Post Your Analog Recordings Here...

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jpmorris said:
This is my current project:

(rather long)

...I'm not so happy with the performance in the first two and last two verses, those I will look at rerecording. The mix also got a bit dense and difficult to understand in places. That said, I'm rather pleased with how it's turned out.

As before, this was recorded on an MSR-24, with the vocals tracked to TSR-8 and copied across. I spent far too long trying to rescue the last verse instead of rerecording it like I should have done in the first place.

Thanks also to Lonewhitefly of 'Magic Hero vs Rock People' - the idea of using the MK2 organ at the start and end (a'la Seven Stones) were inspired by its appearance on the 'Begin Thee Again' album.
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thanks!

well, that sounds real good ... i will have to have a closer listen at home in headphones (at work on computer speakers!)

donny
 
ianbernacett said:
Ian and the holy ghosts's sounds on SoundCloud - Create, record and share your sounds for free
feed back is cool
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Seems good, though I do question the idea of moving the vocals to the back of the mix and covering them with reverb. Not sure I really like that particular sound.
What equipment did you use, by the way?

lonewhitefly said:
thanks!

well, that sounds real good ... i will have to have a closer listen at home in headphones (at work on computer speakers!)
donny
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Thanks, glad you liked it! I must get around to re-mixing this with the better vocals, though.
 
Here's the first album by my band Spökraket. We're inspired by a broad spectrum of psychedelic music.
On four of five tracks the basic tracks was done live in our little studio to a 4-track tape recorder - vocals, etc. have been dubbed digitally. As we now have two tape recorders the next album will be completely analog.
We have only used outboard effects and only used the DAW for editing and a bit of EQing.

1. Just Go Spit Out Another Lie
Roxy Music on crack. Or late-period Velvet Underground on very strong expresso? Only one digital overdub which is the vocal.

2. Dead Sea
Basic tracks done digitally as it was from before we got a tape recorder. Vocal and glockenspiel dubbed on tape.

3. True Story
Basic tracks done analog. Vocals, tambourine and an extra bass dubbed digitally.

4. Clear Your Head
Basic tracks done analog. Vocal recorded digitally, dumped to tape and synced to the track.

5. Jumped Off The Sky
Basic tracks done analog and completely improvised. Vocals and strange noises done digitally.
 
Thanks James...
I can be quite a space cadet and just three hours of sleep doesn't make it any better.
Here we are:
Spökraket
 
WarmJetGuitar said:
Thanks James...
Here we are:
Spökraket
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Okay, thanks. I'm not necessarily the best judge of what makes a good mix, but these are the things which struck me as perhaps wanting to be revisited:

Firstly, I'm not a big fan of burying the vocals in the background. Also there's a lot more reverb than perhaps there should be. I find that sort of trick is okay for a short section of the song, e.g. as a special effect but it can become a bit grating. Also, did you ever try listening to it on headphones? Having the vocals on one side and the reverb on the other was kind of jarring.
I didn't hear the bass drum much. It was there, but didn't really have the presence that I'd expected.

That said, production decisions aside, it has a lot of good ideas and the performance and recording seemed to be done well.
 
Thanks for the feedback mate. I'm glad you liked the music itself.

Touché on the bass drum - we didn't have a real bass drum mic and we used a very small drum on a nice 60's Sonor kit. The bass drum sounds fine to my ears but in a mix without a bass drum mic it often sounds more like a floor tom. For the next album we'll consider to give the bass drum its own track on the Tascam 38 in order to mess with it during mixdown.

Regarding the vocal mixing I most definitely respect your opinion but we chose to do it that way as I mainly use my voice as an instrument - and we all fancy late-80'/early 90's shoegaze and the drowned vocal is kind of a hint to that.
 
