The Technics SV-360 DAT Recorder was a professional Digital Audio Tape recorder produced from 1989 to 1990 and manufactured in Japan. Finished in black and built as a rackmount DAT machine, the Technics SV-360 DAT Recorder was designed for users who needed a fixed installation digital tape recorder rather than a portable unit. It was offered during the early period of DAT adoption, when the format was being used for digital mastering, production, archiving, broadcast and professional stereo recording.
The Technics SV-360 DAT Recorder used the compact DAT cassette format, providing digital stereo recording and playback in a machine designed for professional and installation environments. Unlike portable DAT models, the Technics SV-360 DAT Recorder was built as a rackmount component, making it suitable for integration into studio, production and system racks. Contemporary information also distinguishes the Technics SV-360 DAT Recorder from the Technics SV-260 portable DAT recorder, positioning the SV-360 as the rackmount model in the range.
The Technics SV-360 DAT Recorder is also documented as being identical in construction to the Panasonic SV-3500. This makes the Technics SV-360 DAT Recorder part of a shared Technics and Panasonic DAT platform, with the machines differing in branding and model designation rather than fundamental construction. This was consistent with the way certain Matsushita professional and semi-professional products appeared under different brand identities depending on market and distribution channel.
As a DAT recorder, the Technics SV-360 DAT Recorder belonged to a generation of machines that brought digital recording into a cassette-based format with direct tape access, compact media and professional usability. DAT became an important format for stereo master recording, pre-master preparation, broadcast work and digital archiving, and machines such as the Technics SV-360 DAT Recorder were designed to provide those functions in a fixed, rack-compatible form.
The Technics SV-360 DAT Recorder was supplied with remote control support and was listed at an original price of approximately 5,600 DM. It was also listed in contemporary UK coverage at £1,400 including VAT. These prices placed the Technics SV-360 DAT Recorder well above ordinary domestic cassette machines and reflected its role as a serious digital audio recorder rather than a standard hi-fi cassette deck.
With its Japanese manufacture, rackmount construction, DAT recording format, professional positioning and close relationship to the Panasonic SV-3500, the Technics SV-360 DAT Recorder represents an important early professional DAT machine from Technics. It was built during the period when DAT was establishing itself as a practical digital stereo recording medium, offering a compact tape-based alternative to larger digital recorders and analogue mastering formats.
Features
- Digital Audio Tape recording and playback
- Rackmount recorder design
- Professional DAT recorder format
- Fixed installation alternative to portable DAT recorders
- Black finish
- Remote control support
- Documented as identical in construction to the Panasonic SV-3500