Four new Walkman-style cassette players - Are they any good?

[@vwestlife]

*Correction:* The Mulann and Tomashi do have a metal flywheel, not plastic as I said -- just not as large or well-balanced of one as in the FiiO or We Are Rewind. And it is possible to adjust the speed of the FiiO without opening the case -- see my follow-up video: kzbin.info/www/bejne/sHe4oWiAh9yEi9k

[@Drmcclung]

Completely subjective option on my part, I wouldn't choose any of them over an older repairable unit. But if I was forced to, and since all four are pretty much the same anyhow, I find the minimalist appearance of the Mulann most appealing. After watching Techmoan's review of We Are Rewind a long time ago I was pretty much immediately turned off of that one if we're just comparing price and appearance.. so not worth the huge markup.

[@sullycliftona]

Theirs a uk bloke. That slated the gold one. And. He’s got better content.

[@niladrimukherjee2098]

@@Drmcclung you arecright. Go for an old Sony ,Sharp ,AIWA , SANYO etc. These are still good after decades and except changing the belts they will work fine like they did before and tgere are still many good old Walkman technicians who will do a fine job.

[@gwheregwhizz]

1980s - How did they build the pyramids all those years ago? 2024 - How did they build a decent cassette deck all those years ago?

[@the_kombinator]

All those years ago it was the norm, so good quality components were used (for respectable brands anyhow) but now it's just a nostalgia cash grab for filthy casual users of tapes in order to make a buck. Seriously, my tapes are so degraded that even in my Yamaha tape player, they sound about as good as in my 80s Hyundai's tape deck. It's really not that hard a question to answer IMO, certainly not anywhere near the scale of the Pyramids lol.

[@kosmas173]

Companies used decent cassete mechanisms that they made themselves instead of bying the same one that is made in bulk in China that costs 2$.

[@zwete]

Economy of scale.

[@christo930]

@@the_kombinator Did you store your tapes in a swamp or something? Tapes from the 60s sound as good as they ever did.

[@dancooper6002]

The answer is honestly a lot more complex than people realize. But the shortish version is this. The middle class has been in decline since the 1970's. As a result consumer products have become a race to the bottom, with price being the key metric for competing. The result of this is a decline in the quality of consumer goods as costs are cut. In some areas, such as personal computers and cell phones, technological inflation has effectively masked this, as the tech was progressing fast enough to improve the device even as prices fell. But for some technology, such as cassette tapes, technological inflation simply offers little benefit, ie. you cannot die shrink a cassette mechanism.Thus, cost cutting must be done to win the price based competition, and the result is the lowest grade garbage being manufactured in China and sold to an unsuspecting public.

[@kevinh96]

Basically all Fio need to do is allow access to the speed pot and it'll be a decent little player.

[@Manu-Official]

I would bet the battery is in the way.

[@Bob-1802]

If one guy could open the unit and figure out where exactly to (carefully) drill a small hole in the back, that could solve the problem... for bold people only.

[@nobodynoone2500]

@@Manu-Official relocating the trimpot would be simple if doing a board revision. The case might be the more difficult part to modify in-production.

[@Vantavimeow]

@@nobodynoone2500 you can already adjust it using a tiny screwdriver bit, there's a video on it already. It's not ideal but it's feasible at least.

[@tschorsch]

It does.

[@themaritimegirl]

That email response has some strong "you'll eat what we feed you and you'll like it" energy.

[@vadnegru]

Realistically, it's the best they could have, there are no mechanisms made other than these trash. You could decorate crap but that would still be crap, no matter what you do.

[@TheRailroad99]

I think that the response was pretty decent - it was at least honest. I don't know what they claim - if they claim it's .2% max, then of course even .21% means defective / out of spec. Otherwise it's false advertisement.

[@nickwallette6201]

I find it refreshingly honest ... but then, my career revolves around engineering, so I prefer my truth without sugar coating. That said, the reply could've also been: "C'mon, man. Nobody buys our over-priced tarted-up toys but hipsters looking to be recognized for being ironically out-of-date. W&F at or less than 0.9% is perfectly acceptable for an accessory to your red pants and rainbow-striped belt."

[@beefchicken]

​@@vadnegru Maybe it's time for the community to design an "open source" high quality tape mechanism that can be either 3D printed or machined from a lump of aluminum.

[@wheels2fun526]

@@beefchickenNot going to happen. These can not be 3D printed. They need to be made out of metal.

[@angelfire2023]

Finally! A decent comparison of newer portable cassette players. It's nice to see a good comparison between a lot of new ones; most videos online pertaining to newer cassette players tend to go after a singular one of these models, and then compare it to a fully refurbished, high end walkman from the 80s. I'm glad you didn't do that here, as I think this will be a nice little guide for newcomers getting in to tapes for the first time. I would like to throw in the cheapest alternative to all of these, that being the Jensen SCR-75. You can usually get them under 20 dollars, and they still output in stereo. Not the greatest in terms of fidelity, but it's a good way to get a decent stereo playback-only cassette player for the lowest possible price.

[@Cherijo78]

Yeah, anyone new to cassettes these days in the market buying a newer player needs to understand that they are all based off the same crappy Tanashin mechanism, or a clone of it. Some are adjusted better than others, and some clones are worse than others, but they're all essentially the same thing. No one makes a good transport mechanism any longer. Still, there are minor differences, and if people are going to buy crap, they might as well buy the best sounding crap that's available.

