OK. Analog then.    

Well, Tascam makes good stuff – worked on a Tascam 16-track reel-to-reel (MSR 16?) in the early to late nineties, and still have my old Tascam 688 which I did a lot of preliminary demoes on (a mixer/recorder – "only" 8-track cassette format, but still possible to get great results from!)... a couple friends had Fostex 8-tracks, which were OK too...

While Otari is/was probably a step up, along with Revox/Studer recorders, don't get too hung up in everything you read on the web (like "fat lows" and "airy highs") about this or that brand or model... these opinions tend to be very subjective, and chances are those "mind-blowing" differences are quite minimal (or even non-existant). 

Remember – there's a lot more to getting good sounding recordings than just having the "right" equipment, especially if you have little or no prior experience.

Keep in mind that all these machines are "getting old"... spare parts & service (and "fresh" tapes!) might become a headache whichever one you chose.

You already have a mixer?..

(e)

PS. Kinda hard to give theoretical advice this way – especially since there's 1001 ways of doing things... would have liked to help you out "in real life", but I live in Norway, so I guess this will have to do... :)

Ryan Thomas LeGere said:

I'm currently searching Ebay and Craigslist for anything that is in the best of condition that has been tested to play/record, has good transport and has been recently serviced. So many times something pops up that is advertised as "Looks great but have no way of testing." So then all you find are these "as is" items.

 

So what has been catching my eye is the Taascam models 38, 48, and 58. I read that the best would be the 58 because they are more durable and that the 38 always has some issue popping up.

 

Also looking at the Tascam 80 though these are getting old.

 

Another one I am looking at is the Otari MX 5050 and from what I read this is the best choice over the Tascams because of reliability and  fat sounding lows.

 

What I am having trouble considering when weighing one machine against the other is what kind of fidelity am I looking for? I definitely don't want low fi yet I don't want a pop sounding record either. The Black Keys have a fidelity I find bearable (yet not theit first album). I feel though i read a lot in forums to stay away from the Tascam 38 and hod off for MX5050. Yet, maybe I can work with the limitations of a 38.

I'm currently searching Ebay and Craigslist for anything that is in the best of condition that has been tested to play/record, has good transport and has been recently serviced. So many times something pops up that is advertised as "Looks great but have no way of testing." So then all you find are these "as is" items.

So what has been catching my eye is the Taascam models 38, 48, and 58. I read that the best would be the 58 because they are more durable and that the 38 always has some issue popping up.

Also looking at the Tascam 80 though these are getting old.

Another one I am looking at is the Otari MX 5050 and from what I read this is the best choice over the Tascams because of reliability and  fat sounding lows.

What I am having trouble considering when weighing one machine against the other is what kind of fidelity am I looking for? I definitely don't want low fi yet I don't want a pop sounding record either. The Black Keys have a fidelity I find bearable (yet not theit first album). I feel though i read a lot in forums to stay away from the Tascam 38 and hod off for MX5050. Yet, maybe I can work with the limitations of a 38.

Then you should definately do guitar + drums live... no reason why an overdubbed bass should be more "off" than an od'd guitar track.

What kind of 8-track do you have in mind?..

Ryan Thomas LeGere said:

Also the reason we'd like to do live guitar and drums and add bass later is because there are a lot of breaks with just guitar and nothing else. So if I can't overdub bass maybe I'll have to do a leading track for guitar?

Also the reason we'd like to do live guitar and drums and add bass later is because there are a lot of breaks with just guitar and nothing else. So if I can't overdub bass maybe I'll have to do a leading track for guitar?

Thanx John. I will take that all into consideration. I've decided to record us at home instead of the studio. All the studios I've gone to don't get what we are looking for. So I am in the market to purchase an 8 track and record us in my attic.

The tips about using a guide track help us out. Until now we have been preparing by getting the drums and bass tight. Yeah one thing: we are a 2 piece. so I have to add bass. What do you guys think about either

1) do bass and drums live and then add guitar and vocals

or

2) do guitar and drums live and add bass and vocals

We would prefer the second option but the question arises if the bottom end may sound off and less punctual.

John Carlucci said:

 It's possible to all play together in the same room and keep the instruments isolated,(if the studio has enough sound proof rooms). This way you get the correct feel. We record altogether, in the same room at the same time as the drummer, however the bass amp is in another room, so is the guitar amp. Sometimes I record the bass direct  through a sans amp bass driver.The keyboard sets up in the control room & plays direct, the vocalist is in a vocal booth. When recording in studios with no vocal booth, we will have the singer sing "scratch vocals" at a lower volume which we use for reference, and then overdub later. This will minimize any bleed, but we still have the vocals to keep us in place.  We all hear each other through headphones.

