National Audio Video
- Thread starter bachelorb
- Start date
sweetbeats
Reel deep thoughts...
I
Love it.
Thanks.
Love it.
Thanks.
Awesome videos and I'm glad they exist still...
But...
I don't get it. I grew up with cassettes. I have a Tascam 238, and several open real machines... but I don't get the resurgence of cassettes as 'final product'. I don't have fond memories of cassettes and I wouldn't call them 'warm'. Noisy.. yes. Warble... rewinding... trying to find that song you want to listen to.. forward and back... :: crunch ::
I'd have been much happier with 8 Track coming back. I think it's a far better format...
I totally get the return of vinyl and I buy quite a bit of it... It's a product that, if taken care of, will last a very long time. The album art is huge and beautiful. Playing a record is a commitment. It requires you to have put some thought into the process. The need to flip it 1/2 through.. I understand and enjoy all of that...
But cassettes are noisy, get eaten, degrade is sound quality quickly, and don't lend them selves to the music listening 'experience' that I'm after. (Key phrase being 'I'm after')
Is it just rude for me to say that I feel like it's a totally 'hipster' driven movement? It's only cool because it's old and seen us 'uncool'.
Again, I'm totally on-board using them in a portastudio, or similar, that I get.. It's just the idea that the final delivery is on cassette.
Any cassette lovers here? Anyone here planning to deliver their album on cassette? Any one buying many of them? I would love to hear your perspective. I can't tell you how many people thing I'm crazy for buying vinyl...
I talk to people in the 50+ age range all the time who ask 'Do you even know what a turntable is?' and I have to politely explain to them that I buy a vinyl version of nearly every record I buy these days... and then I offer to take their old vinyl off their hands
What do you all think?
But...
I don't get it. I grew up with cassettes. I have a Tascam 238, and several open real machines... but I don't get the resurgence of cassettes as 'final product'. I don't have fond memories of cassettes and I wouldn't call them 'warm'. Noisy.. yes. Warble... rewinding... trying to find that song you want to listen to.. forward and back... :: crunch ::
I'd have been much happier with 8 Track coming back. I think it's a far better format...
I totally get the return of vinyl and I buy quite a bit of it... It's a product that, if taken care of, will last a very long time. The album art is huge and beautiful. Playing a record is a commitment. It requires you to have put some thought into the process. The need to flip it 1/2 through.. I understand and enjoy all of that...
But cassettes are noisy, get eaten, degrade is sound quality quickly, and don't lend them selves to the music listening 'experience' that I'm after. (Key phrase being 'I'm after')
Is it just rude for me to say that I feel like it's a totally 'hipster' driven movement? It's only cool because it's old and seen us 'uncool'.
Again, I'm totally on-board using them in a portastudio, or similar, that I get.. It's just the idea that the final delivery is on cassette.
Any cassette lovers here? Anyone here planning to deliver their album on cassette? Any one buying many of them? I would love to hear your perspective. I can't tell you how many people thing I'm crazy for buying vinyl...
I talk to people in the 50+ age range all the time who ask 'Do you even know what a turntable is?' and I have to politely explain to them that I buy a vinyl version of nearly every record I buy these days... and then I offer to take their old vinyl off their hands
What do you all think?
lonewhitefly
Active member
Awesome videos and I'm glad they exist still...
But...
I don't get it. I grew up with cassettes. I have a Tascam 238, and several open real machines... but I don't get the resurgence of cassettes as 'final product'. I don't have fond memories of cassettes and I wouldn't call them 'warm'. Noisy.. yes. Warble... rewinding... trying to find that song you want to listen to.. forward and back... :: crunch ::
I'd have been much happier with 8 Track coming back. I think it's a far better format...
I totally get the return of vinyl and I buy quite a bit of it... It's a product that, if taken care of, will last a very long time. The album art is huge and beautiful. Playing a record is a commitment. It requires you to have put some thought into the process. The need to flip it 1/2 through.. I understand and enjoy all of that...
But cassettes are noisy, get eaten, degrade is sound quality quickly, and don't lend them selves to the music listening 'experience' that I'm after. (Key phrase being 'I'm after')
Is it just rude for me to say that I feel like it's a totally 'hipster' driven movement? It's only cool because it's old and seen us 'uncool'.