[@themaritimegirl]

@@christo930 You picked the wrong channel on which to diss Crosley turntables :)

[@Austin_Niepołomice]

@@christo930 No that is not what lo-fi is lol

[@christo930]

@@themaritimegirl How do you figure? I've been subbed to this channel for like at least 5 years, probably 10.

[@christo930]

@@Austin_Niepołomice "LOL" Grow up.

[@WillWill56]

FiiO CP13 does have a speed adjustment point, its just inside the front cassette bay, and very well hidden... there's a rectangle cut in the black plastic near the top right, and the adjustment point is inside that hole.

[@vwestlife]

Thanks! I will make an update video about the speed adjustment.

[@anlealanleal3218]

Any idea of how to disassemble player for service? And do you know if any transparent version planned?

[@WillWill56]

I tried using a suction cup to pull on the back panel, got a bit of a wiggle but didn't feel like it wanted to come loose. We might get the answer when we get more images of the transparent model, it has a fully transparent back panel that might reveal the secret.

[@6ettinold]

My son wanted a Walkman-esque player. We spotted a boxed Ferguson ( budget 1980's brand here in the UK ) model in a local charity shop for £30. It had clearly never been used. It is from around 1983-4. Unbelievably it plays perfectly. I put some Energiser AA lithium batteries in it as there is no danger of them leaking & have given him strict instructions to look after it.

[@tennysonfordblackbird2087]

I had a fergie and it was bought in the late eighties and cost me 12.99.😂

[@AdamRamseythetouchable]

I could tell they were all the same cheap mechanism through before you even opened them. You can see it through the windows.

[@chrisa2735-h3z]

It is such a shame😢

[@RealEpikCartfrenYT]

It's basically a shrunken down clone of a clone based on a budget boombox mechanism.

[@Charlesb88]

All currently sold new tape decks these days use a clone/knockoff of a budget tape deck mechanism once produced by a company called Tanashin. I don’t know if that company still exists but they used to sell a budget tape mechanism that was used in all budget cassettes decks and budget boombox’s. I believe at the end of the mainstream tape era, every tape deck was using a Tanashin mechanism but by then only a few companies where still selling tapes decks. When cassette tapes made a slight comeback and started to be become retro-cool in recent years and there was a demand for new tape mechanisms causing Chinese manufacturers to step in to make knock-offs clones of the Tanashin mechanism. Any modern tape deck would have to use a Tanashin knockoff since Tanashin no longer makes tape mechanisms.

[@BeautifulAngelBlossom]

There on other brand making different meca anymore

[@gmcnewlook]

Unfortunately all new cassette players are going to have that knockoff mechanism nobody else makes them

[@Kartoffelliebhaber]

I saw another review of these devices, and i was really hoping you would make a video! Thank you, my favorite tech reviewer on KZbin.

[@Thisispick]

This is the channel that got me into collecting audio cassettes, so it’s great to see you talk about these models! I got the B-1000 as my first real cassette player in January of last year. It’s a great selection for someone just getting into cassettes, but it makes me sad that the really good players have been left in the past. Great video!!

[@GaryKeepItSimple]

I noticed that the WOW & FLUTTER figures came out very similar to the We Are Rewind that I tested. Which was well run in.

[@labnine3362]

I compared the Tomashi unit to a Sports Walkman (WM-FS499). It had much better bass, high end, head room, build quality, etc. But the Tomashi was no slouch. Better than I expected and I think due to it being new had better wow and flutter. In the end, it's probably a better use of time and money to buy a used Walkman that has new belt IMO. Even the lowest model should be better.

[@Xeraser2]

The mechanisms for these are dirt cheap and yet most of them cost as much if not more than a modern full size player...

[@manoflego123]

A brand new day, a brand new VWestLife video on cassette players. Life is good.

[@ef1265]

And a silly arse kisser in the comments

[@manoflego123]

@@ef1265 ok

[@Onteo1]

Love the DAK equipment at the 13:00 mark. My very first Walkman was right out of his catalog in the very early 80s. I still have it and it works great. Nice overview.

[@twocvbloke]

It's a fun comparison, showing how the same mechanism can vary so much in performance, and the fact that at least one of the case-makers pretty much say "Meh, not our fault!" because of those differences...

[@P3SS3SSOd]

The only thing that brought the step up in quality in the 80s for walkmans/personal radio cassette players was competition. So many amazing technical achievements in sound quality and innovation were driven by the immense competition. I doubt we'll ever see that kind of drive again for the format, but it's good to know the high end vintage pieces from the time still hold up. I managed to get a nice amount of high end Walkmans including my daily-driver WM-F1002 before the prices went silly. The quality of the manufacturing is really something to be appreciated, compared to virtually anything mass produced today, let alone the performance. Really enjoyed this comparison video, it's something I hope you''ll keep doing as hopefully more surface and I sincerely hope you thrift a high end Walkman at some stage, you really deserve it.

[@JDCarnin]

I‘m still rocking my Aiwa HS-GMX 700 from back then. Never did anything to it besides cleaning the head. Still works with Dolby and full logic controls etc. A fine piece of tech! Probably wouldn’t buy a modern one.

