HX PRO

[overmodulated]

I couldn't really find much in the forums on this, and I'd like to know if some of you use Dolby HX PRO or not?

My experience has been positive, and this is the first time that I've had it on any deck, and that deck is the A&D (Akai) GX-Z9100 from Japanese market, and I bought it off of the seller on eBay that refurbishes them, and so far it's the best deck I've heard. This differs from it's cousin the GX-95 because the one from the Japanese market has no capacitors in the output section, and from what I understand the American counterpart does. Yes it sounds better than than the Teac Z6000 that I have, and I believe that is because of the HX PRO. They both have their own strength, and the Teac may have a little more bottom end, and possibly a little more mid range, but it is lacking that sparkle on top that the Z9100 has. Maybe it's just that they are two totally different sound in cassette decks and it's hard going from one to the other, and the Teac definitely has a warmer sound.

HX PRO do you have it, do you use it, do you like it and why?

 

[Bob Boyer]

My 482ZX just has Dolby B & C, IIRC. I think Akai also but HX Pro on one of their top reel to reels? Nando might have one and can confirm or not...

 

[overmodulated]

Thanks Bob, there are quite a few of them with HX PRO on them I believe.

The 482ZX by all accounts is a very nice deck!

 

[Elite-ist]

Here is an explanation of how Dolby HX Pro works:

Nando.

 

[overmodulated]

Thanks Nando.

for the most part I understand how it works, I was wondering if others use it and their thoughts on it.

 

[20tajk7]

HX Pro is a very helpful & convenient feature, especially for recording type I tapes.
Anyway most of my favorite decks doesn't have HX Pro (Sony TC-K777, Nakamichi RX-505, CR-4, Alpage AL-300, Denon DR-F7...) and I mostly record to type II.
On decks with switchable HX Pro (Sony TC-K870ES & TC-K950ES) I prefer the sound when turned off.
There's also some great HX Pro decks such as Aiwa AD-F660, AD-F800, Sony TC-K750ES, Teac R-919X, Yamaha KX-670.

 

[overmodulated]

HX Pro is a very helpful & convenient feature, especially for recording type I tapes.
Anyway most of my favorite decks doesn't have HX Pro (Sony TC-K777, Nakamichi RX-505, CR-4, Alpage AL-300, Denon DR-F7...) and I mostly record to type II.
On decks with switchable HX Pro (Sony TC-K870ES & TC-K950ES) I prefer the sound when turned off.
There's also some great HX Pro decks such as Aiwa AD-F660, AD-F800, Sony TC-K750ES, Teac R-919X, Yamaha KX-670.

Thanks for telling your experiences!

 

[BlazeES]

I use it. And on decks from - say - 1989 to the early 2000's ... it was implemented well across the manufacturers.

Personally ( and this is highly subjective like most things in high fidelity discussions... ) I think it works the best on Type II tapes.
But it's really tape stock, incoming signal complexity and equipment dependant.

On my TC-K870, TC-KA3 and TC-K950 decks, it works well but on Metal Masters... it really depends on the source material for it to be noticable.

 

[Elite-ist]

One of my main cassette decks for recording is my Esoteric V-9000 and it has Dolby HX Pro. I've received many compliments from friends and members who have received my recordings using the V-9000. As well, when I had my Sony TC-K950 ES, I always enabled Dolby HX Pro for my recordings. Since HX Pro was switchable on the TC-K950ES, you could use the monitor button to hear the difference in the recording with the HX Pro engaged and turned off.



Nando.

 

[J!m]

I think the non-ES Sony deck I had back in the day had it. It was sort of the gap between Dolby C and Dolby S. I never saw a deck in person with Dolby S…

 

[BlazeES]

HX Pro isn't a noise reduction circuit in the traditional sense J!m. It was simply a way to improve the recording process by utilizing the high frequency content of the 'source material' to help - in simple terms - augment the biasing - to reduce high frequency distortion and boost head-room.

