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Talk about old school!
Anyone else ever use one of these?
I upgraded to a 424 in a year or so but this was my first home-recording equipment. Hissy as hell but you have to start somewhere.
(The pic is from Reverb; my unit is long gone.) Analog, of course.
You could only input two things at a time. (Guitar and a drum machine, guitar and voice.) Then you would have to bounce them together to open up another track. If the first bounce was not-so-good, well, you would have to live with that mistake all the way down the line. Ah, those were the days....
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08-08-2020 05:26 PM
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Originally Posted by MarkRhodes
It got to the point where I felt more like an electrician than a musician and I gave up on it.
This year, I've been able to use Musescore and Reaper to accomplish even more -- and while the technical abyss repeatedly beckons, thus far, I've been able to feel like a musician while I work on the recording projects.
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I had this bad boy. It was fully integrated with my Atari ST computer through SMPTE synchronization using a Steinberg hardware interface that sent midi signals to a keyboard and drum machine. The SMPTE sync used one of the tracks for time code, so I had seven tracks available for audio. I had an outboard stereo effects processor and a compressor-limiter for tracking acoustic guitars and vocals. What an amazing system!
I was so satisfied with my home recording rig when I finally put this all together. It took me years to save up and finally make the investment. My first rig that allowed me to overdub was a Panasonic RQ-J6 stereo cassette recorder with a built-in stereo microphone and overdubbing capability.
That was all I could afford through my college and early working years, before I finally had the means to migrate to a real multitrack deck. But man I got my money’s worth out of that Panasonic. I did quite a lot of recordings with the 688 until digital multitracking became accessible to the masses. I had a Roland hard drive based 8-track system after the 688 but it was too damn complicated and I replaced it with a Tascam DP-02. Much more straightforward, with a recording process that was closer to the old cassette-based systems but with onboard effects. I still own it, even though I have fully transitioned to iPad and laptop-based multitrack recording.
If I look back at the money I have spent on recording gear, the best investments were my microphones. I have a very nice stereo matched pair of small diaphragm condensers, one really nice large diaphragm condenser, a killer vocal mic and an SM-57 and -58. The only thing I would like to get someday is a nice ribbon mic. Recording platforms will continue to evolve. Good microphones never lose their utility.
This is a great article about the evolution of the Portastudio.
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Never had the 03, but started with a 424. I had a lot of fun with it and grew as a musician with it in the 90’s.
My Tascam DP03SD is easier to use, but things sure were simpler in my 424 days.
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My high school garage band recorded our first demo on that Tascam.
I still have a Fostex digital 8 track that I like a lot better than trying to record directly to a computer...i need to join the rest of the world in the 20th century eventually.
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I had a 424. A lot of good times trying to record the next big hit on that thing. That was back when I had dreams.
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Originally Posted by mr. beaumont
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Originally Posted by mr. beaumont
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I think I had the exact one.. has it been 30 years already? Or maybe I had a slightly bigger 4 track version, not sure. But I had fun with it, recorded a lot of music. Amazing what we can do with a laptop and a small soundcard today. Out even just with a multi effects unit or looper. (Even with a smartphone..)
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Originally Posted by Alder Statesman
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Here's a song I did on a Porta 03 long, long ago. (The picture is NOT of the unit I had---it's long gone---but that's what it looked like and that's how simple it was.)
May be the oldest demo I have.
Simple blues. No bass. Much hiss. I think some of the guitar lines still sound good.
Alesis SR16 drum machine. Not sure of the mic. (Doesn't sound like the Audio Technia AP901 I know I used later and still have.) My old Yamaha Strat. (Got it cheap while my older brother was stationed in Japan and the dollar was strong against the yen. Less than $200.)
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The prices of these old four track cassette recorders are going up . Hipsters like the lo-fi analogue sound of them , espesh for ambient or electronic music .
In the digital world , ' character ' or ' distinctiveness ' are highly prized commodities .
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Originally Posted by MarkRhodes
I use to mix down to what I remember was a Tascam 103 deck that had a couple Dolby and a non-Dolby noise reductions that help, but they always had more hiss than commercial recordings.
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This is the one I cut my teeth on, I loved that puppy. Found one today on Ebay, asking price $1,100. What!
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Before my first one, I used to bounce from tape to tape. First btw two cassette decks, then Cassette deck and VCR (VHS), where I used Graphic EQ in bounces. All that before mid 1991when I got this baby:
I got Fostex Tape synced with HR16, via simple PSK (or was it FSK?Just tempo info, actually), so I had 3 channels for instruments + synced drums.
in 1993 I got ATARI into scheme, MIDI + tape sync ... plus portable DAT, so I continued bouncing. DAT had limiter on input, for more sonic joys. Mix to DAT, bounce back ...
After a short period of messing with larger frame mixer, ADAT machine ....
Later I got Fostex VF16 HD multitrack, which I still use for recording whole band at rehearsal.
I do bounce to PC for mix, though (8 tracks at once, via ADAT interface).
Last edited by Vladan; 08-09-2020 at 02:37 PM.
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Wow, what memories! I had a Tascam 4 track in the 80s. It might have been the 424 that many of you had. As I recall, the tape recording speed was faster and uni-directional. I may still have some of the tapes, although the unit is long gone. I should see how they sound on regular 2-track! That unit, with a DX-7 and a Strat, brought many hours of music making, demos and mini-score cues. I found it straight forward to use and intuitive, and like some of you easier to work with than a DAW.
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i briefly messed with one at some point, well after digital had taken over. a fostex, possibly. the tape speed was a little fast so everything was out of tune. didn't get much done. much happier with what i have going on now.
this is a great way to bring back some of that vibe, if you must. it's a lot of fun, actually. i enjoy it as a low fi delay and giving keys a little something.
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Originally Posted by Alder Statesman
The ministudio (and later, 424) were easy to work with. It was especially easy to get something down in a hurry. At the same time, you couldn't change anything later (-such as tempo or guitar effects, amount of reverb on a vocal, whatever.) I used to plug in a drum machine and my guitar and mic and make up songs on the fly. Most were nonsense but here and there a good riff or catchy line popped out. Or a title. It was a good way to get into a playful mindset and "just see what happens".
I got better at mixing as I went along but was never really good at it. I never liked how the tape hiss made the cymbals sound splashy. One thing I love about Real Tracks in BIAB (which I'll be using with Reaper) is that the drums have a lot of definition and no hiss or splash.
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Originally Posted by MarkRhodes
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Originally Posted by Pycroft
I started with the Porta One in the 80's. Then a 464 in the 90's. Then the 424 I got about 6-7 years ago.
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Originally Posted by lukmanohnz
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I had a Tascam Porta One
It was pretty crude -- it had no aux sends, no XLR inputs, and no ability to sync to anything external. Bass + drum + 2 guitars + vocals meant ping pong, and printing with effects. More parts meant more ping pong. I used a hi-z mic plugged into a Boss reverb pedal for vocals. By the time it got to a 2-mix cassette it was pretty stepped on, but I recorded a ton with it and it taught me to plan and record efficiently.
After that I had a Korg D8 (8-track digital hard disk recorder). It sounded really good (and had a whopping 1.5 gig hard drive), but also had a somewhat crippled mixer/bus implementation and therefore offered more learning experiences. Nowadays, recording on a computer seems like an embarrassment of riches. But I still like to keep it simple, so GarageBand rather than Logic or Pro-tools for me.
John
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