Nakamichi TD1200
The Nakamichi TD1200 is hard to pin down. The name shows up in period advertising as a car stereo tuner/tape deck. High Fidelity (July 1983, p.34) ran an ad showing a "TD-1200 Tuner/Tape Deck" with volume, bass, treble, midrange, fader, and tuning/band controls. Audio (October 1983, p.120) listed it alongside Nakamichi's PA-300 mobile power amplifier and SP-400 speaker system. A HiFI-Stereo piece from December 1983 (p.57) praised the "1200's rock-steady tape transport," and noted that rough roads and railroad crossings made little impression on it. It also said the unit was apparently theft-resistant, since a stolen TD-1200 would be useless without its owner.
Outside the automotive context, the record gets murky. A HiFi Engine database entry describes the TD1200 as a 3-head, single-cassette deck with a 4-track, 2-channel system, DC servo motor, frequency response of 30Hz to 18kHz, signal-to-noise ratio of 68dB, and wow and flutter of 0.06%. Other dealer and service listings describe a "TD1200" as a standalone preamplifier from 1975, which is almost certainly a different unit entirely. Research on this model is badly compromised by sources that conflate it with the RX-202 and CR-3A decks.
Here is what can be said with reasonable confidence. Nakamichi made a car stereo component called the TD1200 in the early 1980s. It was marketed alongside Nakamichi's mobile amps and speakers, and at least one reviewer found its transport exceptionally stable. Whether it was a 3-head deck with the specs above, or something else, is not clearly documented. No production years, original price, or owner reviews have surfaced.
Known specs (as listed for the TD1200 cassette deck):
- Type: 3-head, single-cassette deck
- Track system: 4-track, 2-channel stereo
- Tape speed: 1-7/8 ips
- Heads: 1 playback, 1 record, 1 erase
- Motor: DC servo
- Frequency response: 30Hz – 18kHz
- Signal-to-noise ratio: 68dB
- Wow and flutter: 0.06%
- Inputs: 1x mic, 1x line; Outputs: 1x line
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