Back in the 70s my closest buddy had a son. At about age 2 or 3 Garet looked at Ron's RTR deck and said, "Mlk," which was his word for milk. It is a boob thing, simple enough.
Explain to a young guy why reel to reel was the thing in 70s and 80s
- Thread starter Alkeys
- Start date
jayk
Super Member
Ghoulardi
Well-Known Member
Very cool pic. Definitely bachelor pad motif. Kitschy statuettes, although they were probably considered fine art back then.Even down to the girls in the painting. btw do you recall the artist or name of the painting?
And, silly, reel to reels were to have continuous music playing so bachelors could orchestrate a romantic soundtrack to set the mood and pace for the evening. And you didn't have to get up and change records while preoccupied with more important activities and inopportune moments!!!
Ahh, "the mind is alert but the body forgets ...."
I have those racks/shelves that the equipment is on. They have grooves built in so that when stacked they line up properly and stay together.
Made by Barzilay.
with 10" reels that, from a few yards away, looked like 'bodacious ta tas'!
Exactly! It is a guy thing.
well im a younger guy, 25 yrs old, and i use reel to reel tape more than any other format, because it simply sounds awsome!!!
I guess we all should remember that almost all LPs were/are made from analog tapes. A master tape is the ultimate source.
Yes I remember that the women appreciated the lack of interruption...!Very cool pic. Definitely bachelor pad motif. Kitschy statuettes, although they were probably considered fine art back then.
And, silly, reel to reels were to have continuous music playing so bachelors could orchestrate a romantic soundtrack to set the mood and pace for the evening. And you didn't have to get up and change records while preoccupied with more important activities and inopportune moments!!!
Ahh, "the mind is alert but the body forgets ...."
BilboBaggins
Addicted Member
It looks like an IBM or Sperry or some such 9 track tape drive. Those things were way cool. Watching the columns move up and down independently of each other. Not so easy to fix, but when you did, you had a lot of personal satisfaction. I used to work on the DEC version which was similar. I was afraid of them in the beginning, but after a while, I just planned on working on it for a couple hours or more.
Daunia 70
Lunatic Member
Back in the day, a person's stereo system pretty much established the pecking order of who had "made it". Owning a Reel to Reel machine usually was the top of the pyramid. You didn't even need to play it, just make sure it is visible. It also came in handy for it's extended play time when you brought that special person home in the evening.
Marantz Fan
Active Member
I did not read the entire thread so forgive me if this is a repeat.
Serious audiophile types took it to another level.
1. Buy an album.
2. Play the virgin vinyl and simultaneously record it onto two reel to reel recorders.
3. Tape #1 is archived in a safe place.
4. Tape #2 is for daily listening.
5. When tape #2 wears out you make a new one from tape #1.
6. If #1 gets damaged you still have once played vinyl to copy again.
Why is this important today?
Because there are still a few hoards of near virgin vinyl out there. Hit estate sales where they have listed reel to reel tapes. Check out the condition of the vinyl you find.
Serious audiophile types took it to another level.
1. Buy an album.
2. Play the virgin vinyl and simultaneously record it onto two reel to reel recorders.
3. Tape #1 is archived in a safe place.
4. Tape #2 is for daily listening.
5. When tape #2 wears out you make a new one from tape #1.
6. If #1 gets damaged you still have once played vinyl to copy again.
Why is this important today?
Because there are still a few hoards of near virgin vinyl out there. Hit estate sales where they have listed reel to reel tapes. Check out the condition of the vinyl you find.
Back in the mid 70's when I was building my Pioneer system, the last piece I bought was a RtR. It was a Pioneer RT-1020H. It could play/record at 15ips. I bought it because the RT-1020L's fastest record speed was 7.5ips and I wanted to have that high speed capability. As I recall it was a great sounding machine. It was also beautiful looking as well with the brushed metal face and the wood panel sides. Wish I still had that system. I was barely out of my teens and lived in a hovel but I had a rocking audio system.
