How many here are 'Analog ONLY'?

  • Thread starter Thread starter lonewhitefly
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lonewhitefly

lonewhitefly

Active member
I often wonder if there are too many like myself who don't use digital at all in their recording setup ... I mean the actual recording chain ... excluding things like the end media (CD, mp3, etc.) and even instruments (I know some people like digital pedals, keyboards, reverbs etc.). I've also noticed digital elements can sound okay if recorded to tape but really weird if all digital (like reverb). I don't use anything digital myself at this point, except a CD burner (after the 1/4" mixdown of course!).

Anyone else?
 
Not to sidetrack your poll...but I was curious what your all-analog rig consists of...if you don't mind sharing?
 
miroslav said:
Not to sidetrack your poll...but I was curious what your all-analog rig consists of...if you don't mind sharing?
Click to expand...

cool ... my pleasure:

let's see (most of my stuff is from the '60s-'70s)...

Recorders:
* Scully 280 1/2" 4-track (w/ 4 mic preamps)
* Ampex 440 1/4" mono (w/ optional plug-in transformer mic pre as well)
* Teac 80-8 1/2" 8-track
* Tascam 22-2 1/4" 2-track (usually used for tape delay/slap echo)

mixers/preamps:
* Tangent 802a (8-channel)
* Teac 5 (8-channel)
* Shure M67 (4-channel mic amps)

outboard:
* Biamp MR-140 spring reverb
* Art Pro-VLA (2-channel compressor)

Mikes:
* Electro-Voice 631a
* Electro-Voice 635a
* Electro-Voice 676
* Electro-Voice RE-18
* Shure 545
* Sony ... 22P or something (cheap '70s condenser)

amps:
* Fender Twin Reverb (silverface)
* Corodvox Leslie speaker

keyboards:
* RMI Rock-si-Chord
* Yamaha YC-20 combo organ
* Cordovox CDX 0432 "white elephant" double combo organ

guitars:
* Fender Electric XII ('65)
* Alvarez acoustic 12-string
* Danelectro bass

drums/perc., etc.:
* maestro rhythm king
* ludwig acrolite snare
* '60s Japanese floor tom (no name but sounds good)
* various cymbals, tambourine, glockenspiel, shakers, harmonica, hohner melodica, guiro, toys, etc. etc.
* kenwood cassette deck & sony CD burner
* oh yeh, and a Tascam Porta 5 cassette 4-track. and a handheld cassette recorder. both come in handy on the go or for playing old tapes.

chair:
* old orange chair that i love
 
:D

Cool....
Sorry though, I didn't mean for you to list everything, I only meant your basic tracking/mixing chain.

I track with a Fostex G-16.
I have a variety of outboard pres - Sebatron, Groove Tubes SuPre, Langevin DVC, a few others...and I have a pretty decent mic locker - ADK/AT/Shure/Groove Tubes.... but there's always one more mic to add. Just picked up a Cascade C77 ribbon, have yet to track with it, but I've been using Cascade Fat Heads for awhile, mainly for guitar work.

Mixing through my TASCAM 3500 to an Otari 5050 BIII.
And I have a fairly decent amount of outboard processing - EQs, Comps (have a couple of the PRO VLA's too), and other assorted stuff.

Of course, I can't claim 100% analog, since I do have a DAW in-between for edits/comps.
Been using a DAW with the analog stuff for almost 20 years now...and I was using MIDI for a few years to lay virtual tracks while synchronized to my Fostex and my Cubase sequencer, but these days I rarely use MIDI sequencing, though I do still use my synths, samplers and digital piano from time to time, but my old 1965 Hammond L organ probably gets the most use AFA keys go.

So I guess you could say I'm about 75% all analog....:)
 
miroslav said:
:D

Cool....
Sorry though, I didn't mean for you to list everything, I only meant your basic tracking/mixing chain.

I track with a Fostex G-16.
I have a variety of outboard pres - Sebatron, Groove Tubes SuPre, Langevin DVC, a few others...and I have a pretty decent mic locker - ADK/AT/Shure/Groove Tubes.... but there's always one more mic to add. Just picked up a Cascade C77 ribbon, have yet to track with it, but I've been using Cascade Fat Heads for awhile, mainly for guitar work.

