Making a beat on a 20-year old cassette porta studio

The first 1,000 people to use this link will get a 1 month free trial of Skillshare: skl.sh/accurat...
Let's explore this Tascam Portastudio 424 MkIII.
It's weird and wonderful in its own little way :)
I left a bit too much of the slowed down version of the music in the video on purpose, I just think it's pretty beautiful.
It's a cool piece of tech to have and I think I'll use it from time to time when I want that vintage cassette quality for something. It's also really fun to explore new (old) ways of multitrack recording like this. It's very relaxing and satisfying :)
There will be more "normal" beat making on the channel and I'm also planning a home studio tour and the "MPC vs. Maschine" video. It's not always gonna be this weird :)
Gear I used here:
Drum samples from my sample pack "Salt"
Tascam Portastudio 424 MKIII
Native Instruments Machine+
Roland Jupiter xM
Korg Opsix
#portastudio #beatmaking #Maschine+
Here goes the usual spiel:
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www.accuratebe...
-- MERCH ---
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EU/UK
accuratebeats....
-- MY EP "Weeks of Beats" --
Spotify, Apple Music, iTunes, Amazon music, KZbin Music,
distrokid.com/....
-- MY WEBSITE --
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-- PATREON --
/ accurate
Much love/ Acc

[@glyndwr15]

I have this same machine and purchased it when these were new. It still works flawlessly and I love it. These were the last generation of cassette multitrack recorders, so they were the most advanced and hi fi, so much so that you might be disappointed by how clean and accurate they sound if what you're looking for is analog imperfections. The tape sound definitely imparts something cool and lofi to any recording, but it might be more subtle than what some people are expecting.

[@Sinevibes]

Really enjoyed this video, especially loved the moment from 00:00 to 11:23 🙂

[@AccurateBeats]

Haha! You made me look ;)

[@Eight4aWish]

I had the 424 mkII. Back in the day it was proper affordable and made a huge difference to the quality of band recordings. Bleeding between the recorded tracks is not a 'feature' you see in many modern daws.

[@SoundConstraints]

Love the chill vibe of this one - I might have to get my hipster on and pick one of these up for my next video.. Good shit man.

[@AccurateBeats]

Thanks :D It's a weird piece of tech but I think it's a cool thing to have ;) I won't use it daily but I think it'll come in handy for sound design Thanks for watching man, keep up the good work on the channel!

[@coolelectronics1759]

just got the digital version for dirt cheap, model dp-01fxcd and I get it today! Looking forward to recording all my synths through it.

[@whereisko]

This is such a cool vid! Definitely inspiring to see you work out of the box and onto a machine I used to see in the music tech catalogues back in the days

[@AccurateBeats]

Thank you! I hope I’ll get around to investigate this deeper in the future :)

[@ChrisCommisso]

Too cool! I luv those old Tascam cassette recorders

[@scottymac3634]

I still have a cheaper version of this. When I got it I thought I held the key to the universe. I had so much fun with it. Nowadays it would be a major bum-pain to try to make a track on it, of course. Mine still works great. Every once in a while I’ll run some drums into it to add some saturation and punch. There are videos about Trent Reznor's buddy Alessandro Cortini (forgive me re spelling) using one for sound design. Worth a watch.

[@Bhrok3n]

Brings back memories. Had my tascam 4track and mpc 60 (II) all through college... Man how things have changed. I still have them both in the closet, may have to dust them off for a retro cook up.... Lol

[@AccurateBeats]

That sounds about right! Sure… recording has become a lot easier these days but going back to something like this was a fun little visit :) Thanks for watching

[@crunknavajo]

I think i threw mine away like a dummy , i regret that..

[@robinkoch7822]

Floaty! Sounds like stars.

[@wiggesobk]

This is really cool. Love the slowed down part! 👏👏👏

[@IanHeathdesigns]

Very cool! I still have my Tascam Porta Studio but it's slightly newer with a hard drive. I used to use it to record mixing sessions and I couldn't get rid of it. It was my first real all-in-one machine.

[@soulscientific2685]

That beat has a nice neo soul type vibe...dope

[@peterkiefel4324]

Good video and performance, thanks! I got my first 4-track in 1986 (fostex x-15) and it was not a point of difference for hipsters; it was simply the only affordable option for a hobbiest. The beauty of the 4-track is the constraints and simplicity. It forces you to plan ahead and make tactical bounce decisions that you have to live with and keep moving. Less is more!

[@HazyJ28]

If you ever want this analog feel in the form of software, check out Chow Tape Model. It's based off a Sony TC-260 Reel 2 Reel tape machine, and is VERY authentic. Listen, I know DSP will never be the same as analog, and it's fun to use analog hardware. But for portability sake, I wanted to recommend this free plug-in.

