is the quality of the sound that is recorded on the CD. Upon hearing the CD through my car CD player, the sound remained full, rich, and deep. This was very pleasing to me as I have tried other brands and the sound was always a disappointment, being very thinny and poor in quality.
6) Finally, the price on Amazon, along with free shipping makes it worth the money. I compared it to Brookstone which would have charged me $200 more in the store.
I personally believe that ION got all of the best features placed into this model which was more than I had expected. This is a good buy and the best model I have experienced so far. It is a 5 star product!

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LP 2 CD is the fastest, easiest way to convert your vinyl records to CDs with none of the hassle of connecting a computer. Listen to your music in the car, at home, on your computer, or any place with a CD player.

The LP 2 CD Turntable The included turntable is belt-driven, with a premium tone arm and cartridge to get you the best sound from your vinyl. It's as great for simple playback as it is for conversion. 33 1/3 and 45 RPM vinyl are both supported, and you can also record 78 RPM albums using the included software.
Record Directly to CD-R/RW LP 2 CD features an on-board CD burner that lets you record one or more CD copies of a record with ease. Just place your record on the turntable and insert a blank CD. Play your vinyl, hit the record button and let LP 2 CD do the rest.
Records on blank CD-R/RW discs.
USB Interface Thanks to the LP 2 CD's USB interface, you can also connect your computer and easily transfer your music to your iTunes, iPod, or MP3 player. LP 2 CD comes with software for fast, easy importing to your iTunes library. Mac and PC compatible.
Conversion Software LP 2 CD includes a software CD with EZ Vinyl Converter for PC (with auto track detection) and EZ Audio Converter for Mac. They are the simplest way to record and convert vinyl directly to iTunes. Before you know it, you'll be listening to songs you haven´t heard in years in iTunes or on your iPod. A free download version of EZ Vinyl Converter with Gracenote MusicID is included for automatic track naming.
What's in the Box LP 2 CD turntable, Dustcover, Cartridge with stylus, RCA audio cable, AC adapter, Quick start guide

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Tascam CDRW901SL Slot-Loading Pro CD Recorder Review

Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)I am in my mid 40s and the last 30 yearts I have accumulated a lot of music in LPs and Cassettes that I would love to have in my car or MP3 player on trips. I tried using my computer to record them but all the complications and file covnersion in order to make just one new CD was tiresome to me. When I found out about the Tascam CD-RW901SL I just fell in love with the idea of having a recorder that pretty much works like the Cassette decks and Reel to Reel recorders of times past. After doing my due diligence and reading everything I could find on the Tascam and competitive players I finally took the jump and bought one.
The CD-RW901SL is a very good looking machine and it feels very well built. The buttons and knobs have a "positive" feel in them that make them a pleasure to use. The looks are, well, professional. It does strike out as a shore thumb in my Hi-Fi rig but I like it none-the-less. One thing that I just love on the Tascam is the lack of a CD tray. The unit is Slot Loading pretty much like the CD player in your car. In this way reliability is improved substantially as there is no CD tray to break.
The unit comes with pretty much every possible connection one could ever need. Digital inputs and outputs in Optical, SPDIF (RCA) and AES/EBU. Analog inputs and outputs in both Balanced and Unbalanced and the Balanced outputs also can be adjusted for output level via a couple of rear panel, user accesible pots.
The front has pretty much all the controls you need to work the unit and it also comes with a pretty good headphone amp AND the reason I actually bought this model: A PS2 computer keyboard connector for inputing Disc and Title tittles instead of using the buttons on the front of the unit (very cumbersome operation).
Finally the unit comes with a wired remote control (according to Tascam because that's what professional asked for...). I would have also like to see a wireless RC or at least the possibility to add one if one would like to. The cord is very long and I found this minor quirk easy to live with.
With just a short overview of the owner's manual I made all the connections to my system and started making some short recordings. Please make sure you buy some CD-RW so that you can re-use them and correct any mistakes before trasfering them to more permanent CD-Rs.
The quality of the Tascam's ADC (analog to digital converters) and DACs (digital to analog converters) is pretty good and more than adequate for my use. I use an external DAC and a professional might consider to use an external ADC to achieve the highest quality recording possible. I recorded some old LPs and tapes and the quality of the recording was very good indeed. Much better than the copies I could make using my Onkyo TA2800 or Nakamichi Dragon tape recorder. The sound of the copies could not compete directly with LPs playing on my SOTA Cosmos but pretty much nothing Digital can anyway.
Overall, the built and operational flexibility of the Tascam are very good. My only complaint and it is a fairly big one is this:
The present software is pretty limited in editing a disc after it is recorded. I do love the fact I can "Un Finalise" CD-RWs and do some more editing on them but I can not make two tracks into one, or split a track after it is recorded. Another disturbing "quirk" is that once you have recorded a number of tracks you can not go and erase just one track unless it is the last one. You CAN erase any number of tracks from the track to the last but you can not erase just one track by itself. I used to have a SONY MD recorder and you could do pretty much anything with the tracks after you recorded them. One would expect that for a Pro recorder like the CD-RW901SL this would be a given...
One last issue I have with the Tascam is that for inputing tittle to tracks using a keyboard you have to press SHIFT F8 every single time you want to input a tittle. In other words, you press SHIFT F8 and input a tittle of a track. For inputing the tittle of the next track you must press SHIFT F8 again, a very silly repetitive task.
I give the Tascam 5 stars for built and overall sound quality but only 3 for flexibility and thus the 4 star rating. I would love to see Tascam adressing the issues with Editing and Tittling in a software upgrade and this could become the best player around to transfer your music from LPs, Tapes or 8track cartridges.

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TASCAM CC-222SL Combination CD/cassette Recorder Review

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(More customer reviews)I bought this for use in my church. Don't regret it one bit. Easy to use. Controls are well positioned and soft to touch. Menu is self explanatory. Use CD or Cassette tape and record to both, or from one to the other. Accepts a wide range of CD media/formats. Variety of connection options to whatever type of equipment you have in church.

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