And it became popular on store bought, pre-recorded material because it helped to facilitate mass production of consumer tapes, with better fidelity ... otherwise recorded on mediocre tape stock.

 

[J!m]

I wasn’t savy enough with my tapes back then. Then I embraced the CD, and didn’t look back for a long time…

But the tapes I did make, still sound pretty decent, albeit low on level, so didn’t maximize the S:N ratio of the tape.

 

[overmodulated]

One of my main cassette decks for recording is my Esoteric V-9000 and it has Dolby HX Pro. I've received many compliments from friends and members who have received my recordings using the V-9000. As well, when I had my Sony TC-K950 ES, I always enabled Dolby HX Pro for my recordings. Since HX Pro was switchable on the TC-K950ES, you could use the monitor button to hear the difference in the recording with the HX Pro engaged and turned off.

View attachment 73152

Nando.

That's great to hear Nando, I like it myself, and I think it just adds a bit of sparkle to the top end. That's where most tapes are lacking in my opinion, they roll off at the top to a certain degree.

 

[overmodulated]

I wasn’t savy enough with my tapes back then. Then I embraced the CD, and didn’t look back for a long time…

But the tapes I did make, still sound pretty decent, albeit low on level, so didn’t maximize the S:N ratio of the tape.

But that gave you experience, now you can make them sound better.

i'm being challenged by some of the BASF tapes, and their chrome extras, and supers distort if you record much past 0 DB. That was a tip from @Elite-ist because he's the one that told me don't go past it, and it held true. My Teac does not record well with those tapes, I tried my second or third one tonight and no good, and I even kept the level several DB below 0. While the A&D (Akai) records them very well... just don't go into the red very much.

 

[J!m]

Most of us remember, but for the young’ins back in the day cassette decks were tools, not toys. We needed to get copies of our LPs for use in the car, as well as to save wear on our expensive records.

We’d all go to the record store and bring something back, and also grab blank tapes- TDK of course (for me anyway) and we’d all make copies of the LPs so we all got everything. We didn’t have a lot of cash to buy multiple copies of LPs.

Open reel was another animal. I was pretty serious with my A3340-S 4-track (or quad if you didn’t record with it) deck.

But cassettes we’re just a (great) convenience, and as soon as I had my Philips CD recorder (had to use “music” CDs in it) my cassette collection started collecting dust.

 

[overmodulated]

Exactly, we needed a way to make our tunes mobile.

I never got into open real, and I'm not going down that rabbit hole, that looks like an expensive one.

i'm hitting the hay early tonight, good night Jim and everyone.

 

[Elite-ist]

On the Sony TC-K950ES, there is an added feature called Recording Calibration Equalization. You will see it on the deck's front panel in my photos. You could set it for "Low" to dampen the high frequencies in recordings or set it to "High" to emphasize the higher frequencies in recordings. Or just set for "Normal." As you got familar with different tape characteristics, it was an added tool to tailor your recordings. It was like an over-bias and under-bias control. I have that feature on my Pioneer CT-A9X.

Now that I've gone into explaining that detail, I regret selling my Sony TC-K950ES.



Nando.

 

[overmodulated]

On the Sony TC-K950ES, there is an added feature called Recording Calibration Equalization. You will see it on the deck's front panel in my above photo. You could set it for "Low" to dampen the high frequencies in recordings or set it to "High" to emphasize the higher frequencies in recordings. Or just set for "Normal." As you got familar with different tape characteristics, it was an added tool to tailor your recordings. It was like an over-bias and under-bias control. I have that feature on my Puioneer CT-A9X.

Npw that I've gone into explaining that detail, I regret selling my Sony TC-K950ES.

View attachment 73154

Nando.

that's a beauty, I almost bought one like that.

 

[BlazeES]

I am always ready to deal Nando!

 

[J!m]

Nando needs a cassette deck as badly as I do…