scully 8 track
mci 24 trk
3m iso loop 24 track
otario mtr 90
ampex - the "washing machine"24 track
Studer 24trk
mitsubishi x 850 32 track
most of the sony dig tape series

electrodyne
mci 424
harrison
sony 600
sphere eclipse c
mitsubishi [yes they had a console]
ssl 4000, 6000,9000j
helios
trident
neve 8078, 8038, vr
consoles

protools

30 some years

first and second generation converters sucked ..i did a string date and had to record on a 24 track slave reel on an otari mtr 90 and on an x850 during the same session.

after i cut and did a playback on the analog deck i recorded on the 850..the arranger came in after playback and started giving me crap about me changing the string sounds and that he could have used a synth..ummm i told him ehhhh it's the recorder

old thread, but I'll bite.

Analog:

Messing around at home as a child
1986-1992 - Sanyo Ghetto Blaster with twin condenser mics.
1989-1993 - TEAC HiFi system with dual cassette decks and mic input.

High school
1994-1997 - Tascam 424

Best friend's own
1995-1996 - Tascam Porta 02

College
1997 - Fostex A-80 with 16:8:2 mixer

Actually owned by me.
2007 - onwards - TEAC 3440S (still undergoing restoration)

Digital:

High school
1993-1994 - Atari 1040ST running early version of Logic (I think), Yamaha tone module
1995 - Windows PC running Cubase, same Yamaha tone module (MU-50 I think)
1995 - Windows PC running WaveLab (whatever the 2 track editing software Creative Labs soundcards came with)

College
1997 - PowerMac with Audiomedia card running Cubase VST, SoundDesigner II. Also had Roland S760 and a Yamaha MU80 attached. Tascam DAT machine.

Brief time at SAE
2001 - Fostex 8 track HD + Yamaha O2R, Mackie 24-8 + ADAT (first gen)

Own stuff...
2000 - ZOOM PS02 (return to music/guitar)
2001 - PC with Tascam US-428 running Cubase, Behringer MX2804 mixer
2003 - Mac with Mbox, ProTools, Reason.
2005 - Mac with Focusrite Saffire, Logic.
2006 - Macs with Mackie Onyx Satellite or Phonic Helix 24, Logic
2007 - + Roland VS2400, + Digi001-based Mac.
2008 - + Mbox 2 mini

I'm one of those who fit into the "got on the train for the ITB stuff". As for hands on experience of hardware for any extended period of time, I've done mostly leisure projects with the below in the analog domain, between 1989-98 - a few low budget projects as pro (meaning paid). After 1998 I went 100% ITB, which was also the time where I got to using only my own stuff. Also been around lots of other people's studios (hired musician) and using other equipment than the below, but not as much.
Excluding acoustic and electronic instruments:

Roland/Boss BX16 + cassette tape porta recorder + home stereo speakers
Soundcraft Sapphyre + Adat(2) + Yamaha NS10 & NS40

Yamaha Promix 01
Lexicon 224, LXP1, LXP5, LXP15
Alesis Reverbs
Yamaha SPX90
Digitech DSP 256
Alesis 166 XL dual comp
BSS DPR-404 Quad comp
BSS DPR-504 Quad Gate
Most classic and "often used" mics

1989 - 1993 (recording some singles in hired pro studios):

tape - some Studer, Tascam & Revox multitracks, Amek Hendrix, Soundcraft 2020 and similar desks, etc.

