Moving from Digital to Analog

  • Thread starter Thread starter Whyte Ice
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Whyte Ice

The Next Vanilla Ice
Pretty much my whole time recording, I've been doing digital but there are a couple songs I've wanted to do analog and I really don't know how to go about doing that.

I know I'll need a tape machine, I've got pres and stuff already. If you can help me out on what I need to get to do something like this, nothing big, just the minimum.
 
Yo IceDeBlanc:]

If you can hear the voice and band -- THAT'S ANALOG. Analog goes into a digital box and is processed -- all zeros and ones -- can't hear the numbers until they are converted back to analog.

If you don't want any digital processing, you can record on an analog 8 track cassette, like the Tascam 488, or a 4 track cassette, and mix it and put it down to almost any tape deck.

That's how I started recording. All of the digital gear back then was TOO costly for me.

Green Hornet



:D :D :p
 
What about Reel to Reels? How much different are those than a 4-track/8-track on standard cassette?

What I want to do is record a song and when people listen to it, they will think its straight from the 60's and that it belongs on the oldies station or something.

Thank you Hornet de Verde
 
I was at a store and I saw a 8 track Fostex Reel to Reel today..
It was $495.00 ..R t R sound much better than cassett !


Don
 
Whyte Ice said:


What I want to do is record a song and when people listen to it, they will think its straight from the 60's and that it belongs on the oldies station or something.
Click to expand...

I think your song will be the first concern. Won't matter much what you record on if the song 'sounds' current.

Song, Production and then the medium will be the order I'd think.

Tape is great, but it won't turn your song into '60's' golden oldies.
 
Well, the song sounds like something that could of been written then, its a very Beatles influenced song and I've recorded it with my current setup and its not right.

This is only to play around with, this isn't going on any album or anything. Same goes for the equipment, I want something I can mess around with and I learn at the same time.
 
QUOTE:
Emeric
2.5K Gold Member
I think your song will be the first concern.
-----------------

-> I think your first concern is how much money you want to kick down, for the cause.

-> I think the second concern is the number of tracks you think you'll need.

Then make your choices.

If you can afford R/R, and a suitable outboard mixer, then you'll be best off.

Not that I don't use cassette multitrack, I do. I'm a gigantic 4-track Portastudio person, but the bigger formats definitely sound bigger.

Cassette-8-track, like a 488mkII, is a great machine, but a 1/4" or 1/2" R/R 8-track will give you better sound, overall, relatively speaking. That's not a knock of the 488, but you have to put things in perspective. Bigger tape formats sound bigger, relatively speaking, and it's a noticeable difference.

-> Like I said, it's about how much hi-fi and multitrack can you afford? Fortunately for analog enthusiasts, prices on great analog gear continue to come down, R/R and otherwise.
 
F/I:

A used Tascam 38 [1/2" 8-track], RC-71 remote, Model 30 mixer [8x4x2x2], and [2] DX-4D dbx units, will take you qiute high into high fidelity multitrack, and is not terribly expensive, relatively speaking.

Currently, [estimating], a system like that, in good shape, might cost ~$600-$750, and would be worth every cent.

Prices vary, but are generally favorable to the analog gear buyer, check Ebay/Tascam or Ebay/Fostex.

Good luck.

/DA
 
$750? I thought it would be more. I could add more.

What is the difference between the 1/2" and the 1/4" ? I don't know much about recording on Reel to Reels and how it all works, I've never seen it done before in front of my two eyes, just on TV and stuff.
 
I had a great response to post, but lost it due to some "Explorer error"

!DAMN COMPUTERS!


---------

Anyway, basically, there are two dynamics to think of, when contemplating analog tape formats: Tape width, and tape speed.

- Wider tape formats give more "headroom" than narrower tape formats, i.e., wider tape holds more mangnetic energy, overall, before distortion, than a narrower tape does.

- Faster tape speeds give better high frequency response.

---------

Like anything else, it boils down to how much hifi multitrack do you need, and how much can you afford?

There really are a lot of choices out there, in used analog gear. Prices are reasonable. Make your best deal.

---------

A Tascam 38/M30/RC71 and [2] DX4D's could cost average ~$850, and that would be reasonable. Maybe my first estimate was a little low.

F/I,
Tascam 38 ~$450
Tascam M30 ~$150
Tascam RC71 ~$100
Tascam DX4D/2 ~$150
------------------->~$850, estimate, and IMHO, $850 would be reasonable, cheaper would be better.


There are other analog R/R machines, such as the TSR-8, MSR-16, MS-16, and sometimes a MSR-24, and they all are great decks, so check Ebay/Tascam frequently. Also, Fostex has a full line of R/R's, so check Ebay/Fostex, too.

For a top-of-the-line 1/2" 4-track, see:

http://cgi.ebay.com/aw-cgi/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=1485994813

For a top-of-the-line 2" 24-track, see:

http://cgi.ebay.com/aw-cgi/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=1486128634
 
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