Last American Audio Tape Maker Closes
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Posted on Jan 05, 2005 12:25 pm
Albertv05
Dub head
Member Since: May 03, 2004
I heard this on NPR this morning. Quantegy, the last american audio tape manufacturer closed over the New Year. I know a lot of people on this board are all about digital, but how sad is this? I love the charm , sound, and quality of tape. I would record on analog tape if I had the means, digital sounds "too clean" for me most of the time. Any one else a fan?
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WaltChief Cook and Bottle WasherMember
Since: May 10, 2002
Jan 05, 2005 12:53 pm Well, yes and no.
I keep old 78 clay disks around and listen to them sometimes. I also have vinal and R2R tapes. They are enjoyable per their character and 'state of the industry' of their time. My true love is the acoustic instrument. An upright bass, a viola, a oboe. Now, that brings to mind many aspects of the industry. There are analog studios that go to great lengths and practice some very fine engineering to reproduce those sounds. There are digital studios that "push em through' with copy and paste, fix it in software, methods. I love the clarity, but 'digital' itself does not gurantee that.
I guess my focus is more on what you do with what you got.
GregorMember
Since: Jan 08, 2004
Jan 05, 2005 02:05 pm It was a sad inevitability.
Jan 05, 2005 04:23 pm OH DEAR GOD NO!!!!! SAY IT ISN'T SO!!!
Where am I going to get tape now? The thought of recording digital makes me sick in the gut. I'm truley depressed, that just sucks. I'm going to have to sell my computer and buy as much tape as I can before it's gone. This old piece of junk ought to get me 3 or 4 spools anyway.
Bummer
and btw.... yes I am a fan of analog.
Jan 05, 2005 04:31 pm What's "tape", ya mean that silvery/grey stuff I use to stick down cables in my studio?
Jan 05, 2005 04:38 pm I love NPR
Jan 05, 2005 07:07 pm No, not that kind of tape.... we're talking about the stuff that "REEL" engineers use (pun intended) hehehehehe..... sorry, that was bad, but I'm posting it anyway.
WaltChief Cook and Bottle WasherMember
Since: May 10, 2002
Jan 05, 2005 07:43 pm Wa when I was a engenerrin, we used that there whire to ricord on. On that there was some sound! Bring back the whire ricorder! Last True sound eva made!
Jan 05, 2005 09:52 pm Are they talking about studio tape like 2inch and half inch stuff or just casette tape. It's hard to believe they would stop making 2inch tape.
Noize2uCzar of MidiAdministrator
Since: Apr 04, 2002
Jan 05, 2005 11:06 pm Well they were the last American mfg. of tape. There is still tape being made overseas. Quantegy was abig name over here only because they were tha last one left here. You can still buy magnetic tape, its just not going to be American made tape, thats all.
I did hear that scissors are soon to be banned though, so editing you tape will not be easy. :-O
I dont miss my tape at all anymore, all that cutting and splicing was a nightmare. Especially after my last session with the PSP Vintage Warmer pluggin and Sonar. I think I finally reached the point of being happy with the warmth I have found in digital.
dansaltdoganother day another ray of hopeMember
Since: Oct 14, 2004
Jan 06, 2005 02:42 am This is not good news... at all
First emtec and now quantegy. What the hell am I going to do? I don't know how you guys work with computers, I have trouble enough typing this. It's all gone wrong!!! How do you de-mag a computer? I like touching things (fnarr fnarr).
Nooo! that means my guitarist is going to get his way "I know guys, lets have 15 guitar tracks, reverse them all and stick a 5 second delay on them, add a bit of chorus, flanger, phaser, pitch shift, reverse them back, stick a differnt reverb on them, cut, paste, chop, tilt, dribble, twang, thwack... that will fix the mix"... that's it, I'm gonna shoot the guitarist... no, first of all I'm gonna shove that 6 stringed fishing rod of his where the sun don't shine, along with the tape machine and 10 spools of the now antique silver toilet roll... and then shoot him.
Sorry, did that come across a bit harsh... it's just that I don't take bad news very well.
Nooo! that means my bass player.......
