High End adat machines

Im thinking of getting adat or dat.. what were the high end ones, ive heard of the blackface or alesis xt and the tascam da-98 which one is better or is there a better one, I heard some of my old recordings that a studio did for me back 2002 and it was on adat. i was amazed at the depth of the bass and clarity compared even to my apogee converters, he had dda dmr 12 console and i forgot what kind of adat , but dang the adat sounded good. and the tapes are so cheap.. i also now have a dda dmr 12 console . if i got a alesis xt. with low hours . seems like that would be better tracking to . any suggestions, thanks, jody

[TonyBelmont]

Studer made high end ADATs...

[somedude74]

As a blackface owner, I would attribute your ADAT's good sound to a good engineer who used 'em. I am thinking there is something with your chain, like your pre's, which may be the culprit.

My bro tracks his band practice with an old ADAT, because it is easier than lugging a computer around.

Oh, and ADAT's break down and need to be repaired quite often.

[Bluzzi]

A high end ADAT is the HD24XR.

jim

i mean adat tape, not hard drive. i think the tascam hd24xr is hard drive. anyone still use adat tape ?????

[Kendrick]

It was the Alesis Adat M-20, made in conjunction with Studer. I'm surprised you Gearslutz didn't know this.

[TonyBelmont]

Originally Posted by Kendrick

It was the Alesis Adat M-20, made in conjunction with Studer. I'm surprised you Gearslutz didn't know this.

Studer V8 was the top of the line ADAT.

[Bluzzi]

Originally Posted by Sae_grad

i mean adat tape, not hard drive. i think the tascam hd24xr is hard drive. anyone still use adat tape ?????

I was trying to tell you its better. Tapes will be harder and harder to find and are more expensive than a hard disk. Of course if you like that "vintage" 20bit sound then yes you would have to stick to ADAT tape.

Another thing you may want to consider before diviing into this is that ADAT machines have magnetic heads and they need regular maintenance. After a while you will start to notice more and more "error" displaying on the ADAT readout.

Had them, liked them, glad there is something better.

jim

[MarkRB]

Ya, we have three Studer V-8's here.

Still a bit flaky with older tapes but infinitely better than the originals.

[nobtwiddler]

I have a near perfect Adat M-20.
Bought it new, and used only a few times to make transfers from a clients Adat tapes to our Radar Machines...
It's been sitting unsed in the rack ever since...
Still has all the clear protective plastic on all the displays!
(look at photos)
Original box, manual, etc...
Make me an offer!

[thenoodle]

AH-HA !!!!! SEEEEE....I TOLD YA GUYZ !! It's only 2007 (a little earlier than I thought this would kick in) and we already have the guys appearing saying "gee I want that fantastic 90's vintage 16 bit vhs tape ADAT sound !!!!!

By my watch, we're about five years away from guys throwing out their 64 bit, 576k sample rate $3000 converters just so they can run to Ebay to score a bunch of those "vintage Adat machines" that have that "magical sound from the 90's".

This is good. I have 4 adat machines. I'm gonna pick up a bunch more just so I can sell them on Ebay for $3000 each in 2012. Who needs real estate investments when you own an adat farm.

[not_so_new]

Originally Posted by thenoodle

AH-HA !!!!! SEEEEE....I TOLD YA GUYZ !! It's only 2007 (a little earlier than I thought this would kick in) and we already have the guys appearing saying "gee I want that fantastic 90's vintage 16 bit vhs tape ADAT sound !!!!!

By my watch, we're about five years away from guys throwing out their 64 bit, 576k sample rate $3000 converters just so they can run to Ebay to score a bunch of those "vintage Adat machines" that have that "magical sound from the 90's".

This is good. I have 4 adat machines. I'm gonna pick up a bunch more just so I can sell them on Ebay for $3000 each in 2012. Who needs real estate investments when you own an adat farm.

LOL

thumbsup

I worked on ADATs for too many years to be sucked into this one.

[MIKEHARRIS]

Hi End ADAT...now theres an Oxymoron

Giant Shrimp...Military Intelligence


That woud be a M20

[not_so_new]

Ya know... it's funny and I mean no disrespect to the original poster (this is more of a joke on my part than a statement of how you work, more power to ya).

Asking a question about "High end adat machines" is like asking about what computer from 1982 has the best performance?




Hummmmm is that the VIC-20 or the Xerox Star? These both mean absolutely nothing in the computer world we live in today other than as a historical footnote.

There is no way you could talk me into dumping my Apogee 16-X's and DAW to go back to ADATs or DA-88s. Before I went back to that headache I would go with a good 2 inch ATR. All these tapes are going to get harder to find, ADATs and DA-88's are probably MORE unreliable than a MCI deck and analog tape will sound a whole hellva lot better….. but YMMV I guess.

"The good ole days weren't always good and tomorrow ain't as bad as it seems"

Billy Joel

[Bryce]

I have an M20 that I don't use, either...never really did, for that matter. I got it when I worked at Alesis, and only really ever used it for it's converters (which, IIRC, are the same Crystal converters used by Apogee...or that Apogee were using at the time...I don't remember for sure - I was the Alesis keyboard guy, not the ADAT guy).

