Well… instead of saving his money and focusing on recording, yours truly invested in a 40+ year old tape machine.
I never put too much thought into old reel to reels. I had completely overlooked their abilities to make some great sounding effects.
I stumbled across a video where someone demonstrated how to wire up a reel to reel to use as a classic tape delay. It was so simple!
So I began scouring through eBay and craigslist for a functional AND affordable reel to reel.
Like many other vintage electronics the listings divide into two price points.
The first was the people who were asking three times the amount you would go for. These machines were in beautiful condition.
The other was people somehow unable to test the machines with vague descriptions. They always put As-Is. This means both parties know it’s a rip off, but the as is means you can complain about it. The prices for these were on the much more affordable side, but many appeared to be missing parts.
Then last thursday night I found the “one”. It was pickup only from Garden Grove. Anny and I happened to have plans out in Anaheim friday night, so it worked out.
There is definitely a learning curve involved with these things. After an hour of using it i managed to break the stop switch. The stop/play switch is a “Cam” lever. The metal used , in this model, to forge this switch disintegrates over time. Thankfully there is a pause lever.
I’m hoping that using the pause as the stop won’t damage the unit. From what I’ve read these old machines always run while turned on. The stop and pause only move away the pinch roller.
I was also a little disappointed that it only seemed to run on one speed. After a few nights of research. I discovered that the tape driving motor had a sleeve on it. Once you remove the sleeve the tape plays a 3.75/ips instead of 7.5/ips.
I’m excited to try some bare bones tracking. I’d like to try singing and playing acoustic guitar direct to tape. I’m going to order some blank tape off eBay soon!
In this video I’m sending a few guitar leads into the tape machine at 3.75/ips. I’m then recording the delay back into the computer.
I’m excited to try some bare bones tracking. I’d like to try singing and playing acoustic guitar direct to tape. I’m going to order some blank tape off eBay soon!
In this video I’m sending a few guitar leads into the tape machine at 3.75/ips. I’m then recording the delay back into the computer.