[@mickaka]

Worth noting that unlike many others which have fixed level recording, the We Are Rewind has auto-levelling, which has to be used with an amplified input not line level. The manual suggests the device you’re recording from be at its maximum output volume! We’ve managed to make some acceptable recordings on my son’s unit from his laptop following those instructions. Given how much I ended up spending restoring some of my Sony Walkmans to working order, I’d probably still recommend one of these for someone just getting in to the format.

[@MrDwightsimon]

Where did you get them restored?

[@CARLiCON]

cool test V-dub, sounds like we have 2 issues here; all of these players seem to be playing at different speeds/pitches & then there's the W&F. What's really interesting to me is how you've illustrated that acoustic piano music is really a great ear test for wow & flutter, especially when it sustains, you really notice the speed is inconsistent, while the bass & drums don't really sound that bad

[@Nile9063]

I actually contacted We Are Rewind about the W&F aswell about a year ago as my player had a W&F of 0.6. I have had four of them so far though and all the others measured in at 0.3 to 0.4. They're also very sensitive to playing with the wrong azimuth, when you carry them around, the sound changes a lot, some tapes sound better when you hold the cassette door slightly open or stick a paper in it. It definitely has it's weaknesses, but at least there are new models available now, for a long time there were only the trashy 10$ Amazon or AliExpress ones. We've come a step into the right direction, but we're not quite there yet.

[@sahranurbilgic05]

I would like to choose my first cassette player, but I don't know whether to choose "We are rewind" or Fiio as my first cassette player. Which one do you recommend for a first time user?

[@Nile9063]

@@sahranurbilgic05 I mean, I haven't tested the Fiio, but it seems pretty promising to me and it is a little bit cheaper. Bluetooth is also a nice feature though if you're using modern headphones and only the We Are Rewind has that feature. There's also the Mulann B-1000 EW, which shouldn't really sound that different compared to the Fiio and We Are Rewind, but is a lot cheaper. Hard to say, but as I've had the We Are Rewind now, I'd be tempted to check out the Fiio.

[@sahranurbilgic05]

The We Are Rewind cassette player has an aesthetically pleasing design, and the Bluetooth feature is a welcome addition. However, it is not a necessary feature for a retro music player since Bluetooth headphones did not exist in the past. Additionally, the We Are Rewind is overpriced for its actual value. Furthermore, the Mulann B-1000 EW is not available in my country, leaving me with only two options for a cassette player: The We Are Rewind or Fiio. I am inclined to explore the Cp13 from Fiio.

[@RealEpikCartfrenYT]

I personally bought one of those "Super USB cassette capture" walkmans, knowing they had trash mechanisms. All I needed was something that can fast forward, rewind and test tapes when I'm out at the flea market, after someone stole my Sony WM-FX271. It honestly does a decent enough job for that, and I would absolutely not recommend it to anyone, because it has terrible wow and flutter, and its speed keeps drifting as soon as the batteries are slightly used. If I were to go somewhere, like say, on vacation, I would actually carry my 2005 Panasonic boombox with me. It may weigh a ton with all 6 C batteries inside but it's probably my best cassette playing device so far. Even has full auto-stop and has a metallic permanent magnet erase head which causes less background noise and wear on recorded tapes than the typical blue erase head found in the players shown in this video, which is actually like sandpaper for your tapes.

[@pickoftheglitter]

...and probably that crappy usb capture model is also mono, not stereo. Take a look to the tape head...

[@krzysztofczarnecki8238]

@@pickoftheglitter mine is stereo, but mono could definitely happen. I've seen boomboxes that have two speakers, a clone Tanashin and a mono head in supermarkets.

[@RealEpikCartfrenYT]

@@pickoftheglitter it's actually a stereo head but the circuitry is so bad in it the motor noise overpowers the actual music so you can't even tell.

[@peacearchwa5103]

@@pickoftheglitter My ezCap-brand "Super USB Cassette Capture" device is stereo. Frequency response is actually quite good, but w&f is pretty dreadful.

[@diamondfieldmusic]

Mulaan wins hands down. I like the large window on it too, especially these days when artists releasing tapes have really nice graphics and the tape shells come in a lot of cool colors. Seems there's a small niche market to be had for someone to manufacture a decent modern tape head/transport.

[@ilusha88]

I preordered a Fiio. Hope they hash out the speed issue so thanks for telling them about it!

[@itogi]

Buy something else, it's the same as other current Walkman-style players that use the same cheap mechanism.

[@ilusha88]

Seems like they did improve things with the metal flywheel and honestly I like the styling and non-plastic.@@itogi

[@itogi]

@@ilusha88 It does not matter, it's still the same mechanism and it will sound the same as cheaper ones.

[@bezoekers]

​​@@itogiThere is nothing else to buy... All new players either have the exact same mechanism or an even worse knock off.

[@KylesVideos]

Theres more to the sond quality that just the mechanism. Theres no getting around the crappy feeling buttons but you can get good sound quality as long as its built and calibrated correctly.@@itogi

[@Zone1242]

I got the 'We Are Rewind' unit and I'm pretty happy with it. I normally listen with AKG K371 headphones and the sound is very acceptable. The battery seems to last forever. I charged it when I first got it and been using it many hours since then and still going strong. I also have a Philips AQ6542 from around 1992. It's a playback only unit with integrated AM/FM radio. Thanks for the great review!

