Mitsubishi.
What’s the first thing that comes to your mind when you hear that name? Your answer will probably mostly be in the form of passenger vehicles that are closely associated with that name. I bet you most of you don’t know that the 3-diamond logo giant has been manufacturing electronic systems since 1921 – and they have manufactured a lot of good ones.
This deck is one of them, in my opinion
The DT-7 was introduced to the consumer market by Mitsubishi either late 1979 or early 1980 as an entry level audiophile cassette deck. I found very little information on the Interweb about this tape deck. The information that I found came from mostly owners and, well, some audiophile snobs. While those snobs scoff at it as entry level, they can’t deny that, for an entry level cassette tape deck, DT-7 sounds pretty damned good and, well, looks pretty damned nice.
Finished with that lovely, brushed aluminium face that was popular during the 70s to the early 80s, I see this tape deck as a lovely addition to any collector’s trove of magnetic players. However, let’s not focus on the physical appearance first: let’s focus on how it sounds.
For a tape deck tagged as entry level, the DT-7 sounds pretty damned good. The highs, mids and lows are all quite balanced. Listening to the Eagles Unplugged tape using the DT-7 turned out to be a real pleasure. All the acoustic segments of the album sounded as they should. No muddled segments, no over clarified segments. Balanced, like the way that album should sound and should be heard. Click on the video above so you can hear just a snippet of what I heard during the audition. My regret? I was too lazy to slap on a pair of better speakers but if this deck sounded very good on the one that I used (forgot what it is), just imagine if it is matched well with a nice pair. Speaking of pairing, if you have the legendary Mitsubishi DA-C7 tuner amp lying around somewhere in your basement, dust it off and get it. I bet you that this DA-7 would pair fantastically with the DA-C7.
If you read my past reviews on this here website, you will know that I love analog VU meters and this baby has a gorgeous pair. For a good part of the test, I think that I focused more on how those beautiful VUs go from left to right rather than the music. Absolutely mesmerising. If you’re a tape deck aficionado that loves decks with analog VUs, this deck could be for you.
Operational wise, I could not find any fault. Having recently been given a dose of TLC, all the piano keys and switches work well. Easy and smooth to operate. No hiccups. That soft touch operation system you see on the tape well cover says it all: all it needs for you to close the cover is your soft touch.
I read somewhere that cassette tapes are slowly being “fashionable” again. Blame it on the millennials? While do not know that answer to that question, what I do know personally is that there has been an increase in the demand for tape decks and for any demanding, first time owner of classic cassette tape decks, the DT-7 will surely fit their bill.
Interested in getting your hands on this 3-diamond beauty? If you are, hit About then Contact on this page. The people at their physical store will be more than happy to accommodate you.
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