WarmJetGuitar said:
Touché on the bass drum - we didn't have a real bass drum mic and we used a very small drum on a nice 60's Sonor kit. The bass drum sounds fine to my ears but in a mix without a bass drum mic it often sounds more like a floor tom. For the next album we'll consider to give the bass drum its own track on the Tascam 38 in order to mess with it during mixdown.
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With 8 tracks, one technique is to sub-mix them. That way you can use the head mixer to EQ the bass drum differently to the rest of the kit. That would probably suffice. I guess I'm a little sensitive to this because I had that problem with the first couple of albums I did :P

Regarding the vocal mixing I most definitely respect your opinion but we chose to do it that way as I mainly use my voice as an instrument - and we all fancy late-80'/early 90's shoegaze and the drowned vocal is kind of a hint to that.
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Right. I figured that probably came down to personal taste. However, I would still avoid the reverb left/dry right thing, it does sound weird on headphones.

Oh, and bear in mind that my comments are after one listen. My opinions may change with time.

EDIT: I almost forgot - how is the band's name pronounced? :3
Also, is 'Hans Christian Andersen' really his name...?
 
jpmorris said:
With 8 tracks, one technique is to sub-mix them. That way you can use the head mixer to EQ the bass drum differently to the rest of the kit. That would probably suffice. I guess I'm a little sensitive to this because I had that problem with the first couple of albums I did :P

By submixing do you mean using one channel per drum? As we're recording guitars, bass, drums and sometimes a synth live to keep the whole thing spontanious and loose it leaves us with three channels for drums - then we can EQ and compress the bass drum during mixdown. We could possibly use more channels but it depends how bad the generation loss will be if the process is: 8-tracks recorded live - bouncing to two tracks on a 4-track, adding vocals and whatever and then mixing down to either a stereo tape recorder or DAW.

Our name is pronounced in Swedish and is basically Swedish slang for an UFO. It means something like Ghost Rocket but sounds less like we're a surf band :D
And yeah, his name is actually Hans Christian Andersen but his taste in literature is quite more experimental than the old H.C. Andersen.

Have you got any ideas for making it sound louder and a bit boomier without compressing the fuck out of it? We like it loud but not on expense of dynamics and we'll do a remaster whenever we can afford to release a vinyl press or someone is willing to do it for us.
And also - we don't have a proper 2-track. Which channels can we use on the 4 track if we want it to be playable on a regular 2-track like say, Otari MX5050 or a Studer?

Thanks for listening and giving feedback.
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WarmJetGuitar said:
By submixing do you mean using one channel per drum? As we're recording guitars, bass, drums and sometimes a synth live to keep the whole thing spontanious and loose it leaves us with three channels for drums - then we can EQ and compress the bass drum during mixdown. We could possibly use more channels but it depends how bad the generation loss will be if the process is: 8-tracks recorded live - bouncing to two tracks on a 4-track, adding vocals and whatever and then mixing down to either a stereo tape recorder or DAW.
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I mean putting a mixer between the drums and the recorder. Mic each drum (or a group of drums), feed them into a mixer, pan them appropriately, add eq to the bass drum, and then feed that to two tracks of the tape deck. Record keys, vocals, guitar etc to the other tracks as appropriate.

I've put together a crappy diagram, see attached

Have you got any ideas for making it sound louder and a bit boomier without compressing the fuck out of it? We like it loud but not on expense of dynamics and we'll do a remaster whenever we can afford to release a vinyl press or someone is willing to do it for us.
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Not really. I usually hand my albums over to a mastering engineer when I've mixed them...

And also - we don't have a proper 2-track. Which channels can we use on the 4 track if we want it to be playable on a regular 2-track like say, Otari MX5050 or a Studer?
Thanks for listening and giving feedback.
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It's really not something I'd want to do. You'll only get part of the signal, the other part of the surface area of the tape won't be erased and may have weird things on it - a proper 2-track will pick those up. For example, Zonal tapes often had a regular bumping sound on them before they were erased - it may have been partially magnetised in shipping or something.

