How oldschool multi-track recording works. Tascam 4-track

[@Jaspertine]

Dude, you wanna talk about broke musicians? I used to *Rent* one of those things. Actually buying one seemed like a crazy pipe dream back then.

[@nomadben]

Jaspertine haha that's awesome. What kind of place did you rent it from?

[@tim76239]

I worked at a Sound and lighting rental company and I "borrowed" a big ole Tascam all the time and never got anything good out of it

[@patrick6350]

It's a pipe dream again given how much these things go for these days.

[@djdigital3806]

Jaspertine I'm Digital and a proud broke musician. Love vintage equipment.

[@MattWarb2]

Dj Digital what do you think of the Teenage Engineering OP-1? I think it's an amazing piece of equipment.

[@gsxerwhite]

I wanted a four track so bad in 91 but I couldn't ask my parents after they already spent a fortune on instruments for me. Young musicians are living in an incredible era for recording and instrument availability.

[@RandomnessTube.]

So much respect for people who made house music back in the day made with love and hard work.

[@SheThe1Who]

👏🏿👏🏿👏🏿

[@JanKowalski-vh1rg]

They were using sequencers and MIDI so keeping on track wasn't hard

[@Nexcroo]

More like Rock

[@M364A]

@@Nexcroo why rock?

[@jpsynth1411]

Also, you can actuelly record 10 parts on a 4 track recorder. Here's how: Record parts 1, 2, and 3 on tracks 1 to 3, then mix them down to track 4 while mixing in a 4th part. Record parts 5 and 6 on tracks 1 and 2, then mix them down to track 3 while mixing in a 7th part. Record part 8 on track 1 and transfer it to track 2 while mixing in a 9th part. Record part 10 on track 1. Voilà. And you only have 1 generation of signal loss.

[@kainen1279]

this is insane! I've always dealt with the generation loss as a kind of... "art through circumstance" but this is great!

[@SoopSoopa]

do you know how to operate a Fostex X26? im really confused and the manual doesnt make any sense to me, maybe im daft. i dont understand if Line 1 means track 1+3 and track 2= 2+4. sometimes during playback some recordings are heard on unrecorded tracks. any help would be appreciated

[@rimmersbryggeri]

Thats how they did it in big studios.I thiknk it's mentionedin the documentary about queen's A night at the oper and also on the making of I'm not in love by 10cc. They used the the same principle but probably on 18 or 24 track recorders.

[@evelk5233]

Bouncing

[@SuaveCityGear]

Genius ❤

[@raizoc5178]

I recorded one of my creations over my sister's Michael Jackson tape when I was a kid and I got whooped for that.

[@MoonLanta]

😁

[@klvAcosta]

Hahahahaha!!!! 😂

[@hakonsoreide]

You got told off for having used normal instead of metal tape, I presume?

[@countrabricksbuildcraze8916]

Hahar. Dam. I youst to take the odd tape I fount. An put tape over the end to record. If had no blank tape s. Dam u made this video. But u dident have a taskam back in day s. I'm holding to buy one asap

[@RoomAtTheTopStudio]

That brought back memories. I was either getting beaten or I was beating someone for taping over cassettes in the 80's. That was a serious offense.

[@DeviatingVapors]

there were 4 tape standers back then I - Normal II - Chrome III - Ferrichrome (wasn’t very popular, so was dropped) IV - Metal the heads and the biasing need to match in the recording deck and the playback deck. that was the lowest end model they made, and as you mentioned better units offered changes in the IPS to use more tape per second to increase the bandwidth for the recording. some units could also do bouncing (letting you merge one or more tracks to an open track to free up space for further recording). those were the first machines cheap enough to allow a regular person to explore multi track. rented one from a music store in high school for a week, shared it with my lead guitarist, he was able to think non linearly .. vs I needed to do everything in one go.

[@balzac617]

The 4-track is the mother of BLACK METAL.

[@JCavLP]

Mathieu Vaillancourt yes but Recording quality was too good

[@balzac617]

DJC9000 Productions hahaha not if you record it in a forest.

[@SPAZZOID100]

DJC9000 Productions huhh??

[@excessofficialTV]

This was the mother of Kraftwerk records too.

[@seryog-sothoth8616]

And don't forget to use a pair of cheap headphones as a microphone

[@tonyhill8963]

So when you play Ghostbusters backwards, you hear Devo. Got it.

[@silverdrumvideo]

“In The Name of Love” by Thompson Twins

[@alanjamesh.zamorano1677]

It sounded like a possessed David Byrne talking backwards

[@josephreynolds1220]

I believe it’s magic.

[@theneonllama416]

We're all Devo, even the Ghostbusters.

[@ShajaKarim]

That song revered blew my mind 4 years back lmao

[@madspetersen1708]

You forgot the “ping-pong” mode ejere you mix 3 tracks onto track 4 and thereby free up 3 tracks with minimal quality loss.

[@mjoirg]

My thoughts exactly. Frustrating to listen to his mix down approach.