[@chinmeysway]

that’s cool. can i ask, is it stereo out or mono. thanks !

[@Zone1242]

@@chinmeysway Its stereo..

[@yanks1fan09]

I also bought the FIIO CP13 during the initial offering and think it does sound decent for the price. No issues with the speed though. I also have the We Are Rewind in Orange which I bought last year. Not bad either I find it has a bit more bass on the eq than the FIIO. Mind you I do have other vintage Sony Walkmans like the WM-3 Metal Version of the TPSL2, WMD6 and another one. I didn't have high expectations for any of the new ones. The only thing they offer is they are new and don't require maintenance and for commuting they serve a purpose. I also like to listen to them through wired headphones not bluetooth as there is some loss in the transfer. Thanks for the reviews.

[@jayadams6760]

I have two Sony walkmans from the 90's in a drawer. Both work perfectly fine. Haven't used them in over 20 years, because I'm not going back to that.

[@inglepropnoosegarm7801]

Wise.

[@dylanstrine]

Belts are probably junk anyways at this point lol but they are built like tanks

[@lucasrem]

@@dylanstrine Not if you kept them in good conditions, heat issues, water etc..... Mine are just good, climated room !

[@krzysztofczarnecki8238]

@@lucasrem One should also run a cassette player every now and then to avoid the belt developing a kink where it stays around the motor pulley. And never leave it turned off and in play position, as that would do the same to the pinch roller and any rubber idlers it might have inside. And maybe tape if it has tape inside.

[@bugstomper4670]

bought a bunch of NOS Maxell XL 2 and started making mixed tapes from my CDs. Using a Sony Sports Walkman on the bus. 😅

[@BessieBopOrBach]

Wow, the wow and flutter on the "Tomashi" was brutal on the music sample. And of course the Fiio was far too fast. Very comprehensive and entertaining test, as always, vwestlife -- thank you!

[@MaeveWumbo]

I just don't even see the point in owning one if it doesn't have a belt clip. A belt clip IMO is the only thing that gives any mobile cassette player any justification for even existing. Its such a simple addon too, plus them trying to make them so stylish and colorful why not include the belt clip? Beyond belt clip functionality, the visual of a spinning cassette on your hip is one of the cool parts to owning one.

[@JZikovsky]

That big window on the B1000 is nice, you can really see the cassette!

[@moar_nightsong]

Thank you so much for making this video. I feel like newer cassette players tend to have way more variables going into their performance as opposed to cheap record players which all generally perform same. I'm so glad to see this topic being explored in depth.

[@ThetaReactor]

Well, I wasn't gonna buy a new walkman anyway, but I did just discover that my speakers are reversed. Damn Altec Lansing PC speakers aren't labeled. This is why those old DOS games had "reverse stereo channels" options.

[@Markimark151]

Even though my current Sony Walkman is still working and I use it in my newer vehicle with auxiliary, that lacks playback of any physical media like cassettes and CDs. I’m glad there’s at least few decent quality portable cassette players like the Fiio and Mulan players are worth getting for a brand new cassette player!

[@Ryan96se]

I have found speed to usually be fast. I believe this has a lot to do with the belt and lubricants used. Just as you mentioned, they may be calibrated perfectly at the time of assembly, but after a few minutes of play, the belt tension eases and so does the viscosity of the lubricants. When I install new belts, I almost always adjust the speed a little slow. Unless it's a very high quality belt, they all almost always stretch slightly and pick up speed over time

[@DavidQuerolRagasaCargani-wn3md]

I have bought a Retekess tr606 on November which was my second knock off walk man I bought last year. It works well and I had recorded 4 mixtapes on it since I bought it using my mic and audio adapter with an audio cable connected to my phone. Only problem, the wow and flutter is terrible especially during the recording but the playback is mostly tolerable but the audio output is MONO both through the built-in speaker and through the headphone jack. Hope you'll find some time reviewing it too. I bought that Retekess Tr606 at around 1100 Philippine Pesos almost 20 US Dollars from our own local online store.

[@okidoke-xe8gj]

Still have my beloved yellow AIWA auto reverse Walkman from 1993...works flawless...and a box of mixtapes from back then

[@fanofretrotechnology3802]

Hell yeah!!

[@rager1969]

I remember DAK. I used to get their catalogs and wanted the bubble jet printer and the linear turntable from them.

[@JEEPSTR78]

One thing I thought I would mention to all the cassette lovers out there looking to entertain in your automobile like myself with old mix tapes. I have tried many vintage and newer portable cassette players & they all go crazy with my cell phone transmitting electrical interference. I had to place my iphone in the drivers side door tray with the player on the passenger seat & even still it was intermittent. Recently I purchased the "We Are Rewind". Its been great in the car! Maybe it has something to do with the metal case as a shielding or better internal circuity but it sounds great with it plugged into the AUX port (3.5mm jack) there’s plenty of volume and bass.

