1987 Sony HF 30 Audio Cassette

In latter 1985, my normal bias tape of choice became the Sony HF – in particular the HF 30, as I normally went for as short a tape length as I could get away with. But by 1987 – the year of this HF 30 – I was almost invariably using Type 2 high bias cassettes; typically Maxells. However, amid my phase of Type 2 dedication, a local producer offered to record some tracks for a mate and I, after we’d started collaborating as a musical duo. The producer supplied our copies of the recording on these HF 30s. This tape, then, is quite an exception within my collection – particularly as the ’87 HF 30 is different from the ’85, which I have in abundance.

1987 Sony Metal-ES 60 Audio Cassette

I won’t try to hide the fact that I loved Type 4 metal tapes. This is a nice one from Sony – a 1987 Metal-ES, in a 60 minute format. I felt this was a tougher tape than Sony’s earlier Metallic, from 1983 and 1984 (I’ll photograph the ’83 Metallic for this blog in due course, but in the mean time it’s depicted in my 1980s Audio Cassettes article)… (UPDATE: I’ve now added my 1983 Sony Metallic to this blog. You can find it via THIS LINK).

1981 Sony CHF 60 Audio Cassette

Sony CHF tapes were among the very first I used for my own recordings after I hit my teens. They were good, if basic, normal bias cassettes with quite a warm sound, but also an acceptable amount of definition for a Type I range-propper. Pretty noisy though.

The two other cassette models in the 1981 Sony Type I range were the Sony BHF, and the Sony AHF. The BHF was a noticeable upgrade on the quality of this CHF. And the AHF was a hugely improved, essentially pro-grade product of very high quality – coming with a much higher price tag.

I’ve got a fair old few Sony CHFs, and the material on them ranges quite widely. At one end of the scale there are some all-too-clear renditions of my own instrumental tracks, played on a Bontempi B370 organ. At the other, performances by chart bands of the day, recorded from the TV, with a cheapish tape recorder placed in front of the set’s speaker, and my family jabbering away in the background.