[@rexterrocks]

Yeah ! 'Bouncing' - I would mix 4 tracks down to a stereo mix, then use that as a new 1 and 2 leaving 3 and 4 empty, and repeat. Or 4 into 1 leaving 2,3 and 4 etc That was the fun of using them.

[@mikethebloodthirsty]

You can't bounce down on tascam porta 02's. That's why he didn't do it, he knows his s***...

[@krisscanlon4051]

Bouncing?

[@James-ke4gq]

i dont think you can do that on one of those really little guys def can on the big portastudios like 424's etc

[@skeeter197140]

Had one. Had a LOT of fun recording with it. Me and My drummer recorded 4 songs over a weekend, with me doing all guitars, bass and backing vocals, and him doing drums and lead vocals. What a frickin' blast!

[@TheMamaluigi300]

Man! Eat your heart out, Crush 40

[@JimJWalker]

This is how I learned how to record my music in the late 1980s on a Tascam Porta One. By learning proper microphone placement, room acoustics, exact playing technique, and judicious bouncing of tracks while also making the most of the limited EQ available, I learned the lessons that have served me well in my life journey in music in the modern age of the digital audio workstation. I almost feel sorry for those who did not experience these the limitations I had; for example audio compression. This was something that I had to rely on tape saturation to achieve, today it so common as an audio effect in every computer based recording software that I am not sure that the younger generation appreciates the luxury of this technology. Then again, I hate admitting I am an old fart.

[@checkerace50]

We appreciate the technology. We all started out at one point and sat there scratching our heads wondering why this part of the vocal or the guitar is louder than this part etc etc. Not to mention in today's audio industry, everything is overcompressed (I am guilty) and not too long ago was a loud war (not guilty). Also, it would be great if compressors were as easy as a LA2A but they're not and most of us don't have $4K to spend on a great vintage compressor. Compression is a complicated thing to master. It can really change the direction of the song. Something that is heavily compressed will sound like it's in your face and if the song isn't in your face and the vocal is, well then the vocal is sitting on top of the mix which isn't good.

[@wes_m]

The LA2A emulation(s) on the UAD Apollo interface sounds great. So does the UA 1176.

[@JimJWalker]

An 1176...lol, a Boss RCL-10 micro compressor was a dream unit for me and still beyond my budget then (and now). I was lucky to have a SM-57 microphone. Audio always has been a rich man's game and it has been my experience that those who can afford high end equipment often have no idea what to do with it.

[@checkerace50]

Wes Murray I haven't used any of UA's plugins. I've been using Waves for years. I like their CLA2A. Would like to test some of Universal Audio's plugins.

[@checkerace50]

Jim Walker btw, I found that compressor for $100

[@darylllanier2591]

When quantization didn't exist and perfect timing was imperative for musicians/producers.

[@f.herumusu8341]

"Perfect Timing" and quantization are two different things. Bernard Edwards of Chic was a "Grove-Master" but far from playing perfect quantized tracks.

[@radddch3293]

Back in the day I used to devote a track to stripe with FSK to get midi sync. Believe me the sync was much tighter than anything I have been able to achieve with midi over USB.

[@sadniggahours4046]

but a lot of people quantize because of latency when recording

[@10dthompson60]

@@sadniggahours4046 Yeah, and recordings are so hi-fi nowadays that a slight variation of timing is quite noticeable. A lot of hard rock and metal producers have to sync up double kicks and guitars if they're meant to match up since being even a fraction of a second off compromises the mix

[@DICACIO1]

Shiiid, NEVER in my life would I ever use quantizing. It ruins the Natural way we play our instruments making it sound too robotic & perfect... there's no feeling or soul in the swing. Real/Raw music doesn't need quantizing, but I guess beginner musicians that can't keep up with the beat or even swing right, would probably use it to avoid being too sloppy 😂😂🎹🎵🎸

[@scarholmen]

i recorded friend's band this spring on a similar tape recorder. Feels kinda nice when you don't have to look at a computer screen during the recording.

[@countrabricksbuildcraze8916]

Oh yes magic. Awsum..bring it back I say. But can still up load recordings from 4 track to a computer if need be to add or mix an compress plus. .

[@thomasrabon9964]

Dear lord. I’ve had one of these for 14 years and have done so many home recordings with it trying to record on both sides. I had no idea about how to actually do any of this properly! Thank you!

[@thomasrabon9964]

Can you or anyone tell me how to clear the tracks properly after finishing a track?

[@SamsonIsBored07]

@@thomasrabon9964 Just erase the tape.

[@SuzanneKowalski]

Lazy Game Reviews, TechMoan and this channel are the only channels on KZbin (I'm aware of) that not only have informative and perfectly edited videos, but these guys talk in a very non-offensive way that should be more common among content creators. I just feel relaxed watching these videos.

[@8BitKeys]

Hahah.. You mean in contrast to The Angry Video Game Nerd or something?

