Using Tape Creatively in a DAW World w/ Chris Mara from Mara Machines

[@GearZenChannel]

I decided to forget the DAW and go back to tape. At this time I only do my own projects, so I have all the time that I want. It is much more satisfying and I am more productive without a computer involved.

[@TheNathanMChannel]

The Tannoys and Tree Audio console look really great together.

[@BradDollar]

This topic would be an awesome book / handbook.

[@chateautemp]

Thanks for this. So informative and generous of you to post it here.

[@xandergyo1007]

this video is so informative. everything articulated so well.

[@gamingmusicandjokesandabit1240]

(in a warm tone) *The classic Studer sound has entered the chat*

[@metalupyourass9]

WOW, this is by far the best video on how to quickly re-align tracks as well as answered my question on if you should bounce to tape before/after plug ins..this saved me hours of searching forums

[@fremontrecording]

Amazing video. Very inspiring. Thank you! I do hybrid tape/digital solutions all the time too! :-) I gotta come visit you.

[@zonarecordingstudio]

Bob Shuster is coming to my studio tommorow for a lesson in maintenance.

[@dirkvisser7723]

7:40 What is he exactly talking about here? Is he recording a vocal into a tapemachine dry and then adding a digital reverb after or is he recording a vocal with a digital reverb already on it to tape?

[@damnthatsweak]

the last thing you said

[@dirkvisser7723]

@@damnthatsweak thx

[@ethanmcdonnell4040]

I'd be very interested to look at a tempo by inches per second chart, if you have a link? Thanks

[@jolonyeoman5823]

Does anyone know if there’s a similar feature to that shown at 5:45 in logic pro? Thanks

[@MELONenSURPRISE]

Seem there's one guy left who knows how the appreciate analog world. Yes , this is noteworthy !

[@davewestner]

Well, FWIW, I have been using PT for over 20 years now, and I didn't know that grabber shortcut!

[@godofspacetime333]

LOVING that jacket. Also, really interesting video. But that jacket...man. That jacket.. I want it. That jacket. I want that jacket. JACKET.

[@joed7185]

I recorded a song in GarageBand and now want to record that song onto a reel to reel to get a mastered tape sound. Then once the song is recorded on the reel-to-reel, send it back into my computer. Hope that makes sense. Is that possible? will the sound quality be good?

[@wojciechniebelski1775]

Yes. The good tape recorder will change a lot for you. You will get better resoults if you send to tape the stereo mix before master. We do that in our studio all the time.

[@joed7185]

@@wojciechniebelski1775 Oh great! thanks for the info my friend.

[@joed7185]

@@wojciechniebelski1775 Do I connect my laptop right into the reel to reel? or do I connect them together with a audio interface?

[@wojciechniebelski1775]

@@joed7185 you will get better resoults by conecting them via interface as the AD/DA coverter will be a better quality and higher output impedance.

[@joed7185]

@@wojciechniebelski1775 Ok so if I understand correctly its laptop connected to my interface, then interface connected to my reel to reel. Thanks my friend!

[@purecountry70]

I have a AKAI 250Dtape Deck could you explain how to wire it to my Rig

[@targetpanicrecords]

Chris is still the leading expert in what to do with the tape machine that no one wants to feed

[@Mikas_Emil]

When he talks about parallel compression: how is this possible when the tape is not exactly the same speed as the digital? Even when they are aligned perfectly from the start of the recording? I get a weird phasing sound when I try to do exactly that. Anyone knows?

[@futurebeats898]

that means that they are not exactly aligned in pro tools. its just like a parallel comp. send in pro tool

[@Mikas_Emil]

How do I get them to be perfectly aligned? isnt most tape machines drifting? sorry for the newbie question :)

[@futurebeats898]

@@Mikas_Emil maybe a bit. I guess you need to live with it

[@NikosPage]

Change your daw

[@2dollarcrew]

How was he recording on the tape and printing at the same time? I have a teac 4 track so maybe that is why I can’t do that?

[@pete3816]

He explained it in the video. Rewatch the video! There’s a record head and separate play head. The play head is playing the recorded signal immediately meaning the recorded signal is outputted with a very slight delay due to physical positioning. If your TEAC 4 has a combined head, you won’t be able to print while recording to tape. You’ll have to play it back in order to print to protools.

[@nebstaism]

I really wish I had a real tape machine.... but the tape machine plugin these days sound so good

[@ProbeRoket]

been doing this for 18 years now.

[@ConfusionTrip]

What studio is this?

[@MrMuppetbaby]

I think it his "Welcome to 1979" in Nashville?

[@jamesdoctor8079]

But what about tape drift!? You can align shit up to the digital file all you want but that won’t stop the tape copy from drifting slightly and screwing up the whole mix..

[@antigen4]

that's why it's SYNC'ed silly

[@MrMuppetbaby]

Two big problems with the video production and Chris may not have been directing. We could use a shot or two of the 24 track machine he is using in action. I mean that is the really interesting part isn't it? Also, we could have spent 15 seconds A/B'ing the track hitting tape against the original to hear the difference (if much at all). That is the whole point of spending 9K on a 24 track, to offer something the other studio doesn't have. That TAPE sound. And there has to be more to it than just a "low end bump" and "a high end roll off", I can do that with EQ or with one of the Tape plug ins?

