Dokorder

Dokorder was a tape-recorder brand associated with Denki Onkyo, a Japanese electronics manufacturer based in Ōta, Tokyo. The brand covered a range of reel-to-reel recording products, including two-track and four-track machines, models capable of accepting large 10.5-inch reels, and four-track multitrack recorders aimed at consumer and semi-professional users. Its products occupied the analog recording market alongside equipment from better-known Japanese manufacturers such as Sony and the Teac/Tascam group. One of Dokorder’s distinctive technologies was the four-reel Dub-A-Tape transport. This system was designed to duplicate a tape by moving a master tape and a blank tape through the same general transport assembly while using separate areas of the tape head. The resulting tape route was Y-shaped, a layout reflected in the openings of the head assembly. The design made it possible to feed two tapes through one recorder mechanism and record a copy during the transport process, giving Dokorder a specialized position within the reel-to-reel market. Dokorder also sold conventional reel-to-reel recorders. Its catalog included two-track and four-track formats, as well as machines intended for multitrack recording. The Model 1120 became a recognized two-channel recorder during the 1970s. In the mid-1960s, Denki Onkyo manufactured the 800-series Concertone tape recorders and decks, linking the company to another line of branded tape equipment from the period. The brand competed in a technically demanding market in which transport stability, head alignment, mechanical longevity, and serviceability were important purchasing considerations. Reference material characterizes Dokorder machines as less durable overall than comparable products from competitors such as Teac/Tascam and Sony. This durability disadvantage limited the brand’s competitiveness even though its product range and tape-duplication concept were distinctive. Dokorder’s corporate history was tied to Denki Onkyo rather than to the separate Osaka-based Onkyo audio company or to Denon. Murata Manufacturing acquired a 55 percent shareholding in Denki Onkyo in 1982 and fully merged the company into Murata in 1999. The available reference material does not establish a separate current Dokorder business, a continuing product program, or a current owner operating the brand as an active consumer label.

Dokorder emerged as a brand of Denki Onkyo, a Japanese electronics company located in Ōta, Tokyo. Its products belonged to the reel-to-reel tape-recorder industry, which served home recording, enthusiast, educational, broadcast-adjacent, and semi-professional applications before cassette and later digital formats displaced much of the open-reel market. The company’s catalog included conventional two-track and four-track reel-to-reel recorders, including models designed for reels as large as 10.5 inches. It also produced four-track multitrack machines, allowing users to record or overdub multiple channels within the limitations of analog tape. The Model 1120 was a notable two-channel recorder associated with Dokorder’s 1970s range. Dokorder’s most unusual engineering feature was the Dub-A-Tape system. Its four-reel transport allowed a master tape and a blank tape to pass through the same tape-head assembly. Separate portions of the head served the source and destination tape paths, while the shared transport created a Y-shaped route visible in the head assembly’s slot arrangement. The concept was intended to duplicate recordings within one integrated mechanism rather than requiring two independent recorders connected together. During the mid-1960s, Denki Onkyo manufactured the 800-series Concertone tape recorders and decks. These products form part of the company’s wider history in branded analog recording equipment, although the available material does not fully document the relationship between the Concertone and Dokorder naming programs. The brand competed against established Japanese manufacturers, including Sony and Teac/Tascam. While Dokorder offered a varied product range and technically distinctive machines, reference material describes its products as ultimately less durable than competing equipment. That assessment is important to the brand’s historical position: Dokorder was not simply a failed novelty, but a participant in the analog recorder market whose mechanical longevity was a weakness relative to stronger competitors. Corporate ownership changed in the later history of Denki Onkyo. Murata Manufacturing acquired 55 percent of the company in 1982 and fully merged Denki Onkyo into Murata in 1999. The supplied reference does not identify a current Dokorder product line or establish whether the trademark remains commercially active. Dokorder is therefore best documented as a historical Japanese tape-recorder brand associated with Denki Onkyo, rather than being conflated with the unrelated Osaka audio company Onkyo or with Denon.