1993 - 1999 (having a project/home studio with a collegue):

different low and mid budget analog desks, the last was digital Yamaha 01, Ensoniq DP4 and similar FX processors, through Drawmer 1960 on main bus direct to Tascam DA-30, no DAW, no analog multitrack, only MIDI sequencer, Roland sampler S-730, W30 and drum machines (R8, TR808), some analog and digital synths (Korg Trident, Yamaha CS70M, Korg Wavestation, U20...) and one mic for vocals, guitars, etc., sometimes overdubbing/bouncing between Sony Minidisc and DA30

2000 (going completely "digital" and "home"):

Roland VS880, VS1680 & Cubase & later getting more mics and preamps

2003 - present day:

Nuendo (currently ver.4) & UAD-1, lately also using different 1/4" reel to reel machines (Revox B77, A700) as tape saturation "plug-ins"

These are approximate dates

1979 -Tascam 3440
1981 -Tascam 34
1985 -Tascam 38
1991 -Tascam Msr 16
1994- 3 Adat's w/Brc
Mid 90's- Styder Dyaxis
1999 Mackie HDR
2001- Pc

Current - Pc with Alesis HD24xr for converters going out to a Soundcraft Delta

The consoles i've owned- tascam m35-Tascam 510?(can't think of the model #)-Soundcraft Spirit-Mackie D8b-Cad Maxcon II-Soundcraft Delta

Last month I went back to a console and love it for the work flow alone.

Hey Gregg, just curious is you still have your Sound Workshop board? Did/does it have the Super EQ's? What do you think of them? I'm looking for a good mixing and tracking board in the $1000-$1500 range. Thanks!

I've got a bunch of series 30 modules if you are interested (Cheap). 18vlt i think.... They sound really good, nice EQ too.

Thanks, but I really need an entire mixer for mixing from 8-track tape to 2-track.

2000 - 2004 Propellerhead Reason
2004 - Present Pro Tools (still my main DAW)
2009 - Present Logic Pro (composing and arrangement)
2015- Present Ableton Live (all the young dudes are using this one)

Tape machines used over the years:

Otari MTR 90-MKII 2''
Otari MTR 10 1/2''
Otari MX 5050 1/4''
Telefunken M15 1/4''

Desks recorded with:

Trident 80B
Toft Audio ATB 24
SSL 4040G+
Soundcraft Ghost

I love the flexibility of a desk and the sound of tape when recording but when it comes to mixing, the DAWs simply gives you more power over desks in pretty much everything; track count, FX count, automation etc. I've done a handful of test mixes with the aforementioned desks but was never really that convinced with the results.

I love how these old posts get revived! Love it! Thanks for sharing! What was your favorite console? I've used a Ghost and considered buying an 80B and an ATB24.

Hey man! I owned 3 1280b's over the years, 2 with Super EQ and 1 without.

The Super EQ is very very cool and incredibly useful; the board has an equal amount of muscle (which most will like), grain (which some will like), and noise (which few will like). But with careful gainstaging, smart use of routing, and the willingness to cook a channel when needed in order to maximize the amount of signal, the noise can be relegated to the distant background.

Plan on regularly exercising/cleaning the switches and faders (have a supply of Caig), and if you're handy with an iron and can budget it, it's most definitely worthwhile to upgrade the rca connections to trafo-balanced ones. But even if you just replace the failure+intermittency-prone rca's with hardwired pigtails your life will be easier.

I would say I miss my 1280b, but that's just me being romantic, I'm too in love with the hybrid workflow to go back. But if someone locked me in a room with a 1280 and a daw and said 'don't come out until you've made a record', I'd have a blast doing exactly that and would be very happy with the results.

Good luck!


Gregory Scott - ubk

Thanks Greg! I love the idea of muscle, grit AND noise! I'm going for a lower-fidelity, gritty oldschool, warm/brown sound. I've found that high-end gear is generally too clean and pretty sounding for my tastes, while low-end stuff often gets close, but is low-quality stuff that breaks easily and repairs poorly.

I considered a Tascam 388, which I love the sound of and is kinda prosumer quality...but I'm not too excited about the prospects of operating a Tascam mixer.

I'm thinking my MCI JH-110 1" 8-track @ 7.5 IPS mixed/submixed through a SW 1280B into an Ampex 351 tube R2R will do the trick! If you're ever in Honolulu and wanna lock yourself in a room with that setup, let me know! Aloha!

Not sure when/how it all happened, but I do know that a Philips radio cassette started it, and this gear's all been part of the working day at some time or other, or it still is. Happy now thankfully but some of these recorders were really terrible!

