What tape machine to "analogize" digital sound before re-recording on PC/MAC ?

[david winter]

What tape machine to "analogize" digital sound before re-recording on PC/MAC ?

Hi,

My brother is a professional digital music composer and lives in Paris. He wants to "warm" some sounds and samples by playing them from his Mac, recording them on tape, and re-recording them on the Mac. I don't know what this does except a sort of low-pass but that's what he wants to do. He is very unlikely to use the machine for more than 10 minutes per sound or sample, so he will hardly use rels larger than 5 inches (and I have lots of NOS PER528 ones to give him).

I told him to find a 2-track machine that does 15ips (38cm/s) but as to what model I have no idea. I use a Revox PR99 to record live classical concerts but this will be a bit over-sized in my opinion, despite the useful digital timed counter. As I have no experience on other brands such as Fostex, Otari, Technics and others, so I wanted to know what would best fit his needs without entering into high prices (I guess his budget is around 300-400 euros).

Thanks !

 

[soulsonic]

Maybe he should consider a nicer cassette deck? I used a Nakamichi DR-1 on several occasions and its quality was very close to many reel-to-reel decks I've used. And, I think the limitations of cassette will exaggerate the "analog" qualities he's looking for.

 

[andicustherobot]

I know this machine wasn't necessarily used as a recording tape machine, but I used to use a pioneer RT 707 reel to reel to send mixes down to analog, and for what it is and how much they cost, I would recommend it. It's 2 track, sounds pretty good, takes 7 inch reels and I think you can find them on Ebay for around $200 if you hunt for em

 

[themaddog]

See if you can find a Tascam 22-2 for cheap. It's a pretty solid machine with 3 heads and can do 7.5 or 15 ips.

-MD

 

[soulsonic]

I LOVE my 22-2, such a great machine for the money. Only wish it could scrub!