[@therealwhite]

I bought both the We Are Rewind and the Fiio. The Fiio FINALLY did the unthinkable and got rid of the motor noise in the new cassette mechanisms. I'm not looking for an audiophile quality cassette player but the Fiio is more than good enough in my opinion, for that one simple fact. It also feels good in the hands. I don't know why anybody would go back to cassettes expecting supreme audio quality though, as that can be achieved much simpler. I got into them way after their hayday and the warm fuzzy feeling is what makes them great in 2024! And by that I of course don't mean awful buzzing lol. Just the imperfections of the format in general. I feel like most people would be happy with the Fiio. We Are Rewind is neat but ultimately too noisy. The stereo recording feature is an awesome touch though! Most are stuck in mono. Makes for a cool little musician's toy

[@ItsJustElenore]

Fiio making a portable tape player? That's funky. They're known for pretty good DACs and Amps. My Sony WM-EX50 has the same flaw with its case. It's really not thought trough very well.

[@duskonanyavarld1786]

I can't hear difference between good dacs. I am not sure but I don't think that cassette players use dacs like cd players.

[@ItsJustElenore]

@@duskonanyavarld1786 oh I wasn't suggesting that there's a DAC in the player. Just that Fiio is known for making DACs.

[@raymondmartin6737]

Thanks 😊 for the tests and advice. I remember about 40 years ago when good Aiwa's had Dolby, solenoid controls and a radio with digital display.😊

[@veganguy74]

Great video! I know this isn’t particularly important compared to everything else about these players, but the design of the We Are Rewind player bothers me in that they couldn’t get the tape reels centered in the lower half of the circular window, or rather, didn’t adjust the design a bit to get the window’s lower half centered on the reels. The other players with windows seem to have done a better job with that in their designs.

[@TheHammerofDissidence]

Another bangin Vwest video. I kinda want one of these with Bluetooth because I spend a lot of time listening to my JBL outside. Would be cool to listen to my tapes on it.

[@PaulTaylor1]

I wish someone could crowdsource a new mechanism, designed by tape lovers for tape lovers.

[@Solitaire001]

I agree. One of the things that has caused me to not considering returning to cassettes is the lack of good cassette portables. While I like the way the Fiio player looks (its the way I'd like a portable cassette player to look), it the mechanism that gives me pause. One thing I'd like to see added is the option of a noise reduction equalization setting. Since Dolby Noise Reduction is no longer available to license, I'd like to see a setting which will cause the player to reduce the highs to reduce the tape hiss. Then, when recording the tapes you boost the highs (using an equalizer) by the same amount. The main difference between that and Dolby is that Dolby is only on during quiet passages.

[@Rivenworld]

I like the 'We are rewind' and FIIO, but love the Realistic, great looking machine and sounds pretty good too.

[@Recordology]

Interesting. I love my We Are Rewind unit. I know that the current version they are shipping performs better than the first iteration - although I don't know how to tell the difference between the two.

[@musinc1]

I like them too. I have a few old sony walkmans who maybe perform a little better , but I think the bluetooth headphone and rechargeable lithium battery really sets the We are rewind apart from the others. haven't uses my old ones since

[@gieselats]

Very interesting. Thanks for your footage. I love this kind a videos. Old audio tape equipment is getting rare. I have to look out for my two sony TC D 5 M, if they still work. Keep up the good work. I used the sony devices for my field work back in the days.

[@needfortweed8734]

And if they don't work and you can't get them fixed, they fetch a fair price on the used market...

[@audubon5425]

I only had one cassette walkman as a kid, probably around 1987 - a bottom of the line Sanyo with no radio and no rewind. It wasn't practical to walk around with it in the city (and not hear the traffic coming at you) so I used it to play tapes while I fell asleep (mostly Beatles and Monkees.) I remember the batteries were good for about two hours of play maybe, so that got expensive for a 12 year old. Would pick one up if I ran across one again for old times sake.

[@MrCosmicVictory]

what i like about the wearerewind is the built in battery, audio-in, and BLUETOOTH. its so tempting

[@Michaelkeyreal]

Thank you for the excellent review.It's unfortunate so many reviewer don't even have the gear in person. I looked through your videos. You have deep dived into cassette. I'm looking to digitize a collection of tapes I have recorded of my musical performances back in the day. My large deck died. I see several recorder/converters on Amazon in the $20-40 range. Are any of them good? Or should I shop used shops for another large deck?

[@paulblackman8159]

The Mulann seems pretty good, but the one thing that I do like is the very large window. Since a lot of record players were visible, many labels were very artfully done and is arguably why we see so many records today on coloured vinyl. This might be because when I was a kid I was fascinated watching records spin on the turntable, so when I found out CDs spin even faster, but most players were closed units, it hurt my feelings.

[@sunbeam8866]

Besides records, I was fascinated by watching tape-reels spin. Still am!

[@Defensive_Wounds]

I could tell using my EARS the first one was the best! I have a Sanyo M1010 portable tape deck that dates back to 1980, it is like a walkman in size but has an internal speaker, mic input, internal mic, remote, headphone out, DB meter. Only mono tape heads, recording and playback. Still works somehow!!! Takes 4x AA batteries. My old 1997 Sanyo "walkman" clone died whilst sitting in a box, this was the beginning of the end of long lasting tech! Lead free solder, it apexed with the Xbow 360 with the RRoD - the solder would heat up cool heat up cool etc, then eventually the CPU would disconnect from the motherboard, thus killing the console. They fixed this, but when using lead free solder things do not last as long!!