[@SuzanneKowalski]

Exactly. :D AVGN is very entetaining if you can accept he's only a character acted by James Rolfe, but still a bit too much for me after a while. There's enough frustration in the world around me anyway. :)

[@aidanstenson7063]

I watch all of those channels and love them

[@Damaniel3]

I'm a happy subscriber to all three and have been for quite a while, for this exact reason.

[@AwesumIndustrys]

There’s Nostalgia Nerd.

[@mcarp555]

I started out with the original TASCAM 144 Portastudio, which I loved. It was over a thousand dollars back in the day. Still have it boxed up.

[@eclipse8978]

Dope! Sounds like a 80’s porno music...... back when porn had a story line

[@joveaaron-real]

it sounds like you said

[@forevershampoo]

i enjoy a nice porn story line on VHS

[@Drugaddict22]

Ron Jeremy was king.

[@AJersy]

lol

[@docnathan3959]

r/cursedcomments

[@leardvr]

Wow, this was me in high school, 88-91 4 channel mixer and keyboard. Used midi as a controller for other instruments such as my keytar. BTW reloading the final mix back in is exactly how we added vocal tracks. We ended up with 6 or 7 track recording at home that way. God they took forever, we thought we were going to be something someday.

[@synthartist69]

Before I had a 4 track I would record into a standard cassette deck a drum track. I would play it back and while playing it back I would play along with it my first keyboard track while recording the drums and keyboard into a 2nd cassette recorder and continue back and forth until the song was finished.

[@nonsenseinmyhead9016]

synthartist69 lol...man we were good at that back then! I’d do sometimes 20 x!

[@countrabricksbuildcraze8916]

Yes. Amazing it is. I say bring it back. Eazy an effective an raw. In own zone creating n recording it. I did one track. Hole thing is free style adding new tape an put tape into other side an keep adding. Befor I had a 4 track to ... I need a dubble tape deck asap ....an 4 track I can still get caset tapes TDK or box s of them ...collecting. Incase tape stops bean made ..like vhf. .but albums on caset tape are still bean made an still sale. I live pulling out my old recordings on caset tape s take me back to good ol late 80 s orly 90 s. .

[@RoomAtTheTopStudio]

I learned to do one take vocals using a standard cassette deck as well in the same way. While it was playing back I would run the 2nd tape to record the harmonies and backing vocals. I used the instrumentals on the B side of singles to practice

[@JoeyLevenson]

I’ve done that!

[@brianvarano5005]

That is crazy! I had that exact Tascam four-track recorder, and I had a Casio CZ-1000! You just took me down a trip down memory lane!

[@countrabricksbuildcraze8916]

Would u consider swooping sume thing for it or sale it.

[@MrSammonkeyfist]

I still have one of these Tascams. Was a great little unit for drafting ideas.

[@riley7796]

I got one of these. Got it from my dad from his 90s band days. I still plug it into my stuff and use it all the time. Ordered a bunch of cassettes off eBay and have a ton of fun

[@FeelingShred]

we want videos of that... no... we NEED it... now, by the way... XDDD

[@Gaming829-l5g]

This video was shown in my music GCSE class today

[@marinacelada3246]

The 8-Bit Guy reaches even schools!

[@matte_uk]

Gaming829 shown in my college music production class the other day!

[@gilberttosanchez]

dude i love how warm the 4 track sounds and the hissing is sooo dopeee

[@kingtrance6826]

Well the Beatles used to record this way. All the technology in the world will never replace talent and the ability to write a great 👍 song. We all keep trying...

[@spacecase7504]

well said

[@blookz7877]

I loved how you setup your cables on the wall and your table. Nice setup. Your video was so good, right to the point. I keep listening all the way thru and learnes some things. Thanks!

[@spkoftdvl]

When musicians have to do all in one take with so little edition, amazing

[@EnginerdBrian]

I still have my Tascam Port-a-Studio. All the songs I wrote middle and highschool were recorded with that thing & it was so much fun. An amazing tool

[@jeremymiller7793]

I had this Tascam and I loved it! I lost the recorder after moving. I paid $100 new in 2001 and now a used one is close to $300.

[@scottcupp8129]

My first 4 track recorder was a Yamaha MT120. Had a lot of features. Those were the good ol days.. Kind of the first pro tools in sorts :) Love your videos. Keep them coming. Greetings from Hobbs New Mexico.

[@SplotchTheCatThing]

Very cool piece of information. I didn't start *writing* music till well into the 2000s but I'm still old enough to remember cassette tapes and tape recorders and all that fun stuff... when I was a kid it was my dream to use that record button to make something cool. But I wound up using a record button on a computer instead. ;) If I was born a decade earlier, I could certainly see myself using something like this. :) Another life, another time.