[@thisdjdada]

My dead 424 mkiii sits by my bed now lol I made dj mixes and beats with it. Once I get another machine I will use the inputs along with another. I have hundreds of tape’s waiting to be played Again. The cd-r era was a joke. Lol

[@AccurateBeats]

That’s great to hear! There’s really something special going on about cassette tapes alt the workflow of something like this. Thanks for watching!

[@crunknavajo]

NIce, Thats what i started recording my Beats on , but mine was a 4 Track Tascam back in 1995 .. Damn brings back memories

[@dennissantana970]

My Man, My Man!!!! You always bringing the HEAT!!!!!

[@mckrisbo]

Dude! This is my fav beat of yours since the that beat of yours in the woods with your SP404 mk2. Really digging the vibe from that Tascam too 🔥🔥🔥

[@MadeOnTape]

excellent and fun! I agree that there's a lot of fun and freedom with the lack of ability to edit... hope you're still having fun with the portastudio!

[@oskraudio]

So cool i just got myself the tascam 244 like a week ago. Those things are fun

[@coolelectronics1759]

dope vaporwave machine and skill dude! Better than my bootleg VCR analog hole post-processor buffer. Literally just a VCR with HiFi stereo capabilities that I put rack ears onto spice up my flstudio vaporwaves.

[@OFFMike]

Great using of that unit, good way get back to the basics and build an organic lofi and grimey sound, remind me my good old Mpc 2kxl and Roland Vs840. Dope.

[@FlavioBos]

This such an amazing great chanel with all those niche things a lot of people forgets to put in the tube… thank you so much for all these interesting vidz

[@dracul74]

I was going to do this last year... but when I saw how much the tascam was going for here (in the us)... I stopped. Glad you did it so I can watch! I’m old enough to have actually owned one in the late 90s, lol.

[@dracul74]

Btw... I suggest composing on an Mpc and using the tascam for running finished parts or individual hits through ( like it is an effect processor)... then rerecording back into Mpc

[@callmescooter]

a glowing review.. I want one even more now

[@a_unknown_ghoul]

Man I love this vid! Maybe my favorite of yours! Hope to see more of this tape machine in future vids!

[@jo27hn666]

Nice video as always 😎

[@MadskillsBeatz]

The beat is clean, great video!

[@edbaiza7757]

Insanely Badasssss!! Very educational!!!

[@sexymaderfaker5079]

WhatsApp with that bass tone, gross man, love it Need it

[@Jeka18137]

Sound was really wizard! Cool! 👍

[@totallyfrozen]

Quite a bit of hiss. What kind of tape are you using? Was it a new cassette or previously used?

[@chriss1152]

That maschine has to to older then 20 years old

[@wehappyfewmusic]

This sounds great, please do some more videos using the 424mkIII! I've got a whole bunch of cassette portastudios and love experimenting with them, they have a really distinctive sound.

[@WesleyNyle]

This was cool as shit! I love this idea. Keep creating! Can’t wait for the sample pack! 🤩

[@nickpmusic]

I miss that wonderful analogue tape hiss and wobble that I now have to add with a digital plugin.

[@privateaccount1839]

I have a tascam 644 midistudio I bought at a flea market for 150. Been sitting in the corner also found some rack mounts effects. This looks fun 😄

[@AccurateBeats]

Oh, that one looks COOL! I'm having a lot of fun with this one : Dit might end up collecting dust but it's gonna be helpful for sound design at least, thats a fact.

[@privateaccount1839]

@@AccurateBeats yeah u motivating me to go old school again . Just bought a abelton push 2 with MacBook pro to do portable builds.. since me and my girl broke up today I can now start rebuilding crafts. I have a mpc live 2 I need to master as well.

[@Luke_Romeo]

No cassette plug in here 😅🔥

[@doubledog5894]

Oh yes, now I miss my crappy old Tascam 4 track. I’ll take the nostalgic 90’s workflow over the fastest DAW any day. 🎹👍💥

[@leewightman8619]

Iv just picked up a Tuscam dp008ex and iv been recorded my tracks on it from the Yamaha DJx and the po ko 33 and its actually sounding great the djx actually has a 6 track recorder on it too but can only record the keyboard on it ...i use apps on my phone to like 303 step sequencers and drum machines .. and bandlab plus got a couple' random daws on the laptop but i try not use them as there so boring..i need some more Hardwear like a proper sampler and sequencer like an mpc ...but i can make pretty good music with what i have iv also got an old daw thing on the Xbox it has a sampler piano roll drum machine ect so thats handy with the multitrack track as i can edit I'm the tracks with the keyboard

[@GrimSingmuf]

Nice!