Again, I'm totally on-board using them in a portastudio, or similar, that I get.. It's just the idea that the final delivery is on cassette.
Any cassette lovers here? Anyone here planning to deliver their album on cassette? Any one buying many of them? I would love to hear your perspective. I can't tell you how many people thing I'm crazy for buying vinyl...
I talk to people in the 50+ age range all the time who ask 'Do you even know what a turntable is?' and I have to politely explain to them that I buy a vinyl version of nearly every record I buy these days... and then I offer to take their old vinyl off their hands
What do you all think?
I think the appeal is that it's an inexpensive way to get a novel physical product out. And, for most people pressing cassettes, I think it does indeed give their all-digital recordings a sheen of imperfect charm.
I actually did release one of my group's albums on cassette (used NAC, in fact). We didn't sell very many compared to vinyl and CD ... but I think for certain scenes it's fairly easy to sell them at shows. The cassette/download combo is a pretty appealing choice, both for bands/labels and buyers/listeners.
"Hipster" as a term doesn't really mean anything in this context, as there are tons of different scenes or groups that people who are not involved with these scenes or groups don't understand the difference between ... that is to say, there are probably more cassette-indifferent "hipsters" than cassette-loving ones.
I'm all for the cassette resurgence, even if it's for show. It's no different than wearing a certain type of shoes or having a certain hairdo ... listening to music on a particular format is a lifestyle choice as much as a choice of audio quality. I wouldn't really call myself a cassette-lover ... it's a pretty compromised format. And yeh, the CD sounds a lot closer to the master tape (CD sounds closer than the master tape than vinyl too I think ... but that's a whole other conversation).
But for portable, inexpensive, readily available analog ... cassette is the only game in town. And in our increasingly detached, digital realities ... a flawed analog playback medium for the everyman is a breath of fresh air.
Last edited:
miroslav
Cosmic Cowboy
I'm with you 100%.
I see nothing of value using cassettes for tracking or for final medium if you're even half-serious about the music you are recording. For pure "demo" work...sure, they are quick easy and will provide a "usable" end-product.
They wear out quickly and can fail miserably with nasty screeching noise and whatnot....it's just that when they wear, people rarely retain the memory of that first play to compare to...so the dullness and noise set in, and you kinda get use to it, like scratches on vinyl...you just listen past it.
At this point, if I couldn't track on big open reel tape...I would never go back to cassettes...I would rather just work in the digital domain entirely. I used cassettes long enough in the early years before CDs became the norm to have strong feelings about ever using them again for anything serious.
I still have tons of old cassettes, both commercial and my own and even a whole bunch of brand new unused blanks...and the thought of using them for anything hasn't crossed my mind the last 10 years. Most of the old commercial ones don't even play good anymore...I mean they sound like shit.
What I don't get is who is really buying them to listen to?
I mean....find me a car that's been made in the last 10-15 years that comes with a cassette player...or any large selection of boom boxes that play cassettes.
Just like I do...I'm sure there are others who have players from years past...but I don't see anything appealing about using them over CDs.
IMO...it's not about sound...it's just a retro phase. It's for the hipsters who never really used analog to record or listen to...so they think a cassette tape somehow gets them that "magic"...which, I hate to say this, is the most blown-out-of-proportion perspective these days by people who want to experience "analog tape recording".
Yeah...I know a lot of guys here use them...and I'm not knocking them as a great tool for getting down rough takes/mixes and song ideas...but the reality is that cassette tapes, back in the day, were the absolute bottom of the analog barrel, and no one was using them to "get that analog sound"....they just happened to be the cheapest, easiest way for people to have music on a very compact, easily transportable format...especially for the car.
The only good I would hope for is that it pushes people to REALLY get into analog tape recording, and not just fantasize about it by playing around with portastudios and cassette tapes.
OK...now I know the portastudio guys are getting their pitchforks and axes ready to come after me....
I don't say that using cassettes is bad. I know for many, it is all they can do, and they try to make the best of it...and that is cool.
What I can't stand is the constant glorification of a shit tape format. I mean, it sorta sends the wrong analog recording message to the young generations that just want some "analog cool" to sprinkle on their tracks. They tend to not ever look much beyond cassettes and portastudios....and I wish more people would. Then maybe we can really talk about an analog tape recording resurgence.