[@William_sJazzLoft]

One can only imagine how many garage bands scrounged up enough during the 80s to get this and combine it with a little Casiotone and a Strat knock_off and some drum pads to get the raw sound of suburbia out to the world 😊

[@yungheat84]

I used to record music off the radio and then record my voice rapping over the that music

[@FeelingShred]

Pretty sure someone out there must have created the first "Reaction" audios just like that, in an old box somewhere

[@robvegas9354]

rad - i used to do the same with guitar and sing like try to play along and listen back! good times!!

[@JC20XX]

That's awesome

[@robaxl3088]

I used one of these back in the day...my friend had one and HE HAD MONEY I couldn't afford it but man this video brought back memories!!

[@jessefillmore]

4 track cassette recorders have skyrocketed in price :( I'm glad I bought one when I did . Be cool if a company would make new ones .

[@TheStuF]

definitely, the company will probably charge too much but would still be nice.

[@msh6865]

With the resurgence of Polaroid cameras, you know it's only a matter of time.

[@madwax4771]

MSH68 They will probably be inferior in quality compared to the 414 & 424

[@slarbiter]

Tascam is still making new ones that work and feel the same, they just write to an SD card instead of tape. Their 6 track is only like $150 which is pretty damn cool. I find it much more straightforward and effective than DAW and PC, especially when recording simple demos

[@acepaul407]

I still have my 4 track Tascam. It was nice, but no way I would ever go back. The Portastudios that Tascam has come out with blows away the old stuff by a country mile.

[@checkpointcovid8021]

Tascam Porta 03 mk2 was where my home recording hobby (addiction/obsession) began.

[@all_that_gazz]

“Back in the 80’s and 90’s I thought MIDI was the way to go” Yep - same here, and I remember being so disappointed when I first got into MIDI and realised my Casio CTK 670 only had 4 MIDI channels. Mum & Dad couldn’t understand why I could possibly want or need another keyboard!!

[@synthasia-5041]

I still enjoy MIDI, My first setup was a yamaha PSR-47( basically a toy) and Atari PC with midi ports, have to agree i was also quite disappointed with it and its lowly 16 note polyphony :) try layering with it and PHbtttt notes cutting out all over the place..

[@tonysteel1377]

I faced that same issue with that very same board! 😂 I did get a Yamaha TX 81-Z and only used the keyboard for one sound. My Alesis MMT-8 sequencer was the brains of my MIDI flow. My drum machine was a small Boss Dr Rhythm 550. I still use MIDI today, and whereas I’ve since upgraded sound modules and sequencer, I still use the Casio as a controller board only. The MPC 1000 is the brain now. Although I don’t use them, I still have my Tascam 424 four-track, and 488 MKII eight-track cassette recorders.

[@all_that_gazz]

I felt like I need to come back to my own comment. I suppose I am still very much using MIDI because of all the virtual instruments I use, I think back in the 90's though MIDI seemed like the be all and end all, I'd quantise everything to death to the point where there was no emotion left in anything. Oh how much I've learnt since then!

[@drampadreg1386]

I spent $1200 CAD on my old Tascam 244, that noise floor really builds up when you start bouncing three to one to free up tracks. And all the bootleg cassettes! I started just checking the depth of the space under the slots, China town had a ton of reg cassettes that were labeled with the cro2 labels.And now I have an Antelope Orion 32 REV 2017 and half a dozen virtual mics and a couple modded Apex 460 tube condensers as well as a couple cheap ribbon mics for cabinet close recording, things are changing just a little bit. And mixing to a stereo JVC VCR...I don't miss that.

[@realGilby]

Really loving the new intro theme, it's pretty kick-ass

[@kjemradio]

Back in the late 80s and early 90s my band would rent the old Fostex or Tascam 4 track recorders. Funny thing was our singer decided to use my old Boss Pitch Shifter/Delay pedal with his mic and do these weird voice overs. Well when we played back the song that was on side one, the voice over came through backwards on time with the music. This was with no monitoring. One thing we learned was if you recorded on side 2 you'd get bleed through on side 1.

[@maysonstorm4956]

Ah. The good old days. I was young, inexperienced , and having sooo much fun.

[@kjemradio]

Back in the late 80s and early 90s my band would rent the old Fostex or Tascam 4 track recorders. Funny thing was our singer decided to use my old Boss Pitch Shifter/Delay pedal with his mic and do these weird voice overs. Well when we played back the song that was on side one, the voice over came through backwards on time with the music. This was with no monitoring. One thing we learned was if you recorded on side 2 you'd get bleed through on side 1.

[@vintagestuffguy1998]

Have you ever considered doing a collaboration video with Techmoan ?

[@snitzelll3710]

plz make this real

[@AzureOnyxscore]

Hell yeah!

[@8BitKeys]

I would love to... but I'm pretty sure he lives on the other side of the planet, so it wouldn't be anything in person.

[@Noname304y2u2]

You are aware that they live on different continents?

[@vintagestuffguy1998]

Of course - i mean something like an online collaboration - the internet makes stuff like that very possible, and through the magic of video editing, it could be really seamless and potentially fun

[@lemagreengreen]

Tascam 4 track was pretty much standard kit amongst my guitar playing friends in the 90s, great little piece of kit.

