Teac V-95RX

Fairly forgotten recorder from the time Teac really started multiplying lineups and recorders for the most part based on Alpine mechanisms.
Also from the brief time Teac made worthwhile efforts on design, color and texture.


If the V-95RX, V-R1 in Japan, had the always astounding dbx noise reduction system on top of the usual Dolby B, it mostly had sci-fi functions like fast auto-reverse, automatic i/o fader, block-repeat (aka A-B repeat) and CPS programming.

Also in were (are) a fully-DC amp section with a ±12 V bipolar power supply - audiophile.


The auto-reverse works with independent forward and reverse capstans and an IR detection of the tape's leader ; reverse time was (is) a fast 0.15 seconds.
For those with manual abilities, the reverse function could (can) be triggered anywhere on the tape by adding adhesive sensing foil at the desired point. If doing this on a 1/4" of open-reel tape is easy, on (in) a cassette it is a bit more demanding...

There were (are) three motors inside the V-95RX : one DC-Servo for capstan, one DC for reels, one for Teac's Electroload headblock movements. Another two-speed motor was added for the automatic fade-in / fade-out.

Block repeat is like A-B repeat : press Start Memo first, then Stop Memo at the end of what you want repeated ad infinitum (but hopefully not ad nauseam) and repetition starts right away.
If nauseam occurs, press the orange Clear button and time stops its repeated warp.

CPS works the same way, but with the help of the green LED display ; 15 selections can be spotted / searched if enough muted recording separates said selections. The green display however only has one digit so where do items 10 to 15 fit ?


Also, mostly, most visibly : Positouch control pads. Flat, colored... but with enclosed confirmation LEDs nevertheless because Positouch isn't always that POSItive feeling.
The (optional) RC-95 wired remote didn't have the LEDs, so POSItive there was a bit blind as well as being... distant.

There are only two visible knobs in all, with two others hidden behind the small lid under the CPS display and counter : one for record balance and one for output level.
The Fader function has two selectable speeds and is of the automated kind : press the Rec level button rapidly and fading starts, in or out ; press them longer and you're (re)setting record level.

This is not done with Positouch pads so these two buttons have a dual function - and duality rarely is outright POSItive :)

Available in the US with an optional wood enclosure which makes the V-95RX very elegant, even terribly elegant : all of these 1980-1982 "modernistic" designs truly benefit from being tamed a little by a warm(er) frame.