Vintage gear: tape machines

For many years, tape machines have been coveted as the key to many colorful words associated with the sound of analog recording.

In the latest entry to our How To Listen Series, Fab Dupont and Chris Mara (producer, engineer, and owner of the Nashville based recording studio, "Welcome To 1979") sit down with a Mara Machines JH-110 1/4" and 1/2" machine to run multiple mixes through them for the purpose of quantifying the sound of printing mixes to tape.

The examples chosen for the video represent a wide array of musical genres to help identify which format; digital, 1/2" or 1/4" tape; might be best for each piece of music.

In this video, you will:

• Learn What tape machines do to your music
• Learn How to align 1/4" and 1/2" tape machines
• Compare a digital mix to a 1/4" and 1/2" print from tape machines
• Hear the effects of 1/4" and 1/2" tape machines on a variety of genres of music, and learn how to choose the best format for your music.

Pay attention! There will be a quiz at the end of the video to test your listening skills and see if you can identify the sound of each format on the songs heard in the video.

This is a chance to quantify all of the characteristics you hear about analog tape’s effect on music for yourself as Chris Mara and Fab Dupont print demonstrate, explain, and give you tips on what to listen for to learn the sound of tape.