I just think people should push the envelope...and not settle for the lowest/cheapest commen denominator.
Yeah, I get what you're saying. It is cheap and portable (pocket-able even), especially in comparison to vinyl, and as with anything else, is a choice. That's where I was going with my 'hipster' comment. The 'hipster movement' isn't bad or good in my book, it's just a popular style at the moment. The hipster archetype tends to seek out things that are, or would otherwise be, seen as uncool and pulls them into the fold. Fashion is fashion and I totally get that.
Many delivery formats compromise the final product, be it cassette, MP3, vinyl, etc.. I certainly take your point there as well. I love when a band offers a vinyl record with a digital download.
It seems similar to a lot of the older generation of recording and mix engineers. These people lived through an era when only tape was available, and can't imagine why, with digital technology, anyone would want to go back. We all make choices for different reasons. Bobby Owsinski mentions that a lot on his podcast.
Thanks for responding. It's interesting to me that your band released on cassette, vinyl, CD and digital download and I'd be so interested to learn why you chose that to do that, how it sold, and to whom. Frankly, I'd also be interested to know how many people who buy a physical product listen to it, be is cassette, vinyl, or CD. My sister was buying vinyl for years before she ever bought a turntable...
Different stoke. Thanks for the perspective.
Many delivery formats compromise the final product, be it cassette, MP3, vinyl, etc.. I certainly take your point there as well. I love when a band offers a vinyl record with a digital download.
It seems similar to a lot of the older generation of recording and mix engineers. These people lived through an era when only tape was available, and can't imagine why, with digital technology, anyone would want to go back. We all make choices for different reasons. Bobby Owsinski mentions that a lot on his podcast.
Thanks for responding. It's interesting to me that your band released on cassette, vinyl, CD and digital download and I'd be so interested to learn why you chose that to do that, how it sold, and to whom. Frankly, I'd also be interested to know how many people who buy a physical product listen to it, be is cassette, vinyl, or CD. My sister was buying vinyl for years before she ever bought a turntable...
Different stoke. Thanks for the perspective.
I can't help but agree with the 'analog cool' thing Miro. 10 years ago it was all about tubes. We all had to have tubes. Now it's tape and analog. Everything in life, beyond just music, is so 'digital' now I can understand people's reaction. We're all on our phones looking at digital copies of everything... it's nice to have some real. You can buy a simulation of a 1176 and put a 100 of then in your mix... And I have every confidence they sound great... but I, like some kind of Luddite, am not interested.
Goes back to lonewhitefly's comments about fashion. It's not for me, but I'm not here to judge. Do what make you happy. I won't be delivering on cassette, or buying any but if it's your thing... rock on.
I can picture the year 2025 - We'll all be trying to buy up old 16bit ADAT machine looking for that awesome 90s sound. "The problem, man, is that we have too much signal to noise ratio! Man, back in the day you had to be like super careful with your levels to the ADAT. Yah, I need me some of that 16bit!"
It's swings and roundabout all according to each individual.. and how good you are on eBay.
I'm enjoying this. Good discussion.
Goes back to lonewhitefly's comments about fashion. It's not for me, but I'm not here to judge. Do what make you happy. I won't be delivering on cassette, or buying any but if it's your thing... rock on.
I can picture the year 2025 - We'll all be trying to buy up old 16bit ADAT machine looking for that awesome 90s sound. "The problem, man, is that we have too much signal to noise ratio! Man, back in the day you had to be like super careful with your levels to the ADAT. Yah, I need me some of that 16bit!"
It's swings and roundabout all according to each individual.. and how good you are on eBay.
I'm enjoying this. Good discussion.
miroslav
Cosmic Cowboy
No...I am all for people going back, and those recording and mix engineers that still want the real "analog tape" sound will use the right analog tape tools. I mean...they're not reaching for cassettes.
I just wish people would REALLY go back...I mean, really dig deep into the analog world, and analog tape recording.
Don't just reach for the cheapest, simplest tool that involves some form of analog "tape"....and then talk about analog recording, and analog sound, and analog magic. It's too fucking comical to listen to that....sorry guys.