[@organfairy]

The manual for my Yamaha MT3X describes how you can record up to 10 layers on the same tape without any of the 4 tracks being transferred more than once: First you record in tracks 1, 2, and 3. You then transfer those to track 4 while mixing in a fourth layer. Now there are 4 layers on track 4. You then record on track 1 and 2. You transfer those to track 3 while mixing in a third layer. Now there are 4 layers on track 4 and 3 layers on track 3. You record on track 1 and transfer this to track 2 while mixing in a second layer. Finally you record the last layer on track 1. So now there are 10 layers total and none has been transferred more than once.

[@michaelhamerin3814]

It's called track bouncing.

[@TheStuF]

@@michaelhamerin3814 its called a good explanation of track bouncing and how to do it well. Actually :)

[@TheStuF]

Great explanation.

[@pbee73]

My first multi-track was a Tascam 488MK2 8 track recorder. Expensive but worth the $$$. That was back in the late 90's but now I am totally in the box!

[@yannastra]

Wow this really makes you wonder what was like to make music at a home studio in previous decades! Like I started recording in a daw in my tablet back in 2014 (it was GarageBand) and although it felt very limited it was ligues ahead of what that lovely Tascam recorder has to offer. Now I use Logic Pro X and I’m quite used to having access to virtually endless tracks and effects but seeing machines like the one featured in the video makes you appreciate the possibilities that technology brings us.

[@spooktasticaparanormal]

These are great little machines for quickly getting your ideas onto tape. I use the tascam 488mk1 8 track cassette recorder with all the many mixing controls ect. It also records at high speed for great sound quality. Thanks for sharing.

[@catgirl_eva]

2:27 There is no music. Only Zuul.

[@voxsatan3736]

Playing B side backwards

[@seanspartan2023]

"Ok, so? She's a dog..."

[@cosmicsprings8690]

Evangeline Domenech 😂 there is no Zuul only music

[@araigumakiruno]

Get sucked

[@aestheticaltwat]

I’m the gatekeeper!

[@noahschill1422]

as an audio engineer, this is the cutest and best way I’ve seen signal flow explained to an audience. Well done.

[@FatNorthernBigot]

Fostex 8 track cassette was my go to. They doubled the channels by doubling the tape speed. £500 at the time, but the results were pretty good. The good thing about tape? It forced you to make decisions. Bouncing tracks down set recording levels in stone. Digital tracks are never finished, you keep tweaking and fiddling... Learning when to say its done is a skill in itself.

[@customsongmaker]

With 8 tracks on a cassette, you'll need to make sure loud tracks like bass and kick drum aren't right next to each other so they won't bleed over on that tiny strip of tape

[@FatNorthernBigot]

@@customsongmaker That's sage advice. Tell that to the young lad that didn't know what to do with all those channels, thirty years ago. 😁

[@customsongmaker]

@@FatNorthernBigot ok I'll tell him, if you go back and tell another lad that he'll never finish his 4 connected concept albums to change the world

[@FatNorthernBigot]

@@customsongmaker 🤣 Ah, the hubris of the young.

[@RustySmurfBerry]

I just got a tascam 4 track II for Christmas I love it

[@arhamgomez1652]

Where did u get it I want one

[@RustySmurfBerry]

Arham Gomez ebay

[@metafis2490]

Sgt Pepper was 4 track..there's a deconstruction video on youtube of each individual track on the opening song. It's fascinating how they achieved such a good sound that even today doesn't sound that dated.

[@cliffordpearsonjr.9748]

Yes...but the tape was 2 inches wide LOL!

[@JacobAndJamal]

Oh I remember these. Glossing through the musician friend catalogs back in high school and they had their “producer” bundles

[@WizardClipAudio]

I’m pretty sure that Metal refers to type 4 and type 2 were called Chromium.

[@getstew]

You are completely right. Dude needs to check his facts.

[@TransCanadaPhil]

yep I was about to say the same thing when watching this. Type 1 was standard cassette, Type 2 was Chromium Dioxide, There was a type 3 that was hardly used, and type 4 was metal.

[@SamiJumppanen]

Yes. Type IV, at least what I used, was too hard for my Fostex X-30 to erase, so it left low frequency content of the previous recording. Only use type II if the device is made for type II.

[@hakonsoreide]

That's right. They're all made from metal, which is why one shouldn't mix up the terms; only type IV should be referred to as Metal.

[@johnvice4066]

Just getting ready to comment that, but I figured someone else had made that observation. Having cut my recording teeth on a TASCAM cassette 4-track in the early 90s, I remember the difference.

[@roydalezobel4946]

I started recording with one of these in the early 90s. And I won the damn thing. :)

[@rustedskelotonproductionse3687]

This is how I remember recording in the beginning. We used to do the editing with a small blade and clear sticky tape lol!!! I still believe that the recordings of the past is of way better quality than the digital recordings of today.

