Tascam bring back the cassette!

thermionic

https://tascam.com/us/product/424/top

A new Type II  cassette has been launched. Cobalt-based rather than Chromium, but apparently optimised for old Tascam Portastudios. US only at the moment however.

I practically grew up on cassettes - I am currently working through a box of 4-track recordings I did with a friend in the 90s. I haven’t used my Portastudio for anything new though, as I only have one unused SA90 left. If these become available here, put me down for a box!

DigitalDave

Very interesting in these days of DAWS and unlimited tracks to be bringing the cassette back for 4/8 track dinosaurs. I’ll be interested to see the UK price if they make them available here.  Type II metal tapes had a really nice warm quality on the old Tascams back in the day.

roberty

I'm told you can make stuff sound pretty decent on a tascam portastudio if you know your way around a parametric EQ

My first recording experience was on one of those too. It was great fun

roberty

This guy in NZ had an underground hit with an EP he recorded on a tascam and ended up supporting Blur when they played there in 1997

ICBM

roberty said:

I'm told you can make stuff sound pretty decent on a tascam portastudio if you know your way around a parametric EQ

Bruce Springsteen's Nebraska album was recorded on one - a Teac (Tascam) 144.

The recordings were originally intended as demos - but Springsteen didn't think the versions could be improved on, so they mastered the album from them.

roberty

Ooh good trivia @ICBM I did not know that

DiscoStu

I think that's why it's called Nebraska. I'm pretty sure he went to a cabin in Nebraska to write new songs, took the multitrack with him, and that was that.
Feel free to correct me if I'm wrong though, I'm no Springsteen expert!

thermionic

He also had a pair of SM57s and an Echoplex that gives the slapback on some of the vocals.

https://tascam.com/us/support/news/481

Also says it was recorded in his house in New Jersey.

Keefy

I still have an Aiwa stereo cassette deck in my home studio. I occasionally use it to transfer friends' old band recordings onto CD.

In the 90s I got some quite good results recording on a Tascam 4-track cassette and mixing down to MiniDisc - I've still got an MD deck too! But I definitely don't miss cassette as a recording medium.

@thermionic I have 3 unused TDK Type II tapes you can have - 2x SA90, 1x CDing2 74 (chrome).

For anyone interested in old audio formats, check out Techmoan on YouTube.