Tascam, Fostex and Yamaha 4 tracks
Ensoniq ESQ1, VFX slaved to the 4 track with FSK, MTC, SMPTE

Alesis Adats, HD24, Tascam DA88s and the Akai 1212

Ampex 2" 16 track MM1200, Otari MX80, MTR90, MCI 2",
Tascam, Otari 1/2", Revox 1/4"
Sony MCI, Tascam M5000, Soundtracs, Wheatstone and Mackie consoles mostly.

Cubase Atari/PC/Mac - Steinberg Pro24 Midi/SMPTE and some Yamaha disk thing.

SAW, Software Audio Workshop with a DAL card/Tascam DAT
Logic PC - Audiowerk 8 card,
Logic Mac - Motu PCI system with 2408s, Focusrite Saffires

Pro Tools LE/MPowered, Mbox, 001, 002,
MIX/MIX Plus with 888s,
HD TDM with 192s,

Apogee Duet Firewire, Rosetta, Symphony

Sony mono recorder ( my first piano recording ) in 1968.. the Summer Of Love ...I modified the builtin mic & the two prong plug --- so I could use dual mics for the piano :-)


4 trk Cart machine Standard of the Industry when I attended College : Broadcast major . My bro-in-law had one under his dash > in the car~!! Never seen anything like it .. Johnny Cash on a noisy 4trk cart


Euphonic 8 trk Cart machine :: 1969 Computers where in Sci-Fi flicks >



Stereo cassette > had one of the first pro ones ;\) 1971

sony 1/4in -&- sony SOS for "multi" tracking 1975/76

Dokorder 4 trk reel : 1979

Tascam 8 trk 1/2in : 1980's

Countless 4 track cassettes ( Fostex 260 - Teac/Tascam - Vesta Fire)

Sansui 6 track

Tascam 8 trk cassette

Then to the DAWs

Atari

Akai DR4a

VestaFire 8 trk

Fostex 8

Roland 880

VS 1680

VS 2480

Reaper ( well a few looks )

Do have PT 10 ~ but over my head
__________________

1980 Reel to Reel 2 trk
1986 Teac 4trk R2R
1988 Porta 07 and Teac 4trk
1999 Digital standalone/daws
2004 Pro-tools all ITB
2006 Native Digital Performer, Rosetta 800's, hybrid Venice 320 mixer
2008 Native DP, Apogee 16x A/D and 16x D/A hybrid Venice 320 mixer
2010 unplugged DAWS. Alesis HD24xr's , Midas Venice 320 mixer to RCA 1965 RT-21B reel to reel mastering tape deck. And for fun sometimes Korg D3200 to tape.

1997-98 - Fostex b 16 Tascam console.
98-2002- Mci JH24 & Neve 8024
2002-3 - PT Tdm & Neve 8024 002 at home with neve/API preamps along with Ampex mm1200 abd Mci 428b/Auditronics consoles at home.
2007- PT HD and various API, Neve consoles.
2015 -current raindirk symphony, PT HD Native with burl mothership and truckloads of eq and compression for a mix suite at home.

Hi. Sorry for the late response.

In terms of sound my favorite console was probably the 80B. The EQ is great; like a super-clean version of Neve EQ. Preamps are OK too. They're not quite as gooey as say, 1073s but they blend in surprisingly well (I've used this board quite often in conjunction with a handful of 1073s).

Can't really say much of the SSL, I only used it for routing and summing (for which it is superb); the preamps and EQs on those sessions were API on lunchboxes.

The ATB24 I've used (once) had some serious technical issues, noisy channels (sounded like grounding issues), scratchy pots etc. To my knowledge the board was brand new. This individual had slipped through QC. I recall the 80B having minor issues too during first few times I'd use it (I wonder if they fixed it later on). If I'd rock a channelstrip I'd get crackling.

So I guess my verdict so far would be the 80B based stuff sounds great but could be built sturdier.