[@tonywolfemusic5920]

a w it can be both. As you can tell by the mix he's referencing it was done on tape, and is not edited to shit. You can use your daw like a tape machine by just not allowing yourself to comp and/or edit timing and pitch. Or you can gently edit to fix problem areas in a great full take. Nuance is key, my friend. DAWs do not HAVE to be the enemy of organic sounding music.

[@Kevin-vq6rv]

Let's say I send the vocal to the tape machine input 1 (TM i1), I get the 1 tape delay. If I take the TM o1 and patch it into TM i2, I get a second delay, right?. Now, I can do that as many times as I have tracks on the TM. Does that workflow make sense to increase delay feedback? Or makes it more sense if I print that one delay from TM o1 into my DAW, and I copy that track four times or so and time-shift those tracks?

[@oscarpennell1266]

You’re better off to create a send from the tape return in the daw and send that back to the tape machine input. Varying that send gives you more or less feedback and allows you to automate it.

[@nintendoor1]

You named every type of machine aside from a 1/2 Inch 8 Track machine 😂 Am I making a mistake buying one of those? I wasn’t even aware that 1 Inch 8 Track Machines existed

[@BobJohnson-xo7hr]

1" 8 track was the next format developed after 1/2" 4 track. I think Les Paul's machine was one of the first built. Sargent Pepper was the first Beatles album to use 1" 8 track and there were multiple bounces to other machines and back in the process.

[@codyzsherman]

Ohh but the dreaded tape drift. I wish I could run the whole drum mix through without it slowly sliding out of time.

[@KingBlonde]

Is that guy drinking a beer?

[@nicholassismil3823]

lmao

[@toki_-_wartooth]

if i had a setup like that no beer would be present at any time in that room.

[@funhousebaby3104]

@@toki_-_wartooth hence the death of rock and roll 😉

[@domdraper3221]

I like how they make the woman stand.

[@Zjayc777]

Dang this class looks freakin sweet. Real chill vibe. There are girls in there? even cooler.

[@MadMaxMiller64]

LOL really? If I need tape recordings I record them directly on tape. That would be maybe Vox or drums - in this case I could use Glyn Johns with maybe a sub kick, all mixed analogue in a small board before it hits the tape... And pleeeaaase: aligning as a subject in a "masterclass"? In my opinion, anyway, there is only one reason to use tape at all: If you want to create a boutique piece entirely analogue from recording to press with no digital copy in the process - certified to be unique and any possible digital copy could only be made from a sold physical copy and never from the production site. Other than that: if it's in the digital domain it stays there, no point to play it out and in again with all ADDA conversion involved.

[@antigen4]

seems to me there's absolutely nothing new about what he's talking about - we were doing this in the 70s 80s and 90s

[@TweezerBleezer123]

You were dumping into a daw in the 70s?

[@djdonbentley2141]

i can understand this if your a big company, and need to still utilize old equipment , simply because it costs tens of thousands, but if your a small studio , why bother doing this, if you still wanted to , why wouldnt you work with other trackers and recorders, ones that make sense . any hdd recorders , unless you believe that dat and adat run flat sound, either way , sounds like bad practice , that no one except the studio owner will take to. PLUS, IF YOU TRACK AND RECORD ON ANALOG TAPE , you still need to back your tracking up , and what would that be , digital.

[@tonywolfemusic5920]

Because it's fun and cool. And also because not all 2 track tape machines are that expensive. ALSO, a person with a creative mind is always looking for unique ways to get unique nuance to their sound. Just my two cents.

[@TheChadPad]

The sound can't be faked

[@byronwade1204]

Because some of us absolutely love the process of experimenting with sound. It IS fun and cool for us. The journey is the thrill. Not just always rushing to an end result. What's the rush people are in these days ? If it's your own project hang back and enjoy the magic as it happens. I know from experience that tracking through tape is just unmatched digitally. The natural smoothness and saturation it gives when done correctly is so satisfying. What fun is it to always rush to an end result. It's most likely that very few people are going to hear it ( or want to hear it ) to be realistic. So enjoy the vibe of knowing you're going the extra distance behind the scenes. Even for just that little difference. You'll just know it when you hear it. Too hard to explain in words. Different strokes. Have fun peeps.

[@godofspacetime333]

I send all my digitally recorded mixes to a Samsung hifi VCR and then back, it really sounds amazing. You can do this for about $40, and it seriously adds a lot. Most people might not hear it (unless they had a side by side comparison), but it really makes the end product more pleasing to the ear, just a little smoother, and makes vocals sound amazeballs.

[@bradmodd7856]

Is this a parody? tape emulation plugins work just fine. There are people who build houses using hand tools, I guess we all get to choose how we spend our limited time on earth.

[@scottielambert9312]

Perhaps this logic is what has resulted in the soulless music that has been churned out since the the advent of digital. The limitations of tape is critical to the creativity and art of music in my opinion. I get it though. Lossless ease is very compelling.

[@tonywolfemusic5920]

It's because this shit is fun for some people. Not all, obviously, but everyone approaches different problems with their own unique perspective. Tape machines are fun. Computers and plug-ins are awesome. Tape sounds warm. Digital sounds clean. Yes, and. Learn about nuance when it comes to formulating your opinions.

[@stupid4President]

What's that gorgeous looking console Chris is working with? Looks a bit like an Altec but I can't find info anywhere.

[@stupid4President]

found it: Tree Audio Roots Console