[@dafunkmuzic989]

Amen

[@380stroker]

Analog recording are better. Not in the dynamic range department, but consider the fact that converters, word clock, jitter, dither, bit depth, sampling rate, 32 bit or 64 mix engines don't exist in the tape world. A Tape transfer to vinyl was like heaven.

[@countrabricksbuildcraze8916]

Dope that's good digital is way to clean for me ....

[@countrabricksbuildcraze8916]

Yer good old sticky tape over hole s on any blank or old tape an keep recording on them..then 4 track came in. Got confusing one added to much ..an tape s from then. Whant play. In today tape deck s an music play all scrabeld lol unless thru 4 track. Put all onto track one. I got tunn of old school tape s Pbs hip hop show recording s an live Dj battle DMC s an gigs .dope to play. Tape. Sound slow. If tape s from orly 90 s only just got tape deck larst year. As my old school bomb box spring Brock of. Hard to find any body who fixes tape deck s. So hopeing to get dubble caset deck. For tape to tape recording agen. Sume of my stuff home recorded is dope just wish I was pro. Producer back in 90 s but I gess I was in my own right. ..my sirtch is on for working dubble tape deck or aux .into ..two tape deck. I still got old school sanyo silver pa amp.with mic input plus. Is dope an pioneer equlizer old skool type .taken it back to late 80 s orly 90 s

[@davidvasquez4380]

Boy that bring back fun memories . Thanks for Posting!

[@astrosteve]

I have a friend who had a 4 track similar to that in the mid 90s. We used to hang out and I'd watch him record songs. I can't play any instruments (nor do I really know anything about music theory) but I'd give him suggestions. One thing I remember is he could use the 4 track itself to copy tracks around. So, for instance, he could record drums to track 1 and bass to track 2. Then he'd play both tracks at the same time while setting the 4 track to record to track 3. Track 3 now contains the drums and bass. Then he just records over tracks 1 and 2 with whatever he wants. He said it sounded sort of bad if you tried doing that trick with 3 tracks playing, so he never did more than two. Also, trying to copy 2 tracks made this way to a third also didn't work very well and sounded bad. I think he said he could effectively have a total of 6 tracks. (Copy 1 and 2 to 4. Record again on 1 and 2 and copy to 3. Then record on 1 and 2, no further copying possible. You could squeeze 7 in if you didn't mind sound degradation and copied tracks 1, 2 and 3 on the initial run.) Anyway, really nice video!

[@oaueo]

The song appears to be the title theme to 'The Amazing Spider-Man and Captain America in Dr. Doom's Revenge' by Derek Schofield. (source: Video Game Music Preservation Foundation's wiki)

[@djbhe]

Every DJ who wanted to be a producer in Chicago during the 80's House Music Movement used those 4 track recorders. Those were the days.

[@delscoville]

One of the band members had picked one up in the early 90's. But I rarely used it, as I worked with my synths through midi on my Atari ST. It would be recorded as a stereo track, with a good stereo deck on metal tape, and then sent somewhere else where they would mix in voices and other instruments. I often recorded a 2nd version that didn't have the instruments that were played live, like bass, drums, lead, etc. So my studio was mostly digital, and I can work and not worry about trucks driving by, etc. Although I did have some guitars and an acoustic piano (that a music store owner gave me, for free, I just had to play a couple gigs with him, but he never got back to me about the gigs, so when I moved, I decided to just give the piano back to him). But I mostly just played the guitars for some inspiration, and the piano, well, I'm a classically trained pianist. In fact in was a Mozart's Turkish march I played at Ray's music store that got his attention. I am so out of practice now, and had a stroke a decade ago, so it's been a lot of work to get to where I am now, but so much more to go to get to where I was.

[@RothBeyondTheGrave]

Had that exact unit in the 90's and loved every minute.I've had the pleasure of tracking in a handful of multi million dollar facilities as I got older, and still wished I had something simple like this at home. It's real, and you really have to be able to play. Period. I'll take the sound from this over some digitally harsh, disgusting og box or equivalent any day.

[@thomcalhoun6949]

My first recording unit was a Tascam 424. Loved it! 😊

[@kevincarey79]

You started out on a great machine. I’ve got one now, it would’ve been a huge step up from the 4 tracks I could afford as a youngster!

[@jean-pierremartineau4136]

The Maxell XLII is not a metal (type IV) tape. It's a type II tape, sometimes refered to as CrO2, or Chrome tape. On another note, I had no idea Tascam made a model as basic as this. You can record up to 10 parts on a 4 track using a technique called bouncing: - Record parts 1, 2 and 3 on tracks 1, 2, and 3 - Record part 4, plus a mixdown of tracks 1, 2, and 3, onto track 4. All your 4 parts are now on track 4, freeing up tracks 1, 2, and 3. - Record parts 5 and 6 on tracks 1 and 2. - Record part 7 plus a mixdown of tracks 1 and 2 onto track 3. Parts 5, 6 and 7 are now on track 3. - Record part 8 on track 1. - Record part 9 plus the content of track 1 onto track 2. Parts 8 and 9 are now on track 2. - Record part 10 on track 1. You end up with Parts 1 to 4 on track 4, parts 5 through 7 on track 3, parts 8 and 9 on track 2 and part 10 on track 1. Voilà.

