For many the Casio DA-7 was their first chance to master to digital, even better it was affordable and suddenly offered many home studio owners to create DAT masters to send to mastering engineers.
Introduced in 1992 the Casio DA-7 DAT recorder offered stereo recording and playback at 44.1, 48kHz 16bit and also gave users both analogue and digital I/O. Line in and out were phono and mic inputs 1/4” jack, which today would not be regarded as pro, in reality, the Casio would be regarded as prosumer. The Casio DA-7 was a viable alternative to the Sony DTC1000ES, which at the time was the industry standard DAT recorder.
Price at the time was £649.95 including VAT.
Specifications
Type: digital audio tape deck
Track System: 2-channel stereo
Tape Speed: 8.15, 12.23 mm/s
Recording Time: 120 minutes
Heads: 2000rpm, rotary
D/A Converter: 16 bit linear
A/D Converter: 16 bit linear
Sampling Frequency: 48, 44.1kHz
Frequency Response: 10Hz to 20kHz
Signal to Noise Ratio: 90dB
Dynamic Range: 85dB
Total Harmonic Distortion: 0.008%
Analogue Inputs: 200mV (line), 3mV (mic)
Analogue Outputs: 2.0V (line)
Digital Inputs: coaxial
Digital Outputs: coaxial
Dimensions: 243 x 158 x 45mm
Weight: 1.4kg
Accessories: AD-D6 adaptor, NP-D2 battery pack
Did you have one? What were your memories of the Casio DA-7?