Revox C270 (1988)
Twenty-three kilograms of die-cast Swiss deck plate, built the year the market stopped caring.
Overview
The Revox C270 arrived in 1988. It is a 2 channel stereo reel-to-reel tape recorder built by Studer Revox in Switzerland, and it is generally regarded as one of the final tape recorders the company developed. Studio Sound (March 1988, p.31) announced it as a professional reel-to-reel designated the C270. It noted the VU meters with +6, +9 and +12 dB peak LED indicators on the electronics side, which is metering a working studio could actually use.
The lineage is the thing to know. The C270 shares significant design and internal components with the Studer A807 - motors, heads, and transport mechanics among them - because the two were developed concurrently in the late 1980s. Sources go further and describe the C270 as having been created on the basis of the A807 for professional use. So you are buying Studer professional mechanical engineering in a Revox-badged chassis. The drive is a three-motor, electronically controlled arrangement: two controlled AC spooling motors plus a Hall-commutated capstan motor.
Then there is the weight. Twenty-three kilograms net. This is a rack-oriented professional machine, and the mass comes from the die-cast construction, the three motors and the transformer. It also makes shipping one a real logistical exercise rather than a packing-tape afterthought.
It is a two-track, three-speed professional tape recorder. The C270 takes reels up to a maximum diameter of 265mm, and it can be operated with any two of three speeds, with nominal speed achieved via a 9.6 kHz control frequency. Which two speeds you get depends on how the machine was configured. The speed pair is selectable and, per the C270 series documentation, quickly changed in the field.
Key Features
Studer A807 Mechanical DNA
The transport, heads, capstan, and motors are shared with the Studer A807, and the two machines were developed side by side in the late 1980s. So the C270 is not a consumer deck dressed up in professional clothing. It is a professional transport with Revox cosmetics, and the mechanical service literature and much of the parts ecosystem overlap with a machine that studios actually maintained. Collectors note the die-cast deck plate and head block as the tangible expression of that shared engineering.
Three-Motor Electronically Controlled Drive
Two controlled AC spooling motors handle the reels and a Hall-commutated capstan motor drives the tape, all under electronic control. That gives the C270 its winding times: approximately 130 seconds to wind a 1100 m reel, or roughly 90 seconds for a 760 m reel. Those are working-machine numbers, the kind that count when you are spooling back and forth all day.
Two-of-Three Speed Selection
The C270 is operable at any two of three speeds, with the nominal speed set by a 9.6 kHz control frequency. Sources describe the speed set differently. One lists 9.5 cm/s, 19 cm/s, and 38 cm/s with an adjustable range from -33% to +50%, another phrases the high-speed pair as 19/38 cm and 7.5/15 ips, and the series documentation lists 3 3/4, 7 1/2 and 15 ips as the three available speeds with any pair selectable. The exact configuration of a given machine is worth confirming before purchase. The built-in variable speed gives a wide adjustment range around whatever pair is fitted.
Balanced Outputs and Real Metering
Outputs are XLR balanced plus a 1/4" headphone jack, the professional interconnect standard for a machine meant to live in a rack. The metering carries +6, +9 and +12 dB peak LEDs, and the tape counter is a real-time display in hours, minutes and seconds with a zero locator and address locator. The address locator is the difference between finding a take and hunting for it.
CCIR/IEC Equalization
The machine is set up for CCIR/IEC equalization, and at least one documented unit was aligned for SM 911 tape. A C270 set up for a specific tape stock will perform best with that stock, so a buyer should ask what the machine was last aligned for rather than assuming.
Published Performance Figures
The commonly cited numbers are a frequency response of 30 - 18kHz, a wow and flutter figure of 0.07, and a signal-to-noise ratio of 62. Treat these with caution. The wow and flutter and S/N values circulate without stated units or weighting, so they are a rough indication of professional-grade performance rather than laboratory-grade citations. The frequency response figure comes from a single source and should be read as approximate.
Historical Context
The C270 was introduced in 1988, as the consumer and professional market for tape machines was declining. It is one of the last reel-to-reel recorders produced by Revox and is considered the final tape recorder developed by Studer Revox. One source states that the C270 was the last model in whose development Willi Studer himself participated. Production is reported to have run from 1988 to 1992.
It was part of the C-series alongside the C274 four-track and C278 eight-track, and the family shared accessories. One is the Revox 270 series autolocator, which works with the C270, C274 or C278 and provides full remote transport control with simple autolocation facilities. The C270's own place in the line was the two-track stereo machine, adaptable to production or post work.
Collectibility & Value
The C270 commands real money. A used example has been listed at €2,560 with original packaging, and another listing was recorded at €3,740. Complete packages turn up with the remote, a flight case, and the power cord, and some listings include a trolley. As with professional tape machines generally, condition and completeness drive the price far more than the model name.
Buyers should budget for service. Some units require maintenance such as replacing motor capacitors before use, a point noted among current owners. Rifa film and paper capacitors are a documented failure point. One owner's repair report describes replacing all but three and having the machine burn. Preventive service with replacement of the power supply capacitors is a common part of a proper restoration, and capacitor and trimmer kits specifically covering the C270, C274 and C278 are available. Specialist service kits, parts, tools, calibration and tape media for Revox and Studer decks are offered by at least one established supplier.
Parts availability is reasonable but not generous. Pinch rollers, pressure rollers, line output cables, and used parts reels all circulate, though most of these listings are cross-listed as fitting multiple Revox models rather than being C270-specific, so verify fitment before ordering. Seller-offered warranties and "fully revised" claims on the used market are seller guarantees, not factory backing.
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