[@noelsharp]

Started my recording journey on a Tascam Porta 05. Upgraded to a Tascam 488 8-Track Cassette which actually sounded amazing for what it was! Later it was a BOSS BR8, KORG D1200 (still have it!), BR600 for the road and now DP-24SD and a DAW of course! Just purchased a used Roland vs1880 to try and recapture the vibe of older gear.

[@shayneoneill1506]

Man I recorded so many songs on my Tascam 4 track in he early 90s. I'm running an 8 track reel to reel unit these days, but I actually have a sony 8 track cassette unit sitting around gathering dust. It actually sounded pretty great.

[@weaseltears3785]

Let me know if you’re ever trying to get rid of that Sony 8 track!! I’d love one lol

[@bobbythompson4268]

Why reel to reel these days?

[@jonnuanez2843]

I had a Yamaha 4-track back in the 90s. I had fun recording on that thing. YES, we used casettes. I used to bounce tracks all the time. This vid makes me laugh because it's an "omg can you imagine how limited those dinosaurs were?". Also, explaining a cassette...lol.

[@MitchellShilling]

10:10 I believe the song "Marvel T" on the Ad Lib Juke Box program was named after the CEO of Ad Lib, Martin Prevel.

[@curlysam131]

I love the video friend. I just recently got my dads old tascam 246 rebelted and working. It sure is a whole lot of fun.

[@RazorBeamz]

Techmoan is your British doppelganger.

[@ChaseMC215]

But he didn't start his youtube channel looking at mac computers unlike david

[@squatch570]

I still have that exact model Tascam hooked up in my home studio. Comes in handy frequently when I want to lay down some guitar parts quickly without firing up the laptop to use Sonar.

[@jacknetarchive]

Nice to see you are familiar Techmoan. LGR's also familiar with him. Interesting.

[@aesircorporation1924]

Yeah, they're obviously the same person, just in different meat suits.

[@Dan-TechAndMusic]

And LGR has also been in several 8 Bit Guy videos.

[@mfobia]

I got started on a MF-P01. This brings back memories. I wish I knew how to mic an amp back then.

[@someguynamedvictor]

Kids will never know how hard mixing and recording drums into one of these things was. 😂

[@wizardito7741]

Ok boomer

[@someguynamedvictor]

Wizardito Someone is triggered. Did you think of that “insult” yourself? You’re so original and edgy. Actually you’re just cringe in human form 😬

[@spicysandwch7452]

@@someguynamedvictor hey man you ok

[@robvegas9354]

@@someguynamedvictor my mates and i did so many demos on these back in the 90's - when you ping ponged the mix that was time for a beer while it bounced down for each pass... we found that recording one song usually involved about 20 beers for the group... good times!!!

[@gamepad3173]

@@wizardito7741 Okay Zoomer.

[@beard78748]

I used one of those four track records in the mid 90's. I had a lot of fun with them. That said I am glad I can just use a computer, it makes it so much easier to fix a minor error.

[@RogerSullivanNOLA]

For bouncing down you could also route your output back into the input on the 4 track and record 3 tracks down to 1. Or to get all 4 tracks on the units that weren't double speed you could just mix down to left or right (or both to preserve stereo) on the other cassette deck and then put the tape right back into the 4 track to avoid double bouncing.

[@Aejotz]

I did that all the time with my old Cutec. Record four tracks on tape A, mix and send to tape B on good quality stereo recorder then put tape B in the 4-track. Then record two more tracks and add a "live" track during final send to stereo. 7 tracks total with only one bounce. Not bad. If you planned well, you bounced the sounds that were least harmed by the inevitable, if slight. degeneration of sound.

[@thetreblerebel]

I had the later blue Tascam 4 track cassette recorder. Me and my garage band recorded the hell out it. I own a digital Tascam portastudio 8 track now from 2010. The last gasp of the technology. Before computers became convenient

[@kristeremtweden1481]

There is a fourth way to make more tracks. ( atleast in some of the portastudios from that time ) you can record 3 prerecorded tracks directly to the fourth track internally. then you have 3 "new" tracks to record on.

[@drwombat]

5:30 ... That's it! That's the melody to funky town.... 🎶Take me down to funky town...🎶

[@tenslider6722]

in other words kids, appreciate what you got these days. Now this was music imagine what it was like editing videos lol

[@iVan123]

true.. it's amazing what music we can create with a laptop in our bedroom

[@GardettoJones]

Ah yeah, the MF-P01. My very first 4-track; that Porta was great! I recorded my old band, solo music, and sometimes I'd just record wacky stuff. No EQ, no compression, no "bouncing", just needed another cassette deck to do the 4 to 2 (ALWAYS doing things in stereo!) reduction mix, or final mixdowns. I still have most of my master tapes. I need to dig those out again...boxes of 8-tracks, reels and probably several hundred cassettes from WAYY back in the day.

