lo.fi.love
Functionally obsessed.
Hey, anybody here have experience with both? What did you think? I love ATR tape but I've never used SM900.
briank
analog for the people!
I haven't used the SM900 but I want to try it next.
I just had my first experience with two reels of 1" ATR and surprisingly, they were a shedding nightmare! You might say I'm more gunshy about ATR now, and a lot more willing to give RMG a try!
I just had my first experience with two reels of 1" ATR and surprisingly, they were a shedding nightmare! You might say I'm more gunshy about ATR now, and a lot more willing to give RMG a try!
lo.fi.love
Functionally obsessed.
Don't worry about the ATR shedding. All high-output/+9 tapes are made with more oxide than other tapes like 456 and 911, and so naturally as the tape gets broken in it will shed somewhat, especially on the first couple of passes.
ATR will also shed more than sm900 because the edges of the tape aren't burnished, as RMGI's tapes are. Just keep your Q-tips and alcohol ready
ATR will also shed more than sm900 because the edges of the tape aren't burnished, as RMGI's tapes are. Just keep your Q-tips and alcohol ready
briank
analog for the people!
I never had any substantial shedding with virgin NOS 499, and CERTAINLY not like the ATR. Everyone said it would subside after a couple passes, but it just kept shedding...and shedding...and shedding...and shedding. Earlier on it was actually causing tracks to not record properly because of the mess on the cue head and over time that became much less frequent, but still the high end would dull in minutes and we'd need to clean again. Set the sessions back considerably, stressed everyone the hell out and messed up the quality of work output, It still made a ridiculous mess of the tape path after a dozen passes. It took a number of passes before it wasn't spraying piles of shavings all over the place, dunno what's up with their slitting. That's not something I've experienced with other tapes, I mean a small amount of that is typical, but geez. If this normal for ATR, no f'in way am I touching the stuff again! Too bad because it sounded quite good during those moments where it was behaving itself.
In any event, I look forward to hearing about comparisons between ATR and SM900, since I'm really keen to give the SM900 its fair shot now. I'd be curious how it compares to the later Quantegy 499 also, since that's been my trusted workhorse thus far.
lo.fi.love
Functionally obsessed.
Man, you've gotta have bad luck or something. The Tascam King (aka Cory) set up my tape path flawlessly and I did experience quite a bit of shedding but not enough to actually get between the tape and the heads.
On my Otari, which is a console-style 2-track that I use only with ATR tape, I have a little pile of brown shavings that I periodically have to clean off. ATR is kind of a dirty tape, but the quality of the recordings I've made on it make it well worth the extra maintenance.
On my Otari, which is a console-style 2-track that I use only with ATR tape, I have a little pile of brown shavings that I periodically have to clean off. ATR is kind of a dirty tape, but the quality of the recordings I've made on it make it well worth the extra maintenance.