Taperssection.com
Gear / Technical Help => Recording Gear => Recording Media => Topic started by: Depechemode1993 on October 22, 2004, 03:20:35 PM
-
Hey fellas! I am back for some questions about my D8. it is very imprtant and hopefully I can get all my questions answered!
1. what is the best DAT cleaner out there and how many hours after recording and playback should I clean it?
2. what is the difference between DDS and regular DAT tapes?
3. some of my recordings are coming out pretty bassy. should I get the Oade preamp installed and would that help me out?
4. Pro Digital- is that a good thing to do once my D8 is starting to go? anyone ever done it?
5. is it good to use used DAT tapes? is it ok?
thanks for all who help out. I have other questions. I can't think of anything right of now. thanks
-
when this starts to happen to your DAT recorder. is it time to get a new one or what?
http://www.depechemode-live.com/tour/bootlegs/samples/1993-94/1993-10-10-houston.mp3
-
2. what is the difference between DDS and regular DAT tapes/
DDS is a higher grade tape compared to DAT b/c it is less likely to have drop outs during recording. I know there is never ending debate about which is better. I think the general consensus is to use DDS. personally, I just bought an M1 and decided to use DDS 90/m which provides 3hrs of recording (even though my M1 manual suggested no tape over 2hrs).
I made this decision b/c DDS (and DAT for that matter) sometimes have a tendency to distort recordings at the very beginning and very end of the tape. So, I always fast foward then rewind the tape once, then record about 2 minutes blank at the beginning. My logic is that since one set of music usually never excedes 2hrs I will not have to worry about recording on the very end of the tape, thus avoiding the "danger zone" which could have some distortion.
hope this is helpful,
t.j.
-
2. what is the difference between DDS and regular DAT tapes?
5. is it good to use used DAT tapes? is it ok?
This may help:
http://www.oade.com/Tapers_Section/dds1.html
-
doh.... :-\
-
2. what is the difference between DDS and regular DAT tapes/
DDS is a higher grade tape compared to DAT b/c it is less likely to have drop outs during recording. I know there is never ending debate about which is better. I think the general consensus is to use DDS. personally, I just bought an M1 and decided to use DDS 90/m which provides 3hrs of recording (even though my M1 manual suggested no tape over 2hrs).
I made this decision b/c DDS (and DAT for that matter) sometimes have a tendency to distort recordings at the very beginning and very end of the tape. So, I always fast foward then rewind the tape once, then record about 2 minutes blank at the beginning. My logic is that since one set of music usually never excedes 2hrs I will not have to worry about recording on the very end of the tape, thus avoiding the "danger zone" which could have some distortion.
hope this is helpful,
t.j.
sorry j, but this is not true, dds tapes are like buying 'all media' discs, instead of 'audio like DAT tapes are :) dds tapes are just phine, ive used hundreds of them, and only used DAT tapes a few times :) hope this hwelps
-
audio dats have a better shell...
-
how about this clip. what is up with it? this is a straight DAT master transfer.
-
it's digital noise. most likely due to dirty heads on the record deck. or if your deck isn't cleane it could produce noise even when the master is fine.
-
2. what is the difference between DDS and regular DAT tapes/
DDS is a higher grade tape compared to DAT b/c it is less likely to have drop outs during recording. I know there is never ending debate about which is better. I think the general consensus is to use DDS. personally, I just bought an M1 and decided to use DDS 90/m which provides 3hrs of recording (even though my M1 manual suggested no tape over 2hrs).
I made this decision b/c DDS (and DAT for that matter) sometimes have a tendency to distort recordings at the very beginning and very end of the tape. So, I always fast foward then rewind the tape once, then record about 2 minutes blank at the beginning. My logic is that since one set of music usually never excedes 2hrs I will not have to worry about recording on the very end of the tape, thus avoiding the "danger zone" which could have some distortion.
hope this is helpful,
t.j.
yeah....you should probably disregard EVERYTHING i said (sorry misinformed). purchased some 60/m DDS. thanks brain and oade.com for scaring me out of using 90/m DDS
-
yeah....you should probably disregard EVERYTHING i said (sorry misinformed). purchased some 60/m DDS. thanks brain and oade.com for scaring me out of using 90/m DDS
That shouldn't necessarily scare you off - the most important part on that page is this quote: "Many of our customers are aware of this and factor the convenience, the lower tape and storage cost into the equation. This might make sense for you." I've been using 90m DDS tapes to master on a D8 since 1997 and sent it to ProDigital ONCE for a tuneup about a year ago - not because I was having any problems, but because I had a slow August/September and thought it could use one. The question is, is the tradeoff on motor wear worth it to you in buying fewer tapes? I'd say I've made at least 150 masters on 90m tapes. With 90m tapes costing approximately the same as 60m tapes, even at a VERY low price of $3 a tape (they were much pricier back in '97 and '98), that's $450 saved on tapes...and the motor's still kicking.
--Dave
-
i guess my main reason not to use them is b/c i'm recording using an M1. given the fact this is a portable deck i am petty concerned about wear on the head. i want to get as many hours out of it as possible. if it means using 60/m, like the manual suggests, so be it. i do have a question: where is a good place to buy DAT tapes cheap? american-digital.com doesn't seem to carry them
-
1. what is the best DAT cleaner out there and how many hours after recording and playback should I clean it?
I did not see if anyone answered this question after the topic seemed to shift to the types of tapes used.
I am using a sony PCM-M1 that I bought used and have not noticed any problems with tape quality. I do not have any type of head cleaning tape, nor do I know if these are more helpful or harmful. If anyone can help me on this matter it would be much appriciated, also I saw someone mentioned about 'ProDigital' should I wait until i notice problems with my recording unit before sending off for service, or after___ hours of use on the heads?
thanks alot for all the help on your forms, I have found this site to be a great deal of help to a new taper
-
when this starts to happen to your DAT recorder. is it time to get a new one or what?
http://www.depechemode-live.com/tour/bootlegs/samples/1993-94/1993-10-10-houston.mp3
yes this is digital noise.
I got a bunch of "old" DAT masters one time in a trade.
While played in my D8, they were just unlistenable because they were full of digital noise.
I tried to transfer them on my PC with my Archive Python DDS drive and all digital noise disapeared... it was really strange...
-
oniontaper,
welcome...in answer to your question, sony sells a dry DAT cleaner. this is simply a tape that you insert and play to clean the head. i have one but haven't used it yet. they aren't expensive at:
www.american-digital.com
if you want more info about cleaning go here:
http://www.oade.com/Tapers_Section/howtoclean.html
FYI: i am pretty sure sending your deck off for service is pretty expensive (around $400). oade also has a shit load of info about this.
-
nah, sending your deck into prodigital isnt 400 dollars unless something HUGE is wrong :)
-
datdork grate show i have that cover for :)
-
thanks 'TenaciousJ' for those links on where to get dry dat head cleaning tapes.
I'm sure that somewhere on the web I could find a step by step on how to manually clean the heads for my dat recorder, and if all else fails when i start to notice any errors on my tapes i could send it in then. On there website ProDigital say's that there is a normal service and diagnosis fee, if the machine is beyond repair they will wave the fee. It seems that worst case senario could cost me up to $400.
(i paid less for my dat) but they also sell used refurbished units for around the same price.
has anyone taken there Sony PCM-M1 apart to clean the heads? is this a hard task or is it better to try without removing the cassette door?
thanks again for all the help here guy's
J