If you had (hypothetically) no studio equipment and two clear choices in your head, what would you do?

For simplicity, assume you had no studio equipment at all, but you already own a good Mac.

Digital:
Buy a presonus firepod

Analog:
buy otari mx 5050 8 track, spend 80 bucks more on it then the firepod (remember you don't really own any other studio equipment)

I know both respected for their respective performances, but I can't decide.

depends how much extra money is in your bank account.

tape costs way more than hard drive space.

maintaining the otari will also cost a lot.

also, mic pres? mixer?

from my interpretation of your post, it looks like you have the budget for a firepod, not a tape machine.

No, I have money for either, but saving money would be nice. I am probably going to make my own pre's over time, and I am fairly competent electronically, so that's not too much of a concern. That being said... I know tape does have more operational costs as well. As for a mixer, well that's still undecided for now, but I am thinking that the otari will absolutely require one whereas the firepod doesn't necessarily need one, so that's an added cost in my mind.

I imagine the otari will sound better, but will it be so much better to warrant the spending over time?

bah fuck it, I will probably just get the firepod and one day, when I have enough money, buy a nice tape machine. My indecision is coming from whether or not I want to just get up and running or buy nicer stuff over time.

juice wrote:No, I have money for either, but saving money would be nice. I am probably going to make my own pre's over time, and I am fairly competent electronically, so that's not too much of a concern. That being said... I know tape does have more operational costs as well. As for a mixer, well that's still undecided for now, but I am thinking that the otari will absolutely require one whereas the firepod doesn't necessarily need one, so that's an added cost in my mind.

I imagine the otari will sound better, but will it be so much better to warrant the spending over time?

bah fuck it, I will probably just get the firepod and one day, when I have enough money, buy a nice tape machine. My indecision is coming from whether or not I want to just get up and running or buy nicer stuff over time.

ahh, well then...

i don't know. i recently went down the path of tascam fw 1884 (ok, so like, a year ago), and i'm very happy with it, but i would love to have a tape machine.

caveat being, i don't know how to do shit for shit on a tape machine and i am taking my first EE course next quarter.

re: the mixer comment, i meant that you would probably need it for the tape machine.

i suppose you could just get a mixer with 8 mic pre's and you'd be set for the time being.


i'm lucking out in that i convinced my electronic music professor to bring out the old tape machines for the workshop next quarter, so i will learn how to spool up a reel and hopefully more. i'm not sure how well i would fare at it if i had to teach myself.

fwiw, my best friend has a firepod and loves it, uses it with logic pro.

anybody else want to weigh in?

firepod is cheap and easy, sounds pretty decent too.

There are three basic components to analog recording - a mixing board/recording console, a multitrack recorder and a mixdown deck. You are looking at buying one of these. It won't be too much good without the other two. A computer with a A/D interface and a CD burner can record and mixdown multitrack audio. So this is much easier.

The big distinction between analog and digital recording is the value of longevity vs. manipulability. Analog recordings last a very long time. Digital recordings are very easy and relatively inexpensive to mess around with. So, ask yourself - do you want to have recordings that you will be able to listen to ten years from now, or do you want to have something you can cut, paste and monkey with? If it's the former, you may want to buy a cheap A/D interface for your computer while you save up for your tape deck, mixdown deck, board and all the accessories. If it's the latter, get some sort of A/D box and get ready to configure software.

Note that both approaches have their technical caveats - configuring digital audio programs can be very, very tricky, while analog tape machine maintenance is no walk in the park.

= Justin

Q: Do you want to record your own music, or do you want to learn to engineer? If you're looking to record only your own stuff, go digital. You'll instantly be given a multitude of options at the touch of a button. And as someone mentioned earlier, tape is expensive, so you'll avoid continued expenses. If you want to learn to record professionally, you're in it for the long run, so go analog. You were saying you might get a firepod and save up later for tape machine, well consider this (I wish I had): the analog stuff you buy will retain it's value; your tape machine will be worth a similar amount a year or two from now if you keep it in good shape. Your lucky to get half what you paid for a digital device two years later. Also, the lack of frills in your setup will force you to develop techniques to get sounds creatively and at the source, as you won't have plugins to polish it up with later. This is, in my opinion, a better way to learn (that is assuming that having no gear means that you don't already now how to record). Besides, it does sound better when you use it well. If you want to add digital later, you'll still be able to use your analog gear, and adapting to digital will be easy, you'll need only learn a program. Now, it's not that you can't learn technique with digital gear and it's not like you can't add analog to your digital rig either, you absolutely can. I just think analog will make you think more about what you're doing and why instead of just how. And by the way, calibrating and maintaining a tape machine is not so terribly hard. It may be a little frustrating and confusing at first, but you'll get it down, just like you figure out how to deal with error messages and compatibility issues, etc. with computers. Of course, both platforms have their benefits and limitations, but I'm sure somebody out there will give me an Amen to Analog?

if you guys wouldn't mind me budgeing in, I'm a bit torn on this too. I would like to go analog, and have never really thought of going digital. it just seems that with my hands, and my mind I can figure out how it works rather than clicking on a screen. the only thing is some people say digital is so much easier, and convenient where as some will disagree, and tell me to start with an analog 4-track, a basic pre, and some descent mics. I will eventually want this recorded into a format where I can share it via internet, rather than just on tapes. I'm starting to investing money into this, starting with mics and a pre, so any advice would be greatly appreciated. I guess I should mention since I joined this forum two years ago, I've only been soaking up info, and haven't even put my hands on recording equipment, to get an idea of where I'm starting.

I recommend going digital. I do both, but most people come to me to do digital, so I would recommend it as a better way to learn. If you get the firepod now, save a little more for a mixdown deck like a Revox B77, and then you can tell people you'll give them that "analog" sound at the end, and then you can high 5.