Is a shock-mount rack case necessary for transporting a tape machine?

[troutmask]

Hi everyone,

Well, I'll soon be doing a few sessions on location with both of my Tascam TSR-8 machines. My initial plan was to transport them in the back seat of my car in regular rack cases, finding some way of tying them down so they wouldn't bounce around too much...but I've seen some people write that tape machines should only be transported around in shock-mount rack cases. Considering that a shock-mount case large enough for one of these will be almost double the cost of a regular case, is it really necessary to keep them in one? I mean, if I were jostling them around in the back of a trailer or something, I'd understand, but am I looking at potentially throwing these machines out of alignment if I transport them this without a shock-mount rack case?

Thanks

 

[miroslav]

If it's YOU doing the transporting, and you are gentle and use a lot of cushion under/around them, and you are not driving cross-country....the back seat will do fine.

A little gentle/swaying motion of the decks during transporting will not harm anything...you just want to avoid hard thumps, as that could nock the mechanics out of alignment, or loosen an audio card...etc.

My Otari 5050 2-track was shipped to me in its original cardboard box with just some foam inserts....and it was still in good alignment. It takes some solid hits to really cause an issue, but it still pays to be gentle with older gear.

 

[witzendoz]

I used to have a piece of mattress foam that I used to place under the tape machine rack whenever I had to move mine to a different location, in the back of a van. You just need to try not to get any sharp knocks or impacts. Traveling inside a car should be fine.

Alan.