AXPONA 2026: Revox Reel to Reel

[amirm]

Nice to see them bring back a Reel to Reel. Personally though, I do not care for the looks, nor the nearly $20K price.

Tape sounded excellent. This digital version, not so with my headphones. May not be the same master though.

 

[mhardy6647]

It looks just like their consumer/prosumer reel to reel decks looked in the late 1970s.

source: https://www.worldradiohistory.com/Archive-All-Audio/Archive-Audio/70s/Audio-1978-10.pdf

 

[Joe Smith]

@amirm - was there any mention of the new cassette tapes they are (supposedly) developing with National Audio Company in the U.S.? I have not seen anything further about that since the initial press release...?

 

[amirm]

No, nothing about cassettes.

 

[DavidMcRoy]

I used many Revox A77 and B77 decks in radio broadcasting over the decades. They were the go-to replacement when giant old Ampex decks with tubes were deemed to be ready to become part of an artificial reef. The Bs were considerably more refined from a mechanical standpoint. Both surprised maintenance engineers who had been afraid they wouldn't hold up in 24/7 operation, but they were fine.

 

[amirm]

They told me to this day they are manufacturing parts and servicing the B77s!

 

[Grotti]

And again a speaker of Aretai. I would really like to see some NFS measurements. Were they a reason for your verdict that it sounded excellent?

 

[diddley]

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Nice to see them bring back a Reel to Reel. Personally though, I do not care for the looks, nor the nearly $20K price.
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Tape sounded excellent. This digital version, not so with my headphones. May not be the same master though.

Dutch Pride seen Hans a couple of times live in a small little village that is famous here for it's blues music band Cuby and the Blizzards, Hans is a great picker and a nice person.

 

[amirm]

And again a speaker of Aretai. I would really like to see some NFS measurements. Were they a reason for your verdict that it sounded excellent?

It is a combination of everything from the content to the speaker.

 

[Rick63]

I just noticed "Alice Cooper Limited Edition". I wonder if it costs extra?

 

[Ruediger]

Used to cut radio shows on these machines. Also enjoyed the "3 hour mixtapes" I could make at home with it.

Will marketing be able to make those come back? Maybe for a niche, with some nice looking reels..

 

[thewas]

I just noticed "Alice Cooper Limited Edition". I wonder if it costs extra?

View attachment 525032

Yes, "just" 11.000 Swiss Francs (which is approximately 14.000 US$) extra

Bandmaschinen

revox.com

 

[Frank Dernie]

They told me to this day they are manufacturing parts and servicing the B77s!

I used mine until changing to DAT in the early 1990s, I still use it to replay old recordings but it needs a service.

Edit to add that $20k isn't far off just inflation from their cost in the 1970s.

 

[jdbob]

I used many Revox A77 and B77 decks in radio broadcasting over the decades. They were the go-to replacement when giant old Ampex decks with tubes were deemed to be ready to become part of an artificial reef. The Bs were considerably more refined from a mechanical standpoint. Both surprised maintenance engineers who had been afraid they wouldn't hold up in 24/7 operation, but they were fine.

I worked at an automated radio station in southern California in the mid 70's that used some version of A77's in a Schafer Automation System. The only problem we had was that when it was rewinding a tape that was just played over and over in rotation they would sometimes not stop at the end and turned the end of the tape into little bitty fragments If we were lucky it was a John Denver track

 

[DavidMcRoy]

I worked at an automated radio station in southern California in the mid 70's that used some version of A77's in a Schafer Automation System. The only problem we had was that when it was rewinding a tape that was just played over and over in rotation they would sometimes not stop at the end and turned the end of the tape into little bitty fragments If we were lucky it was a John Denver track

When I was at WLPR-FM Mobile, AL in the late 70s, we were using an IGM automation sequencer with two monster Scully decks and a ReVox A77. Time and temp were on A-Carts and the commercial carts were in a 48-slot IGM Instacart. If I recall correctly, we used a pair of A77s for production.

 

[mhardy6647]

I still like my A77.

 

[kemmler3D]

I had an A77 for a while, but it didn't really work right and I ended up giving it to a friend when I moved. I should tell him it's apparently worth $20K...

 

[Bruce Morgen]

We had an A77 in the audio showroom where I worked circa 1968. IIRC we never sold a single unit -- everyone bought Teacs or Tandbergs back then.

 

[mhardy6647]

I had an A77 for a while, but it didn't really work right and I ended up giving it to a friend when I moved. I should tell him it's apparently worth $20K...

They're not -- but they were sturdy and popular across a range of "prosumer" applications. Chris Squire's memorably shown with one on the inside photos of Yes's Roundabout album.

The absolutely need attention at this late date. If nothing else, they're chock-full of capacitors that are literally (!) ready to go up in smoke.
Mine was reanimated from a total of three (more or less) cadavers by a well-known ReVox (and Stellavox) whisperer who lives in NY state.
It was resurrected as a high-speed (7.5/15 ips), two-track machine -- and it performs very well (yes, as measured).