WaltChief Cook and Bottle WasherMember
Since: May 10, 2002
Jan 06, 2005 12:28 pm Blahahahahahahaha!
Man are you right! Sometimes ya gotta just make them 'feel the pain' too.
Two recent scenerios:
Grog, growl, eat your offspring, band: Told them upfront, I don't know your genre all that well so you will have to participate in mix and pre-master. Ok fine, they appoint the guitar player. Finished CD pops out and Bassist and Drummer are miffffed! One song has 6 tracks of guitar, others have min of 2. Drummer walks! (very fortunate for band as now they have found a real one). Guitarist and self just laugh, 'well next time around be present!'
Young band. Guitarist / Vocalist / keyboard has increadable potential. Percussionist is very good (time in... polished). Guitarist is very 'tempo' challanged. Kinda like watching a sailboat running against the wind. Ok, we do first round of recording (kit, keys, vocals, bass, guitar). I do 'rough' mix, invite the group in to listen. 'Oh my, something is not right'. They constrinate, brain storm, etc. After a bit I help them out a little and steer them to looking at timing issues. "Oh my, that's it! we are all landing at different times!' Guitarist askes me to fix it in software. I say ok, get me numbers (times in song where things are off and which time he wants to keep).
Neadless to say he went home, practiced, we layed the track with a tick-tak, and all is well!
Just gotta laugh Dan. You are right! If it's easy, they will try!
dansaltdoganother day another ray of hopeMember
Since: Oct 14, 2004
Jan 06, 2005 02:31 pm "guitarist is tempo challenged" Hahah
Isn't it amazing how some people have no idea they can't do timing.
Mixed a band once with similar problems, only it was the drummer, he thought timing meant turning up late. I got him to record a tamborine over one part that he obviously couldn't play (got to give him credit for trying... no scap that, practice man, bloody practice, and tune the kit while you're at it) then convinced him that the drums didn't do the tamborine justice and pulled them out of the mix. I don't think he knew what was going on, especially when the rest of the band breathed a huge sigh of relief.
The main problem with my guitarist is that he hasn't grasped the fact that he is playing in a band, you know, 5 other musicians. See that guy in the corner, holding something phallic and moving his hands up and down it? Well he's not just there getting off on your tortured twanging that took you weeks of sitting alone in your bedroom, scrunching up your face, trying to fit 10 notes into where just 1 would do and wondering why no-one visits you anymore... He's called the banjo player (yeah, yeah , i know, if you think guitarists are hard to please) desparately trying to find some space so he can fit his 150 notes in where you're playing your 10.
Oh my band is an engineer's dream
WaltChief Cook and Bottle WasherMember
Since: May 10, 2002
Jan 06, 2005 02:53 pm Dan, per your observation, a coincidental email I received yesterday from my director:
"Ladies and gentlemen, I'd like to introduce the members of tonight's
band...( in fact, any band).
"On piano____________:
But first a few words about pianists in general, they are
intellectuals and know-it-alls. They studied theory, harmony and
composition in college. Most are riddled with self-doubt. They are
usually bald. They should have big hands, but often don't. They were
social rejects as adolescents. They go home after the gig and play with
toy soldiers. Pianists have a special love-hate relationship with
singers. If you talk to the piano player during a break, he will
condescend.
"On bass we have _____________
Bassists are not terribly smart. The best bassists come to terms
with their limitations by playing simple lines and rarely soloing.
During the better musical moments, a bassist will pull his strings hard
and grunt like an animal. Bass players are built big, with paws for
hands, and they are always bent over awkwardly. If you talk to the
bassist during a break, you will not be able to tell whether or not
he's listening.
"On drums____________
Drummers are radical. Specific personalities vary, but are always
extreme. A drummer might be the funniest person in the world, or the
most psychotic, or the smelliest. Drummers are uneasy because of the
many jokes about them, most of which stem from the fact that they
aren't really musicians. Pianists are particularly successful at making
drummers feel bad. Most drummers are highly excitable; when excited,
they play louder. If you decide to talk to the drummer during a break,
always be careful not to sneak up on him.