If someone wants it, I'd be willing to trade it for something like a nice compressor or a decent microphone. It's just sitting in a closet doing nothing right now. LA area would be ideal...

dB

well the main reason I posted this is because , i can get 3 alesis xt machine practically new for under 600. and i like the fact im tracking to tape. I think the tape gives it a better sound , than tracking to digital, its different. I am curious really how the adat machines worked. I know its digital tape and everyone complained how the converters werent that good. Were there many records done with adat, like with the studer or the alesis?????

[sloanfiske]

um...before this gets out of hand.

adat is digital...unless you can convince me that 16-20-14 bit analog-digital-analog conversion applies to analog tape machines.

or if you're just posting to get a rise

if your not...well, 600 bucks including a BRC might be a good deal if you like dealing with videocassettes.

ever took apart adat tape, whats inside, not a harddrive!!!!. besides that tascam made a 24 bit adat... (before it get out of hand) you think this is gonna cause a riot???? lol

[Adebar]

Originally Posted by Sae_grad

Im thinking of getting adat or dat.. what were the high end ones, ive heard of the blackface or alesis xt and the tascam da-98 which one is better or is there a better one

What is the reason for you to go to these machines? Tape instead of harddisc?
If so the Alesis M20 had good converters, sounded not bad but it was only 20 bit.

There are 24 bit tape machines from Tascam. Not the DA-98 but the DA-98HR and DA-78HR. It is possible to use the internal converters or to use it in conjunction with external high end converters. But the sampling rate is limited to 48k.

The DA-78HR are still in use a lot for location recording. The maximum tape length is 1:56 hours and they are quiet compared to HD recorders where you always hear the spinning HD.

Regarding the sound the DA-78HR is good but not great. Even the standard Alesis HD24 has better converters.

If you like the old recordings made with Adat machines then it is probably not because of the good sound of the Adats but despite of its sound. And the real reason for your preference are the room, the god position and choice of mikrophones and so on.

i mean its still a tape based format, is all im trying to say.

[thenoodle]

AH-HA !!!!! SEEEEE....I TOLD YA GUYZ !! The incoming kids of the next ten years are gonna think tracking to an adat is the same thing as tracking to tape ...because....well...heck...there IS a tape in there by golly.

Man, now I'm REALLY gonna go grab a bunch of used Adats to re-sell in 2012. The kids of 2012 are going to think that 3 adat machines equals a Studer A824.

I guess I better buy a few crates of vhs tape too while they're still here. I can sell those for $69.95 each in 2012.

[TonyBelmont]

[Adebar]

Forgot to say the Tascams DA-88, -38, 98, -78HR and 98HR are not called Adat but DTRS Recorders.

Adat uses S-VHS tape with maximum length of 45 minutes (there was the possibility to use longer tapes for 60 minutes but that was not safe)

The Tascam DTRS Recorders use Hi8 tape, smaller and longer play time. And also much faster than Adat.

Now dont lose your noodle now! Noodle man...lol lol it ok, never did say that adat sounded like a studer , dont have to jump to so many conclusions about the post, (just try to talk about what the thread really said..) but anyway...does anyone know of any records made with the studer v8 or the alesis xt or tascam adat, just curious.

[Adebar]

One of of Ry Cooder´s album were recorder on Adat. But the console was one of the big animals (SSL?) and maybe they alos used external converters?

[s.d.finley]

Originally Posted by MIKEHARRIS

Hi End ADAT...now theres an Oxymoron

Giant Shrimp...Military Intelligence


That woud be a M20

LOL!!

Thats what I thought!! I have seen Panasonic ADATS!

[gainreduction]

I'm sure you kind find adats for free so just grab a bunch and see if it works for you.

But do backup... they eat tape for breakfast.

does anyone know of any records made with the studer v8 or the alesis xt or tascam adat, just curious.... if you dont , dont post.. go mow your lawn or something.. lol <!-- / message --><!-- sig -->

[not_so_new]

Originally Posted by Sae_grad

ever took apart adat tape, whats inside, not a harddrive!!!!. besides that tascam made a 24 bit adat... (before it get out of hand) you think this is gonna cause a riot???? lol

News flash... ever took apart a hard drive!!!! Guess what... it is a magnetic tape...

This is a joke right? Tell us you are tolling or something.

The finished medium doesn't matter much if at all, the conversion process is the end result here. Doesn't matter if it is going to a hard drive or a "tape" it is still digital information and has nothing to do with "analog tape".

Crazy talk.

[Lynn Fuston]

Originally Posted by thenoodle

AH-HA !!!!! SEEEEE....I TOLD YA GUYZ !! It's only 2007 (a little earlier than I thought this would kick in) and we already have the guys appearing saying "gee I want that fantastic 90's vintage 16 bit vhs tape ADAT sound !!!!!

By my watch, we're about five years away from guys throwing out their 64 bit, 576k sample rate $3000 converters just so they can run to Ebay to score a bunch of those "vintage Adat machines" that have that "magical sound from the 90's".

http://www.3daudioinc.com/3db/showpo...4&postcount=12