Even the guy in the video (which by the way was cool to see) started talking about analog sound...etc...and I know he was just pandering to the misguided hipsters who think that by using cassette tapes...they're tasting that analog magic that was happening back in the golden years of analog tape recording....and they are hipster cool for doing so.
bachelorb
Cowboy Chord Virtuoso
For me it's going back to my youth.... I'm not hipster enough to go eight track though.... I think I threw away more miles of 8 track tape than my rusted out Pinto had miles on it!!!
Cassettes were just my time..... As for recording on em, I like having to play the song. It's what I got......
Cassettes were just my time..... As for recording on em, I like having to play the song. It's what I got......
miroslav
Cosmic Cowboy
Sure...even for me, cassettes are a connection to my younger days, both as a listener of music, and my early recording years, though even from the start, I was recording to 4-track open reel, mixing down to a 2-track reel, and the cassettes were my final distribution medium...I mean, that's all we had.
That said...it was never a singular event back then, that I know think of in any nostalgic fashion.
It was just the first step in my recording evolution, because even then, I was looking and hoping for something more, and thinking about the big studios, and really wanting to get deeper into recording.
And that's what I was getting it...many of the young generations today are simply trying to grab a piece of some retro-analog tape vibe...just to be different from the all-ITB world.
They should dig deeper and evolve into more serious analog tape recording...then, we might have a real movement back to analog, and not just a hipster-cool thing.
I'm sure if I only used cassettes back in the day...and then stopped recording for 20-30 year...I too would feel most comfortable picking up where I left off...nothing wrong or unusual with that, and I certainly applaud people for doing that...for picking up where they left off...I just wish more would be motivated to take it to the next level, and the next..etc.
I hate that they've turned tape recording into some sort of plug-in/FX...like, "Hey, I'll drop my sim/sampled tracks onto a cassette tape, to get some of that analog sound"...I mean, that's so misguided, that it's both funny and sad.
That said...it was never a singular event back then, that I know think of in any nostalgic fashion.
It was just the first step in my recording evolution, because even then, I was looking and hoping for something more, and thinking about the big studios, and really wanting to get deeper into recording.
And that's what I was getting it...many of the young generations today are simply trying to grab a piece of some retro-analog tape vibe...just to be different from the all-ITB world.
They should dig deeper and evolve into more serious analog tape recording...then, we might have a real movement back to analog, and not just a hipster-cool thing.
I'm sure if I only used cassettes back in the day...and then stopped recording for 20-30 year...I too would feel most comfortable picking up where I left off...nothing wrong or unusual with that, and I certainly applaud people for doing that...for picking up where they left off...I just wish more would be motivated to take it to the next level, and the next..etc.
I hate that they've turned tape recording into some sort of plug-in/FX...like, "Hey, I'll drop my sim/sampled tracks onto a cassette tape, to get some of that analog sound"...I mean, that's so misguided, that it's both funny and sad.
Level Anything
Member
But...
I don't get it. I grew up with cassettes. I have a Tascam 238, and several open real machines... but I don't get the resurgence of cassettes as 'final product'. I don't have fond memories of cassettes and I wouldn't call them 'warm'. Noisy.. yes. Warble... rewinding... trying to find that song you want to listen to.. forward and back... :: crunch ::
I'd have been much happier with 8 Track coming back. I think it's a far better format...
I totally get the return of vinyl and I buy quite a bit of it... It's a product that, if taken care of, will last a very long time. The album art is huge and beautiful. Playing a record is a commitment. It requires you to have put some thought into the process. The need to flip it 1/2 through.. I understand and enjoy all of that...
But cassettes are noisy, get eaten, degrade is sound quality quickly, and don't lend them selves to the music listening 'experience' that I'm after. (Key phrase being 'I'm after')
Is it just rude for me to say that I feel like it's a totally 'hipster' driven movement? It's only cool because it's old and seen us 'uncool'.
Again, I'm totally on-board using them in a portastudio, or similar, that I get.. It's just the idea that the final delivery is on cassette.
Any cassette lovers here? Anyone here planning to deliver their album on cassette? Any one buying many of them? I would love to hear your perspective. I can't tell you how many people thing I'm crazy for buying vinyl...
I talk to people in the 50+ age range all the time who ask 'Do you even know what a turntable is?' and I have to politely explain to them that I buy a vinyl version of nearly every record I buy these days... and then I offer to take their old vinyl off their hands
What do you all think?