"On saxophone______________
Saxophonists think they are the most important players on stage.
Consequently, they are temperamental and territorial. They know all the
Coltrane and Bird licks but have their own sound, a mixture of Coltrane
and Bird. They take exceptionally long solos, which reach a peak half
way through and then just don't stop. They practice quietly but audibly
while other people are trying to play. They are obsessed. Saxophonists
sleep with their instruments, forget to shower, and are mangy. If you
talk to a saxophonist during a break, you will hear a lot of excuses
about his reeds.
"On trumpet_____________
Trumpet players are image-conscious and walk with a swagger. They
are often former college linebackers. Trumpet players are very
attractive to women, despite the strange indentation on their lips.
Many of them sing; misguided critics then compare them to either Louis
Armstrong or Chet Baker depending whether they're black or white.
Arrive at the session early, and you may get to witness the special
trumpet game. The rules are: play as loud and as high as possible. The
winner is the one who plays loudest and highest. If you talk to a
trumpet player during a break, he might confess that his favorite
player is Maynard Ferguson, the merciless God of loud-high trumpeting.
"On guitar_________________
Jazz guitarists are never very happy. Deep inside they want to be
rock stars, but they're old and overweight. In protest, they wear their
hair long, prowl for groupies, drink a lot, and play too loud.
Guitarists hate piano players because they can hit ten notes at once,
but guitarists make up for it by playing as fast as they can. The more
a guitarist drinks, the higher he turns his amp. Then the drummer
starts to play harder, and the trumpeter dips into his loud/high
arsenal. Suddenly, the saxophonist's universe crumbles, because he is
no longer the most important player on stage. He packs up his horn,
nicks his best reed in haste, and storms out of the room. The pianist
struggles to suppress a laugh. If you talk to a guitarist during the
break he'll ask intimate questions about your 14-year-old sister.
"Our feature vocalist is the lovely_____________
Vocalists are whimsical creations of the all-powerful jazz gods.
They are placed in sessions to test musicians' capacity for suffering.
They are not of the jazz world, but enter it surreptitiously. Example:
A young woman is playing minor roles in college musical theater. One
day, a misguided campus newspaper critic describes her singing as
"...jazzy." Voila! A star is born! Quickly she learns "My Funny
Valentine," "Summertime," and "Route 66." Her training complete, she
embarks on a campaign of musical terrorism. Musicians flee from the
bandstand as she approaches. Those who must remain feel the full fury
of the jazz universe. The vocalist will try to seduce you--and the rest
of the audience--by making eye contact, acknowledging your presence,
even talking to you between tunes. DO NOT FALL INTO THIS TRAP! Look
away, make your distaste obvious. Otherwise the musicians will avoid
you during their breaks. Incidentally, if you talk to a vocalist during
a break, she will introduce you to her "manager."
"On trombone___________________
The trombone is known for its pleading, voice-like quality.
"Listen," it seems to say in the male tenor range, "Why won't anybody
hire me for a gig?" Trombonists like to play fast, because their notes
become indistinguishable and thus immune to criticism. Most trombonists
played trumpet in their early years, then decided they didn't want to
walk around with a strange indentation on their lips. Now they hate
trumpet players, who somehow get all the women despite this
disfigurement. Trombonists are usually tall and lean, with forlorn
faces. They don't eat much. They have to be very friendly, because
nobody really needs a trombonist. Talk to a trombonist during a break
and he'll ask you for a gig, try to sell you insurance, or offer to mow
your lawn. "
Noize2uCzar of MidiAdministrator
Since: Apr 04, 2002
Jan 06, 2005 08:31 pm Was that vocalist Medussa by chance? Dont look into her eye's!
WaltChief Cook and Bottle WasherMember
Since: May 10, 2002
Jan 07, 2005 12:26 am Man Noize, Sorry bout jumpin all around in threads, but per above, that PSP warmer just saved my rearismazimus again! Two dirty, distorted, grungy (you get the pic) not playing well with anything else, and well sounding....Nasty! PSP mono 3Band warming compresser to the rescue! WoW! Left all the tones the guy wanted there, but in blendable, mixable musical portions!
