Sony TC-WE475 dual cassette deck review

The last model of tape deck that Sony ever made; you could buy one new as late as 2011. Overall pretty good, except for clunky mechanisms and mediocre Dolby B NR performance. I bought this deck new at Circuit City in July 2002 as a display model special for $139.97 + tax.
(Originally uploaded to KZbin on March 16, 2013 with 12,622 views; edited and re-uploaded due to copyright problems.)

[@devonnewest7990]

Cassettes sound freaking amazing. I will never get rid of them, or my Technics RS-TR355 and Sony TC-WR710.

[@AdventuresinNature]

I was just given my late papa's Sony TCWE435 cassette deck and personally replaced the belts on it today and got it working again like brand new! I've had such fun and enjoyment with it today!

[@EddieJazzFan]

Great review....2000 views in 3 days! Wow I thought I was one of the few people still interested in cassettes.

[@LondonUnderground186]

Cassettes will never die. Same as all of the analog technology. Digital is great, ok... but when it fails, you lost all. Analog doesn't.

[@Rich_123]

You always have such a great playlist for these demos.

[@noisepuppet]

I've been into audio all my life and have even made money at it, and I do know the limitations of cassette tape. I think it sounds just fine. It is certainly a marvel of engineering, the performance they managed to wring out of this medium, with its byzantine clockwork of moving parts.

[@HamtaroEL]

noisepuppet D6, D6C and D5M are way better than the new Sony dual well decks.

[@ewkalt4770]

SuS WoW

[@WaybackTECH]

I think people are surprised when they hear a cassette to how good they sound, because it has been so long since cassettes were made. I think a lot of people now days never heard music from one, and everyone is use to hearing MP3 / iTunes or streaming music. Which is another reason there is a bit of a surprise when one hears vinyl for the first time, or the first time in many years.

[@deckofcards87]

WaybackTECH Analogue is usually always less harsh on the ear, I think that's partly it even if it's a shoddy recording. There's nothing shittier than a weak digital remaster or low bitrate mp3 on full volume.

[@markteague8889]

I can’t really enjoy the satellite broadcasts due to the aliasing.

[@markteague8889]

I have a unit similar to that one, but with square buttons and Dolby S. I was kind of blown away by how effective the Dolby S noise reduction was at retaining highs. But alas, no factory auto systems had Dolby S.

[@afrog2666]

That, and people have heard bad recordings, with cheap tapes or over recorded tapes used on cheap gear ;)

[@jamesherman3750]

@@markteague8889 Dolby C is still pretty good and I'd argue you dont really need anything more than that. Especially on a player this midrange.

[@guanghua4439]

I was born in 2001, and cassette was filled during my childhood until 2013 when my school decided to use CD instead Cassette to record English class lectures. Then two years later my Dad gave all cassettes and CDs to his friends since he thought I'm not going into music (but I did a year later😂) I have being digging into mp3s, streams, CDs, Vinyls, and here I am to rediscover cassette in 2019 and, personal opinion, this is the one gives me the most joy. With all you can do to record and play and trials and errors, try hot recordings, dubbing and personalize, it just fun and enjoyable. Picked up this we475 from Goodwill for $9.99 and LOVE IT! My roommate shocks about how great a cassette could sound and I will never forget his reactions when he realized this deck is just 9.99 bucks😂

[@migalito1955]

I just picked one up at an antiques store for $35. It was in excellent shape. I also picked up 12 tapes of type 2 , 3 and 4 for 33 cents each. I felt like I won the lottery because I have been using a LX1 Sears machine made by Sanyo during the early seventies. Its OK but without any noise reduction. The Sony seems to be a nice addition and with their new popularity I felt $35 for a perfect machine was a good deal. Thanks for the review and the date code info which places mine at 2002.

[@silverphoenix684]

Recently got back into tape decks. Thanks for the vid.

[@EastAngliaUK]

The audio seems very very good for a tape here. Even over YT.

[@TEDdotcom]

I ran to the living room to check if we have this same tape deck...and it is! I guess its quite a popular model since I see a lot of posts that claim they have this too. I really like to sound from this but unfortunately I don't have a lot of tapes anymore to use this. BTW, the sound quality from your tape recordings are great. 👍🏼

[@monsieurmike2072]

Excellent!.. just acquired one of these after watching this review. Just confirmed with the selller that i am interested in purchasing for 20 bucks...in excellent working condition like brand new. Will be picking it up tmrw sunday..✌

[@StevenSmyth]

ARL is Auto Record Level. It's another way to turn it off without diddling the dial.

