sony TC-854-4 reel to reel

[ecostellofan]

I recently came into possession of a sony tc-854-4 reel to reel . I have been unable to find much info online regarding this deck,nor can I find any for sale. If someone could share some insight on this I would appreciate it.
Thanks & very informative sight, Tim

[Chuck49]

Just discovered this excellent website this morning and have enjoyed looking over many of the excellent replies. In answer to the person not knowing about the Sony TC-854-4 Tape Deck, it is a Discrete Quadriphonic 4 Channel Stereo Deck that was popular in the early 1970's. It is the same as the TC-850-4 only with the additional 3rd & 4th channel electronics added. Sony's number designation for these decks is as follows:

TC = Tape Recorder
"TC-850" means it is a 2 channel stereo deck.
"TC-854" means it is a 4 channel quadriphonic deck (4 discrete channels).

The "-2" after the number means it has two track recording/ playback heads as in TC-850-2. (This two track configuration (also called half-track recording) gave a superior signal to noise ratio compared to the TC-850-4.) [The 2 tracks used the full 1/4 inch width of the tape.]

The "-4" after the number means it is a four track deck as in "TC-850-4" Four Track/Two Channel Stereo, or "TC-854-4" Quadriphonic Stereo (four tracks on tape/four discrete channels).

These tape decks have a frequency response when new of 20hz to 28Khz. Which is superior to CD's as they are only 20hz-20Khz.

These decks originally came factory boxed new with the Sony Dust Cover (for the front of the deck), Quick Release NAB Tape Hubs and Complete Manuals (user and service).