We had them because of the sound quality. As already mentioned, 7.5ips mix tapes were a big thing and 15ips masters were, and remain, unbeatable. When I later met my wife who was in the recording industry, one of the things we shared was a passion for open reel tapes and decks. Hence, I know it wasn't just a man-thing. My oldest son has a deck for editing his band sessions, my middle son has one in his college dorm (he's the only one there with one), and my daughter has one in her room. I hope it catches on!
OldPolishGuy
Active Member
I'll agree with what's been said. I came to RtR from a musicians viewpoint. Back in the early days of my guitar playing, and when I had hair, I would record a backing track such as a blues progression or harmonic movement that I would play and practice playing a solo over or variation on a song idea. Also came in handy for learning a song to play with the band; saved on messing up an LP. We used a couple of RtRs for recording rehearsals to evaluate our playing and to play for potential customers. I personally used an old Akai machine with 15 IPS capacity and adapters for 10" reels along with an old tube type Tandberg RtR that I used for dubbing. Cool technology but pretty much eclipsed by the current digital stuff. And yes, I did have a bunch of pre-recorded RtR tapes most of which I bought from Columbia House. A buddy of mine had a ReVox A77 [ I think that's the right model#] that he used to copy tapes with; great fun recording and swapping tapes. I did lust after a Crown RtR with 10" capacity but never got the $$$ together to buy one. Oh well, that was a time. OPG.
Auto Analog
Justin Credible
This is actually true. I know two people with killer record collections who did essentially what you describe.
damacman
Resident Psycho
I was born in '69 so I missed it all. I did not miss the transition from analog to digital. It's easy to look back on it all now with great clarity. Many of us, myself included, have really taken a great interest in analog formats in addition to the LP. Personally I wanted to see what the fuss was all about so I bought a nice Pioneer RT-909 and had it serviced.
Listening to open reel recordings via the mighty Pioneer has been something. It took me a while to get back into the hang of things making recordings but I had mastered the cassette in Jr. High on my fathers h/k. Going through the motions of preparing an LP to be recorded and then doing so on the Pioneer has really been fun. [Thus far I've had better success recording vinyl than compact discs. I suspect a dbx unit could help.]. It really is amazing at just how closely you can capture the recording of an LP with RTR.
My how far we've come. To have owned a high end RTR in the 70s and have it be the focal point of the audio system in your bachelor pad must've been something!
Listening to open reel recordings via the mighty Pioneer has been something. It took me a while to get back into the hang of things making recordings but I had mastered the cassette in Jr. High on my fathers h/k. Going through the motions of preparing an LP to be recorded and then doing so on the Pioneer has really been fun. [Thus far I've had better success recording vinyl than compact discs. I suspect a dbx unit could help.]. It really is amazing at just how closely you can capture the recording of an LP with RTR.
My how far we've come. To have owned a high end RTR in the 70s and have it be the focal point of the audio system in your bachelor pad must've been something!
MaxxVolume
Lunatic Member
Always loved the R2R format. My first experience was in the military in the late `60s, when GIs returning from Viet Nam brought systems they had purchased through the PX. Lots of Teacs and Akais, they impressed the hell out of me. My first deck was a Teac 4010S. I have owned at least one R2R deck ever since then, it just became an integral part of my system.
My current vintage Pioneer gear:
My current vintage Pioneer gear:
Reel to reel produced higher quality sound. Cassette was really just good for the portability or convenience. Nakamichi made a great 3 head cassette deck that started to approach the sound of reel to reel. But then the CD took over a few years after that. The other very cool thing about reel to reel, if you are a musician and you want to record yourself practicing at home you can plug in 2 mics and it almost can feel like you're producing studio quality. The problem is that it gets stretched every time you rewind and fast forward, gets tangled and can snap, so it can be PITA and not good for mass market.
Last edited: