the tape project

[Road Runner]

These guys are releasing a bunch of stuff on reel to reel tape:

http://www.tapeproject.com/


Are they crazy?

Q: Why are you doing this?

A: Most people have not had the experience of hearing studio master tapes. Many formats have been introduced with the promise of bringing master tape sound into the home listening room.

Yeah, right.

We don’t expect that this tape project will replace any of your other favorite formats, so we see no need to dwell on the drawbacks of any other format. Suffice it to say that we don’t offer an “analog-like” listening experience. We are offering a chance to have in your own listening room an actual analog listening experience as close to the original master tape as practical.

Q: OK...but open reel tape in 2007? This is a truly insane idea. What made you decide to do it?

Dan: I had been putting on this show (Vacuum State of the Art Conference) for several years, and my distraction with show administration meant that I always had an ill prepared demo room for my own Bottlehead products. So I decided for VSAC 2003 that we needed a really good sounding, dialed in display. I was talking with Paul and we wound up deciding on tape playback. Paul made a few master copies just for the show. My bud Dave Dintenfass of Full Track Productions put together an Ampex 350-2 for us. Paul and his cohort “Geets” Romo came up from San Francisco, and we played tapes, in addition to LP and hot-rodded digital front ends.

Paul: I expected the tapes to sound good of course, and I expected they would sound better than the LP and digital sources. But I was shocked at just how much better they did sound. And I shouldn’t have been surprised; I’ve been working with tape masters for 30 plus years.

Dan: Best Sound of Show from three reviewers at that show, and a Best Sound Of Show at the first RMAF (with headphones only, no less!) with tape playback, and now best sound of show at CES 2007 from many of the reviewers at TAS seems to support our approach.

So why are we doing this?

To share that experience with our subscribers.

[jm1]

Nope.

[schwarcw]

If you've got money to burn, this would be fun.

[Road Runner]

I was just wondering if anyone had tried these and noticed a big different them and CD or LP. It seems like a waste if it was recorded with digital equipment to begin with, but if it was recorded with analog, it might be better than the LP or the CD that was made from the analog master. Generally, it looks the four main problems are price, inconvenience, not enough good playblack machines, and not enough titles.