[@verastaki]

I have exactly the same Sony Tape Deck I purchased brand new at Best Buy's in 2005. My universal remote control works well with this tape deck! I can record from tape A to tape B, from CD, MD, etc... Without getting up from my table as I'm enjoying my breakfast.

[@seand67]

Hi, what brand/model universal remote do you have ?

[@UltrafineDeluxe]

@@seand67 I've managed to control this deck with a One For All universal remote as well.

[@LightTheUnicorn]

The audio demo was quite impressive, sounds very good!

[@Dan-TechAndMusic]

You probably already figured out, but ARL is Automatic Rec Level, as written on the tape doors :)

[@M3G4UK]

Love that you sneaked in a few seconds of Black Box Recorder's facts of life!

[@darlenegoodwin6467]

I have this. I saw this at a stop and swap in Bay Ridge, Brooklyn and took it immediately. It is great.

[@hermannschottler9396]

Really nice review, love the music samples.

[@edwincancelii2917]

I am a fan of pitch control! So wonderful!

[@juanmanuelhinojocaudillo141]

Edwin Cancel II can You Say me how that works?

[@shaunmartin1417]

Good review. Just picked one up from the thrift store for $30.

[@captianbubble]

I have the model from Amazon! It’s really great! I am using it now for high-speed dubbing on a tape that would not work on any other cassette deck except for this model for some odd reason.

[@jeffl.9633]

I have a TC-WE425, which is almost the same deck except the 425 lacks the automatic music search feature. There are some cosmetic differences in that the 425 uses rectangular & square buttons for the tape controls.

[@fdmillion]

I've had one of these for almost 18 years, bought it brand new back in the day. I've had the issue of the tape getting stuck as well, and then the deck won't even work, it'll try to release and fail and flash it "-E-" on both counters. Solution is to open it up and rotate the capstan on the stuck deck *manually* in *reverse* - from the back of the machine you would turn it clockwise. This quickly releases the mechanism. Then you can eject the tape Not sure what causes it but I've had to start doing it more often lately since I dug it out and started using it more. I only keep one screw in the top cover to make it quick to open it up should I need to. Luckily it's still relatively uncommon and even with heavy use I only find I need to do it once every month or so. (The ARL button manually turns the auto level on and off, it's better than rotating the level dial to turn it off on a new recording especially if you carefully dialed in the level previously.)

[@judenihal]

I HAVE THIS! I bought this in 2016 for 10 dollars from Goodwill.

[@martyjewell5683]

Interesting comments here. I "acquired" this deck when my brother passed in 2015. Been using it for three years now. Not sure when he purchased it but I know he had it several years. My only caveat with this (and any) reverse play deck is the mechanical system to accomplish this function. Man, I just don't trust machines! I've never used the reverse mode and the deck has run without problems for me over the last three years. Appears to be an acceptable cassette deck in the quality Sony tradition. That is, as dual well decks go. My main cassette decks are; Denon DRM-800A, Akai GX-f31, Technics RS-M224 and a Nakamichi BX-1. I also have a Teac X-3 open reel deck.

[@timmylee2170]

it actually sounds pretty good

[@ciprianwinerElectronicManiac]

I actually wanted to buy this tape deck but I wen't for the Yamaha KX-W482 because it has Play trim and can record on both Deck A and Deck B. Mine also makes that stupid clunking sound every time it switched modes and the reason is very simple, it uses only a motor and a relay engaged a cam gear to cycle trough the modes of rising the head and switching between play, FF and REW which is a bunch of crap because it will wear down the mechanism much more faster than a 2-3 motor deck, lesson learned for me, however it sounds very nice so I'm pleased with that at leas. Cheers :)

[@68pishta68]

Josie Cotton an The Blues Image on the same tape? Wild! These Sony transports were very clever, there was a mode wheel that cycled 360 degrees every time you changed modes. And it did it when the drive belt reversed direction with a high speed change of polarity to the drive motor. The drive gear had a secondary planetary gear on it off its axis that when the motor reversed direction the gear would spin the little gear onto the mode wheel and cycle it. Then a cam would follow various slots in the wheel to retract the head, move it into FFW and then cycle around again to raise the tape and play. Thats why they were so clunky, that wheel was turning fast and furious. Too bad the planetary gear carrier was made of nylon and would crack and lose its ability to do its thing. Even the High end TC-K615S had this transport but had heavier cast AL flywheels in place of these flimsy plastic wheels.

