Help Bruce,Ed, with oscillation!!!!!!!!

[harley96]

I'm working with a few artists and I'm having a problem with oscillation.I'm using a mackie 24/8,fostex B16 1/2" reel to reel and just lately we have started to hear oscillation/tremolo effect on primarily acoustic guitars and guitar parts in general.Whether there miced or going direct that problem occurs mainly on softer passages and It's driving me nuts!!! Is it the board?Reel to Reel?
Cables?Preamps considering up to now most of the guitars have been in inputs 12-15?Power issues?Any help would be appreciated.We never noticed any oscillation on the drum tracks,bass or vocals.HELP!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[Blue Bear Sound]

I used to have that issue a lot back in my 4-track days... back then I had assumed that it had to do with the wow and flutter of the cassette multi-tracker....

As well, if I bounced tracks around (as you'd normally have to with a 4-track!), it would occur occasionally.

I've since learned than in addition to the mechanical issues of the budget analog format; phase anomalies, frequency masking, and the normal signal deterioration due to the generation loss are also factors in causing these symptoms...

Back then, the way I got around it was to re-cut the track, and pay attention to mic placement and any possible introduction of phase-related distortion.

I haven't dealt with that kind of thing in a long time!

OTOH -- you know, it could just be a faulty reel or pinch roller!!


Hope this rambling helps some!

Bruce

 

[sonusman]

I am in the same boat with Bruce here. Been digital for far too long. Analog machines need careful maintance and calibration to avoid those effects. Biasing, azmith alignment, tape head cleaning, head de-magnification (done right so as not to magnatize them even more!!!), etc.....

If your machine hasn't had a calibration/servicing for some time, it may be due! You need to ask around to find a GOOD tech to do these things, and one that is familiar with working on your particular machine. You SHOULD get many good hours of head use out of it after a good servicing with only having to clean and de-magnitize the heads maybe once a week (if you put a lot of hours a week on the head, like 10-15 TAPE HEAD hours, which means how many hours the tape is passing over the heads).

Good luck.

Ed

 

[harley96]

Thanks!!

Yeah,I had a notion that what we were hearing had to do with wow and flutter.I had the reel to reel serviced just recently and everything checked out fine.I'll just recut the tracks we can hear it on and pray for the best...........