newbie

[Rogers_68]

hi.

i just started learning about recording about 2 months ago and i'm having a lot of fun. i play the drums (i'm a rogers fan). i just recently switched from recording with my computer to recording with a tascam 424 mkII. it's a fun little unit to use.

anyone know where i can get some of that teac sp-1 stainless polish?

also - what are the best cassettes to use?

thanks.

[Dr ZEE]

to get teac sp-1 you'd need to spot something like THIS
instead you can use something like this or this ... (I can't find where you can buy a one single can... ) ... here at e-bay a seller got nine of them ... forty buck ..nobody bids (that's a good deal if you clean a lot of stuff, if I'm not mistaken these are $10 a can or so, and are being sold by 12-per-case) - see this auction
*******
read blah about stainless steel cleaners - HERE
********
this cassettes are good

[Rogers_68]

thanks dr. zee.

is it that necessary to use the stainless cleaner?

do you usually buy the 60-min. tapes and fit as much as you can on them or do you buy the shorter length and do one song per tape?

thanks for the info. i appreciate it.

[Dr ZEE]

Originally Posted by Rogers_68

is it that necessary to use the stainless cleaner?.

of course not. that's why I've posted that 'read blah blah about stainless steel cleaners' link, there's a good tip there from a smart lady

Originally Posted by Sarah

Try using just plain water and a clean cloth. If that isn't as effective, try a mild detergent like dishwashing liquid. Glass cleaner can be great to remove smudges and fingerprints. Try these easy and less risky methods first. You may find you don't need a separate stainless steel cleaner.

also, unless I'm blind (there's a chance i'm) , but I see no much steel on 424mkII of any kind (stainless steel looks something like THIS ... before you drink what's inside...) Be careful using any kind of chemicals on your machine's enclosure. Do a little test first always.

Originally Posted by Rogers_68

do you usually buy the 60-min. tapes and fit as much as you can on them or do you buy the shorter length and do one song per tape?.

I'm not the right person to ask, I have not use a cassette portastudio ever in my life for tracking nor for anything ... so have no idea about what's the best. But I used to deal with cassettes allot in the past (as stereo recording) some for demos, remixing and allot for music editing programs and stuff like that. So I used order cassttes by 100 (case) of different length. I would imagine that it is better to have your songs each on seprate cassete. I used to have the whole "library" of all sorts of short recordings/programs... and kept them all on separate cassette, so when needed - just find the box - and you have it... no search/winding etc...
So if I would use cassette multitracker , I think I would use shorter cassttes of what ever length is the songs are about...
Here's example of the place you could order bulk shorter tapes, but usually you have to order a box of them (minimum 100 or so)... they are much cheaper that way: chrom Hi-Bias audio cassttes / BlankMedia.net
I used to buy similar bulk cassettes from some place in NY ...they were like $0.20 or less a piece. If you do search you may find a place locally or close to where you are.

[uzizit]

I use 15-20 min cassetes for my 246... They are thicker and don't stretch as much when doing multi tracking...Have fun recording it's addictive you know.. .

[arjoll]

Originally Posted by Dr ZEE

or this ... (I can't find where you can buy a one single can... [/URL]

The 3M stuff is available at many supermarkets in NZ, we have a can here to clean kitchen applicances. Its about NZ$5 or so a can. Does a good job, but you'll need to use Spray & Wipe first to clean up those burned-on spills