[@eljheids1115]

9:56 X-DREAMS - MARY ANN!!! RECORDED ONTO THE CASSETTE.

[@randyharrigan4790]

I want your mixtape! Lol. I'm fixing up a pioneer ctw500, got play side perfect, still have some work to do on record side, seems like a simple to work on deck and good sounding.

[@THOMMGB]

I've got one of those Sony cassette decks (TC-WR845S) that won't eject the tape and found that removing the top cover and releasing "something" (it was a long time ago), I was able to retrieve my tape. Commenter uxwbill is exactly right in stating that the belts need to be replaced. I just haven't gotten around to it yet. I'm glad to see your machine is still up and running. Regards, Tom

[@djs909]

I recently got me one of these (the silver one). I like it, it sounds great. And the pitch control is a nice addition.

[@luckykennedy7364]

I have that exact model and it serves me very well.

[@armanelgtron4533]

Sounds good through my headphones.

[@ajaugenti1976]

I've got the very same Sony tape deck model but, it's from 2002 and got it for Christmas that same year.

[@peterregorsek1504]

Cassette tape can sound so great if you use good tape deck. I have second hand Pioneer deck from 90`s and some tapes can sound as good as a CD.

[@ShazeemKhan]

Peter Regoršek can u still get parts for them?

[@maxmustardman298]

I wonder the same thing. On the other hand, plastic parts can nowadays easily reproduced with a 3d printer, if the specs are right.

[@victordelacruz278]

You mean better than cds..👍🏾

[@WeatherSTARIII]

Darn shame your original video of your Sony TC-WE475 cassette deck got flagged. I've always loved watching your electronics reviews and videos.

[@m.mohammed2108]

The audio sample was very good

[@Jako1987]

What? I have followed you long time and I brought this cassette deck used long time ago but only now I found this review! 😅

[@danielponder690]

I have one of these! It’s very nice. Great sound and nice features.

[@peacearchwa5103]

Not unexpectedly, guitar playing is pretty revealing of wow & flutter, you can subtly detect this at 10:35. It's actually pretty common on most cassette decks. This is a nice-sounding deck for something that's not TOTL. Thanks for posting!

[@BavarianM]

my sony deck tc-we835s is super good it has everything even dolby s

[@VintageAudioTech]

David Piçarra yes the 835s is a good sounding deck. I also have one

[@VintageAudioTech]

Csab I use to have a WA9ES. That was the fully featured dual deck that Sony put out before they quit the cassette game

[@turntabillist]

Ugh, wish I knew that little secret about removing the cassette doors. After many many years, I had to dismantle the unit and replace the belts. You have do remove the doors in order to do so. Somehow I was able to do one deck without any issue, but the other one, I broke some of the plastic which helps to keep the door latched on. Anyway, it's playing tapes as good as new again, so can't complain too much. 2 of the belts had literally begun to deteriorate and turn into mush. The deck overall does sound pretty decent as long as you are playing good quality, clean tapes.

[@ttheone3518]

in terms of dual cassette decks, you might like the Denon DRW-750A for three reasons 1. it has two non-auto-reverse cassette decks with two motors on each deck 2. both decks have a stableization system (how effective it is, i'm not sure) 3. you have Dolby B, C, HX Pro, as well as a manual adjustable bias control

[@jessicalipp4270]

Does it have pitch control?

[@nakitumizajashi4047]

Flipping of the head is because you're playing in opposite direction that you're fast-forwarding to. This is auto reverse mechanism, so you can play in both directions and thus "rewind" is the same as "fast-forward" and vice versa, depending on which direction is tape playing.

[@XtremeKremaTor]

Just a guess but: you open it up and space inside occupied mostly by air and one small board. Rest is on the front panel...