All the problems you bring up are due to having an unmaintained machine to play the cassette in. I agree that it's more problematic to use the format exclusively, but that's not what's going on with kids who are bringing it back. I grew up with 'em and didn't really care one way or the other. They were just something to play and record with, and when CD started to get popular I really wanted a CD player. Same thing with multitrack recording, but recently I became bored with the sound of digital. I found myself spending more time trying to fill in some of the blanks that the clarity of digital does to my songs and I figured I'd try 4-tracking again just for kicks. It worked.
I think there's many reasons for the resurgence of older formats like vinyl and reel to reel, but with cassette I tend to think that it's such a liberating thing because you can't press vinyl in your bedroom. Anyone can buy a deck for $50 and start their own label. True, you can do that with digital downloads even cheaper, but there's nothing to hold, nothing to look at and stand up on yr shelf. Nostalgia plays a part for some, and curiosity for other, but in the end it's inspiring people to make interesting sound and that, to me, is worth it. People lose downloaded albums when their computer breaks, or they get a new one, or they just forget it;s there among the 5,000 other songs they have listed. Tapes are going to float with these kids for a while, because as I've seen, most of the kids who buy my tape don't even have a way to play it. It's more of a piece of art, and I don't judge. I'm for whatever gets people into buying music from artists again. I also love the sound of cassette if you can't tell haha!
Level Anything
Member
I think I said that about digital in my above post. The thing is, these kids for the most part grew up with CD's only. Cassettes are something interesting because they didn't experience them. Add that with the fact that every plug-in company on earth has been pumping out virtual tape machines and analog emulating programs, and eventually the very people who are buying them will be interested in the real thing (I realize that cassette isn't 2" tape, or even 1/4" for that matter).
This whole hipster thing is boring. Artists are hipsters. Has been that way since the beatniks. Not everything everybody does that doesn't make sense to you is just them being "different for the sake of it." Sure, there's phonies and bandwagoners in any circle, and when Urban Outfitters starts selling something then it's usually a sign that it's reached saturation point, but in the end who cares? It's just another canvas on which to make art. Some good, some shit. There's more positive than negative coming out of it so I say more power to 'em.
This whole hipster thing is boring. Artists are hipsters. Has been that way since the beatniks. Not everything everybody does that doesn't make sense to you is just them being "different for the sake of it." Sure, there's phonies and bandwagoners in any circle, and when Urban Outfitters starts selling something then it's usually a sign that it's reached saturation point, but in the end who cares? It's just another canvas on which to make art. Some good, some shit. There's more positive than negative coming out of it so I say more power to 'em.
bachelorb
Cowboy Chord Virtuoso
Ahhhhhhhhh...... I get it now....... For me using a 4 track cassette deck is an easy way to start at the basics. I tried using a DAW last year for some songwriting, and found all the plug ins quite complicated and confusing. Thought I'd better start over and understand what I'm doing(plus I enjoy tinkering with old stuff).
I didn't even think this analog thing would be an effect in itself......
lonewhitefly
Active member
I have to take issue with some points in your post here ...
I know plenty of people who like cassettes, the way that there have always been people who liked vinyl (including prior to the resurgence).
You're taking a couple of subsets of the current culture ("hipster"/trend-hoppers, and the "analog warmth" seekers) and applying it across the whole. For every one of them, there's someone who has been into cassettes for a long time, always liked them for what they could offer in the past, and still likes them for what they can offer today.
As I mentioned above, cassettes are analog for the everyman. That is ... yes, most people would prefer a beautiful open reel system for recording. But that is not within reach for lots of folks for tons of reasons. Some people would rather have a compromised analog format than a great digital format -- that's the part you seem to be missing. And for plenty of reasons unrelated to hipsterdom or retro trends.
Personally, I've owned countless analog recorders ... from lowly Portastudios to super duper open reel recorders (and everything in between) ... cassettes are not just for trend-hoppers.
I remember once my friend gave me an album he had done with his group a few years prior. He mentioned it was recorded on a 3M 16-track at his friends super duper studio. I listened to it and thought it was pretty cool ... the very last song really stood out though; it seemed to have more of a '60s vibe than the rest of the stuff. I told him that I really liked this one particular track and the production and aesthetic. He revealed that particular song was the only one that wasn't done on the 3m ... it was cut on 8-track cassette!
miroslav
Cosmic Cowboy
What people "like" or "believe" or "feel"...etc....is not the issue or the point.
