Recording a song with a Tascam 34!

How I recorded my song "Queen of Hearts" completely on a 4-track reel-to-reel Tascam 34.

You can hear this song and more Sealife on Spotify!

4 ins/outs explainer -
So I ran into the problem where I wanted to record 4 microphones onto all 4 tracks simultaneously (for recording drums), and still be able to edit/export them to a DAW on individual tracks. I needed a mixer!
So with my Mackie 1202 mixer I routed the 2 overhead mics into channels 1 & 2, and sent them through the main outs, hard-panned left and right so each signal would have it's own isolated path when it hit the tape machine. I did the same for the kick and snare mics, into channels 3 & 4. I got this mixer specifically because it has aux outs which I ran channel 3 & 4 out of. It's essentially double stereo, and all 4 channel were isolated when I brought them into my DAW later.

Thanks for watching!

[lowfreqosc]

Those recording videos are just awesome, and what makes them like hundred times cooler is damn good music. Please do more!

[RoomAtTheTopStudio]

I appreciate the workflow using 4 tracks on tape. Respect. Subbed

[michaelg]

Really nice sound, I think tape in general has a nice effect on transients.. I dig the one you did with the fostex 4 track too 🔥

[sbroadbentphoto]

You are a legend. You have a cool sound. Appreciate the effort put in to your videos

[midas]

found one in good condition. cant wait to use it! great video, really beautiful sounding recordings
! :)

[tylerm]

I friggin love this and thanks for linking it so i can find it!!

[cyndimoring]

I used to record lps onto a reel to reel, haha.

[themichaelmotorcycle]

omg i love your inde music we gotta collab sometime

[marlew]

This is awesome. You are a great artist.

[qlyde]

Nice Video and cool machine, I may be grabbing a 32 this week! But ps, don't use rubbing alcohol! It's not good for tape heads, you should use MG Chemicals 99% Isopropyl Alcohol, no residue from additives and it's not watered down, it leaves the heads properly cleaned. A few more bucks but a bottle will last you a lifetime.

[RC-ggib]

Can you say where you are located? Really love your style and would love to jam!!

[bucksmoonlightrevival]

Fantastic video man! 😄 Glad you made another one of these! Love the new album by the way! Is that mic your using to talk an old reel to reel mic? we've got a couple that are similar, and experimenting with recording them. They sounds super vintage it's awesome!

[johannessinger]

I would love to buy your new album on vinyl! I could only find it on CD or on Spotify...
Is this available on vinyl anywhere?

[bobsbits]

hi the price of tape is now silly or getting good tape as well i have a tascam 34B myself it's more like a 34b-38 it has 38 heads
the ones on the 34 were to bad with heavy wear and i lost my otari 5050 mkIII to bad caps

deck was bad when i got it so i jazzed up some 38 to play at many speeds it can be done very easy once you know i have seen a tascam do 3O ips
i left a wire out by misstake i talked to a mate yes can do it easy

[isaacprice-slade]

Question about this vid if you have a sec: As you bounce tracks to the computer from the 34, do you ever have trouble lining up separately recorded batches of tracks with each other in ProTools? Or is it just about nudging the stems around until they sound right? Any tips for a tight sync would be super helpful!

Thanks so much for sharing your process and awesome music. Love the songwriting and how the parts in your arrangements leave room for each other.

Sincerely,
Someone committed to mixing in-the-box who would love to incorporate the sound of tape.

[TreaderBikes]

I have this same Machine and I really want to use it more. I'm running a Allen and Heath GL4000 as my console and there seems to be a difference on the impedance of the outputs and the inputs of the tape machine. 1/4" outs and RCA ins. Could you be more specific on how you connected this?

[shmeepmeep]

How do you bounce your recordings into protools?

[sundaybrunch]

Next try ADA. After you mix in the DAW master back to tape!

[tre.]

Question for you. I was given a Tascam 34. It’s powered on, but I’m not sure if it’s working because I don’t have any reel tapes. is there a way to test to know if both wheel motors work without the reel tapes ?

[AmadeusChaffe]

Beautiful! Is it expensive to record on these thingies?