All Features
Recordings That Changed My Life: The Jungle Book Soundtrack
by Scott Colburn
Interviews
Roger Moutenot: Producer for Yo La Tengo, Sleater-Kinney...
by Kevin Robinson
Every now and then a record comes out where the production and recording techniques work together with some really unique songwriting to make a masterpiece album. The kind you listen to hundreds of...
Interviews
Andy Hong
by Scott Craggs
I first became aware of this Andy Hong fella after hearing the latest Karate record "The Bed Is In the Ocean." Besides having great songs and equally great performances, the recording is just...
Interviews
Brooklyn Studios: With Rare Book Room & Fireproof Studios
by Larry Crane
Brooklyn, New York, has become a hot studio spot during the last few years. Free from the space crunch of Manhattan, rents are lower and smaller studios can survive. Nicolas Vernhes runs Rare Book...
Interviews
Introduction to Digital Audio: A Basic Overview of Digital Audio
by Scott Colburn
Your ears are analog devices that convert sound waves into mechanical pulses the brain can understand. Your computer is a binary device, which means that it can only understand messages described in...
All Features
Under The Radar: Under The Radar
by Rob Christensen
Interviews
Larry Packer is "Uncle Punchy": Embracing Digital
by Hillary Johnson
Larry Packer owns and operates Uncle Punchy Studios in Silver Spring, Maryland. His current setup includes 20-bit ADATs (32 tracks) as well as Pro Tools Mix Plus and a Yamaha 02-R digital console....
Interviews
Tobin Sprout: Post Guided by Voices
by Nick McDermott
Tobin Sprout has been looming large in the basement recording scene for quite some time now. Since his early days with Figure 4 he's been crafting rock songs and laying them down on pretty much...
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Phill Niblock
by Steve Silverstein
While most subjects of Tape Op interviews have discussed their interest in recording, Phill Niblock thinks far more about reproduction of sound. He composes his pieces, which are often described as...
AN INTRO TO ANALOG TAPE DECK CALIBRATION FUN
by Larry Crane, David Patterson
Bias and equalization; you've probably heard and used the terms for years, possibly without really understanding their effect on the quality of your recordings. If you're an engineer working with...
Phill Brown: Bob Marley & The Wailers 20/2/1973
by Phill Brown
We interviewed Phill Brown in issue number 12 of Tape Op. Over the years he's worked with some of the greatest artists ever, like Jimi Hendrix, Joe Cocker, Traffic, Spooky Tooth, Jeff Beck, Led...
Scott Fritz of KRCW: Live radio recording
by Larry Crane
Years ago a friend of mine sent me a cassete with a live broadcast of the Go-Betweens, Downey Mildew and Glass Eye that he recorded off the radio from KCRW (public radio 89.9FM) in Santa...
Adam Lasus
by Paul FitzGerald
Deep in the industrial wasteland of Red Hook, Brooklyn, Adam Lasus has turned an old firehouse into a recording outpost called Fireproof Recording. With the pole still intact, the firehouse proves...
Walford Studio: Special Ed?
by Paul Middleton
Now I know a lot of people established in the industry today say, "A school can't teach you about recording, what could a class possibly teach you about the complexities of the recording industry?"
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End Rant
Open Letter To A Friend
by Larry Crane
25 REASONS NOT TO OPEN YOUR OWN STUDIO: 1. Freelance engineers. They always complain about your choice of gear, especially speakers. They also point out what's broken on a regular basis. damn. 2....
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Gear Reviews See more →
Pro Tools Free
by Digidesign | reviewed by John Baccigaluppi
At the recent AES show, Digidesign was handing out postcards that promoed their new free version of Pro Tools. It's an 8 audio/48 MIDI track version of Pro Tools 5.0.1 that will run on a Mac or PC...
E-350
by CAD | reviewed by Eric Broyhill
Many of the new large diaphragm condenser microphones coming out lately make the claim that their mic sounds just like a Neumann U-67 or U-87. Sadly though, none that I have tried even come close. The...
Rosetta AD Analog to Digital Converter
by Apogee | reviewed by Larry Crane
Recently I got to try out the Apogee Rosetta (street price, $1100). Using this in place of the DAT machine's analog to digital conversion seems to preserve more of the qualities of the mix so it...
Tape Recorder to Instrument Amplifier Interface
by REAMP | reviewed by Larry Crane
It's amazing how one little box could change what I do so much. Simply put, this is an impedence matcher for going from the output of tape/board/line-level type signal to the input of guitar amps,...