Science is the point.
The so called "analog tape sound" that so many people refer to these days without full understanding (present company excluded, of course)...had/has nothing to do with cassette tape, yet I see all too often people talking about getting/using cassette tape in order to get "that analog tape sound".
My point was/is...that cassette tape sound is a very compromised analog tape format...but many think that because it is "analog tape"...it will give them what they are imagining...that classic '70s analog tape sound heard on so many great recordings.
That said, I take no issue with someone saying the like or prefer to use cassettes over digital...though we could devote 50 pages to the merits of using a "compromised analog system" VS a "great digital format".
AFA the simple beauty of a cassette portastudio...the easy and instant gratification with which it can be used...that too is another discussion, and again, having used 4-track reels and thousands of cassettes during my early recording years, I am only all too familiar with what they can/can't do and when they can/can't be appealing.
The main point was/is that many turn to cassettes tape in order to add some "analog tape magic" to their recordings...and they think that's all it takes. They are not looking to really get involved with analog tape recording...they're just looking for another "plugin" type solution...and that's what I take issue with. That's the hipster/retro thing...or the misunderstood "lo-fi" thing, where people think you need crappy/cheap gear in order to capture the retro sounds of the '60s & '70s.
It's almost as bad as thinking that buying a Gibson LP will let you sound like Jimmy Page...when there is so much more to it than that.
Science is the point.
The so called "analog tape sound" that so many people refer to these days without full understanding (present company excluded, of course)...had/has nothing to do with cassette tape, yet I see all too often people talking about getting/using cassette tape in order to get "that analog tape sound".
My point was/is...that cassette tape sound is a very compromised analog tape format...but many think that because it is "analog tape"...it will give them what they are imagining...that classic '70s analog tape sound heard on so many great recordings.
That said, I take no issue with someone saying the like or prefer to use cassettes over digital...though we could devote 50 pages to the merits of using a "compromised analog system" VS a "great digital format".
AFA the simple beauty of a cassette portastudio...the easy and instant gratification with which it can be used...that too is another discussion, and again, having used 4-track reels and thousands of cassettes during my early recording years, I am only all too familiar with what they can/can't do and when they can/can't be appealing.
The main point was/is that many turn to cassettes tape in order to add some "analog tape magic" to their recordings...and they think that's all it takes. They are not looking to really get involved with analog tape recording...they're just looking for another "plugin" type solution...and that's what I take issue with. That's the hipster/retro thing...or the misunderstood "lo-fi" thing, where people think you need crappy/cheap gear in order to capture the retro sounds of the '60s & '70s.
It's almost as bad as thinking that buying a Gibson LP will let you sound like Jimmy Page...when there is so much more to it than that.
Hmmm. I'm in the modern world as far as using digital goes. I even have music on my phone.
But I still use cassettes, never stopped.
Good tape, a good deck and it still sounds good. I have no problem with the format. (2 track)
I've done loads of 8 track recordings on a 238. Came out pretty good, but I wouldn't go back to it. I got an msr16 and protools. I'm sure if I had a 1 or 2 inch 16 track or a 2 inch 24 track, it would be hard to go back to the half inch. Better is better.
But.... cassettes are sure fun and convenient.
But I still use cassettes, never stopped.
Good tape, a good deck and it still sounds good. I have no problem with the format. (2 track)
I've done loads of 8 track recordings on a 238. Came out pretty good, but I wouldn't go back to it. I got an msr16 and protools. I'm sure if I had a 1 or 2 inch 16 track or a 2 inch 24 track, it would be hard to go back to the half inch. Better is better.
But.... cassettes are sure fun and convenient.
miroslav
Cosmic Cowboy
It's not about using cassettes in general...they can have a purpose.
It's more about their use as the preferred choice for any serious tracking, mixing and distribution, and the notion that cassette tape can yield that special analog tape sound that many lust after when turning back from digital and/or from never having experienced any kind of analog tape recording, so all they hear/use is cassette tape.
I've listened to and recorded with cassettes extensively...I'm just saying that I see little value in going back to cassette tapes for anything more than demo use and quick mixdown/mix checking, etc.
