Price Paid:  $50.00 from Ebay

Summary:
Hello,

I have my Nak BX-300 for an year and a half. My hobby is restauration of high end vintage cassette decks from the 80s and the end of the 70's. The other cassette decks currently at home are Revox B215, Nak Dragon, Nak RX-505, Nak 680ZX, Tandberg TCD-440A, Pioneer CT-F1250, Pioneer CT-S800 (i.e. CT-91 Elite). I bought the BX-300 from Ebay for 50 bucks - it needed belt replacement. I have to say it has an absoleutly gorgeous sound both in playback and recording. The frequency response is easily +/- 2 dB within 20Hz-21KHz - I did the measurements with my SigmaTel 192 KHz audio card on my laptop using the Virtins Audio Frequency analyzer + signal generator. The recording is absoultelly indistinguishable than the playback at least to my ear. This is true even to classical music. Shostakovich sounds excellent on BX-300 as much as on the Dragon or the RX-505. The wow & flutter is very low becuase this cassette deck uses the same cog-free capstan motor as Nak ZX-9 and Dragon (only the Dragon has 2 of those 1 per capstan). Bias control and pitch control are very useful. This is clearly one of the best Nak decks you can buy these days especially if you do not want to spend too much money on vintage deck. Very simple construction , very easy to maintain - belt replacement and idler tire replacement. The only week spot of this deck which I could point out is the idler tire - it is tiny and finicky. But the idler tire can be upgraded with gear transport which are more durable. Due to this idler tire problems many problem conclude that the motor needs replacement which is incorrect; these motors are very reliable.

Strengths:
Excellend recording freq response
Excellent playback freq response
Very low wow & flutter (comparable to that of Nak ZX-9)
Very simple contruction - reliable and easily maintainable

Weaknesses:
idler tire

Similar Products Used:
Nak Dragon Nak RX-505 Nak 680ZX Revox B215 Tandberg TCD-440A

Price Paid:  $650.00 from Myer-Emco

Summary:
I love/loved my BX-300 deck. It was working flawlessly until about two years ago (2005), then every so often it wouldn't rewind properly. In 2007 this became problematic to the point that it needed repair. This is where www.nakamichi.us comes in (aka Electronic Service Labs). I just want to warn buyers of used Nak equipment (or folks thinking about repairing their Naks) that fully repairing their machines is a considerable investment. A Nak deck refurb is a $800+ deal! There are few (if any other) places in the US that have this kind of expertise and access to parts. Yes, you do get the equivalent of a new tape deck but you need to decide whether it's worth the investment. I suspect many 20 yr old Nak decks are starting to experience motor drive issues. The BX-300 refurb updated some known weak components and replaced others. Suggestion: If you can find a used BX-300 that's gone through a recent refurb at a decent price, you've gotten a bargain!

Strengths:
3-heads, pitch control, dual capstan, that great Nak sound.

Weaknesses:
See comments on repair costs.

Price Paid:  $40.00 from a pawn shop

Summary:
The best tape deck I have EVER had or used (from a sonic standpoint at least.) I currently have 4 3-head machines including:

Sony TC-K555 (early ES series)
Teac C-2X (Identical to early Tascam 122 broadcast deck)
Tandberg TCD-440A
Nakamichi BX-300

And I've had other 3-head decks (Onkyo Integras, Pioneers, TEACs) and the Nak is hands down, the best sounding deck I have ever used. (You'll notice my others don't exactly suck either, so this is a big compliment.) I work at a broadcast facility with Studer & Tascam machines, and when I want to record something that sounds exactly like the original on cassette, I use my Nak at home. It works perfectly under heavy use every time, and the sound is perfect. Maybe the Dragon, etc. sound as good or better but my BX-300 makes dead-on copies of the originals to my ears. I want another one! And it has a pitch control, which is a great feature.

Strengths:
Superbly accurate sound, excellent build quality, very reliable.

Weaknesses:
None! (really!)