Hey I won't knock tape, but you surely will not find me knocking digital either with what can be done!
cooloFrisco's Most UnderratedMember
Since: Jan 28, 2003
Jan 07, 2005 02:01 am Holy moly. This has ended up to surely be the most hilarious thread I've ever read on HRC. Between Dansalt and Walt. Hooo boy. I had to pick myself up off the ground just to type this. I've met vocalists and bassists that fit right into your description perfectly.
dansaltdoganother day another ray of hopeMember
Since: Oct 14, 2004
Jan 07, 2005 04:35 am Hey Walt, that's fantastic, love the bit on the vocalist.
They are quite amazing too. And it's not like they have much to do in a band. "Yes, that's right, the lead plugs into that little hole in the mixing desk, you know, the same little hole you plugged it in last week, and every week for the last 6 years. yes, that's right, it is all really complicated. I know, I know, there are lots of little holes on the desk to choose from, and I know that the word VOX written under the hole can be misleading, and yes you're right, it should read vocal, and no, my fist isn't clenched for any particular reason." singing out of tune suddenly becomes the least of worries, getting him to stand somewhere in the vicinity of the microphone requires a certain amount of skill "Ok, let me tell you about the movement of air... on second thoughts, maybe not... right, this thing shaped like a lollipop that you have somehow managed to avoid for the past 6 years, is pretty crucial in order to get you to tape, I'll explain "tape" later, and you need to stand fairly close and still, yes I know, but tape doesn't record dancing... or air punching, just the movement of... just noise !! I'll explain "tape" later... Ok, when you here me say the word "recording" take it as read that I am not lieing, you don't need to ask "is it recording?" as that will go to tape, yeah , I know I forgot to explain "tape", check the guitarists arse, you'll see a couple of spools of the stuff sticking out of it"
How did I manage to turn into such a cynical old git?
WaltChief Cook and Bottle WasherMember
Since: May 10, 2002
Jan 07, 2005 11:18 am I'm pretty sure it comes with the territory Mr. SaltDog. After a half a century of witninssing folks do incomprehensible things.... it just happens.
My all time favorite, and I run into far tooo many of these is ChurchLady on the Keys.
She has the technique of the average woodsman chopping wood. Every song comes out sounding like "Onward Christian Soldier" with the 'and' of every beat receiving a brutal slan of the left hand. They started lessons at two from 'ChruchLady' of two generations back. They know all sheet music was written by God himself and any deviation by any member of the band MUST be thwartist immideatly for the redemption of that person's soul! They have also been tought that the directors score is a 'peared down' version of what is in front of them. They are the Don Quitotie of musicians. Sward in hand mounted on the throne. The weight of the band is on their sholders and the only mistake they could possibly make is to forget the measure number of where the sax played flat before the end of the song. They will leave their throne, writ from God in hand and accost that sax player mumbling 'what do have at' as they decend upon him. They are also the commanded keeper of the metronone. Regardless of what tempo the director kicks a piece of at, they will enforce the God sheet and smite the band with the power of that left hand and pound them into submission! Then at break they will personaly thank you for playing a piece 'right'.
ZX6R1033PerdidoMember
Since: Dec 15, 2004
Jan 07, 2005 11:52 am last american tape manufacturer closes... so everyone automatically switches to digital? why not just buy imported tape?
Jan 07, 2005 11:53 am The likely reason they closed is because so many people already HAVE gone digital...
Resistence is futile, we are digital.
ZX6R1033PerdidoMember
Since: Dec 15, 2004
Jan 07, 2005 12:15 pm even "pro" recording studios?
Jan 07, 2005 12:33 pm yeah, most, or many at least, are ProTools or Nuendo.
WaltChief Cook and Bottle WasherMember
Since: May 10, 2002
Jan 07, 2005 12:50 pm Oh God Yes!
Imagine fixing up Ashley Simulated, or Britney Spanial in the analog world? The cost would be astronomical!