[@christopherrigby2798]

A consise and fair comparison of these four new "Walkman" that leaves it to the viewer to work out where the price Vs performance value lies so thank's for making it. If only the slot to adjust speed was getatable in the Fiio that would go a long way to replacing older well made players that are showing their age.

[@vwestlife]

The speed on the FiiO is adjustable. I'll have an update video on it soon.

[@MrEtonmess]

Thanks for the memory jog. Many hours spent listening to my Walkman. Not a care in the world. Just the music. Those were the days.

[@KRAFTWERK2K6]

My biggest gripe is that a lot of these new portable cassette players is their freaking Lithium Ion battery...... for the love of god, why can't they just make them run on standard AA batteries? >_> I'd rather use recharable AAs or standard Alkaline AAs than having to carry around a potential fire hazard cuz of these darn Lithium Ion Batteries. Also THANK YOU for this latest report on the modernday portable cassetteplayer front, Kevin. The WeAreRewind player, although looking the sweetest (Well yeah i LOVE orange) really sounded the worst. My god what a muffled sound with harsh high frequencies that sounds like digital audio at low samplerates.... I wonder if they even bother adjusting the tapehead azimuth at all before shipping? Even the Tomashi sounded clearer in comparison. But the wow and flutter is unacceptable.

[@DissonusWren]

I don't suppose you could do a similar look at the recent portable cd players that have been released? They tend to be expensive, but I don't know if this actually means they stand up to the vintage discman or not.

[@iamsimonmorris]

Thanks so much for all the work you have put into this much NEEDED comparison vid. It really is something we need when looking at forking out your $$ on what is literally a minefield of quality variables despite prices at either end of the scale. I just wish a quality portable tape recorder could be put to market. It is obviously a difficult ask as the market is a small one.

[@vwestlife]

Like I said, the FiiO shows promise, if only they can get the speed better calibrated.

[@haydendoan7691]

Another thing that I noticed with multiple of the new cassette players that I recently obtained was a noticeable (and annoying) electrical buzzing sound of the motor (in the headphones) especially during the silent segments between songs. I'm still waiting for a decent player to emerge.

[@krzysztofczarnecki8238]

Good to know what the wow and flutter is supposed to be, also actually measuring it after changing each thing when restoring is KEY to not making it worse. I'm glad my Sony TCS-430 is probably where it should be, as it has .22% RMS wow and flutter after doing a lot to it. Funnily enough with the old belt, as the new ones from Decktech (specifically for it) and from Aliexpress (assorted) were actually worse. So I can finally not muck about with it, as it sounds OK to me. I had to: -glue the broken off rear capstan bearing back in place (I was like ha ha, oh come on when I saw it, probably a good enough reason to throw it away) -relap the motor commutator because it was emitting too much purely magnetic noise (even when powered from an entirely separate battery I could hear the motor in the headphones when I placed it roughly where it should be, without even touching the metal parts with it, but couldn't find a new motor), -change the rubber idler that drives the reel in play mode (that one was hard to find, so I tried 3D printing it. Right flexibility and size, but zero traction due to being TPU and not rubber. Used what I think was some water pipe gasket in the end), -restore globs of solder where the screws attach the mechanism to the PCB actually connect to ground, to decrease motor noise, -3D print a rubber motor damper, because the old one was so soft the belt would fall off, -lubricate the motor and capstan with 50-50 mix of watch mechanism oil and 5W30 engine oil, and the rest just with engine oil, -change some capacitors in the motor driver, -clean switches and pots, -bend the pinch roller holder tip a little to make the pinch roller press more onto the capstan (the end of the holder acts as a spring), -lose several retaining clips and find new ones that fit, because it happens, -change the belts, but I only kept the new counter belt since that was missing entirely and the older capstan belt is better, -change the microphone cable as that was broken, reattach the speaker many times as it kept coming off as I opened it and closed for each of the other things, clean and demagnetize things of course, adjust head azimuth with a We Love Analog calibration tape and an oscilloscope, rearrange some cables to make motor less audible, but it's old so it's still slightly hearable,but less so with an actual tape inserted, let it run overnight on a few occasions to let the belts and stuff run themselves in and become less wowy, and then calibrate speed again. And I got it from 2% wow and flutter (after gluing the bearing back in place and changing the motor mount) to 0.22%ish (after everything else). And it sounds good enough to listen to without suffering, even the recordings made with it, and I'm fed up with repairing it. Also most of it is wow rather than flutter, so it's not too annoying. So yeah, getting a Walkman to work once it doesn't can be just a belt change, byt it can be everything else than that. Which is why it's so annoying the new mechanisms are at very best only as bad as a 40 year old one with a broken and reattached capstan bearing and 3D printed parts. I also have a transparent Chinese Tanashin clone player that had about 0.35% wow and flutter when new, but now it has about 0.8% after letting it run for a few hours thinking it will get better. And in terms of sound it has like just the mids and hiss, so not a recommended buy at all.

[@Des_Zee]

Wowwww , that first Sony walkman you showed in the video I had that one. It was great with the TV and weather bands. Takes me back👍

[@pikaporeon]

Just clicked and cant wait to see what's up here, been looking for a way to bring my old Stompin Tom tapes on dog walks and road trips

[@scottysunday]

Cheers for the vid. I've been recently trying to fix up an old Realistic walkman (SCP-40) and while a new belt has gotten the thing working, only ac power works, which kind of kills the portability. Fingers crossed they fix the Fiio issues

[@cofremusicalderarezas6735]

If I had to choose a modern Walkman, I would go with Mulaan or Fiio. But that Walkman Realistic from the 80s is still very good, and that RCA is not bad at all, despite its age.

