The analogue revival - So wrong on so many levels (Part 2)

There are so many things wrong with old-fashioned analogue tape. If you fancy jumping on the analogue tape revival bandwagon, you really need to watch this. Check out the Audio Masterclass Music Production and Sound Engineering Course at bit.ly/3W3tpKo
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0:00 Crosstalk
1:08 Distortion
2:03 Dropouts
3:22 Erase depth
CREDITS
Funfair mirror - Studio Sarah Lou CC BY 2.0
Iron Maiden - Killers
Voodoo illustration - 'Live And Let Die' by Eon Productions

[@clicks59]

Just recorded on an Otari MX80 24 track machine that’s in one of the studio’s at my community college. The keys to success: machine calibration, using +3db analog tape for better signal to noise ratio and knowing how far you can push the levels before distortion. Understand your levels versus your analog meters. No distortion is good but unlike digital, analog breaks over the distortion threshold in a more forgiving way. We pushed our recording levels fairly high with decent results. We didn’t experience drop out or noticeable crosstalk. It doesn’t mean that there wasn’t any. Our instructor came from the world of analog and has engineered recordings by Tesla and Cake. He’s passionate about teaching us how to recording on analog equipment. I feel really fortunate to get the opportunity as it’s not offered by many institutions. Thanks Kirt!

[@MikeBaas]

Cake's albums sound GREAT.

[@axiiio]

I owned an A820 back in the day, loved that machine, the concorde of 2 inch 24 track. Utterly impeccable engineering. Crazy responsive machine, lovley to use, great sounding (when we didn't know any better), and loved by my clients. So glad I don't have to use it anymore though. Viva la digital recording and non linear editing! Tape recording and editing (cutting and splicing tape for those that have never had to do it) is an utter ball ache compared to what we have now.

[@AudioMasterclass]

You were indeed blessed. I never got beyond the A80 (but I liked it)

[@RobertMatichak]

@audiomasterclass I think the worst crosstalk has got to be time code! Often we would place opposite sounding instruments on adjacent tracks … ie: tambourine next to a kick or bass. This way you can eq out the offending crosstalk. Let’s not forget console crosstalk! Love your videos … thx!

[@AudioMasterclass]

You're welcome. I haven't heard SMPTE crosstalk for a very long time and hope to keep things this way. DM

[@searchiemusic]

1:48 my machine has better S/N than my interfaces, not even joking, I've tested it with three oscilloscopes

[@searchiemusic]

3:24, even at plus 8 i've never had this kind of issue with erasing! huh?

[@searchiemusic]

'it was the cheapest studio i could find at the time' ah, there you go

[@AudioMasterclass]

Thank you for all of your interesting comments. I'll reply to this one and say that I wish I had picked the second cheapest. It had the first-ever SSL console. DM

[@jonathanhjgaardjensen7653]

@@searchiemusic It's a rare issue indeed. Over thousands of hours of using tape I only encountered this four times in total... each time had a simple explanation like extremely poor storage (direct sunlight for years) and heavily used tape, a faulty card on the 2" machine and one freak accident when troubleshooting a machine and using a telephone for light a bit too close to the heads. All of these are avoidable by common sense and/or maintence.

[@steveroberts1861]

Drops out reminded me of the period where Ampex stock had issues with the glue which caused all sorts of issues.

[@CraigPMiller]

Don’t talk to me about drop-outs! 😮 I used to look for drop-outs on the 2” Quad video tapes sent to tv stations. 3-5 pixels on a scan line and it’s a redo 😅

[@AudioMasterclass]

I'm almost sorry I never got to work with one of these. Almost. But I interviewed this guy - www.lionlamb.us/quadpark.html - for Audio Media magazine years ago. Very interesting stuff. DM

[@georgeanastasopoulos5865]

Okay, but why not advance the technology further to greatly reduce cross-talk; if not to eliminate this category of an unwanted sonic problem from any analogue playback?🔉🎼🎵

[@Lmoes]

It's been greatly advanced through the decades but it seems like this guy doesn't want to bring that up. Also - just align the god damn tape machine! 🤣 It's easy and will remove any chance of "burnt in" crosstalk

[@georgeanastasopoulos5865]

@@Lmoes Well said, and completely explained in a brief, and logical way, Emil.

[@Lmoes]

@@georgeanastasopoulos5865 thanks a lot, George!

[@georgeanastasopoulos5865]

@@Lmoes Okay, thanks for noticing my remark. This man is a pessimist about almost every hi fi audio playback.🔉🎶

[@Paulkatz123]

So magical hahaha

[@dannydaniel1234]

Your argument falls apart when you realize that every plugin manufacturer on the planet has a tape emulator trying to emulate the abnormalities of analog tape. There is even a couple of plugins that emulate "cross talk" If it's as bad as you say, why won't they stop trying to imitate it with crappy sounding plugins?