Jan 07, 2005 01:31 pm I thinks it's a sad demise to say the least. I find it disheartening when people who can't sing are suddenly perfectly on key, and people who can't play suddenly sound like they can..... *sighs*
Jan 07, 2005 01:34 pm I think people take it all too seriously...to me, if I like the sound, I don't much care how it got there. I can't play keyboards or synths, but, thanks to MIDI I can make the sounds in my head come alive without having to. I can only play an intstrument at a time, but thanks to Sonar I can record myself many times over...then go back and fix one bunk note...I can't play drums, but then there is NI Battery.
I think it's pretty damn cool.
ZX6R1033PerdidoMember
Since: Dec 15, 2004
Jan 07, 2005 01:47 pm wow Dan... you are one step away from being just like ashley. hehe Jk.
Jan 07, 2005 01:50 pm Nah, I don't perform any more...and I don't sing...er, not that anyone except my real singers (presley_07 and flame) hears just enough to get a jist of what I need...
It's all about knowing how far to push it :-)
And it's Ashlee, not Ashley, get it right!
ZX6R1033PerdidoMember
Since: Dec 15, 2004
Jan 07, 2005 02:13 pm its not worth spelling right, haha. in a year, noone will remember her anyway. :D I dont sing, because it never sounds the same when there are other people around.
Jan 07, 2005 02:28 pm Fixing some bad notes is one thing... fixing a track is something else. Sorry, but when I hear a guitar solo, vocal, or whatever I want to know that the guy can pull it off live. (or at least come close to being able to pull it off) Some midi keys, or the like don't bother me added in, as long as the bulk of it was a performance, not a computer. It's just my opinion of it.... right or wrong, it's the way I feel about it, and that's one thing that's not going to change... I'm just too old for change now, I am what I am.
Jan 07, 2005 02:32 pm Why does it matter? I mean, sure, everyone is entitled to their opinion, but if you are relaxing and listening to a CD in your house what does it matter if the dude can do something live or not? It doesn't matter at all. It's the sound and the music.
Hell, I guess you don't think much of my stuff then, cuz I'll tell ya flat out I can't do it live...it's still the musical vision that resides in my head though...and should be allowed to be appreciated for what it is...a vision in my head.
If you are at a concert and they are faking it, well, I can more understand (though still not completely), but to me it's just about the beauty that hits my ears, I couldn't give a crap how it was made.
Too old for change? So do you still record on tape? Perhaps you do...I dunno.
ZX6R1033PerdidoMember
Since: Dec 15, 2004
Jan 07, 2005 02:40 pm I have no problem with people enjoying their vision. I dont even have a problem with people buying CDs for 20 bucks from someone who made all of their music on the computer, with absolutly no input from an instrument. what I have a problem with are "singers" get crammed down my throat from every which direction mtv, sattalite radio, FM radio and what not... and there is nothing I can do about it except shut it off. I prefer the silence to the noise I hear on the radio, but thats not the point.
Something that not a lot of people think about... It takes talent to make music through the use of midi and whatnot just as it does on another instrument... because you still have to have the same basic skills. General knowledge of music theory, a vision, and the ability to piece it all together.
EDIT: oh yeah, and DJ's such as DJ Rap are some of my favorite listening music. they dont play drums or guitar either...
WaltChief Cook and Bottle WasherMember
Since: May 10, 2002
Jan 07, 2005 02:44 pm All valid points for sure!
What I want to see is the 2:00 A.M. 'Remember when' adds in 20 years;
Soft male voice comes on Ah yes the hits of the 2000's..... remember when:
You and your loved one head banged until you where admitted into the local general hospital?
You maushed till you were mush?
Your girlfriend beat the living !@# out of you for watching Britney Spanial video's with the sound turned off!
Yes those were the days, and for only $19.95.....
Jan 07, 2005 02:50 pm Quote:
Something that not a lot of people think about... It takes talent to make music through the use of midi and whatnot just as it does on another instrument... because you still have to have the same basic skills. General knowledge of music theory, a vision, and the ability to piece it all together.
An old friend and I used to have this argument all the time...music intelligence vs. musical ability. He always called anyone with musical intelligence a "poser", which totally pisses me off as I sit and know exactly what I want my music to be, but can't do it myself...these tools give me and anyone like me, the ability to make it.