52270
by Geoffrey Daking & Co. | reviewed by Larry Crane
When I first started Tape Op I wanted to only talk about inexpensive gear (PZMs!) and records that were done on small budgets. Now I find myself stretching out a bit - my 8-track studio is long behind...
E-Magic Software
by Logic Audio Platinum | reviewed by John Baccigaluppi
I briefly reviewed this software in Tape Op #18, but now I have been able to really spend some time with it. Let's get the bad stuff out of the way first. This software, when compared to Cubase or...
Ashbory Bass Guitar
by Dearmond | reviewed by D. Matz
This strange bass is none other than a 31 inch (with a 13-1/4 inch fretboard), rubber stringed, fretless bass guitar. You tune it like a regular 4-string bass (E, A, D, G), and it sounds absolutely...
Sony Playstation
by Sony | reviewed by Jonathan Kreinek
Not the soon-to-be released one, but the standard-issue one has a built-in CD player. Most people who have come into contact with them know that. Some may even know that when you hit the "select"...
AT4047/SV
by Audio-Technica | reviewed by Larry Crane
This is the first time it's happened. As I was packing up the loaner 4047 to send back to Audio- Technica I got kinda sad. I'd been using this $500 beauty on everything - guitar amps, vocals, drums -...
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Music Reviews
Wish I Was In Heaven Sitting Down CD
by R.L. Burnside | reviewed by John Baccigaluppi
You don't usually think of blues records and innovative record production in the same thought. Or if you do, you might think of some yucky overproduced album run through Pro Tools like the recent BB...
Music Reviews
Tenor & Fallen Angels CD (hatOlogy), Nation Time CD (Atavistic)
by Joe McPhee | reviewed by Steve Silverstein
While it has grown common for rock bands to record on cassette decks in houses, jazz artists still tend to capture their work in studios. In 1976, before most rock bands recorded themselves at home,...
Music Reviews
Land and Sea Chanteys CD
by Tim Bluhm | reviewed by Luther Russell
Tim Bluhm is principal singer/songsmith for Northern California's Mother Hips, a band that's been playing great West Coast-style rock and roll for the past decade. Originally hailing from Chico, the...
Music Reviews
Remue CD
by Dominique A | reviewed by Steve Silverstein
Many current recordings employ an unnecessarily cartoon-like style that abandons natural instrument sounds in favor of exaggerated caricatures of these sounds. Recorded both with Nicholas Vernhes in...
Music Reviews
Hef CD
by Ab & Terrie | reviewed by Steve Silverstein
An equal balance among all players provides a guiding principle for freely improvised music. Hef presents engineer Colin McClean the challenge of balancing electric and acoustic instruments. The...
Music Reviews
Doozy CD
by Lozenge | reviewed by Steve Silverstein
Lozenge's music combines a powerful sonic density with carefully composed melodies. To capture this challenging mixture, they turned to Cheer-Accident guitarist Phil Bonnet, who until his untimely...
Music Reviews
The Flamethrower CD
by Chicago Underground Trio | reviewed by Dewey Mahood
The Trio, actually a quartet since the addition of Jeff Parker on guitar, continues in their quest for the hippest sounds in new jazz. Straight up bop dominates on this disc with drummer Chad Taylor...
Music Reviews
Heaven and Earth CD
by ProjecKt X | reviewed by Roman Sokal
Whereas King Crimson present ground-breaking and challenging compositions, ProjecKt X is it's alter-ego, living in an alternate reality- in the land of exponential improvisation and discovery, where...
Music Reviews
1000 Hurts LP/CD (T&G), Mass Suicide Occult Figurines CD (Barsuk), V+ CD (Boxkite)
by Shellac, John Vanderslice, Checksum | reviewed by Larry Crane
Studio owners make CDs. Shellac features Steve Albini, of Electrical Audio (Chicago), and Bob Weston, super engineer. It's raw lyric scenarios/characters are supported by pounding drums, crackling...
Music Reviews
Kid A CD
by Radiohead | reviewed by Larry Crane
It's not that often a CD comes along that I really have to listen to closely and try and figure out where all the sounds are coming from. This is one. Where OK Computer had interesting textures and...
Music Reviews
Byrdmaniax CD
by The Byrds | reviewed by Larry Crane
I've been buying all the Byrds' reissues, and just today completed my collection. There's some great music, of course, but in the process of being a completist there's always the glimpse into what...