tascam tsr to tascam msr

spinneyb

New member
Hi, Been useing my tsr 8 track for some time now but i am finding myself needing more and more tracks.I have been looking at an msr 24 track which is over 1" tape, is this a good idea and will it sound as good as my tsr 8 track.
cheers for any help
simon
 
The track width will be a bit skinnier on the MSR-24 but, so long as you use the noise reduction and watch your levels, you still can end up with some very professional results so long as your composition and mixing skills are up to the task.

If you are concerned with the thickness of the sound, an MS-16 would be a nice choice to maintain your track width and double your tracking capacity.

I own an MS-16 and really love the sound quality of it. It's a real rock and roll machine! :cool:

Cheers! :)
 
what about a fostex e16

Hi' thanks for the fast Response, i was thinking about the fostex e 16 but i dont think that will help me any as i think they run on a 1/2" tape (not sure).
I dont really need 24 tracks, a 16 track tascam would be great but i cant get one anywhere.
 
The Fostex is a 1/2" machine so yeah, the sound will be less full per track compared to what you're getting with the TSR-8.

What part of the world are you in that makes it impossible to hunt down an MS-16?

Cheers! :)
 
tascam

Hi agian, i'm from the uk and the only place i can think of is ebay and i haven't seen any on their for a long time.I often see the fostex e 16 and the b16 on their but i dont think the fostex parts are as easy to come buy as the tascam,and i much prefer the build of tascam over fostex.Thats why i dont wanna get rid of my tsr unless i can replace it with something as good .
So thats why i am considering the msr,if the sound results are as good as my tsr then thats good enough for.I'm just crazy about reel to reels,i dont know why i just love them,its not just the way they sound but also the way they look.Maybe i am crazy
cheers
simon
 
Well, first off, you're not crazy for loving the sound and tactile look and feel of decent open reel equipment. Many, many seasoned professionals in the music industry still swear by their sonic characteristics and it's not because they are romantically tied to just watching reels of tape turning in circles but because it gets the job done.

As far as the heart of your question again, the MSR24 or MSR16 will sound a bit thinner then your TSR8 but, if you are bouncing tracks currently and then negating the need for bouncing with a larger track capacity machine, you find the sonic differences are pretty slim.

I'd still suggest hunting down an MS16 or ATR60-16 if you can but it won't be too bad with the MSR series either.

It's up to you and your wallet and your hunting skills. ;)

Cheers! :)
 
msr vs tsr

yup, I gotta agree w/"ghost". I own a MSR-24 and everything he's said is spot on. If I had it to do over I would have saved for a ms-16 for that nice fat anaolog sound. There is a considerable sonic difference between machines. But of course there's also a big $$ diff. as well. Don't get me wrong, the msr is a fine machine and I've had some great results, but I've had to really work to get there. Even going to the msr 16 might be a better route, more space per track. ;)
 
I have the MSR16 and enjoy using it. The richness sound isn't as good as I had hoped when I bought it but it is still better than digital. My MSR shipped at 110# with 9 reels and a couple of snakes. I think the MS is a bit heavier.
 
petesong said:
yup, I gotta agree w/"ghost". I own a MSR-24 and everything he's said is spot on. If I had it to do over I would have saved for a ms-16 for that nice fat anaolog sound. There is a considerable sonic difference between machines. But of course there's also a big $$ diff. as well. Don't get me wrong, the msr is a fine machine and I've had some great results, but I've had to really work to get there. Even going to the msr 16 might be a better route, more space per track. ;)
The track width on the MS-16 is 1/16".
The track width on the MSR-24 is 1/24".
The track width on the MSR-16 is 1/32".
:eek: ;)
 
Damn, people, we're in an MSR16 resurgence now. Makes me want to hunt down some outboard NR units now and learn how to use Christine.
SpinneyB, I posted this to another, more recent thread. If you go for the MSR, please see below that may help you in your shopping. Some people debate that the Dolby S is a better NR and I bought mine on that info, but search the threads and see that it COULD be hit or miss on the Dolby versions. I, personally, was one of the 'misses', but then again that was my first and only disappointment on ebay. Everything else works great, but you need a functioning NR on the smaller tape sizes with that many tracks plastered on them.

I wrote earlier:
I still have the MSR16 Dolby version. It arrived via ebay with the Dolby not functioning, and after a few hundred dollars of a highly recommended TASCAM tech, no luck still. He believes the problem may be in the chip as he replaced some (capacitors??) or something on the boards. Anyway, the Dolby version, if you do a search, seems to have some intermittent problems...not every machine I'm sure, but that is what I can offer. I haven't given up on the MSR, it's just on the shelf until I decide to give it a second chance some day and maybe purchase some outboard NR units for it.
I did post some raw clips of the MSR recording drums vs. my HD24 drums at www.soundclick.com if you want to hear. There are other clips there, but the MSR and HD24 are clearly labeled. Search artist for Dale O'Brien and you'll find them. MSR tracks were a newbie attempt so the levels may be off, and the machine was calibrated by the tech for GP9 tape and that is what was used.
For what it is worth, I hear a lot of people saying good things about this machine. Also, have you considered the MS16 1" 16 track?

EDIT: I haven't listened to them for awhile but just did...if you do, the MSR samples 1 and 2 I believe I was indulging in some red wine both separate times I recorded the tracks. I think I was making the newbie mistake mentioned above of hitting the tape too hard, as well. Anyway, should give you an idea, if you ignore the playing and shitty recording technique, of a ballpark sound and "charactor" of an MSR, nothing fancy on outboard injected.
 
Msr-24 vs. Tsr-8

Hi,
I spent a while calibrating my TSR-8 fleet and I am completely amazed with them, I also have been using RMGI 911. I havent tweaked my MSR-24 yet so I cant compare in real time yet. When I bought the MSR-24 new in 95 the general consensus was that even though the tracks are thinner it has better circuitry than the TSR-8, I always wondered about that. But I am trying to use the TSR-8 as much as possible even though I like more tracks. I will post a response when I can A and B the 2 machines. I still have to get a 1" alignment tape and some 1" RMGI 911.
Victory Pete :)
 
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