I still have one drunked drummer friend that still can not grasp the concept of recording on a computer can actually be real instruments...he has never seen my studio, only knows that I ddo it on PC...when I say it's still reall guitar, basses and such...he just doesn't get it...
Hell I can't wait until the Vocaliod technology gets cheaper and better, then I won't need flame or presley either.
cooloFrisco's Most UnderratedMember
Since: Jan 28, 2003
Jan 07, 2005 03:21 pm Using a computer and midi to record music, even if highly edited and can't be played back live is completely valid in my book. I look at it like this: If I sequence a song completely in midi and can't actually play any of it back, you know what I am? A song writer. But instead of selling/giving my song to a group to play, I can just get my computer to play it back. Just cutting out the middle man.
dansaltdoganother day another ray of hopeMember
Since: Oct 14, 2004
Jan 07, 2005 04:24 pm I'm not totally against the digital world, hey some of the best stuff I listen to is recorded this way, and I love it because of this fact. I like hearing things perfectly recorded with no mush and sharp sounds, it makes my hi-fi really perform well.
But tape has it's advantages too. Because the sounds can't be changed to the degree of digital, ok, there are compressors and gates etc. But i like also the fact that bum notes can be heard, a snare beat maybe slightly late or mis-hit, a chair can be heard creaking, all the things which give the music a certain character. The options in digital are such that the temptation to fix these is too great. And I know that i probably would. For my band, digital may be our downfall because of the music we play, it would change too much from our live sound (adding too much stuff etc). We are known for our live performances, and the sound that we produce on stage, I've already explained what would happen if the guitarist had the option of digital capabilities, we would become a different band.
Of course, there are also bands who use both, Morcheeba, who retain the warmth and natural compression of tape, and then go digital to clean things up, and they truly have an amazing sound imo.
Both worlds are great, and produce amazing results, if the engineer knows what he is doing, sadly, I have a way to go yet.
Noize2uCzar of MidiAdministrator
Since: Apr 04, 2002
Jan 07, 2005 10:47 pm I take it you have never sat down to a marathon splicing session with the old analog tape? Oh my, I can tell you some stories, as I think Walt can as well. Tape may have sounded all nice and warm and fuzzy, I will never argue that point, ever! But the labor it took to make the music I wanted and to make the edits needed to get it there, expecially when I was the only one playing all the instruments is an experiance I can honestly say I will never miss, ever!
When I first converted to digital with a PC with Cakewalks first pro audio release. I was dancing round the room in amazement over what I had just done in a matter of hours. That would have originally taken me about 3 days and 2 or 3 trips to a studio in Minneapolis with editing and splicing gear as I didnt own a splicer. The amount of gear I used back then would have made your head spin. Now I am down to 1 large rack and 1 small rack full of hardware, and several of those spaces are empty. And honeslty, some of the hardware doesnt even get used as I now have DSP software pluggins that do it better and faster, with less noise. Granted there are still some things I cant do with DSP that I can do with my rack gear, but eventually I am sure I will figure out how, or find a pluggin that will do it.
So no, honestly I dont regret selling any of my analog gear, except my Juno 106. Now I just work a bit more efficiantly, and a bit faster. But I also will never diss the old tape realm. Although as dB stated, more studios are turning to digital, even if it starts on tape, it finishes in digital.
WaltChief Cook and Bottle WasherMember
Since: May 10, 2002
Jan 08, 2005 12:33 am Noise, thank you for the complement related to having 'been around' for awhile. I have to be honest. I never did much tape splicing. A little, nothing sophicated, and quite frankly that was enough. It is truely a craft. I appreciate it as such. Recording in the analog 'tape' world was much more of a craft or art in many aspects. Getting that 'sweet spot' of saturation with little s/n and little clipping. The bouncing, The cutting and splicing, on and on. I still love making furnature with dove tail joints, etc. for myself because I know the difference.