[@sound-ur1bq]

Vintage mania, it was better before etc I'm from that time and have no regrets of tape machines, too error prone. Now the sound itself can be likened, its a matter of taste. just to add was the cost, i bought a console for 100 K French franc, and the tape machine was between 250 and 400 K, i sinked because of the cost. Now i'm happily working with an interface i bought 700 Euros, whats wrong with this ?

[@patrickperry6898]

However these plugins are controlled environments without the issue of them breaking. You have exactly the characteristics you want without the characteristics you don't want. With real tape you get what you get, plus it costs a lot more money, and constantly has to be maintained.

[@dannydaniel1234]

@@patrickperry6898 They "tape emulators" sound absolutely nothing like a real tape machine. I have tried them all, they are just digital distortion, with no soul and depth. Go and grab a old school Marantz stereo receiver and a pioneer turntable and a 12" vinyl single from 1982 to 1998 and you'll hear what's missing in music. Hell, even by 1995, they started making cassettes sound much much better to compete with Cd's, but it was too late, people preferred digital convenience over analog richness, but not me, brother. You said, "with tape you get what you get" and that's what I love about it, it's unpredictable, you never know what you're gonna get, be it good or bad, sometimes, bad is very good!

[@patrickperry6898]

@@dannydaniel1234 I'll admit I've never been in a room with a tape machine. However I heard Bob Clearmountain in a interview with Warren Huart say he hated tape because he would get the sounds how he wanted then the band would come back in and listen and it sounded "first removed". I would love to start listening to vinyl, one of my m8's loves listening to vinyl.

[@BennieWilll]

@@dannydaniel1234 The main argument is that CD has 96dB of dynamic range. Analog tape yada yada only has 20dB of headroom. They are missing the point that analog does not distort like digital. 2" tape only needs 20dB of headroom. I think it says something that 99% of the music on my playlist was recorded on tape. I really can't listen to a digital recording.

[@EgoShredder]

Even worse is using Metal cassette tape formulation, which sounds superb BUT............ nearly all recording heads on the recording machines, are too feeble to erase Metal tape and leave behind very loud remnants especially kick drums. I bought a really powerful magnet to form part of a makeshift erasing machine, so will be interesting to see how that goes. It's all just for fun and nostalgia, as I do my serious recording digitally and have done since 1997.

[@AudioMasterclass]

I'm skeptical that a simple magnet will do the job. The erase head uses alternating current to produce an alternating magnetic field, as does a demagnetiser. Metal tape has a high magnetic coercivity and you would need a demagnetiser with a powerful enough field to erase it fully. Good luck giving your magnet a try though. DM

[@MegaFred8888]

i was thinking of buying a vintage Revox for nostalgia to take me back to my teen years. But he`s right , i can stream with perfect sound now, why bother . Shame really. It would probably end up as a ornament .

[@bob4analog]

Good Lord! This dude's lost it!

[@jamieostrowski4447]

He obviously has a lot of experience.

[@bob4analog]

Yeah, so do I, but I dont go bad rapping like he does. If people want analog recorders, its ok, no foul.

[@TheRobGuard]

That last question? Looking forward to part 3 😀

[@helldrenn]

This comrade does not like to work. Sure, what do you play a real guitar for? They go out of tune, octaves are needed, you have to check the distance of the strings and the distance of the bridge to the pickups. For Christ sakes! No! Better throw your guitar in the trash and buy a digital controller and download guitar libraries. Besides, you don't even need to know how to play a guitar. In fact, it would be better to use a good collection of loops, wouldn't it? Why do we need guitarists and bass players anymore, right? Everything in life needs maintenance, capacitors and transistors are also replaced by the way. Nothing is perennial. The only argument I'll give it validity is the price, which is not very affordable. The wear and tear of the tape when too many takes are recorded (when the musicians you record suck). It must be said, digital systems are friendlier and more malleable, more practical, but they are not better in my opinion. Preamps and analogue mixers are unbeatable. Digital systems have democratized everything to allow people in general to afford a decent audio interface without spending a lot of money and to be able to make use of their creative capacity freely. That is nice. If anybody are in the search of the Holy Grial (analogue), please avoid Avid.

[@riptonedwards9175]

We don't enjoy the sound of digital there are no straight lines in nature,do you know that a analogue Canara will catch a image faster than digital, yes 1 and 0 is too slow it is anti nature, that is why people have gone back to records we want the warts and all digital will never give full information.

[@nyquist5190]

Nor will analog. The details are buried in noise long before the limits of digital.