Teac LPR660USBPB LP-Cassette to CD Recorder/USB Home Theater Receiver, Black

To be clear, I'm reviewing the LP-R660 turntable/cassette/CD player/recorder. Currently there are reviews for a different turntable (Teac TN-300) listed on this product page for some reason.So I searched forever trying to find a solution for my audio needs, which includes cassettes, CDs and vinyl. Finding a cassette player is not easy these days, because you can either pay hundreds for high-end cassette decks, or go with a cheap Sony boombox. There's very little to choose from on the market. I should have bought a couple more cassette players in the 1990s when they were available and of good quality! Of course there are several "all-in-one" units available that will cover this territory, but none seem to be built with quality features such as aux-out jacks and cassette player buttons beyond "play" and "stop". And nearly all of them have a questionable track record according to reviews.This Teac player/recorder seems to be the best solution. It provides adequate sound as a stand-alone unit, but it does have aux-out RCA jacks (along with a matching "aux-in" pair) so that I can run it into my amplifier and external speakers for better sound. The unit will record from tapes, LPs (including 45s and 78s) , and the radio to CD. It's an easy process however be prepared to be patient, as you will likely need to manually divide the tracks as you record to CD. Tapes play great (not too fast to my ears), vinyl sounds great (again the stock speed sounds fine to me), the CD player is flawless (after 1 month anyway), and the radio pulls decent reception using both AM and FM.The turntable operates semi-automatically: You manually raise the stylus and place it onto the record, and when finished, it automatically lifts and returns to "off" position. Be aware that you can adjust the speed of both the cassette player and turntable, but it will require searching youtube for LPR-550 guides on how to do this, and using some basic tools.I'm not sure what the difference is between this model and the predecessor LPR-550, but I purchased the LPR-660 for less than what the LPR-550 was going for at the time. Even though it's a newer product. The prices on both models seem to fluctuate frequently (in 2017-2018 anyway). For my money I can't see anything better on the market and am satisfied with the overall performance and looks.

I have boxes of old cassettes of irreplaceable personal recordings that I've been wanting to digitize. Easy to use, although there are a lot of steps, so I just wrote out a cheat sheet to keep by the unit. After 2 or 3 times, I don't need it. The tape speed is a tad fast, but not anything I can't live with. All cassette players are different. The auto track feature works about 80% but I'm satisfied with it. I LOVE being able to play my LPs. I probably won't digitize many of them since most have been remastered for CD. It has every output I could want including direct to mp3 on my computer. Speakers are just OK so plan to get some good speakers to hook up. Can input from an external source such as my digital 8-track recorder. Wish I'd gotten this sooner instead of messing with crappy thumbdrive cassette players. I did purchase a separate turntable mat.Jan. 2021 update: I still can't find anything to not like about this. I've been enjoying playing LPs again. I was going to sell or give them away, but now I'm keeping them. I am culling a few (sorry Mel Tillis).

What can I say about the Teac LP-R660USB? I bought it because I wanted a way to digitize to CD items from my music library - specifically old, out-of-print LP albums and cassettes I'd collected over the years. I'd previously done this using a TASCAM CD-RW4U (also a Teac product) but which I had finally discarded when the unit literally stopped functioning. Now maybe the CD-RW4U was supposed to be a more precise CD rewritable recorder, but it did not include a turntable or a cassette deck, which the LP-R66USB does have. It relied upon an external audio source connected by cables. And even though the two units possess basically the same digitization system, in my experience the CD-RW4U's operation was too damn sensitive. I don't want to think about how many CD's I'd burned that came out bad. But I have had the LP-R66USB now for several weeks, and its functionality appears to be decent. I've now successfully transferred a good number of LP's and Cassettes to CD, and even though its playback capabilities are at best only basic - you can use it to just play either LP's or cassettes - its speakers are pretty quaint, so to speak, and their output sounds clearly shallow and two-dimensional compared to those of a decent stereo system...My CD/cassette ghetto blaster sounds better. But hey, that's okay because I bought it to make CD's, and the discs I've made sound really nice on my stereo system as well as in my car CD player ( yes still have a car with one of those). Anyway, bottom line is: I'm happy with the unit and like I said, it does what I wanted it to do.

This was a reduced price item. The notice said that there would be 'some' exterior blemish or scratch. When it arrived, I could find no sign of marring or scratching.......... but... when I unpacked and set it up, I found the post that holds the turntable arm was broken off! It is plastic, and had extended from a small depression in the cabinet. I studied the situation, not wanting to go thru the process of sending it back and hoping... Finally, I decided to use super glue and electrical tape to stand it back up. It seems to work, as there is no stress on it during ordinary operation.Now, this only was possible because I am experienced in the use of a technical grade of super glue. For most people, this would have required starting over and sending it back. I cannot understand why anyone would have listed an item with a major broken part as just having 'blemishes'. Someone needs to review procedures!The equipment itself, once *I* repaired it, seems to work adequately.