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Original Message

The Future Of Tape? Your Thoughts

Posted by X-2000R on January 31, 2007 at 17:14:09:

Now that the official announcement that Quantegy is discontinuing
tape is old news, what next?

What has changed?

As far as I can tell, nothing. For now. USR has pledged to maintain
a supply of tape through RMGI/EMTEC. Ebay still continues to be a
haven for both new and NOS tape (sometimes fair prices, sometimes a
ripoff. But that's been ongoing and therefore, nothing new). I
haven't seen any kind of noticeable spike in Ebay and other
offerings beyons what's been the norm. Prices have, for the most
part remained pretty stable.

What I want to know is: once Quantegy is dead and buried and RMGI
has a monopoly on the market, will the prices remain more or less
where they are? Remember....never EVER underestimate the powers of
greed and stupidity....which almost always go hand in hand and feed
off each other. Will the prices be raised to the moon.....thus
further alienating people from the format?

Or is there.....as I suspect.....already an ample supply of tape out
there to keep most of us going for pretty much forever? It is my
opinion that in *MOST* (but not all) cases, NOS from reputable tapes-
such as Maxell or Quantegy....are a pretty safe purchase. Now
whether or not you agree with those prices is another matter. I am
also of the opinion that many (again not ALL) detractors of NOS
either A) are resentful of the prices sometimes commanded by it, B)
are hoping to dissuade potential buyers from it thus hoping to
eliminate competetion and thus make the "score" for themselves at
lower prices, or C)-both.

Although I don't really need it inasmuch as I am stocked up pretty
much for life, I went ahead and ordered a carton of pancakes from
Quantegy as a "just in case....you never know" purchase. I also plan
to make a trip tomorrow to my favorite tape outlet and pick up a few
rolls of GP9 and maybe 499. I've never tried them and have always
been a 1.0 mil person, but I figured now is as good of a time as any
to try it. I also plan to stock up on empty reels, maybe some
splicing tape, and a few other odds-n-ends (any requests? I'll pick
up any Quantegy tapes or empty reels and sell them to members of
this group for my cost plus shipping since I was planning on going
there anyway).

If I was a betting man, I'd wager that many of us are probably doing
more or less the same thing: stocking up on tape....so-called "panic
buying" tapes we don't really want or need, but get them before
they're gone. Then there are people likely buying tapes by the
carton, and banking on sitting on them for a year or two then
flooding the Ebay market with them. Personally, unless you are
planning on going long (sitting on them for 3 or more years), this
tactic will probably not yield much profit. Think about it.

So what are your thoughts on the matter? Is the pending closure of
Quantegy truly a loss? Or is it an idea that has simply come? After
all, if people have been hoarding and hoarding tape (like I have
been 'cuz I don't record much) and/or passing it around from one
person to the next while the actual end-users remain elusive, the
market has simply become too saturated and there is no more room for
new tape. Not when you factor in a static if not receding supply of
decks.