tape sound: medium or machine?

[mbc113]

have any of you ever looked at the schematics for a studio tape machine before? i saw some diagrams a few years ago... the machines are full of tons of processing, etc. that was originally there to compensate for the medium... for example, eq stages before or after particular mechanical stages to compensate for unavoidable attenuation of certain frequency regions, etc. and then there's the whole compander-style noise reduction circuits, etc. When you see all of things, it makes you wonder... how much of what we perceive as the "tape sound" is actually the affects of the tape medium itself and how much is from elaborate compression and eq box that is the tape machine?

[Chaorta]

Well that's the beauty of analog devices, and electronics in general.

[Nubus]

would there be a machine if not for the medium?

[puffpastry]

You're talking about pre-emphasis and de-emphasis stages. Those are there for much of the same reason that you need an RIAA EQ for a turntable. It's a mechanical device, so the frequencies that the mechanical noise occurs in are removed by EQ. During playback, we have to EQ those frequencies back in.

Companding is a necessary evil whose need arrives from the noise involved with inductors, i.e. a tape head in this case.

As for the "tape" sound, there are a number of factors that come into play--one thing you're hearing is a very low-volume 3rd harmonic distortion that comes from the tape head itself. It's an inevitable artifact caused by the material that the head is constructed of. Add to that the distortions that are bound to arise from the tape material itself, and there you have it. A basic synopsis of "tape sound." I would say it's both medium AND machine.

[Nubus]

i used to love turning on the noise reduction on my cassette multi track during recording then turning it off durring playback.

[dagosto]

Originally Posted by Nubus

i used to love turning on the noise reduction on my cassette multi track during recording then turning it off durring playback.

Was that B NR? I actually have done that to brighten up a mix.

[Nubus]

i don't know what type noise reduction is what. I had at least five different cassette multi track machines that i can remember off hand and i think every one had some sort of noise reduction except the fostex. I had two or maybe three porta 03s, two porta 07s, a 424mkII, a multitracker, and i still have two 488s.

[smopo24]

my 4 tracks have been so ghetto, they never had noise reduction.

[bwethera]

Digital does the same thing disorts the Actual sound into a repersentaion. thats why you are an engineer you are trying to manipulate the device to make it sound correct which is completly up to you.