David Price looks at an exquisite piece of 1970s hi-fi, the Yamaha TC-800GL cassette deck.

No cassette deck has ever been an oil painting, but early examples of the breed were particularly nasty to look at. Seventies top-loaders were fussy and a pain to use, while front-loaders looked brash and imposing. As for the machines' mechanics, forget it. Crude and clunky, they only served to confirm cassette's status as the poor relation of open-reel.
 
But in 1974 Yamaha changed all that by setting out to design a machine that combined Compact Cassette's strengths of convenience, size and flexibility with open-reel levels of sound quality. To do this they contracted Mario Bellini, responsible for some striking examples of Italian industrial design both as a freelancer and with the typewriter company Olivetti.
 
The stunning TC-800GL was the result. Nicknamed the 'ski-slope' thanks to its sharply raked wedge profile, it was regarded very much as a piece of leading-edge design in the Seventies. Like Bertone's Fiat X1/9 or Guigiaro's Lotus Esprit S1, the Yamaha looked strikingly futuristic and quite unlike its drab, gawky competitors.
 
But the TC-800GL wasn't simply a radical set of clothes hiding a bog-standard cassette deck, because everything from the peak level meters to the power switch was designed for maximum effectiveness and ease of use. For the casing, Bellini eschewed fake wood in favour of a tough, durable plastic covered in finely applied dark charcoal neoprene. Almost like suede to the touch, the finish instantly endeared itself to the user, making the deck less 'machine-like'.
 
The transport's lightly pressured piano key controls were very slick in an era before cassette decks had solenoid operation, while its array of sliders for line and mic inputs, playback level and pitch were intuitive to use. Although sparsely turned out, the deck was packed with unusual touches to facilitate operation, including automatic tape-type switching, timer recording, memory stop and superb meters.
 
All phono socketry was underneath the deck, making it easier to hide unsightly cables, and there was an integral hinged stand, offering top-loading or angled operation. Under the stand was a battery compartment, making the deck portable for on-location recordings, and to the side there was a 12V DC input should the owner wish to power it from a car battery. The styling was inspirational, with an array of unique facilities together with a beautiful, functional face.
 
Competitors offered the customary excuse, "Things which look good invariably don't sound it", but the Yamaha's performance said it all. Fitted with a good Permalloy head and a precision servo-controlled transport the TC-800GL measured superbly by 1975 standards. 

With chrome tape Yamaha quoted an impressive 15kHz at -3dB frequency response, and an excellent 0.06% WRMS wow and flutter. Even today, a well preserved example is capable of sparkling highs, deep bass and great image stability.
 
The bad news is that TC-800GLs are a pretty rare phenomenon these days, but they do still pop up from time to time. Expect to pay between £100 and £250, depending on condition. It's better to go for a pricier mint example rather than an old nail, as spares are getting scarce.

Still, most major bits remain in stock and Yamaha UK (tel: 01923 233166) has an excellent service department which could refurbish the deck, at a price. Best to covet your TC-800GL, use it gently and enjoy those stunning good looks - many believe that nothing since has come close.