8 track reel to reel ?

[The Ghost of FM]

Great! I am going to try and snag a mixer, and hopefully a recorder in the very near future. Thanks for all your help, I guess you dont get tired of answering all of these newbie questions. Im sure I will have more questions once I get my equipment. Could you give me one final checklist on all of the things I will need to get started (cables and such). I am trying to get a ballpark figure on everything price wise.

I don't get tired so much as I only have a limited amount of time each day to contribute here on this bbs and another one called TASCAM FORUMS, where I moderate the Analog wing of that bbs.

Let's have some others participate here too!

I don't want to hog the stage too much!

Cheers!

 

[Muckelroy]

kool

GREAT THREAD, thought this would be the most appropriate place to ask this question:

On the TSR-8, do you have the ability to activate/deactivate the DBX Noise Reduction? If so, is that on a per-channel basis, or an overall basis?

AND, are there any CONS to using DBX NR? Does it alter/change the sound in any negative ways? I read your thing about how it compresses the peaks, and vamps up the quiet stuff, and then does it in reverse on the out-side..........that's kinda confuzing, does that alter the sound in any negative way, as opposed to the final result W/OUT DBX?

Okee-day, thanks for the time.

ALSO, Ghost, how the crap did you hook together those 2 mixers? What channels/sends/masters/etc. are hooked up between the two? thanks!

-callie-

 

[A Reel Person]

I think,...

the dbx can be defeated on track 8 only, for purposes of timecode.

Dbx is a pretty awesome noise reduction system, with very few audible side effects, only in the most extreme & isolated cases. Overall, it does a great job with most program material it's handed.

Dbx is a compression/expansion process, that reduces residual tape noise almost completely, and boosts broadband dynamic range. It's very powerful in itself, but yields a very natural result.

Recording on tape without dbx just invites tape hiss back into the mix, with few positive attributes that would be considered a net gain.

YMMV.

 

[BRDTS]

There are no cons to using dbx. Tracks are just simply quiet and hiss free when one uses dbx. But... it's your decision as to whether to use it or not.

The tsr8 has two switches..one turns dbx off or on for trks 1-4 (all at once) and the other switch does the same thing for trks 5-8. Primary reasons for grouping these two switches was to save cost and still allow the dbx to be turned off or on depending on what was being played (a tape made with dbx encoding or not). Older Tascam machines like my 85-16b have a dbx on/off on each track....waste of switches. You're either gonna use dbx or not. Not just on some tracks.

If you record a track with dbx on and then play it back with dbx off, it will be a weird sounding, thin, signal with no low end...or pumping volume sounds..or all of the above. In other words, if you encode with dbx, you'll also play back with dbx . DBX works in the background and sounds transparent.

I have always used the dbx when using the tsr8 or any of my larger Tascam studio machines. On the other hand, some folks turn off the dbx and record without it..running the input high, pushing the meters above 0 db and preferring the small amount of accompanying hiss (which will be minimal) as a more pleasing type of addition to the track. I never preferred that kind of sound. You can try it and see which you prefer. There's no right or wrong to the approaches.

 

[A Reel Person]

Aha! Thanx for the quick correction!

Yeah, I've always used dbx when it was available, and I don't see what the hullabaloo is about whether to use it or not. Do you want tape hiss, or not?

Most of the recorders I've used have dbx built in, and I just use it, as is. My Tascam 38 had no dbx for the many years I used it, and tape hiss there, but not to an uncomfortable level. Tape hiss is usually noticed on the beginning and tail end of recordings, with it not being an issue during the body of the recording.

Dbx is there for a reason. Use it. Thanx again!

 

[cjacek]

Just take a listen to Dave's (ARP) songs on his site:

http://www.nowhereradio.com/artists/album.php?aid=1609&alid=-1

One of the best examples of dbx is to listen to it first being "off" and then "on":

Take a listen to "Moonage Daydream" (dbx off)

...now listen to "God", "Long Time Gone" or "Love Me Do" (dbx ON) -- three of my favorites btw

To my ears dbx only improves the sound. At the same time one must realize that the more tracks you have the more hiss may be a problem. On a 4 track reel to reel it's barely an issue and then once you go to 8 tracks or more, you MAY need to use dbx. On the 388, as the result of cramping 8 tracks on 1/4" tape, the hiss can be an issue, more so than 8 tracks on 1/2" tape, as on the 38. Whatever the case, and I know you'll agree that, the 388 sounds wonderful!

~Daniel

 

[A Reel Person]

Aw shucks, thanx!

Yeah, that. The Tascam 388 is 1/4" tape, 8-tracks, running 7.5ips. I usually record everything with dbx, when it's available as a built-in feature, but on "Moonage Daydream", I had the dbx off for calibration, and simply forgot to re-engage it. That was one of those 388 "oops" moments, otherwise I'd always use the dbx. Dbx really quashes tape hiss, and cleans up the sound considerably.

Also, catch "Rock & Roll Suicide", "Think for Yourself" or "I'll Be Back", which are 3 tunes recorded on the 1/2" 8-track Tascam 38, @15ips without dbx. I never had dbx on my original 1/2" setup. However, on those cuts, there doesn't seem to be any residual hiss. What a difference 1/2" @ 15ips is over 1/4" @ 7.5ips! (Any other cuts posted to NWR from the Tascam 38 would also be non-dbx).

With that being said, I still like the 388 as one of my most favorite machines. It has it all! I look at the 388 as the ultimate king of Portastudios, as opposed to the 38/M30, which is a discrete component rig. Anyway, they're both great setups, that I'd recommend on an equal basis. Sometimes the "all-in-one-ness" of the 388 makes it a superior choice, and sometimes the sheer brute force of 1/2" @ 15ips makes the 38 the best choice, depending on my mood or situation. Anyway, at today's prices, just get both!! Tell'em Dave sent'ya!!

Thanx again for the plug! /DA

 

[cjacek]

Yeah, like Dave said .. The cuts made on the 38 don't really require dbx (none was used) as it has wider tracks (on wider tape) and goes at 15 ips. From what I've heard, the tape hiss was a none issue for me, with regards to the 38. Whatever tiny bit of hiss remained only reinforced the 'ol Analog sound! I love it!

My 4 track 3440, for example, has hardly any hiss but this is just the result of fewer tracks on a generous amount of tape. Interestingly, the low and high speeds (7 1/2 vs 15 ips) make very little difference in my case. To my ears, 15 ips is no better than 7 1/2, when it comes to S/N ratio. Again, this is only on my deck. That's one of the reasons I stick to 7 1/2 ips without any noise reduction.

~Daniel

 

[snipeguy]

My 4 track 3440, for example, has hardly any hiss ......To my ears, 15 ips is no better than 7 1/2, ..........

~Daniel

I agree. I actually think the bottom end sounds better at 7 1/2 on my 3440. But then again, I did play in a very loud band for too long. I have to get my wife to check all my mixes for any, shall we say, weirdness, in the top end.