[@sargetech]

Wow every single track you played I knew by heart very eclectic and very good

[@seand67]

I just purchased a used model on Ebay....Just interested in playing my old high bias cassette tapes

[@the2494silvester]

I have exactly this Deck. It is quite new when you look at it, but when U try to play the cassette, it stops after 4 seconds. If I press play, still plays for 4 seconds then stops. And sometimes pulls out the magnetic tape. Do you think this isssue can be repaired?

[@vwestlife]

It probably needs new belts.

[@the2494silvester]

@@vwestlife I thought about it. But this happens with both decks. Do you think it is the belt in both cases?

[@jomjom1207]

Have you ever replaced pinch rollers on Sony`s of this model or similar? I have a 835s that probably would need replacement rollers.. I see there exists repair kits on ebay with the 4 rollers but can they actually be taken out of the assembly which they are connected? And do i need to totally tear down the set to do it? I replaced the belts on it some days ago and that went fine due to having YT videos showing me how to do it but i cant find any videos that describes the roller replacement..

[@ItzYaBoyJesse]

Had a model similar to this. Sadly catastrophic failure happened where it wouldn't rewind or reverse play anymore. Messed with it too much don't know what I'm doing and then it wouldn't power back on again.

[@NGC1433]

Wow, nice stereo effect in two tracks @ 12:40 Even through all the compressions one can get a sense, that there is something to listen to.

[@iamshivaagrawal]

can you make a video of how to record on a cassette using a digital source? please.

[@iamshivaagrawal]

Im thinking of buying it second hand from a person.

[@vwestlife]

It works the same as recording from an analog source.

[@BrunoGenovese]

@@iamshivaagrawal what do you mean you are going to buy one from a prison?

[@iamshivaagrawal]

@@BrunoGenovese lol i laughed so hard 😂

[@knut917]

arl stand for auto record level

[@eggshellskullrule7971]

I hv the higher end TCW675. This Sony is my preferred deck for bedroom music player and radio recorde for a few years now.

[@paynemononymousbachman]

I have this tape player and it is great

[@Jawsjawsjawsrg]

I noticed that you only played the tapes out of the right side. I just bought one for $25 because I don't play many tapes if ever, but wanted one for my new system. When I tested it, the left was playing slower, the right one was playing fine. What is the reason for this? Is this a right hand play only?

[@vwestlife]

It probably needs new belts. Change them now before they melt into sticky goo!

[@Thanson199415]

My aunt has a very similar cassette deck, model TC-WE635

[@ELBENDC2]

Hi, I have the Sony TC-WR741 and I'm looking for the belt kit can you please send me any links available thanks

[@BlueNeon81]

Teac is still producing casette deck, but they support only IEC I and IEC II cassettes and two of three models have only Dolby B.

[@matmroy]

Excellent, I am very surprised there is not more audio hiss. I have the same exact deck and I stopped using it a few months ago, because whatever I recorded on it, had too much tape noise. Did you record this using Dolby B or C? Also, What was the audio source?

[@vwestlife]

matmroy I recorded on Type II tape with no Dolby. Audio source was my computer.

[@matmroy]

Ok, that makes sense. My source is usually another cassette and I use Type 1 tapes for the most part. I use type 2 Cro2 tapes when I can find them at the local thrift stores. I refuse to buy them online, they just want to much money.

[@Loc1600]

Synthematix That is just BS. If that happens on your computer, it will also happen with a soundcard.( The soundcard thas the same power supply as onboard sound) Onboard sound is just as good, if not better than soundcards. They say a card is better, but that is just marketing. 30 times the power? That just means it will go louder, louder isn't better. And realtek isn''t bad.

[@stevenking2980]

Most Sony stuff is junk. Rather have marantz or pioneer. Good video

[@robtaylor8853]

Great review of this product. What do you recommend for someone like myself who did not buy the last decks made by Sony and now my older unit has developed an issue with the belts going bad? I'd really like to find a like-new Sony unit but so far no luck with eBay or Amazon.

[@metaljoe9088]

I own 2 of those The one is made in japan the other one is china made. They both sound very very good

[@donchido9963]

I just had this cassette deck serviced and brought back. But the service guy told me it can only play cassettes and won't do recording. I ask him why...he told me due to some electronic chip inside that couldn't be replaced. Do you know what is the reason why it can't do recording??? Thanks

[@captianbubble]

Dolby chips can’t be replaced now, because Doe B licensing expired a long time ago.