[@copheart]

I still use 4-tracks to make music today (also 8-track reel to reel). I love the sound of cassette, and have a huge 4-track collection of almost every model released by Tascam, Fostex, and Audio Technica . I track to tape and edit in the computer. Check out a song or two if you're so inclined! soundcloud.com/defnder/of-course-sick-rough-mix

[@spellerlittlewing]

Very good am going back to this so easy to use

[@ianisageek]

Used this all through school takes me back

[@MattGreerMusic]

Check out Alessandro Cortini (guitarist and synthesist for NIN). He has a box of tapes and one of those old 4 track units on stage and they use them for drones and other elements of their songs. Other musicians are also recording a single sustaining note, usually one of a 4 part chord, to each track and then using these units to perform with along other synthesizers, drum machines, etc.

[@Chidsuey]

Aaaah! I see that tiny two voice Casio with the ludicrous demo tune sitting next to your recording keyboard! I look forward to seeing your review and tear down of that one. Now...I need to find mine...

[@EnochDark]

still makes me feel old that a video entitled "oldschool" shows basically the last 4 track tape recorder ever made... you know WAYYYY back in like 2001...

[@raulenchautegui4749]

This brought back some serious memories.

[@Megacooltommydee]

I just noticed that when you were filming yourself playing the keyboard, the recording is transposed down a perfect fourth compared to what you were actually playing. This seems to line up with the original track you played at the end, which is played in the original key.

[@tufif]

Back in the 90s I would use MIDI or MOD files to create the drums bass and keyboard tracks, then record that as track 1, so I'd have the other 3 tracks for guitars and vocals. MIDI and 4-tracks work great together!

[@ostradiemgi5469]

I wondered how many people would combine this with an Amiga or even the C64 to create music. Must be an interesting sound!

[@rogercook8277]

Oh how I remember coming up with different ways to record myself. I never bought Tascam or Fostex machines. I used regular cassettes recorders. Yeah. Dumping 4 tracks down to 1 track to free up 3 more tracks was nice, but when it came time to mix your project, you didn't have alot of leg room to work with. 4 instruments on one track? When you turn that particular track down, you were turning down all the instruments at the same time. Fast forward. Today I use Logic, and I have more tracks to work with then I actually need. Thank you Modern Technology.Lol

[@gamepad3173]

I've stuck with Tascam for as long as I could,for the first time in 9 years I'm grabbing a Yamaha MT4X since it uses figure 8 plugs instead of those bulky AC adapters.

[@Tomsonic41]

My sister had a 4-track recorder like that (she used to sing and play guitar), but it wasn't a Tascam. It actually ran the tape at a slightly higher speed than normal audio cassettes to get better quality at the expense of recording time. It also had a speed control, but you could never get the speed down as far as the normal speed for cassette recordings - therefore recordings made on that unit were only really playable on that unit.

[@alejoromero]

Your videos have become a source of joy to me. Love all your content mate, keep up the good work!!

[@johnpenguin9188]

The modern zoom digital recorder next to the Tascam is really funny. Also your cz-1000 is the boss 👍🏻

[@jonathanpullen7439]

We've come a long way. I remember using a Tascam 4 track in the 90s - and before that, I used to bounce from tape to tape, adding one track on each bounce - analog generation loss would quickly cook my goose. These days, I'm recording 64 tracks wide on a PC ;-) www.sheer.us/stuff/2016/Sheer.HouseOfTheRisingSun.mp3 and www.sheer.us/stuff/2016/Sheer.HistoryOfModern.mp3 are two of my projects from this month - essentially the same process you show here, just mo tracks and betta sound.

[@jonathanpullen7439]

However, be it a 4 track tascam or the latest 256-track protools rig, there's no better toy for a musician than a multitrack deck..

[@MohamedMagdi790]

Man,I love this melody

[@willdwyer6782]

My uncle had one when I was a kid. Different model but functionally identical. The electronic musical instrument that fascinated me in the 1980s was the Casio VL-1.

[@Punk_Re_Cords]

That's takes us back to the good old layer cake tape days 👌🎼💻👽✌️

[@crikeycrikeys9699]

This is actually really neat. I have a Juno GI keyboard with multitrack recording (digital) mixer of 8 tracks and it was hard to find something like that for my composing to make rough drafts of stuff... I didn't know there was something similar all the way back in the 80s. I actually also have one of the early Yamaha keyboards from like 1985 and if I could get one of these recorders and the tapes for it cheaply I could make a retro recording setup like this just for the heck of it. I got the originally $250 Yamaha for $12 at Goodwill in working condition so maybe there are some of these old recorders floating around too.

[@ebonhawkoffroad]

i had one of these. and i miss it so much.