ABBA - Arrival
RCA Victor Records
Cat# VPK1-4034
Australian release
1976
Cassette packaging is in very good condition, practically unmarked case and the Grey/Green clamshell is also unmarked and in great shape. Printed inner front cover DOES have some two digit numbers hand written next to the track listings - looks to be Black pen and not removable easily.
This cassette release has the YELLOW paper labels on the clamshell
Inspected the front pressure pad and side rollers, they are all fine. This is a metal screw fixed shell so if something ever went awry with the tape inside e.g in need of relube or other maintenance, it is possible to get "inside" the clamshell but be very careful otherwise you may end up with a room full of tape!
We have always cared for our tapes (generally) but I am still amazed at the condition of the cassettes I am taking out of our old storerooms (we ran an audio post production facility many years ago) many CD's won't "make it" after almost 50 years due to general handling and some even suffer from media "rot"
If you have a 'decent' tape machine such as a Naka (Dragon is the best if you are 'well heeled' but there are many other good quality domestic and professional machines still to be found BUT make sure they have been serviced recently, almost all machines have the dreaded rubber belt failure or even "melting" inside the machine - very bad news!
With a good machine and a good cassette tape you will be surprised at what that nice analog sound is like - often stunning!
Test machine, my Nakamichi 480
Before playing, I have repacked the tape (complete FF & RW cycles a couple of times), and then played both sides ENTIRELY - there are no issues with the shell or tape at all, audio is full range with no "drop outs" or high frequency loss across both songs/both sides.
SPECIAL NOTE: Although there is no indication on the tape or packaging that Dolby encoding has been used, it 'sounds' a bit like a Dolby tape - the frequency range is wide but I did get the impression that the high end is more dominant and wound down the Treble response just slightly on the NAD monitoring amp.
TRACKS: When I Kissed The Teacher, That's Me, Money Money Money, Why Did It Have To Be Me, Dum Dum Diddle, Arrival, Knowing Me Knowing You, Tiger, My Love My Life, Dancing Queen, Fernando
