16 track reel to reels..

Re: 1/4

Chuckschwandt said:
Hi Paulie,

Since your used to the larger tape machines,
do you think there is much difference between
a 1/4" vrs a 1" machine ? I'm switching from
a 1/4" eight track unit and going to a 16 track
1" machine next week. I havn't heard it yet, but
I'm switching for more tracks only. Do you think
the quality will be much better ? I'm concerned that
I'll want to redo all my previous work, instead of
just transferring the tracks. The 1/4" has done
a great job for me.

Chuck


Hi Chuck,

You'll have a TON more low end-that's for sure!!

I don't want you guys to get the Impression that I am "Anti-Analog".

I'm not at all.
But for Home recording, Competing with a 2" format 24-track at 15/30 ips, I think Digital is the way to go.

I love quality Analog; I'm just finding that all the horro stories I always heard about Digital (well maybe it was all just early Digital) don't seem to apply.
(like recordings being "super sterile" sounding-I think it's a matter of What you put into it.
And ofr me, since I'm an experimenter ( I just LOVE to play with sound, seeing what kind of strange/original but USABLE sounds and effects combinations I can come up with.

I remember years ago, trying to create an "underwater" effect-a unit that actually used water in it!

I destroyed several spring reverbs for parts. needles to say, it didn't work, but it was exciting trying to come up with something!

I'm still trying to build a REAL plate reverb.
If I ever learn how, and can do it. I'll assure you that you guys will be learning how to build your very own plate reverb! Hahahaha

Tim
 
It was the 8 tracks on 1/4" that started Fostex. The guy who invented the small multitrack head used to work for Tascam and he put it to them to build it. They declined so he went off and started fostex.

One thing about the noise reduction - either Dolby C, DBX or the later (and better) dolby S all use compression and if used correctly will stop overload distortion and increase your headroom as well as removing hiss - so it's worth using and the recorder performs much better with it.

Clean heads are an imperative when using analogue tape and regular degaussing is also a must.(once a day!!)

A good analogue recorder for a HR setup is the Tascam 1" 16 track with DBX. You'll get top quality sound from one of them and combined with a good DAW you're in business.

Alan Jackson records drums, bass and E/gtrs on analogue and all acc gtr/vocals etc on digital. The best of both worlds is the way to go!!

Cheers
John :D
 
Previous Post

Hi GJHardwick,

I had great results with my Fostex 1/4" eight track
as well. I simply needed more tracks to get my songs
completed. So I now have a MS16 Tascam sixteen track.
I can hear more punch, clarity, and fullness, but
not in a great degree. I would have stayed with the
1/4" Fostex if the extra tracks weren't needed.

Chuck
 
Reply to DBX comments

I experimented with DBX noise reduction on my MS16
1" Tascam unit. I recorded one track with it, and
one without. Then during playback, I muted back and
forth to compare with my ears. There wasn't a great
deal of difference, but the DBX was better in my
opinion. It had a better tone. Without DBX it was
thinner sounding on my acoustic guitar. The final
result wasn't as much a factor in noise, but TONE.
For the record, I used 499 tape reels.

Chuck
 
Greetings to all.

I have had a TSR8 8 track for a while now and am satisfied with it. I have not used it latley due to lack of time. FUll time job as a damn bureaucrat keeps me busy. My question is this: I would like to clean the heads and other areas where the tape slides on. I do know how to demagnatize and have done that before. The other day, I was looking at the heads and the areas where the tape slides on. They looked like they needed some cleaning. Is there some sort of solution that I can use to clean them without damaging them?

Please let me know. Thanks in advance.
 
well , like someone said before , there sure are a lot of analogue lovers here.. Im still yet to experience analogue , but after reading some of these replies sounds like it would be a great investment.. well cheers everyone for the info , be a while till i invest but this all helps .. cheers
spider
 
my demag unit is older then me and cant megnetise a screwdriver to pick up a nail. i dont know if this is bad. but i can definitely feel it turn on. only problem is there is a button on it, and you have to push it once its plugged in. if for some bad reason when i am near the heads i accidentally let go i think that is BAD :eek:
 
Yes it is. If you let go when you are near any part of the machine (you should be a couple of feet away before youturn it on, I think) then you are in danger of making it MORE magnetized then it was before.
 
