Rising from the Shadows

A few days ago, I got an urgent request for a deck for a music lover. The person is special as he is one of my mentors in music listening and appreciation. The deck was special too: a Nakamichi 680ZX. This machine is a simple, robust, yet high performance machine that is simply years ahead of itself in performance.

(front page of the Nakamichi 680ZX brochure)

The Nakamichi 680ZX was released in 1979 and was one of the first high-end cassette decks to feature the new Metal or Type IV tape formulation. Featuring automatic azimuth alignment, half-speed playback and recording, 3 separate and individual heads, 18-program song memory system and a spectacular Fluorescent Display.

It is an amazing machine that boasts truly amazing specifications. A machine worthy for a music lover indeed!


The deck arrived at my bench today. What a pictures show is a sleek and black beauty. What was in front of me was literally a pile of parts.

The deck was overall very dusty. The front panel was loose and the cassette compartment door was missing as were the knobs were also missing. The top cover was bent at the right side.

Taking off the top cover required a little force and much delicate maneuvering to prevent the cover from being damaged further. Inside was a continuation of the outside.

The transport was dismantled and disconnected, while various other connectors were not plugged into their positions. The biggest shocker: The display unit was missing! This deck is going to be a challenge indeed!