Mitsubishi 10-DAT (c. 1989)
Little is documented about the Mitsubishi 10-DAT. The one solid source is Audio's May 1989 car-stereo road test, and it calls the unit the Mitsubishi DT-10. So the archive index and the period review don't agree on the model name. The record does show a slot-loading DAT player for the car, which Audio bench-tested as part of that year's car stereo directory.
The measurements were good. Audio (May 1989, p.78) measured overall dynamic range at 95 dB using the EIA fade-to-noise method. It called that result surprisingly good, and it judged the undithered linearity figures excellent. A-weighted signal-to-noise came in above 86 dB, with a smooth residual noise spectrum apart from a small 60-Hz hum blip (p.80). The review also covered the ergonomics. Feeding a tape into a slot while driving was the car-DAT equivalent of opening a CD jewel box with one hand on the wheel (p.73). Night illumination was good. Even powered off, the tape slot was easy to spot in the dark (p.80).
Beyond that, the record is thin. No production years, original price, or further specifications are documented in the archive's sources, and this appears to be the only substantial period review of the model. What can be said with confidence: Mitsubishi built a slot-loading car DAT player in the late 1980s that measured well and got a positive write-up in Audio in spring 1989.
Known from the May 1989 Audio test:
- EIA dynamic range (fade-to-noise): 95 dB
- S/N (A-weighted): above 86 dB
- Smooth noise spectrum; small 60-Hz hum component
- Slot-loading tape mechanism; good backlighting
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