[@kendallhaynes2622]

Brother, this dope! Pardon my ignorance, is this type of production daw less. Because Im looking for a simple set up to make my beat making more fluid. Any advice that you can give would be greatly appreciated!

[@AccurateBeats]

Thank you! Yeah, this is made without using a DAW or a computer at all. I ran Logic on the Mac just to record the audio for the video. There are more modern alternatives to this if you're looking for a porta studio. But the MPC's, Maschine+ and many other devices these days are standalone these days so building a DAW less setup is pretty easy these days. Thanks for watching :D

[@kendallhaynes2622]

Most welcome, my brother! And I appreciate your advice and these great tutorials and awesome content, it keeps my beat making dreams alive💯

[@philmunoz9269]

I saw a vid that Legowelt did on e where he used a multi track recorder like that one to add an analogue sound to his recordings as an effect.

[@nakanda]

I used the 8 tracks model 27 years ago! (actually my first album was recorded in this 8 tracks tascam porta studio)

[@coolelectronics1759]

neat, just bought the dp01fx digital version Doesnt have the characteristics of analog tape but its still going to be fun

[@minkloco619]

Real talk I still have my 688 Since the 90s

[@HazyJ28]

I'm really enjoying this video though. Very creative

[@herrsakal6150]

Hey Accurate ! First of all i want to say that i like your work, so keep it up man ! I just have a question. Do you have Adam Audio T7V as monitors ? If so how happy you are with it ? Would be great if you can light me up :) Peace

[@AccurateBeats]

Hi! Thanks a lot :D I use the Adam A5X monitors in my setup. I'm in a pretty small, untreated room and didn't really need anything more than 5" speakers. I've been really happy with them since I got them and I've actually never heard a speaker from Adam Audio that I haven't liked butI haven't used the T7V myself. Thanks for watching!

[@herrsakal6150]

@@AccurateBeats Hey Man ! Thanks for the quick reply. I have been thinking about getting myself also a pair of Adam audio monitors but not sure if 5 inches or bigger 🙂 good to know that you are also using them since I like how your work sounds. Thanks again ! Peace ✌️

[@TheActualJae]

I feel like I really need a shirt that says “Getting Weirder” now. Preferably with a graphic of that “slow down” knob on the recorder there.

[@Oldbuku]

Just for people who think you can only ever literally only record live finger drumming, playing keys, etc. from beginning to end: if that’s too daunting you can always set your MPC to loop, pre-sequence your keys, or whatever else ya want to loop beforehand then do your tape recording with each track for however long you want your song. Of course it’s not as fully spontaneous or “humanized” but it’s less of a pain in the butt for those like me who aren’t as adept at staying on key or tempo or whatever. But yeah if you just wanna get the sound of tape authentically at least, that can be an option. You could go as far as assembling your whole song in a DAW then output each track into the tape machine if you wanted. Again, not fully “humanized” but yeah, just clarifying for those who have never worked with tape and might think loops are literally not allowed. There’s also such thing as tape looping, but that’s a whole other hardcore can of worms heh

[@coolelectronics1759]

true that, I suck at drumming on time, it gives me anxiety I will use a preset custum loop once I get mine, I got the digital one, it gets here today.

[@Emily_M81]

Mad Lad with a 424 mk3! never, ever lose that power supply lol... (nearly impossible to find a replacement) I have its little sibling the 414 mk2, which I got for $20 before prices became ludicrous, and a 488 mk2 that I honestly just don't have room for >_> They're certainly fun to play with when you want a different feel.

[@AccurateBeats]

Oh! I kinda wish I had the 414 too! I Iove how it looks :) Point taken, I got the power supply together with a huge US/EU converter and I’ll defend them with my life! Thank for watchin :)

[@crowfoot7355]

Sago Accurate talk about memory lane I have a tiny porta3 I just have to find a Power cord for to tinker with it. 👍👍👍👍

[@nebula0697]

Great vid as usual but with an inexpensive looper in front you could still have your looping mindset and workflow, obviously not with the flexibility of DAWs and groove boxes, but still.

[@sixteenlevel]

How does the sound from this compare to the Tape sound on the SP-404 MKII?

[@paulrandomar757]

Fostex tape recorders have a sync connection. There is possible to connect two ar tree recorders with eachother. 4 tracks are too less I think. 12 tracks is something like daw. I am happy about born in the 80s and start make music in 2008 with computer 😁

[@John-mf1sz]

You can do a whole lot with a little, man. Bounce certain tracks together after proper mixing, now you have five, you can do this for awhile and get everything you need.