Mixing through my TASCAM 3500 to an Otari 5050 BIII.
And I have a fairly decent amount of outboard processing - EQs, Comps (have a couple of the PRO VLA's too), and other assorted stuff.

Of course, I can't claim 100% analog, since I do have a DAW in-between for edits/comps.
Been using a DAW with the analog stuff for almost 20 years now...and I was using MIDI for a few years to lay virtual tracks while synchronized to my Fostex and my Cubase sequencer, but these days I rarely use MIDI sequencing, though I do still use my synths, samplers and digital piano from time to time, but my old 1965 Hammond L organ probably gets the most use AFA keys go.

So I guess you could say I'm about 75% all analog....:)
Click to expand...

yeh that's cool ... to each their own!

75% is better than 0%!

No big deal; I'm cool with listing everything ... that was actually the first time I've ever done that ... makes me realize I need to ditch one of my organs but I can't figure out which one! I would also like to get a decent old condenser mike at some point.
 
thanks, I'll check it out. I'm not much of a tech, so if something went wrong on a card, it would probably be easier just to replace it!
 
I have a digital FX unit I sometimes use when tracking instruments, and a chorus pedal I sometimes use on vocals which is DSP-based (it was shockingly cheap). Aside from those, the entire recording chain is analogue, up to the point where the 2-track tape is digitized (spring reverb and all). I don't do any digital editing.

Perversely, most of the instruments are digital, and the songs are written and performed using sequencers...
 
All analog except for an Alesis Microverb II, some guitar pedals and the crappy Behringer sound card we're mixing down to for evaluation and practize purposes.
 
I think I can claim to be all analogue. I record to a Tascam MS16 and mix through a Studiomaster 20/16/2 desk. I mix down straight to CD and have a digital reverb though so I suppose I can't claim to be 100% analogue. I don't do any of that track to tape, transfer to DAW stuff though so I think my claim is justified :)
 
All analog.

Mackie board(s)
2 Sony 24 track 2" machines
1 Tascam 24 track 2" machine
Otari mtr 10 2 track mixdown

Just starting to collect outboard gear, but all will be analog.

I do have a digital side, but rarely use it so we wnt talk about it.
 
mdainsd said:
I do have a digital side, but rarely use it so we wnt talk about it.
Click to expand...

:D

I've been planning to again do at least one song at some point all-analog, and simply skip my in-between DAW stage, and just go from tracking to tape, to mixing from tape...but at this point that would be all about me trying to change an SOP I've been using for quite awhile. Hard to "break-stride" when you have a "wired" SOP that you work with.

I think if I was recording a band, doing it all-analog would not be any issue...but when you do all your tracking yourself, the in-between stage of DAW edits/comps just helps with certain things. I mean, I can play guitar pretty well, but my bass technique is not as smooth. I do solid keyboard backing tracks, but I'm pretty rusty when it comes to taking on fancier playing on the ivories.....and I can sing leads to my own songs, but when doing harmonies, I can't always hit all the notes clean when they are in the upper limits of my vocal cords.

So that's why a DAW is a key component, but the majority of my SOP is analog....at the front and back ends, where it counts the most, IMO.

I use to track all analog by myself for many years, and could still do it...but then I'm adjusting the production to fit...but by adding the DAW stage, I can realize a more fuller/expanded/detailed production idea, while still staying within my abilities. I mean...it's not about "fabrication" but more about finer/greater details and smoother end product.
I don't say that to sway anyone from their all-analog approach...I'm just commenting on my own SOP. :)
 
All analog except for two digital reverb/effects units.

TEAC A-4300SX
Tascam 238
Tascam M-308
Tascam PE-40 quad parametric eq
Symetrix 525 dual parametric eq
Symetrix SE-400 dual compressor
dbx 166A dual compressor
 
James K said:
I think I can claim to be all analogue. I record to a Tascam MS16 and mix through a Studiomaster 20/16/2 desk. I mix down straight to CD and have a digital reverb though so I suppose I can't claim to be 100% analogue. I don't do any of that track to tape, transfer to DAW stuff though so I think my claim is justified :)
Click to expand...

tough call but sounds like an analog workflow to me. I did some bounces to CD and back when I only had one tape machine.

you could always just say, "I don't use any computers in my recording setup" !
 
so good to know I'm not alone! let's have a revolution !
 
I just wanted to be present on this thread while I still can. . .
 
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