BASF LH Super / Ferro LH / Studio Series

BASF LH Super is a series of Low Noise / High Output (Type 3) reel to reel tapes that were manufactured from 1975 to 1978. It was also known as the Studio Series in the United States. This formation was designed to offer a higher performance than the LH Series, and was only available in LP (Long Play). Unfortunately, this is the only BASF formation is known for SBS (Soft Binder Syndrome) causing the tape to squeal.

Additional information for 2022: This tape as made much longer than to 1978 – it was also known as the Ferro LH, was was sold in Germany and other countries through the 1980s.

• This tape suffers from SBS (Soft Binder Syndrome) and might need to be lubricated in order to play, or it might need to be played on a machine with a specific tape to head contact mechanism (such as one with a pressure pad). We also discovered it could be possible to stop the squealing by changing the tape tension, such as routing the tape differently if your machine allows
• Tapes from 1975-1978 had the funky single thread reel, that made treading more difficult! In the US these were later renamed “Studio” Series.
• We discovered batches in 2021 that suffer from sudden binder failure (SBF), where the oxide simply flaked off the polyester backing.
• We also found batches of Ferro LH with a coating that was not as polished, and that looked like standard LH. We tested these for both flaking and for SBS, and we did not find any problems. If you find these in our store, we have checked these tapes are they are acceptable.
• The Ferro LH version in TP is identical to the older TP-LH. We sell these as TP-LHs.
• In general, we do not recommend that this tape be used for new recordings, as future longevity cannot be predicted.
• Available Refurbished: No, we do not offer this tape for sale as refurbished due to the squealing problem, with the exceptions listed above.