[@blastfromtheeast]

Cool video. How does 1D translate into 2001? I have 3C on mine. Just wondering.

[@wawansuteja8312]

Can record a sound from original cassette into empty cassette? How is the way? Put empty cassette in right deck & played cassette in left deck or opposited?

[@vwestlife]

Yes, it can dub tapes.

[@FallOutRob2005]

Nice cassette deck. BTW. When you showed the date code on the cassette deck and confirmed it was made in 2001, you just helped me figure out those questionable date codes that Sony puts on their electronics. I've been trying to find out when my Sony PlayStation 2 and Dream Machine were manufactured. My PlayStation 2 is a model SCPH 39001 and it has the date code 2D which would mean that it was made on the last quarter of 2002. And my Sony Dream Machine is a model ICF-C2W (probably an 80s Dream Machine by the looks of it) and has the date code 8B probably made on the second quarter of 1988. But my question is do the letters on the date codes go by quarters of the year like A,B,C, and D?

[@vwestlife]

FallOutRob2005 That is my best guess -- the letter represents quarters of the year.

[@FallOutRob2005]

I did some research a few nights ago and it appears that the letters go from A to D to represent the quarters of the year. Since there are 4 quarters in a year, I guess Sony used letters like A,B,C, and D.

[@rustymixer2886]

Do all 3 models have pitch control ? 265 475 665/675

[@bradyledbetter1592]

Does anyone know what the song is that’s playing at 9:57-10:20?!?!? It sounds good and I can’t figure out the name

[@UltrafineDeluxe]

Is it a big deal that this unit doesn't have auto calibration or a manual bias control? I'm switching to this unit from a JVC-TD-W317 because I want remote control over my tape deck, but I will be losing automatic calibration from the JVC.

[@DevouringMusic]

I believe I saw this at Goodwill today and a Yamaha KX-530 Natural Sound Stereo Cassette Deck. Gonna go back later and pick one of em up, need something to play the few cassettes I got. Just worried about whether about any potential issues.

[@DevouringMusic]

Based on those samples, might pick this one up though. Wow, man. Might become a cassette man hahahaha

[@ovedclali]

Amazing sound.

[@jamesherman3750]

Whats the track at? 9:04?

[@mdahsan24]

My deck B isn't operating, I did the simple troubleshooting steps but the tape will play for 2 sec and stop. If I put it on continuous play mode it will switch side play 10 seconds and switch side again and will keep doing so until stopped. Does it sound like a belt issue?

[@scottjayson72]

Do you know anyone that repairs tape decks? BTW, nice video!

[@Fabian-xc7bx]

Could it be that the head is flipping over because AMS is working? On most of the decks with AMS or similar technology you have to stop the tape first and then press fast-forward or rewind otherwise it will make an AMS-search.

[@jasmeetmatharoo]

please add the songs list in the description.

[@stevengaisford3279]

Jasmeet Matharoo I

[@LondonUnderground186]

Candi Staton "Young hearts run free" (1976) The Blues Image "Ride captain ride" (1970) Josie Cotton "Johnny, are you queer?" (1981) Lou Rawls "You'll never find another love like mine" (1976) X-Dreams "Mary Ann" (1984) Ten Years After "I'd love to change the world" (1971) Diana Navarro "Sola" (2005) Connie Smith "Tiny blue transistor radio" (1965) Black Box Recorder "The facts of life" (2000) Billy Joe Royal "Down in the boondocks" (1981) The Four Seasons "Rag doll" (1964) Kim Carnes "Bette Davis Eyes" (1981)

[@MusicBoxVinyl]

Found the same one at goodwill, is it supposed to have a plug for the wall in the back?

[@vwestlife]

Yes.

[@EddieJazzFan]

I was wondering what kind of Camcorder that you use that has the direct sound input jack that you used for the sound samples?

[@vwestlife]

margaretsville I use a Canon FS200.

[@robertson3620]

Is this good at recording blank cassettes? I'm just thinking of buying the same...

[@Quebecoisegal]

I have one of these and they certainly sound clunky at times, and recently I had a tape stuck in, or so I thought, luckily I didn't resort to trying to force the door open, it must of got to the end properly, not sure I understand that bit.