Now I have to admit that I embrace digital music production with a greater attention to detail and zeal than I ever did the purely analog world. I don't miss the hiss. I don't miss the wow and flutter, I don't miss the drop outs, and most of all I don't miss the quality degregation every time I had to create a new generation from bouncing etc. The natural compression of tape as it saturates is something that I have gotton used to, but quite franlky with products like the PSP warmer out there, I don't feel the pain too badly. And if something just screams for that tape sound I can always put my R2R between my pre-amp and A/D's and pick up the signal off the playback heads and sync it up later. The kicker is that I am a 'hobbiest' and can affort to do that.
Now, if we are talking 'production' music. There's a different horse. Actualy more like a heard of horses. There's yourself and dB as well as others here that create increadable ear candy with non-conventional 'instruments'. There's performers like Britney Spanial that are 'holograms' in a circus backed by folks like you that create the ear candy we hear. There are the cut and paste producers that sell sophisticated loops.
Who knows what the next technology will be. Maybe tranducers that monitor heat fluctuations in air movement instead of disks that bend. Maybe an new analog of constant monitoring light for the transfer medium.
For me, as always, it's what I do with it. Not what I got.
Jan 08, 2005 05:34 pm Now that is exactly why I respect your opinion Noize.... because you've done it. You've cut tape, and matained analog equipment. I see the end in sight myself. I know if I want to keep recording I'm going to have to make the change to digital sooner or later. That doesn't mean I'm going to embrace it with open arms. But, at least you give me hope that it can be OK. I guess I shouldn't take it personal, but when I hear someone who never theaded a spool in their life dissin' it... that bothers me. Of course I never help my case because I lack tact... I'm just brutally honest to a fault.
Walt sounds like you've done a little tape cutting in your day as well. I agree with you, that it IS truly a craft.
WaltChief Cook and Bottle WasherMember
Since: May 10, 2002
Jan 09, 2005 01:20 am I'm with ya Karetaker. Understanding what goes into the process makes the process an art in itself. And part of the resulting product is that art. That's why I do a lot of the finish work in my home in my own wood shop. I appreciate it. I sure could not affort to have it done, and would play hell finding anyone capable of doing it today because it is such an expensive process. I watched as a close friend went through a very similar circumstance in the graphic arts industry. He was a master, still is for that matter. Along came digital photography and every secretary could make a brochure 'good enough' for it's purpose. I feel for him as he got bitter, and resentfull and could not make the change. I will probably buy some of his lab equipment as I can be happy with doing it for me. He cannot.
Hope you can hang with the tide!
Noize2uCzar of MidiAdministrator
Since: Apr 04, 2002
Jan 09, 2005 05:36 pm Thanx Karetaker. I gotta admit it has been a long 10 years of so since digital became the way I did things here. To be honest it was a long and trying process to find the way to get the sounds the way I wanted them. But indeed as Walt stated, being a craftsman means attending to the work untill it is right. I can tell you that there were many late nights here tweaking those dang first DSP pluggin knobs trying desperately to get what I wanted out of those things.
Now I almost take it for granted that I can emulate almost any piece of analog gear to a close replication or sometimes better with the click of a mouse. And lucky for me I still take great joy in finding new and unique ways to get that warm sound.
As for the analog synth though, I am still trying new and differant software synths to replace my missing Juno, but it will come eventually.
It is like and adventure and I guess it is what is keeping me interested in doing this. And keeping me feeling young as well.
Advice to get you going the digital route. Dont get frustrated or angry at the software, just step away for little bit, give it some thought, and then keep trying. It does eventually get easier.
dansaltdoganother day another ray of hopeMember
Since: Oct 14, 2004
Jan 10, 2005 08:17 am Wow noize, tape splicing? can't say that would be my bag, I get frustrated enough with the musicians, couldn't do too much of any fiddly stuff. I find whenever I do anything like that I tend to hold my breath with the concentration and then start feeling a bit faint.
It all sounds interesting, but a bit too involved for what I do. However, a good skill to have, but one that may sadly be lost with the gradual move to digital. But I guess a whole load of other skills are to be learnt, and without being too much of a luddite, I should welcome the impending change and stop clinging on to something whose demise is imminent