 I've even recorded in a one room studio where the engineer had a home-made isolation box for the guitar to play through. It was a brilliant contraption. He built a soundproof box with a ten inch speaker inside the box & a microphone. The guitar player could blast as loud as he wanted & there was no bleed whatsoever. He just needed to plug his amp head right into the box. I went direct & played in the same room as the drummer. With each instrument on it's own track, you will get a fuller sound and certain items can be brought out more in the mix or brought down. For example, cymbals. Nothing can ruin a song like over-ringing cymbals. If cymbals are not mic'd properly they can create a wash of white noise. If you play altogether, with no separation, you're stuck with it. Another trick, for studios with little isolation, and this takes some practice, is to learn the songs thoroughly so you can play them instrumentally with no vocal track at all. Then the band is all playing together, getting the correct feel, and the only thing needed to overdub, is the vocal track.

New music this week from Terry Anderson & the Olympic Ass-Kickin’ Team, Beat Seeking Missiles, Mikal Cronin, Thee Cormans and more! It’s October, so the all Halloween-themed openings have begun. And as for the Phillies, um, go Brewers!

Download or stream the entire Oct. 7 show right here.

Open the Gates – Thee Cormans
Ain’t a Ghost – The Night Beats
Creeper – Southern Culture on the Skids
Miss Monster – Modie Bones
Space Monster – Kookie & the Satalites

Step Right This Way (Baby, I’m Your Man) – DM Bob & The Deficits
Stay a Little Longer – Glambilly
Marlboro Country – Charlie Pickett
Dixie Fried – Carl Perkins

Yeah, Yeah, Yeah (Walk a Mile in My Shoes) – Stupidity
Dr. Strangelove – Beat Seeking Missiles
Caffeine & Alcohol – Dan Melchior Und Das Menace
Shoot First – Jim Jones Revue
Turn Up the Gain – The Shotglass Killers

Dark Eyes – Jack Oblivian
Got to Get Back (To My Baby) – The Bo-Keys feat. Otis Clay
Stone Fox – The Pac-Keys
Baby Bunny (Sugar Honey) – Jerry Williams, Jr.

Local Lunchbox
Dawn at the Dirt Track – Red Stuff
Kiss You – Ramma Lamma
Ain’t it Strange – The Midwest Beat
A1 Fool For Love – Honky Tonkitis

Hold on Me – Mikal Cronin
Subprime Love – High Tension Wires
Message On My Mirror – The Kidnappers
All Night Long – Lover
One in a Billion – Lover

Still as the Night – Gaye Blades
Gypsy from Kentucky – John Wesley Coleman
Blow this Town – Limes

Ridin’ Around – Terry Anderson & the Olympic Ass-Kickin’ Team
You’re the Only Girl, Delores – Cub Koda
Bad News – JC Brooks & the Uptown Sound
Bunker Mentality – Kid Congo & the Pink Monkey Birds
Wildcat – Bambi Kino

Interview with Jeff Castelaz of Pablove Foundation and Dangerbird Records

Hang Around – The Happy Thoughts
Off Switch – The Bad Sports
Can’t Just Be Friends – The Bad Sports
Out of My Head, Into My Bed – The Reatards
Nervous Breakdown – Gregory Dee & the Avanties 

Warpath – Hipbone Slim & The Kneetremblers
I Wish You Would – The Fleshtones
Don’t Want to be Free – Thee Vicars
All Good Women – The Cynics
Love Hates Me – Muck & The Mires

I Dream of Bees – The Bloody Hollies
Inside Out – Radio Moscow

Sorry to hear that Jacob!

Zorch Radio said:

Been listening to the back issues again... all day at "work!"

Been listening to the back issues again... all day at "work!"

Oblivians - play 9 songs

Compulsive Gamblers - crystal gazing luck amazing

Angry Samoans - inside my brain/back from Samoa

Black Flag - first four years (although I would rather have I Don't Care on there)

there's loads more of course, but every time I put them on thinking I'm only gonna listen to two or three songs I end up playing the whole thing

Loli and the Chones  - Ps We Hate You

-Erika

The Stooges - Raw Power

Ty Segall - Goodbye Bread

Wipers - Is this Real?

T. Rex - The Slider

The Rolling Stones - Aftermath

Van Morrison - Astral Weeks

Velvet Underground - White Light Heat

 I love 'em both, depends what mood I'm in really.

I prefer his solo stuff. More depth, more melodies, more dimensions.

I like the Reatards much better than his solo stuff or any of his other bands.

