Fostex R8 8 track reel to reel

[xgirl13]

hey all

just wondering if anyone has an opinion on the Fostex R8 reel to reel. i am thinking of purchasing one and had heard some bad horror stories about their cassette recorders.

thanks!
heather

 

[old guy]

R8

The R8 is a good quick & dirty idea tool, easy to use, as with all Fostex units, very uncomplicated, so long as this is not the basis of your studio. As with any multi-track cassette, it's a lot to squeeze onto 1/4" tape, and of course bouncing is gonna cost you top end, and clarity, but for an idea/concept tool, it works fine, and of course, the portability is a plus! I don't wanna spend your money for ya, but if and when you can, go digital. Good Luck
http://sh-boom.freehomepage.com/index.html

 

[RWhite]

I owned a Fostex A-8 for many years, and still have it although I no longer record with it. In its day (1980's, the Eurthmycs recorded Sweet Dreams on a A-8) it was pretty cool stuff, but if I were starting out now I would go with a computer and a sound card.

 

[A Reel Person]

The Fostex R8 isn't a bad unit,... it's pretty nice.

Sound quality's good, & it's easy to use. There's nothing wrong with this deck, and it was Fostex's premeir 8-track R-R, for several years.

It's a decent quality 1/4" R-R, with decent sound. Find one with low hours and you'll do fine, even for the basis of your studio.

Kick down a little extra cash, and take it up to 1/2" 8-track R-R, like a Tascam 38, and you'll gain a lot in sound quality over the 1/4" format.

 

[mikeh]

The R8 is a decent unit. As was already mentioned, if at all possible find out how many hours of use it's had. Most savvy users keep some kind of record of hours of use on a r to r unit (assuming the seling would give you a truthful answer). With any tape based gear, the hours of wear on the recording heads is important.

Although the recommendation to go to 1/2" tape is correct that it will give you better record quality - cost of 1/2" tape is significantly more than 1/4". As which any gear purchase you need to decide what you plan to do with your recordings. If it's just for arrangement ideas or basic demos, the cost of 1/2" may not be a good choice.