Assuming you have a 4-track that's 15ips capable and does record 4 tracks at once (as opposed to a quarter-track machine which has two stereo tracks on each side of the tape), I would either record on just tracks 2 and 3, or alternatively, tracks 1-2 and 3-4 - though you might get phasing issues.
I wouldn't really recommend it.

Submixing diagram:
submixing.webp
 
I mean putting a mixer between the drums and the recorder. Mic each drum (or a group of drums), feed them into a mixer, pan them appropriately, add eq to the bass drum, and then feed that to two tracks of the tape deck. Record keys, vocals, guitar etc to the other tracks as appropriate."
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The diagram wasn't crappy, it made perfect sense.
Ah, so thats submixing - we're doing that already; on the recordings we was sending the drums and the bass to a Behringer desk, panning and EQing a bit on it and sending to channel one and two on the recorder. On the next album we'll have an 8-track and the bass will have its own seperate channel which should give more oppurtunities for EQing the drums during mixdown. But yeah, we should probably have added more bass to the kick drum in the first place.
For guitars and synths we're sending through a Yamaha EM300 (BTW, nice old desk... wish it had direct outs) to channel 3 and 4 on the recorder after panning the signals on the desk.

"Not really. I usually hand my albums over to a mastering engineer when I've mixed them..."
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Nice oppurtunity to have. Where can I hear the stuff your doing?
Getting mastering done is really expensive in Denmark, so I think we're better off by finding a good 2-track 15 ips deck and just use a hot signal on the recorder or our Fostex 3070 compressor to make the sound slightly louder.

It's really not something I'd want to do. You'll only get part of the signal, the other part of the surface area of the tape won't be erased and may have weird things on it - a proper 2-track will pick those up. For example, Zonal tapes often had a regular bumping sound on them before they were erased - it may have been partially magnetised in shipping or something.

Assuming you have a 4-track that's 15ips capable and does record 4 tracks at once (as opposed to a quarter-track machine which has two stereo tracks on each side of the tape), I would either record on just tracks 2 and 3, or alternatively, tracks 1-2 and 3-4 - though you might get phasing issues.
I wouldn't really recommend it."
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Thanks for the advice! Think we're gonna try it anyway to see what happens as we got four fresh rolls of RMGI, not much cash for a 2-track at the moment and we can just delete the tape if it don't work. I'll update with our success or failure when the Fostex (which runs at 7 1/2 and 15 ips and records 4 at once) have got a new belt. Going to 1-2 and 3-4 sounds like the most logical thing to do considering the information you gave regarding bumps and tape failure.
 
WarmJetGuitar said:
The diagram wasn't crappy, it made perfect sense.
Ah, so thats submixing - we're doing that already; on the recordings we was sending the drums and the bass to a Behringer desk, panning and EQing a bit on it and sending to channel one and two on the recorder. On the next album we'll have an 8-track and the bass will have its own seperate channel which should give more oppurtunities for EQing the drums during mixdown. But yeah, we should probably have added more bass to the kick drum in the first place.
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Right, cool.

Nice oppurtunity to have. Where can I hear the stuff your doing?
Getting mastering done is really expensive in Denmark, so I think we're better off by finding a good 2-track 15 ips deck and just use a hot signal on the recorder or our Fostex 3070 compressor to make the sound slightly louder.
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For me, it's the most expensive part of the album, even after transitioning to 1" tape. But it does mean that someone has played it back on better equipment and tweaked the EQ to sound decent on more than just my setup...