Agreed.  The Reatards was full on rock n roll and punk.  The solo stuff, especially at the end, got a little too melodic for me.

Splatter said:

I pretty much enjoy it all for different reasons. If i want straight up raw rock and roll it's the reatards all the way but i find his song writting got a little better as a solo artist. My favorite song is 'Night of Broken Glass'.

Even his last album was abit lacking but i can still listen to the whole thing from begging to end.

Also, Lost Sounds is pretty fucking sweet.

I pretty much enjoy it all for different reasons. If i want straight up raw rock and roll it's the reatards all the way but i find his song writting got a little better as a solo artist. My favorite song is 'Night of Broken Glass'.

Even his last album was abit lacking but i can still listen to the whole thing from begging to end.

Also, Lost Sounds is pretty fucking sweet.

I agree, there is something on a primal, gut level that doesn't catch my attention as much with his solo material, which isn't to say its not as good. I know on his solo work he was really getting into some more varied influences like The Clean, Galaxie 500, Wire, etc.

kopper said:

Reatards, definitely. I like his solo stuff, but it just doesn't have the same punch and grit.

Reatards, definitely. I like his solo stuff, but it just doesn't have the same punch and grit.

Well.....Some people might be considerably younger. Their whole album and most of their 45s still sound great.

Luke Greenwood said:

i don't believe there is no Banana Splits in this thread 

is there a diferance in tone beetween the phantom and teardrop

(im 14 and british ,if i could id get a phantom in all white , white mith black pick guard or all black or just a white teardrop :))

sounds awsome

Show #344: "Short Names, Part 2" playlist:

MC5 - "Looking At You"
The Ark - "Daily Reminder"
CMU - "Heart Of The Sun"
T2 - "J.L.T."
The Kix - "What Would Life Be"
The Fox [UK] - "Hey! Mr. Carpenter"
The Who - "Circles"
The Id [CA] - "The Rake"
M.C.2 - "My Mind Goes High"
The End [US] - "Memorandum"
The Zoo [MI] - "Feelings"
006 - "Like What, Me Worry"
G-66 - "Feel Alright"
The Ban - "Bye Bye"
The XL's - "Second Choice"
ESB - "Mushroom People"
The Ice - "Iceman"
I.R.A. - "Dooley Vs. The Ferris Wheel"
The Zoo [WI] - "Sometimes"
The U.K.s - "Your Love Is All I Want"
The J & B - "There She Goes"
DMZ - "Somewhere In Between, Part 1"
LSD - "Mystery Of The Mythical Invasion"
Los Ros - "Cuentame Cosas Tuyas"
SRC - "Show Me"
The Sun - "Soul Sync"
The Fox [UK-East Sussex] - "Second Hand Love"
N.S.U. - "Turn On, Or Turn Me Down"
The End [UK] - "Shades Of Orange"
The Syn - "Grounded"
The Now - "Like A Flying Bird"
BLC - "I Don't Want To Go"
CWT - "Widow Woman"
GWB - "Butterball"
Q65 - "Summer Thoughts In A Field Of Weed"
The 5 - "I'm No Good"
The T-R's - "Soul Meeting"
The Sky - "I'm Not A Fool"
The Few - "Why Oh Why"
POE - "Up Through The Spiral"
AKA - "Do What You Like"
The Zoo [GRE] - "I Cry"
The Id [AUS] - "Watch Out"
The Us - "How Can I Tell Her"
The Ash - "Fly Up Tight"
UFO - "Treacle People"
M.U.5 - "Mrs. Watson"
The Act - "The Remedies Of Doctor Brohnicoy"
The Sub - "Ma-Mari-Huana"
COB - "Heart Dancer"
The In - "Just Give Me Time"
The Id [ME] - "I Just Don't Understand You Baby"
Dr. Z - "Evil Woman's Manly Child"
CCS - "Salome"

Click here to stream this show now: http://eggmanrulez.com/m3u/344.m3u
or to download: http://eggmanrulez.com/streams/344.mp3

***To stream The Metaphysical Circus live via the web click this link: http://portsmouthcommunityradio.org/listen ... to listen to past shows, view playlists and more, fan the show on facebook: http://www.facebook.com/pages/The-Metap ... 50?sk=wall … or check out my website (to be updated someday): http://eggmanrulez.com/
Live every Friday night at 10pm to 1am EST on WSCA-LP 106.1 FM, Portsmouth Community Radio!