I know not everyone can just pick-n-choose...I get that, so I don't expect everyone to run out and grab a Studer...
...but that said, I then also know that people don't know what they don't know.
<EDIT>
Look...I don't wanna piss off the cassette users....that's not my goal.
If you feel that using cassette tape and portastudios will get you "THE" sound you are seeking, then by all means that's what you should use.
My own sound quest has taken me from 4-track reels and cassette tape, to 16 channel 1/2" tape formats, and now beyond that...so I admit my head is in another place these days, trying to finally reach my own destination for "THE" sound I want in my studio and my recordings.
I would probably consider vinyl over cassettes as an analog distribution format...but even there, you have that diminishing quality with each playback, so that's why I feel tracking to the best tape format I can do, and then transferring to digital, is what makes sense to me. Other folks may feel differently, and prefer other solutions...and that's OK.
My only desire here was/is to push people to go deeper with their analog tape recording, and at least try and experience all the different options that they can, before settling on any one, and I think most would hear the differences between them.
It's more about their use as the preferred choice for any serious tracking, mixing and distribution, and the notion that cassette tape can yield that special analog tape sound that many lust after when turning back from digital and/or from never having experienced any kind of analog tape recording, so all they hear/use is cassette tape.
I've listened to and recorded with cassettes extensively...I'm just saying that I see little value in going back to cassette tapes for anything more than demo use and quick mixdown/mix checking, etc.
I know not everyone can just pick-n-choose...I get that, so I don't expect everyone to run out and grab a Studer...
...but that said, I then also know that people don't know what they don't know.
<EDIT>
Look...I don't wanna piss off the cassette users....that's not my goal.
If you feel that using cassette tape and portastudios will get you "THE" sound you are seeking, then by all means that's what you should use.
My own sound quest has taken me from 4-track reels and cassette tape, to 16 channel 1/2" tape formats, and now beyond that...so I admit my head is in another place these days, trying to finally reach my own destination for "THE" sound I want in my studio and my recordings.
I would probably consider vinyl over cassettes as an analog distribution format...but even there, you have that diminishing quality with each playback, so that's why I feel tracking to the best tape format I can do, and then transferring to digital, is what makes sense to me. Other folks may feel differently, and prefer other solutions...and that's OK.
My only desire here was/is to push people to go deeper with their analog tape recording, and at least try and experience all the different options that they can, before settling on any one, and I think most would hear the differences between them.
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I get what you are saying.
Cassettes are not and have never been a 'magic' analog goodness machine.
Where the mktg of 'analog' comes into play is more for consumers. Its a magic word that invokes a certain goodness. A selling point.
Back in the 90s the same thing was done with the mktg of digital. You'd see crap speakers , headphones, etc with the words " digital ready" on the packaging. It was pure junk, but it was digital ready. Like what the fuck does that even mean? Lol.
Cassette technology is indeed analog, without a doubt. But as far as analog tape goes, it is on one of the lowest rungs of the ladder.
Now as to sound quality of stereo cassettes, I dont find it to be too bad.
I would prefer to listen to a cassette mix tape I've recorded off of cd, than the same thing on my ipod.
Besides, i have a vintage sportscar that has an Alpine cassete deck in it. Sounds great to me while I'm blasting Hendrix at 60mph with the top down!
But as a multitrack preferred recording medium. .....nah. Much better available.
Just my opinions
Cassettes are not and have never been a 'magic' analog goodness machine.
Where the mktg of 'analog' comes into play is more for consumers. Its a magic word that invokes a certain goodness. A selling point.
Back in the 90s the same thing was done with the mktg of digital. You'd see crap speakers , headphones, etc with the words " digital ready" on the packaging. It was pure junk, but it was digital ready. Like what the fuck does that even mean? Lol.
Cassette technology is indeed analog, without a doubt. But as far as analog tape goes, it is on one of the lowest rungs of the ladder.
Now as to sound quality of stereo cassettes, I dont find it to be too bad.
I would prefer to listen to a cassette mix tape I've recorded off of cd, than the same thing on my ipod.
Besides, i have a vintage sportscar that has an Alpine cassete deck in it. Sounds great to me while I'm blasting Hendrix at 60mph with the top down!
But as a multitrack preferred recording medium. .....nah. Much better available.
Just my opinions