[@PeterAmby]

Thank you for the comparison and video. I really hope to see a premium "walkman" in the near future. It's crazy that we can't buy a decent one! Really disappointed with the Fiio and WAR. Was thinking about buying the Fiio, but changed my mind after this video. Please post the response from Fiio. Really interested in their response.

[@krzysztofczarnecki8238]

I'm glad I managed to get my old Sony to about as much wow and flutter than Fiio before it came out, as I was legitimately thinking about getting a Fiio. And now I'm not. Honestly though, buy a good used deck. But best check the heads in person, as my deck currenlty waits for newer heads to show up on Ebay eventually for less than I got it for.

[@vhfgamer]

I wonder how hard it would be to swap the flywheel on one of those cheaper players. Or perhaps some other modification that would bring the wow and flutter into specification.

[@Musicradio77Network]

I’ve never owned any of these, but the most rarest one of the bunch is the Superscope Story Teller TP-101 cassette player from the 1970’s. It only has a fast forward switch, but earlier models doesn’t, and it doesn’t rewind. If you turn the tape over, and switch it to fast forward, it would use as a rewind. The Superscope Story Teller cassette player was designed for kids, and it usually came with the Superscope Story Teller book and cassette tapes that you get back in the 1970’s.

[@kens97sto171]

Great video and I appreciate all the testing... I thought the Mulann B1000 sounded the best of all of the new ones, maybe even a bit better than the vintage ones.. seemed "warmer" sounding or something..

[@alliejr]

I actually like their response. Clear. Honest. Factual.

[@atrac88]

Snap, Crackle & Pop vs. Wow & Flutter. How did we survive? I was reborn when CD’s came out.

[@SmoothEmJay]

"During development and development" was all I needed to read. I'll stick to my working Panasonic from the late 90's. That said, the Mulann is nice looking with the big window.

[@Narayan_1996]

Such amazing video, Kevin! Loved every minute of it, and got to learn more about them and which ones are better to buy and which ones to avoid ♥

[@automatedelectronics6062]

Cool. Thank you! I'm gonna have to dig out my 2 personal cassette players. I've got a Sanyo auto-reverse model, considerably larger than others and I have a Sony Sports Walkman with radio. Have you seen how much these are going for now? Astounding! Maybe I'll have to sell my Sony. The last few times I used it was at football games to hear the play-by-play.

[@robertgaines-tulsa]

I didn't notice anything unusual with the Tomashi. I don't know if it's because I'm 45 years old. I never had high end decks, though. By the time I was an adult, the cassette was on its way out. It could be I just don't expect much out of cassettes. I'm not sure why you'd expect high fidelity out of cassette when digital has you covered at least with the compact disc. When I listen to cassettes, I expect some wow and flutter to it to give it that tape sound that I grew up with as I consider it to just be a novelty media anymore. It's like if you expect digital quality sound out of a record and you don't have money to burn, you're going to be disappointed.

[@Eddies_Bra-att-ha-grejer]

5:33 Can you get around this by degaussing the tape beforehand?

[@chevycaprice87]

After removing the old belt, espescially melted one, you need to check if there's any dirt leftovers on the rollers, sometimes even small piece of sticky goo from the old belt may cause a "wobly" sound.

[@LillyP-xs5qe]

I bet fiio gonna redesign the base case to allow speed adjustment now and they gonna send him a new version or a replacement back shell with instructions how to replace it

[@hrufhduehveugrhhty2024]

Head replacement is probably the best answer. And also the proper alignment, rigorous sound testing goes on to make good cassette player.

[@dcvRecord]

Can anyone please tell me why my FiiOs sound quality changes as I tip the unit over at various angles? It sounds muffled. At first I thought it was improper seating / the plastic clip/spring at the rear not holding cassette in place properly but that's not the issue. Adjusted azimuth screw, that isn't the issue. Playback speed is fine and the headphone port is sturdy 🤷‍♂

[@apl175]

Although Sundays used to be my relax day with a new VWestlife video, I'm glad you started posting more on Monday, as it makes the trauma of the start of the week (working from home) a bit easier to bear.

[@warifaifai]

What if you can slap another metal ring onto the flywheel? Would that help?

[@LudovicoOperti]

I've got the We Are Rewind one, and I have to say that it sounds very good, with unnoticeable flutter (no distorsion on pianos and guitars at all). My biggest concern is about the recording quality: I didn't expect much from a permanent magnet setup but... omg my ears...

[@RickySupriyadi]

when I close my eyes I can imagine my self back in that era, where night sky are full of stars, open grass breezed gentle wind passing by without sound only the sound of music i heard this walk man have superb head quality, auto replay, soft earmuff. ahhh 9pm time to go home with my bmx, next cassette will do accompany my commute home

[@peacetrain3320]

These videos have been awesome. I still rock with cassettes on my hi-fi equipment.

[@Aeduo]

I think that small black one had a bit clearer sound with the symbols versus the we are rewind unit in the test track you played... And the sibilance of the person speaking haha.