As for examples, my most recent demo is a couple of pages back (post 500 in this thread). That was done on the 24-track I got earlier this year. For mastered stuff, look at DOUG the Eagle or Royalty Free music downloads: DOUG the Eagle - Jamendo

...somehow I have been managing to crank out an album every year, so there is a lot to listen to (something I have very mixed feelings about). All the previous albums were done either on a single TSR-8, or since about 2008 on two of them locked together for the more complex songs. I will probably continue this tradition, with the complex songs on 24 track and the simpler ones on 8-track where I can get away with it. I switched mastering engineers in 2009 'Three Little Pigs' - a lot of people remarked on a leap in quality at this point, and I do kind of want to go back and remix/rerecord some of the earlier songs :3

Thanks for the advice! Think we're gonna try it anyway to see what happens as we got four fresh rolls of RMGI, not much cash for a 2-track at the moment and we can just delete the tape if it don't work. I'll update with our success or failure when the Fostex (which runs at 7 1/2 and 15 ips and records 4 at once) have got a new belt. Going to 1-2 and 3-4 sounds like the most logical thing to do considering the information you gave regarding bumps and tape failure.
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Good luck!
 
Just gave the "Demonhunter" album a listen. Nice vocal style, to my ears a bit like your fellow Welshman John Cale. Pretty dystopian lyrics too. Really weird but in a good way.

We probably found a solution to the mastering problem as it seems there's a guy who wants to release it under pretty reasonable conditions.
 
WarmJetGuitar said:
Here's the first album by my band Spökraket. We're inspired by a broad spectrum of psychedelic music.
On four of five tracks the basic tracks was done live in our little studio to a 4-track tape recorder - vocals, etc. have been dubbed digitally. As we now have two tape recorders the next album will be completely analog.
We have only used outboard effects and only used the DAW for editing and a bit of EQing.

1. Just Go Spit Out Another Lie
Roxy Music on crack. Or late-period Velvet Underground on very strong expresso? Only one digital overdub which is the vocal.

2. Dead Sea
Basic tracks done digitally as it was from before we got a tape recorder. Vocal and glockenspiel dubbed on tape.

3. True Story
Basic tracks done analog. Vocals, tambourine and an extra bass dubbed digitally.

4. Clear Your Head
Basic tracks done analog. Vocal recorded digitally, dumped to tape and synced to the track.

5. Jumped Off The Sky
Basic tracks done analog and completely improvised. Vocals and strange noises done digitally.
Click to expand...

Absolutely loved this, genuine 60s psychedelic sound!

Especially liked the 1st and 3rd songs. I actually like the vocal effect with the wet signal in one channel and the dry signal in the other. There are countless albums (even very recent ones) that utilize this effect, it allows you to use more reverb but still be able to hear the dry signal as well. Also gives a nice hallway effect on headphones.

Even though some tracks were recorded digitally whilst others on tape, all the instruments fit nicely into the mix together (except maybe the overdubbed effects on the last track).

Vocals could be a bit louder only because the vocal melodies sound really good and I would want to hear them more.

Loved the album though, can't wait to hear more!

PS: Have you heard Ariel Pink's Haunted Graffiti - Before Today? modern day record (released 2010) with similar psychedelic 60s sound and style.
 
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WarmJetGuitar said:
Just gave the "Demonhunter" album a listen. Nice vocal style, to my ears a bit like your fellow Welshman John Cale. Pretty dystopian lyrics too. Really weird but in a good way.
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Thanks. One of the major themes I have often put into song is the idea of someone going out of their way to fight a particular group (typically some form of demon) only to discover later that they belong to that group themselves.

You might also want to check out 'Daryil Answered' - the first 'side' is mostly based on 1960s psych, and the title track is one I am extremely proud of.
 
@Chilljam: Thanks a million mate! There'll be more songs up before you know it, we just need to get our Fostex A4 and Tascam 38 working again and our drummer back from his exile then we should be golden man :D
Our drummer is really into Ariel Pink - my knowledge of his music is quite superficial but that can change. I mostly listen to old psychedelic, krautrock and shoegaze - and lots of old folk which doesn't reflect that much on our music.

@JP: You've been doing psyche as well? I'd love to hear that.
Interesting theme you're have going, kind of sci-fi. Our lyrics is for most part written by Hans Christian - for the ones I've been writing I've been high as a kite which probably shows.
 
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