Denon DR-F8

Part of the very rare lineups of cassette recorders.
Mainly interesting because it embodies a changing perspective : still lavish and slanted like we don't slant things anymore, and allowing a peek at the immediate future - e l e c t r o n i c a !

So the DR-F8 includes an early version of what almost everybody was doing at the time : analyze the specific tape inside and adjust everything accordingly - bias, frequency response etc.
But... there's only one preset :) Denon's own DR-M4 would carry this to near-infinity levels but, after all, how many really good tapes were available then ?

The three models are fully identical but for the DR-F6 which does away with the FTS computer and the DR-F8 which sports PLL Quartz-Locking.
The latter, however, only makes a difference of .02% in speed accuracy when compared with the DR-F7...

Specs are more than respectable : 73dB (S/N ratio, C Dolby, 3% THD) and 0,025% wow & flutter.
7,5kg of educated audio :)

All three are very rare (although not as rare as the contemporary DR-L2), very good looking and well built.
More seriously featured and contemporary would be the tall, dark and shiny Nakamichi 1000ZXL or the slim, matte and futuristic Sony TC-FX1010.