[@audubon5425]

Im actually impressed how well the RCA worked. I remember seeing those in the stores back then (Wal Mart?) and thinking it must be cheap crap - Ive been wrong before lol

[@vwestlife]

Show me a "budget Walkman that has been refurbished for $50 that will sound great" and I'll buy it and do a direct comparison with these players to see if that's really true, or just glorified memories.

[@audubon5425]

@vwestlife well, we know time is money, so $50 is out of the question. But mattcorbyny1 said it best there. It is a shame for someone to lay out $150 for something that performs like a $15.99 machine from the 80's.

[@vwestlife]

@@audubon5425 The cheapest Walkman-type player that Radio Shack sold was $19.95 in 1989. That's equal to around $50 in today's money -- about the same as the new Mulann model that I recommended. And unlike that cheap 1980s player, it actually rewinds.

[@sunbeam8866]

Remember 'Durabrand'?

[@ConsumerDV]

@@vwestlife The last Sony Walkman sold in the U.S. was $29 in 2008, this is $42 in today's money. It could fast forward and rewind, and had autostop. No autoreverse. No tape type selector. No Dolby. But it had AM/FM radio. It was slimmer than the Mulann and worked from one AA cell for 30 hours.

[@_AlexM412_]

Lack of second flywheel cause additional sound distortion when you walking with player in pocket. That's why players even without autoreverse also has double flywheel (except Walkman DD). It called anti rolling mechanism.

[@leonjohnsonjr3331]

They have a speed pitch inside you adjust so it won't drag for the speed

[@ThexthSurvivor]

Holy shit I had no idea old walkmans were selling for such insane prices. I have three that still work that I haven't used in years. Definitely will sell now. Thanks!

[@pktsqr]

Helpful video, I've been wondering about finding something like these. Great selection and presentation of information.

[@jimralston4789]

I bought an early Sony Walkman model is '81 as a sophomore. I was the first one at my high school with one and everyone wanted to borrow it. It sounded so awesome playing Foreigner 4 and Jukebox Hero.

[@PhillyFixed]

I have that exact late-model silver Sony cassette walkman that you showed at the opening of the vid.

[@duprie37]

I have a brand new walkman that I got off eBay a few weeks ago - the delightful JL205 - and wouldn't you know it, it too has an ES4201 playback head. I guess there's only one mechanism being made that everyone is using? Once I'd corrected the azimuth it wouldn't be half bad if it weren't for that awful buzzing noise they all seem to suffer from as soon as you hit play. I vaguely remember that was just as much a problem in 1988 though as it is now.

[@markwrightrf]

The Radioshack deck passes the Amiga interpretation of stereo with flying colors

[@santajimi]

Now we need to see you try to access the speed adjustment on the FIIO.

[@casualsuede]

When my friends went to Japan in the 1980's, many of them came back with a Walkman that looked futuristic and sounded amazing.

[@scanman84]

Have you seen the price of used decks on ebay? They are through the roof! Cassettes are definitely popular again.

[@teabreakbeats]

How does the recording work on the models that support it? is there a mic built in or a line in jack?

[@YellowJello57]

One of the problems with these newer players is they typically max out at around 13Hz which is low compared to older players. Of course it is near impossible to get old players working properly. Probably best to just listen to digital files, obviously

[@RealEpikCartfrenYT]

It's probably down to the play head being the cheapest of its kind, while also being misaligned at the same time. Pair that with cheap analog circuitry. These modern walkmans don't differ at all from the garbage that was made in the 1980s when the Walkman first became popular

[@krzysztofczarnecki8238]

If you want good analog sound, the best way is to get a "mid-range" record player, like an Audio Technica AT-LP120X-USB. That easily blows cassette players that cost less than several arms and legs out of the water, even with its built-in preamp. But it deserves a better preamp and a microlinear stylus, which you can always get later if you like it. I was skeptical about the "vinyl comeback" before I bought it but now I'm not, and I consider records as about as good as CD, in that some are better and some are worse, usually for mastering reasons.

[@musinc1]

Well, nice review,...but personally I think the bluetooth option on the We are rewind is one of the most handy features if you use it where it's meant for, listening while you're moving. you don't have to bother about the headphone wire . the lithium batterie is one of the biggest advantages compared to the older 'vintage' models. it holds up very long and I think in the long run those old or cheap new devices are far more expensive if you count the extra cost of all the batteries....Of course , there are rechargeable 1,5 v batteries but in my experience they don't last as long as a fresh batterie in terms of playing hours and they're really a hassle . On the We are rewind, you can simply recharge it in your computer (instead of those bulky rechargers). Of course, some things can be better. I personally think the 'we are rewind' should be more 'rounded off' because edges are rather sharp, lithium battery should be replaceable and mechanism can be better .....but that's a real challenge because the technology is dead and big companies or suppliers are (at this moment) not interested. i guess you can design a better mechanism from scratch but that will raise the price up high and then it's no fun anymore.....

[@JohnAranita]

My first portable cassette player was a Sears house brand. I got it in 1983. It did not have a rewind function, but I did not care in my freshman year in high school.

[@laranaarana]

The best cassette player I ever owned was an Optimus SCP-43 that I purchased on 1990 when it was on Sale for $100. If it hadn't wall from my shirt pocket I would still have it with me.