[@windowsuser321]

This exact model is in my closet in the original box. I don't know if it still works - it's been sitting in there for years.

[@theoblivious2001]

you should test it:)

[@feketetv]

did you record the audio at the sound test directly from the cable or outside? (sorry for my bad english)

[@vwestlife]

feketetv I connected the tape deck's headphone output to my camcorder's microphone input using an attenuation cable.

[@jaredsmith3761]

What song is at 9:57?

[@mapp4751]

would you say this is a mid range deck? i have a chance to get a refurbished one,it sounded good to my ears!

[@vwestlife]

Yes, it is a mid-range cassette deck.

[@rmx77]

i happen to have the tc-we435 which is like urs but the buttons are a little different then urs but hey its still a great deck sorta

[@markteague8889]

I have a Sony deck from this era (early 90s, I think) with that mechanism and the secondary cassette player door is stuck just like you mentioned. Any recommendations for getting it open without breaking the door or mechanism?

[@vwestlife]

If you open it up you should be able to move the mechanism by hand enough to get it to disengage and allow you to open the door.

[@markteague8889]

VWestlife Thanks! I’ll give it a shot. It’s been in this state for about 15 years. My daughter wanted a phone case whose back looked like a cassette tape last year. I’d like to share with her the joy of recording the hip / current tunes from an FM radio broadcast as opposed to buying the album from Record Bar. :)

[@LukaM]

How do you turn down the volume with headphones

[@vwestlife]

Use headphones with an inline volume control, or get an adapter that adds an inline volume control to a 3.5mm audio cable.

[@metaljoe9088]

The sony ES 3 heads cassette decks models are the best

[@robtaylor8853]

What's the advantage of having access to the azimuth mechanism? This was something I'm not clear on.

[@vwestlife]

I thought I explained it in the video? Especially with home recordings, different tapes have different azimuth alignments.

[@pablorai769]

Ahhh... Diana Navarro... (10:52)

[@clemsonbloke]

Kevin, I have the TC-WE675. I bought mine around 2004 at Tweeter.

[@theoblivious2001]

how did you find out what his name was?

[@FifoF]

sorry for bringing this up! kzbin.info/www/bejne/bXu3daFvrpyrbqs

[@RockinJohnny]

ARL stands for Automatic Recording Level as far as I know

[@Rijeka82]

I have problem :(.. When i connect my CD player or Pc.. there is no sound on Cassette player.. i have same model as you, and there is no sound from other source on my deck :(.. How to fix that??

[@vwestlife]

You need to start recording before you can hear sound from the input.

[@Rijeka82]

Yea.. just my friend told me that.. i didnt know :).. Thanks anyway :D

[@An9eL_C]

Just got this today at Goodwill for $10 replacing an old Technic deck that had cassette A broken... What does dc servo controlled motor mean??? Thank you for the great review video...

[@vwestlife]

DC servo is the way the motor maintains its speed.

[@An9eL_C]

Thank's for the quick response... I thought it was more along the lines of a direct drive system but I see they are totally different terminologies...

[@classygamingstudios8310]

Did you have any speakers attached to this when you make the audio samples

[@vwestlife]

No, you're hearing a direct connection to _your_ speakers.

[@classygamingstudios8310]

VWestlife so there are already built in speakers?

[@classygamingstudios8310]

VWestlife so there are already built in speakers? Because im thinking of buying one i want to know if i should buy external speakers

[@vwestlife]

No. The audio you're hearing is a direct connection to the tape deck's output. It does not have speakers.

[@classygamingstudios8310]

VWestlife ok thanks, but in the future i do plan to add speakers, what kind would you suggest

[@HobertMcFarlandtechandcargeek]

10:00 That's my JAM! I think I had one of these until it was sold on eBay in favor of a dual CD Player (also sold on eBay at one point). BTW What's that song around 14:01 ?

[@Elfnetdesigns]

***** Bette Davis Thighs lol. For some reason when I was a child I thought that was the name of that song for the longest time.

[@kamuy_1337]

MilenniumEdition 56 Kim Carnes is a good song, I have a 45 rpm single vinyl of this song! :D

[@dannydsi3d]

Happy Memorial Day.