• 1999

  Denki Onkyo was fully merged into Murata

  [1]Dokorderen.wikipedia.org

  Denki Onkyo was fully integrated into Murata Manufacturing, ending its independent corporate existence according to the reference material.

• 1982

  Murata acquired 55 percent of Denki Onkyo

  [1]Dokorderen.wikipedia.org

  Murata Manufacturing took a majority shareholding in Denki Onkyo, the company behind Dokorder.

• 1970

  The Dokorder Model 1120 gained popularity

  [1]Dokorderen.wikipedia.org

  The Model 1120 was identified as a popular two-channel Dokorder recorder during the 1970s.

• 1960

  Denki Onkyo produced the 800-series Concertone equipment

  [1]Dokorderen.wikipedia.org

  In the mid-1960s, Denki Onkyo manufactured the 800-series Concertone tape recorders and decks, placing the company within the period’s reel-to-reel recording-equipment market.

A Japanese analog-recording brand serving consumer and semi-professional reel-to-reel users, with a distinctive tape-duplication system and a broad selection of two-track, four-track, and multitrack machines.

• Tape duplication transport

  Dub-A-Tape

  Dub-A-Tape was Dokorder’s distinctive four-reel tape-duplication system. It was designed to move a master tape and a blank tape through the same transport and tape-head assembly, with separate head areas handling the source and duplicate. The resulting Y-shaped tape path was reflected in the slots built into the head assembly. The system differentiated Dokorder from conventional reel-to-reel recorders and represented the brand’s most unusual documented engineering feature.

• Two-channel reel-to-reel recorder

  Model 1120

  The Model 1120 was a two-channel Dokorder reel-to-reel recorder that was popular during the 1970s. It represented the brand’s conventional recording equipment alongside its more specialized Dub-A-Tape products. The available source identifies its period and channel configuration but does not provide complete specifications such as speed options, recording format details, dimensions, or original pricing.

• Reel-to-reel tape recorders

  Dokorder two-track and four-track recorders

  Dokorder sold a broad range of two-track and four-track reel-to-reel recorders. Some models accepted reels measuring up to 10.5 inches, while other machines served consumer and semi-professional recording needs. The line competed with products from Sony and Teac/Tascam. The source does not provide a complete model list or detailed specifications for each recorder.

• Multitrack recording equipment

  Dokorder four-track multitrack recorders

  The brand included four-track multitrack reel-to-reel machines for consumer and semi-professional recording. These products expanded Dokorder beyond basic two-channel playback and recording into layered analog production. The supplied material confirms the existence of the category but does not identify individual model numbers, release dates, technical formats, or distribution territories.

• Reel-to-reel tape recorders and decks

  800-series Concertone tape recorders and decks

  In the mid-1960s, Denki Onkyo manufactured the 800-series Concertone tape recorders and decks. The series is relevant to the company’s broader history in analog recording hardware, although the available material does not specify whether every 800-series unit carried the Dokorder name or explain the precise commercial relationship between the Concertone and Dokorder brands.

• 1999

  Denki Onkyo was merged into Murata ManufacturingM&A

  Background

  Murata had held a majority stake in Denki Onkyo since 1982.

  Action taken

  Murata fully merged Denki Onkyo into the parent company.

  Aftermath

  Denki Onkyo ceased to exist as an independent corporate entity. The supplied material does not establish the subsequent commercial status of the Dokorder name.

  Source

• 1982

  Murata took a majority stake in Denki OnkyoM&A

  Background

  Denki Onkyo was the Japanese electronics company associated with the Dokorder brand and its reel-to-reel recorders.

  Action taken

  Murata Manufacturing acquired 55 percent of Denki Onkyo’s shares.

  Aftermath

  The acquisition placed the company behind Dokorder under Murata’s majority control. The available source does not describe immediate changes to the brand’s products or distribution.

  Source

1. 1Dokorderen.wikipedia.org