You can magnetize a screwdriver by rubbing across a speaker magnet. The demagnetizer should be able to reverse that process. I have 4 of them, some are much better than others.
 
reply to cleaning heads

Hi Jag,

Cleaning is so very important. TASCAM company
even suggests cleaning after each session, at
your break times too. Just one spec of oxide
can hurt your signal. - Radio shack has head
cleaner available for head cleaning. Just use
a Q-tip and go at it. All the stains won't
come off the cap stems typically, but that is
ok. Don't use the head cleaner on rubber parts;
There is another solution for that cleaning, and
you don't have to do it so often. Anyway, hope
that helped some.

Chuck
 
Did anyone contact my buddie in New Rochelle about the 24
track ampex 2"? I have never heard from him or anyone else,
just curious.
 
Tascam MS-16 1" machine

Hey guys,
Can I jump in here since we're, more or
less, talking 16 track 1" machines?
I saw a few of you speak highly of the
Tascam MS-16 and was wondering how I can
visually inspect a machine for qualilty
and low hours? What would I expect to see
when examining the heads? Also, if I wanted
to re-bias a machine from 456 to 499, is
that a consumer-level do-it-yourself thing
or best left to a tech?
Please excuse my ignorance in these matters
and thanks for the continuous sharing of your
collective wealth of informative. You guys
are the best!
Learning in Colorado,
j e e m a i
 
When inspecting the head, you would expect that there is a groove here the tape runs, and hence a small "notch" at the edges. Run a fingernail over the head and see.
If youcan't find a notch, then there has been very little use, or the head is recently relapped. Thats good.

If there IS a notch (and most likely there is) then that means that you have to check (or hope) that the head is aligned properly, since otherwise you need to do an expensive head relapping before aligning the head.

http://home.flash.net/~mrltapes/ has a lot of information on analog tapes. Read all the PDF files you can find there. LOADS of info...
I seem to remember a site with tips on what to check when you buy a tape recorder, but I don't have it in myclinks. Try searching with http://www.google.com. Its a good engine.

I don't know how you set bias, and would like an answer to that question myself...
 
i somehow dont think that running your fingernail accross the head is a good idea? and relapping really isnt that expensive. less then $150 for my E16 at JFR.
 
Fingernails are pretty soft, so it's not a problem. Your obviously should not TRY to scratch it, you only want to see if there is an edge.

$150 is half of what I spent on my A-8LR, so it's a significant amount of money... :)
 
not to bring my 16 track up to spec its not to me. $150 saved and spent on relapping is going to blow away MANY other forms f recoridng media out there that people use. almost all digital besides those usng higher end digital, and well, even higher end analog.
 
Strange, I had been using a Fostex 8 channel 1/4" deck and retired it in favor of a Gadget Labs 8 channel hard disk interface. I have a lot of affection for my old Fostex, but in EVERY possible way the the Gadget labs (which cost me $500) blows it away. Better, cleaner sound; the speed and ease of random access on a hard disk - I will never go back. As soon as I get all my old tapes transfered to digital I'll be putting my Fostex deck up for sale.

And incidently, although I prefer Dolby C to DBX, comparing DBX to Dolby B is COLD - Dolby B is the most wretched thing on earth. I would chose tape hiss over Dolby B anytime.
 
Reply to FOSTEX 1/4" reel to reel

Hi gjhardwick,

I couldn't agree with you more. I had a fostex
1/4" unit until recently. I moved up from 8 to
16 tracks. The quality difference is minor, even
though the tracks are twice the size. You have a
great unit there, and it can stand up to the big
boy stuff. I have compared some CDRs recorded from
the Fostex to the Tascam 1" now owned, some of the
1/4" demos sound better !!! Ya know, as the old
saying goes: "it is not expense, or name that
counts, it's how well you can use it. How well
can be defined in terms of: Room tuning, input
connections, a decent mic, mic placement, preamps,
subtle effects, clean heads, Demagged heads, and
of course the most important - playing your
instrument.

Chuck
 
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