C.Crane VersaCorder quarter-speed stereo cassette recorder

A cheap and versatile cassette recorder with surprisingly good audio quality, plus the option to run at quarter-speed (15/32 IPS) for lo-fi recording of up to four hours of audio per side of tape. It was also sold as the Roberts C9950 in the UK (in silver color) and the Sangean QSR-1 in Europe.

Additional technical notes for those who care:

* At normal speed, it sounds better when recording on standard Type I tape; recording on Type II tape sounds a bit tinny (lacking bass). But at quarter speed, Type II tape definitely sounds superior.

* Of all the brands and models of Type II tapes I tried, Maxell XL II gave the best overall performance, so C.Crane was correct to recommend it. TDK SA and Fuji DR-II had higher wow & flutter and more dropouts.

* Recording on Type IV metal tape is a no-go in the VersaCorder; it sounds very tinny at either speed and doesn't completely erase what was previously recorded on the tape (due to its permanent magnet erase head). Playback sounds fine, though.

* A direct connection between the CCRadio's line out to the VersaCorder's line in is fine for recording FM radio at normal speed or AM radio at quarter speed, but for recording FM at quarter speed you need to reduce the audio level, otherwise it will sound sibilant and distorted, as I mentioned. (This issue likely wasn't noticed by most of its users, because almost all of Art Bell's affiliates were on AM.)

* Rewinding and fast-forwarding stay at full speed even when it is switched to quarter-speed for recording and playback.

* C.Crane specifies its frequency response is 60 - 14,000 Hz at normal speed; at quarter speed, this gets reduced to around 5500 Hz.

* I tested the wow & flutter to be around 0.13% to 0.14% WRMS, which is pretty good for a portable cassette recorder.

* I measured the speed to be around 0.4% fast at either speed, which is very good accuracy for a portable cassette recorder.

* You need to remove the cassette door in order to access the azimuth adjustment screw on the tape head, which is not too difficult to do. But on mine the azimuth sounded fine on most of the pre-recorded cassettes I tried, so I left it alone.

* The included AC adapter causes some minor hum in the audio during playback, but does not affect the recording.