234 vs. reel

[pjs12]

Hey
I'm looking at purchasing either an 8 track reel to reel or the TASCAM 234 8 track cassette. I'm wondering how the 234's sound quality is going to stack up against a reel. Am I going to get better quality than a portastudio with the 234, or about the same? And how does this compare to reel? One attractive part about the 234 is the cassette tape media instead of reel tape, but I would assume quality suffers.
Thanks,
PJ

P.S. Does the 234 have many sync cababilites? -- it IS called the syncassette after all. I ask because i could maybe afford to get two and have 16 tracks.

[El Barto]

pjs12, the 234 is actually a 4 track cassette recorder...the 238 is the 8 track version. Basicly, the reel to reel beats out any cassette recorder as far as the quality. You gotta look at the fact that the reels are much wider (on an 8 track, they range from 1/4" to maybe even 2") and record at faster speeds (15ips?). I do believe that the syncassettes have better quality than the portastudios due to a different tape transport...for example, I used to have a Porta 424MKIII and now I have a Porta 688 (8 track 'midistudio'), which I hear uses the same tape transport as the 238, and I am very impressed by the sound quality. Sure, it's nothing 100% professional, but it sounds very good. Now, you gotta ask yourself...What are you looking to do with this? And most importantly, how much do you have to spend? If you're looking to record demos, or maybe even a 'lo-fi' indie rock release (or whatever), the portastudio is great...hell, a lot of bands have recorded stuff with a 4 track (Guided by Voices are 'famous' for this). And money becomes an issue when you're talking reel to reel vs cassette because, well...reel to reel will end up costing you a LOT in the long run...they have to be well maintained (well, so do the cassette players, but heads and guides, etc. dont have to be replaced as often..or at all, and the heads for reel to reels cost a pretty penny), the media is WAY more (we're talkin about $30-$40 or more for 30 minutes of recording time), and you'll also need an external mixer for them (Mackie 1604 Pro VLZ recommended, $975), although you'll also need one for the syncassettes. If you have the cash, and you're looking to do some majorly serious recording, check out the reel to reel...otherwise, you'll be fine with the syncassettes. And by the way, two versions of the 238 were made...a 238 and a 238S. The 238 uses dbx noise reduction, whereas the 238S uses Dolby S reduction, which is, from what I hear, much better. Keep your eye out for the 238S, they're pretty rare, but you can find em.

Now, as for the sync capabilities, yes they can be synced. You need an SMPTE sync generator to hook between the two units. This will require one track from each unit...so if you have two 8 track 238s, you'll have 14 total tracks to record to.

Hope all the info helps.

[pjs12]

Thanks El Barto
I think i might go with the 238.
Yeah, media is a definite cost consideration -- i'm 15 so i don't have much money to put into this.
I already have a mixer (it's just been on order for two months) so i think i'll be about ready to go when i get a recorder.

[Hot Rocks]

Hey,I couldn't have said it any better El Barto.I own a 238DBX and a 234 DBX.I love them both.The only thing I will add is if you don't need 8 tracks,say your in a trio,You might consider the 234 because the 238dbx currently sells for 350.00 to 475.00 depending.A nice 234 can be had for a couple hundred,if moneys tight.What I like about the 234 too is it has 1/4 inch inputs with trim and gain so you don't need a mixer while you record your gig.

[regebro]

Originally posted by El Barto
the media is WAY more (we're talkin about $30-$40 or more for 30 minutes of recording time)

Yup. But IMO, to get the best out of a casette recorder you need expensive casettes. I always bought real high end chrome stuff for my Yamaha MT2X, and those babies were $10-$15 for a C90 casette, which will give you 20 minutes of recording time. WAY more expensive? Nah. But about twice the cost, which still can be a lot, if you have no income...

And you can always record on crappy tapes if you WANT to.