Reel News

We get asked a lot of questions about reel to reel players. These range from how to buy one to recording, playback and the maintenance of both tapes and decks. We thought it would be helpful to assemble a list of tips and suggestions from our reel to reel community as well as some notable experts around the industry.

Running a finger over the spooled tape reveals no unevenness, no ridges. It made me think of (and I compared them to) fresh blank tape as it arrived from the factory. For this alone, anyone who uses 7-inch spools on a regular basis should purchase at least one for critical playback of treasured tapes.

Our final donation to the World Central Kitchen to help feed the Ukrainian Refugees after transaction fees came to $6,035.85. Thank you so much to everyone who donated!

We had over 300 $20 donation/raffle tickets purchased by over 100 different people from 8 different countries!

“What’s in a reel?” you may well ask. Well, a lot more than simply being a device to store audio tape – Neville Roberts delves into the detail!

Martin Pipe takes up his tape with this superbly-made reel from the USA.

Thanks to RX Reels careful balance, fast-winding is quieter than with lesser articles due to a considerable reduction in vibration - which is itself a good thing, for the life of your deck's reel motors. The lack of physical noise during playback isn't the only audible benefit - I also found that the stereo image was more solid and better defined. Quite frankly, it's highly unlikely you'll find a better spool for your deck.

Are you thinking about entering the growing world of reel to reel tape players? We'll walk you through reel-to-reel player types, what's available and the most popular machines on the market today.