But that's just me.
If an older 70's Teac "A" series deck is more suitable for you (perhaps for price reasons), then the A-3300SX would probably be your best choice. That deck was built like a tank to last, was produced in mass numbers-so there are a lot of them out there. I've frequently seen many such decks being offered on Ebay. A fair, reasonable, and realistic price for a good one, whether very meticulously taken care of and/or refurbished would be in the $350-$425 ballpark. Of course you may have to sacrifice the reverse function, but maybe it's not all that important.
I'd stay away from the Sony's if I were you. I once owned two of them, one was a 7" TC-580 and the 10" was, I believe a model TC-850.
Both units, even though well cared for, were dogs that were plagued with all kinds of problems and were not all that user friendly.
You may have also heard of some of the Euro decks such as the Revox B77 or the Tandberg TD-20A. Lots of people swear by them and get quite vociferous and passionate in their defense.
Personally, I have no idea why. Both model decks struck me as unimpressive and overrated. I like to think of them as the Mercedes and BMW's of reel decks: they have status value as well as high resale value, but when it comes to actual longevity, reliability, and ease of use, they are a waste of time, despite their sturdy and solid construction. Because those decks have neither. So again, I would advise you to steer clear of those.
