Good, cheap, multitrack reel to reel machines

general questions, comments and ideas about recording, audio, music, etc.
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gitgrinder69
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Good, cheap, multitrack reel to reel machines

Post by gitgrinder69 » Tue Feb 15, 2005 3:27 pm

Hey, first time poster on this site, and I was wondering if anyone out there can recommend a good reel to reel machine. I will be setting up a small project studio centered around a Cubase DAW, but I want to have the option of quality analog recording as well. Any ideas?

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Re: Good, cheap, multitrack reel to reel machines

Post by radiationroom » Tue Feb 15, 2005 4:40 pm

A Tascam 388 is a good starting point for a beginner, provided that one can be found in good shape. It is 8-tracks on 1/4-inch tape with DBX noise reduction and has a built-in 8 channel mixer w/EQ and 2 FX sends. I had one for many years and did dozens of radio commericals on it as well as my own music.

If you want something along the lines of what the big boys use, an Otari MTR-90 is hard to beat. But you are also talking about a tape machine that is bigger than you are and weighs 500 or so pounds.

73's - Carli
gitgrinder69 wrote:Hey, first time poster on this site, and I was wondering if anyone out there can recommend a good reel to reel machine. I will be setting up a small project studio centered around a Cubase DAW, but I want to have the option of quality analog recording as well. Any ideas?

Gitgrinder69

gitgrinder69
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Posts: 24
Joined: Tue Feb 15, 2005 3:22 pm

Re: Good, cheap, multitrack reel to reel machines

Post by gitgrinder69 » Tue Feb 15, 2005 5:46 pm

Thanks Carli, about how much should I expect to pay for either of these two machines?

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Re: Good, cheap, multitrack reel to reel machines

Post by radiationroom » Tue Feb 15, 2005 6:55 pm

gitgrinder69 wrote:Thanks Carli, about how much should I expect to pay for either of these two machines?
An MTR-90 in really good shape is in the low five figure range. I just saw one locally which was refirbed by an acquantance of mine go for just above $15K. If you have the time, the patience, and most imporantly THE SKILL to fix things, you can pick an MTR-90 up for $2K, but machines at that price point usually need a good bit of work. If this is your first deck, you are not ready for a machine like the MTR-90.

The Tascam unit I recommended for you to start with can be had for less than a grand. BUT make sure that the heads and transport are good, because alot of the time these semi-pro decks are completely trashed by the time they go up for sale. If worse comes to worse, contact your local tech to look at it before buying.

Also, there is another Tascam model that's worth your time - the TSR-8. It's a 1/2-inch 8-track that is actually very nice for a Tascam product. I just ran a search for "Tascam" on e$ay to see what turned up, and three model 38 decks were listed in the seven or so pages I looked at. That might be a possibility as well for you. Honorable mention goes to the MSR 16 track that was listed as well. - http://search.ebay.com/tascam_W0QQfcdZ1 ... Z1QQftidZ2 -

And then there's the old workhorse deck, the Otari MX-5050, of which there were several generations. Avoid the early ones from the 1970's because spare parts are hard to find for them. Instead look for a late 1980's 1/2-inch 5050. I've owned/currently own a number of Otari products and can vouch for their build quality.

Honorable mentions goes to Fostex's semi-pro decks from the late 80's. I had one of them as well.

If you own an analog deck, GET AN ALIGNMENT TAPE and learn how to use it. Jay McKnight at MRL makes them and John French - http://www.jrfmagnetics.com - sells them. John French might also be able to help you locate a good starter deck like one of the models I mentioned.

73's - Carli

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