Are 1/4" Tapes (7" reels) good for stereo mixdown?

[craschowder]

Hello, I have been recording on a Tascam 8 track 1/2" machine for a while and I have been dumping the tracks to Logic. I want to experiment with mixing down (my stereo mix) to 1/4" tape first, to get that second bout of tape compression/saturation (like the old days) then dump the finished product down to two tracks (L&R) onto Logic. My question is, the SONY 1/4" machine that I picked up plays those 7" reels (1800 feet) and it records at either 3 3/4 i.p.s. or 7 1/2 i.p.s. Is THIS the "type" of Tape and Tape machine that was used for mixdown in the 60's and 70's ?

Also...The tape machine says "4 track stereo" near the tape heads. Does that mean it is a 4 track (multitrack) recorder? There is only 2 L&R inputs and 2 VU meters. Seems like it is 2 tracks...Hmmm

[vernier]

Thats a consumer deck intended for casual recording/listening, but you can give it a try ... 7.5 ips will make things sound thick and fat. Reel size doesn't matter, and four track means it can play on both sides of the tape, which is a compromise, soundwise.
'

[PRobb]

Your machine is 1/4" 1/4 track, meaning each track takes up 1/4 of the tape. It's like a cassette. You can record, turn it over, and record again.

The pro machines of the 60s and 70s were 1/4" 1/2 track, meaning each track took up half the tape. Hope that makes sense.

Also, 15ips was the standard speed for pro decks.

[tommy lee]

Originally Posted by vernier

Thats a consumer deck intended for casual recording/listening, but you can give it a try ... 7.5 ips will make things sound thick and fat. Reel size doesn't matter, and four track means it can play on both sides of the tape, which is a compromise, soundwise.
'

You use only half of the tape width, like if it was a 2track 1/8" recorder

[Chaellus]

mmm 7.5 ips your talking saturation city and a nice thick sound will do if you really want to color the sound in a beautiful way..just make sure you use noise reduction somewhere

[Han]

Unless you want that low fi sound I wouldn't do that. If you want the andvantages of analog tape, at least get a decent master deck with two tracks at 15 ips like a Studer B67, Telefunken M15 or the same quality.

[TurboJets]

There are "better" formats for sure but I love dumping my mixes down to 1/4" 456 on my 60's tube-driven 4-track at 7.5 ips. Love it!! Go for it!!

[basho]

Top end consumer decks like the Pioneer 707/909 stuff sound great for this as well. Cheaper than plugins nowadays!

[Sounds Great]

I agree. 3 3/4 7 1/2 machine is not pro. Though there have been recordings done that way that made it to mastering. You want a 15 ips 1/2 track machine for pro mixdown. The 7" reel would be fine though, if it is the good tape.