HOORAY for the continued use of analogue recording techniques

[yestertech]

an interesting article which confirms the old adage that
"what goes around comes around"

arpjournal.com/endless-analogue-situating-vintage-technologies-in-the-contemporary-recording-production-workplace/

Much as we know that digital is wonderful and very versatile, thank heavens for all those still wedded to the old way of doing things
May they long continue !


Andy

[radioman]

I just get "Error 404 - Not Found" from that website.



Andy

[unitaudio]

There's various bits of footage on You Tube about Toerag Studio in London. This studio is all analogue using vintage equipment. They're snowed under with work.

Regards,
Paul

[Amraduk]

Hello Andy,

Originally Posted by radioman

I just get "Error 404 - Not Found" from that website.

If you use just the basic URL for the site: arpjournal.com, you can get to their home page but all the links on that page that I tried, gave the Error 404!

Regards,

Dave.

[Nickthedentist]

This link works for me:

http://arpjournal.com/endless-analog...ion-workplace/

[reelguy]

Professional vintage recording studio.
Managed to find it but its a bit heavy going for me.
But interesting to see and read about the vintage equipment still in use.
Peter W....Reelguy.

[SpiggyTopes]

Fascinating link - just reading it again!

Cheers.

[Diabolical Artificer]

Didn't read all the article but there's some nice analogue equipment in the pics. Good to see some of it still in use. Ian Thompson-Bell in Norfolk builds valve desks based around mixing desks of the era like Redd and Pultec, so analogue has a place in recording but most studios are chucking out any bits of analogue kit they may still have. Most mixers now are like the bridge of the Starship Enterprise so analogue is a niche recording.ethos.

Talking of analogue recording the Joe Meek Story is back on Iplayer. Like other producer's like Lee Scratch Perry, Joe Meek was eccentric and innovative using not much kit well. Perry got one singer to stand in a tray of sand to get the right sound, his eccentricity is legendary as is Meek's.. I suspect his sound is more down to his prodigous use of herbs though.

When it comes down to it though recording to tape is a rich man's game and most folk looking for the analogue sound have to bolt an analogue desk onto a PC, anadigal if you will.

Andy.

[Amraduk]

Hello Nick,

Originally Posted by Nickthedentist

This link works for me:

http://arpjournal.com/endless-analog...ion-workplace/

It's working for me too, now! And I'm not getting the Error 404 using links on the home page, which I did the other day when I tried it.

I guess there must have been a problem with the site.

Regards,

Dave.

[sp10mk11]

Hoorah indeed, I am very careful when buying re-issues or new vinyl to make sure it is not taken from a digital master (unless there is no other way), fortunately there a few companies that specialise in analogue recordings some times using valve equipment and the records are cut by engineers who know what they are doing and not some computer controlled cutter.
Expensive yes but sonically worth every penny.

When I worked in London (back in the 90s) the owners son had a recording studio, both digital and analogue and he said the same that bands were queing to record analogue.

So yes long live analogue recording

Gary

[TIMTAPE]

Originally Posted by sp10mk11

Hoorah indeed, I am very careful when buying re-issues or new vinyl to make sure it is not taken from a digital master (unless there is no other way)

Really running an analog master tape through a digital stage before cutting the master disc is very unlikely to degrade the sound. Noise and distortion from the analog record/playback stages will be far more audible.

[sp10mk11]

I will bow to your superior knowledge

Also I did say digital master as in taken from a CD or worse an MP3, also I did say if I have no choice, I recently bought the Bladerunner re-issue on vinyl and whilst it sounded better than the CD, the analogue cassette tape of which I have two sounds fuller with a nice bloom to the sound.

Gary

[medge799]

Looks like we're heading for the low-oxygen copper wire territory

I remember buying a CD player back in the eighties and hearing recordings with a clarity that I'd never heard before; absolutely stunning. For me, digital has brought a level of quality that I'd never be able to afford otherwise (and no scratches, hum etc).

I love my old valve radio stuff, but digital really is so much better.

[couldn't resist ]

[Nickthedentist]

Originally Posted by medge799

I remember buying a CD player back in the eighties and hearing recordings with a clarity that I'd never heard before; absolutely stunning. For me, digital has brought a level of quality that I'd never be able to afford otherwise (and no scratches, hum etc).

I love my old valve radio stuff, but digital really is so much better.

I have to agree with you Mark, up to a point anyway.

I can still remember the thrill of getting a CD player (a cheap and slightly flimsy Aiwa XC-333 from Richer Sounds, http://img.beatles.ru/fleamarket/124/124942.jpg) in about 1990, and listening to some library discs of the Italian Quartet's version of Beethoven's late string quartets through headphones. "Absolutely stunning" really does sum it up well.

And when CDs began to be played alongside LP records on Radio 3 (late 1980s?), it was almost always immediately obvious to me which source was being used, even listening on a fairly basic hifi setup sourced from jumble sales. The CDs sounded like live performances, the LPs didn't. (The continuity announcers used to proudly mention that they'd just played a recording from a CD, so I could tell whether my guess was correct or not).

Nick.

[paulsherwin]

Enough of this please. Some people will always have odd views about the supposed superiority of analogue technologies. Even if they're wrong, they're not open to rational argument. Discussion of this is OT here.

[Nickthedentist]

Apologies, Paul.

[sp10mk11]

I thought my comments were entirely appropriate for a discussion about analogue recordings. Sorry if they were not.
Gary

[paulsherwin]

No need for apologies, but we don't want this thread degenerating into one of those 'analogue sounds better than digital / oh no it doesn't' arguments which never get anywhere.

[SteveCG]

Paul: how about moving this thread to general technology since we are not discussing a particular machine?

[sp10mk11]

Paul
I totally agree with you about the yes it no it isn't type of discussion, no point in that at all.
Gary