Similar Products Used:
Sony TC-K555 (early ES series)
Teac C-2X
Tandberg TCD-440A
Onkyo Integra 3-head deck (Can't remember which one. Mid-80s vintage)
Tascam 122 MkII

Price Paid:  $275.00 from Privately

Summary:
After reading some of the reviews of some of the whiners I felt compelled to write my own review of this machine. I call it a machine because after learning electronics from the Navy, and typewriters soon after that (era late 80's) I know what the difference between a IBM Selectric III, and a cheap Olivetti rip-off. No the BX-300 isn't a Dragon, but then it didn't cost the nearly $2,500.00 price tag of the Dragon either. At $750.00 it was priced about 1/3 the cost, but it delivered much more than 1/3 the features and performance. How many decks made either now or in the past had 3 discrete heads, a pressure pad-lifter, dual closed loop capstan rollers, pitch control, fine bias controls, provide 3 motors, direct drive and fit all this in a package that's less than 5" high, so compact that you can stack without concern on top of it (no vents) and the door cover removes for easy head and transport maintenance!! What more could the avg joe-sixpack going to college and unable to afford a Dragon possibly want? The Dragon is hand built and as such needs to be maintained (professionally) on an almost annual basis. Like the pianos of old...remember the tuner-guy who came out to adjust the strings? Or the typewriter-man who came out to clean & repair the school's typewriters which skipped or typed 2 RR's? Well the Dragon needs that kind of care and maintenance. The BX-300 Doesn't! About once ever 4-5 years it might need the head alignment checked, and have the gears & bearings lubed. But that's all. Of course like all production models, you get a few lemons. When the BX-300 was being built, recalls in the automotive industry were far and widespread. Did everyone sell their Pinto's or Mavericks? I doubt it. It was just accepted is all. Now some guys with an axe to grind come here and knock a machine that was mass produced numbering in the tens of thousands. I would submit that the guys who lambasted Naks went on to find out that other production made decks were no better. Nobody has come back to gloat? If they think the Sony ES is a better buy fine. I'm not so convinced having owned a Sony, and after looking inside, I didn't see a case for the Sony that Nak missed the mark on. So much for the analysis of someone who works on them. I'm happy to report my BX-300 has served me faithfully for almost 5 years, and the owner before that since he purchased it back in '87. He wasn't rough on it, and neither am I. As a result my BX-300 is tight and solid and I've owned Sony ES, and Pioneer, Kenwood, Sharp, even JVC's and to me the clear winner with features and sonic excellence is by far and away the Nakamichi!

Strengths:
Number of features crammed into such a tight and smart looking package. A sleek looking unit that even today in 2003, looks distinguished in my A/V system rack.
Costs considerably less than some of Naks pricier models and doesn't short-change the consumer on sonic ability.

Weaknesses:
Out of production now which is too bad for the sound enthusiests of our country. Now we have to put up with digital (less accurate) cd recorders which cost a bundle and if a scratch or skip is detected, the machine spits it out!

Similar Products Used:
Sony ES, and Pioneer, Kenwood, Sharp, and JVC's tape-decks. Teamed with Harman Kardon AVR-8000 receiver and AR speakers.

Summary:
I bought this deck in 1987, as part of a new system. With a budget that limited purchase overkill, I had to mix and match the best I could afford. I wanted the CR-7A, but couldn't squeeze it in. I bought the BX-300 instead. A lucky, smart buy.

This machine is great. The recording is a clone of the source, unless you want to putz around with the bias fine-tune/tape selection switches, or the Dolby B/C. Make it brighter, make it darker, make it the same. Your choice. I always liked doing it by ear, as opposed to the automatic tone route.

It'll record anything well, but I primarily use it to grab music off the FM. If a recording is especially critical, I'll use my Hi-Fi VCR. Better than minidisc. The BX-300 has a clear, spacious sound, and the match between this machine and the Nak in my car is perfect. It's still going, too.

Yes, it's an old, analog technology, and will ultimately fall by the wayside. However, everything I ever recorded on this machine still sounds good. Mechanically, it's been almost flawless; the transport "dried out" a couple of times during the intervening years. I simply sprayed a good lubricant into the capstan wells, cleaned it off, and let it set for a few days. Perfect.

If you regularly maintain the unit, by keeping the heads clean and, occasionally, the idler wheels, this thing will last forever. The saying "they don't make 'em like they used to" applies to the BX-300.

My review won't cause anyone to rush out and furiously track one down. There are too many newer, easier recording alternatives. This deck is a nod to past excellence, and I still enjoy it.

For those of you saddled with anything less, too bad. I'm keeping it.

Strengths:
Simple, direct controls, total tape-match flexibility, rock solid transport, clean, open sound. FM dubs sound particularly good. And durable, 13 years so far.

Weaknesses:
Needs periodic lubing, every 6 years or so. Life's tough, huh?

Similar Products Used:
Other Naks