[@basedvato]

Gives the NI maschine a more colored punch - at the cost of tape hiss

[@JakeSweeper]

Heh.... all this was definitely before my time getting into music production even though I'm definitely old enough to be around when thar Tascam was new. :)

[@dorn_beats]

Going Hainbach! Half speed is best speed!

[@AccurateBeats]

Haha! Hainbach is the dude :D Yeah, I'm just afraid all my future beats will be slowed down with this... It'feels lika a slippery slope :P

[@dorn_beats]

@@AccurateBeats try to make them faster and high pitched at first. Then slow them down. This also works nice with the PO-32 for extra lofi...

[@traitortotheliving]

Nice man! I’ve got a 424 that was recently refurbished that I love. Definitely can inspire new ideas and sounds. You should play around with using tape loops it’s interesting and fun! Fairly easy to make them or there are people that sell them pretty cheap. Cheers 🍻

[@owenchaim610]

very cool! I had a cheap little Fostex 4 track in the early 90's and recorded some of my first songs on it beats tracked out from impulse tracker. those weren't just for chiptunes, LOL

[@AccurateBeats]

Ah! Such a trip down memory lane. Thank you :)

[@apostatatheprovost3041]

❤️✌️

[@ignacios.7039]

Funny thing is I have one from my DJ years collecting dust in my garage, gonna dust it off and create Lofi samples

[@Enosigeocore]

i want one like you

[@renildatv]

Full support po

[@MegaToneProductions]

Acc U rate #dope. Keep on creating.

[@nalaeel219]

Cortini already covered this brah

[@bebussound7991]

Did you post the finished beat anywhere? It sounds so good

[@Tony_Anthemz]

Drums are accurate as f 🤔💭🎹

[@mccflo99]

Can I rap on this?

[@preben2691]

Fra Norge ? :) Syntes du sa «ha det godt»

[@HOLLASOUNDS]

You can bring that thing into the 21st century by getting rid of the real tape and replacing it with a tape emulator. It's the shape of a tape and you can load sounds on like a flash drive. Edit actually I dont think it would work with a flash tape.

[@AccurateBeats]

Hmmm… You might be on to something. I’ll look into this…

[@WildernessMusic_GentleSerene]

I lived back in those horrible recording days...and was a musician back when recording on cassette because I could not afford 4 or 8 track reel-to-reel. 4 track cassette was absolute crap, the worse recording media in history since reel tape. Even 8track cassette were a higher quality audio, every media was a higher quality audio. My 4track cassette was a Fostex using double speed to increase audio quality but still crap. After I rewound the tape 20 times it would jam up or break. It was all we had, but it was a nightmare unless you got your takes right on the first time. Then mini-disc and digital tape came out, I waited, and bought the first Roland VS880 hard disk recorder....THAT was it for tape after the 880. I then went on to computer DAW for a while until I discovered it was worse than cassette for production. For the last 10 years I have used a ZoomR24 24track SD recorder and have never regretted it, it has performed flawlessly and allowed me to record 68 albums. As this old ZoomR24 ages I will replace it with a Zoom L20 LiveTrak. I use MAC and PC computers every day for graphic design, they are perfect for this....but for audio I am not going back to computers and DAWs every again.

[@jackiegreen1692]

Now all those old analog machines are selling for big bucks !

[@AccurateBeats]

Thanks for this comment! It’s interesting to hear peoples different opinions on these matters. The zoom recorders seem really popular and I don’t doubt for a second that they’re great! I wouldn’t use a cassette portastudio for a computer replacement but it’s a cool thing to have these days, just to mix things up :) Thanks again for your story!

[@WildernessMusic_GentleSerene]

@@jackiegreen1692 As museum pieces, or collector items, certainly not for any music production! :)

[@jackiegreen1692]

@@WildernessMusic_GentleSerene True but some folk say you can get That Analog Warmth from them .

[@WildernessMusic_GentleSerene]

@@jackiegreen1692 What do you do with that analog 4 track. Can't publish on KZbin, can't make a CD, can't publish on any internet music sites...to remain analog it would half to publish to vinyl. Plus you still need a mixdown to two track tape....not worth it. Don't know if any record duplicators are accepting reel tape anymore. So you mix to digital?

[@larrytan73]

Its not hard .You are tracking a beat for the duration of the song!EACH SOUND! Let's not make it difficult. record play stop FF RR pause..peace!

[@paulrandomar757]

You are born in the 90s?

[@AccurateBeats]

Nah… “brought up in the 90’s.” Born in the 80’s :)

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[@Tony_Anthemz]

Drums are accurate as f 🤔💭🎹