Egg

Show #344: "Short Names, Part 2"

Every 3 weeks I leave an open slot to do random themes and whatnot. This week's theme is "Short Names, Part 2". I've compiled a 3 hour show of all bands and artists with the shortest names (one to three digits). In the first show I eliminated all bands that start with "The" and bands that use abbreviations or initials. This second part of the show covers those bands eliminated from the first show. So tune in tonight to hear part 2 of the Short Names show and hear bands like: MC5, The Ark, T2, 2 different bands called The Fox, The Who, 3 different bands called The Id, 2 different bands called The End, 006, ESB, The Ice, LSD, SRC, N.S.U., The Syn, The Now, Q65, The Few, POE, AKA, The Ash, The Act, The Sub, COB, Dr. Z, CCS and many many more!!!

***To stream The Metaphysical Circus live, listen to past shows, view playlists, etc…check out my website: http://eggmanrulez.com/ or wscafm.org Friday nights at 10pm EST on WSCA-LP 106.1 FM, Portsmouth Community Radio!

Watch my playlist unravel before your eyes LIVE here: http://wscafm.radioactivity.fm/

Egg

To me, garage is raw rock and roll based on the blues. That said, there are styles that are considered garage, like surf, punk and even pop. You can't totally define it but you know when you hear it. The Stones and The Beatles both have garage rock songs but they expanded on their sound and some of the songs go in another direction. I wish I could be clearer but like I said, you know it when you hear it.

Frank N. Stroud said:

What is Garage and what is not garage?

Playlist Oct 6/2011

This was an abbreviated show, due to election coverage on CHRW starting at 8PM.

1.  Osterberg....Sickness...from their dark red 10" LP from quite a few years back...actually meant to play London Eats Its Own but had the record down side up.

2. Joe Shithead...The Enemy...Joe solo at Grooves Records on Oct 5/11 as he was hawking his latest book, DOA, prior to the evening's DOA festivities at Call The Office.

3. The Mystics...Metamorphosis...from their only CD and this song is a rip-off of The Pretty Things LSD. But who cares, this is a great song no matter what you call it!

4. Idol Lips...Down By LUV...from the latest garagepunk.com download called Noises From The Hideout and these guys come from Italy.

5. Light Bulb Alley...Pepper Spray...from their only CD, The Sound Of Things on Ricochet Sound.

6. Pack AD....Goldrush...from their first LP Tintype. The Pack AD are playing tonite at Call The Office here in London Ontario.

7. Pack AD...Blackout...from the Funeral Mixtape LP.

8. Pack AD...K Stomp...from the We Kill Computers LP.

9. Pack AD...Sirens...from their brand new LP Unpersons which is presently at number 1 on CHRW and number 1 on the National College Charts, Earshot for Canada. Couldn't happen to 2 nicer gals!!

10. The Cramps...O Ma Liddy...from the brand new Trash Is Neat Volume 5 LP that just happened to arrive via mail as i was leaving to do this show. Limited edition of 250 on dark red vinyl and is ONLY available to members of the Stay Sick group...Cramps hardcore fans!! It's a computer version of Lindsay Hutton's Legion Of The Cramped from the late 70's/early 80's. You'll be hearing lots more of this sucker in shows to come.

11. catl...Church On Time...recorded live at Call The Office 9/29/11. This was only the 2nd show for drummer Andrew who used to be in The Deadly Snakes. It was a killer show and this live excerpt really doesn't do the band proper justice!

12. Teenanger...So Agitated...recorded live at Call The Office 9/29/11 and dedicated to a certain DJ at CHRW.

13. The Routes...Brick Wall...from their LP on Dirty Water Records. UK via Japan garagepunk noise that just blows me away with all of those crazy guitar noises.

14. Photoroman...Pourquoi..brand new 7" from some crazy Quebecois and again, this one arrived in the mail just as i was leaving to do this show. Oddly, a certain Alistair Light Bulb Alley requested this song before i even had the record!!

15. Rock'n'Roll Monkey and The Robots...Static...from their latest CD, Spooky Kooky Attic Static that just gets better and better every listen!

16. The Hook Up...Come Down With Us...from their latest CD, Tomorrow and Today. They are in town on Nov 5th at Brennan's Beer Bistro.

17. Elected....Alice Cooper...an appropriate way to end the show and to segue into the election coverage on CHRW...

Since CHRW is celebrating 30 years on the airwaves this month, we'll be playing ONLY BANDS THAT PLAYED HERE IN LONDON ONTARIO 30 YEARS AGO for the next 3 shows...there might be some surprises in there, so tune in for some memories for some of us and some brand new music for some of you youngsters.

Here's the link to listen to the archived show:

http://chrwradio.com/podcasts/94-9CHRWThu1900.mp3