straight2tape – a brilliant new concept of real, up-close-and-personal, music events

‘Being there’ One of the phrases I use most often when reviewing tapes is, I’m afraid, a rather hackneyed one: “it’s almost like being there” (or some variation on that theme). I make no apology for it, because this (for me) is without doubt the most soul-stirring aspect of tape as a format for enjoying … More straight2tape – a brilliant new concept of real, up-close-and-personal, music events

The Denon DH-710F: Ken Kessler on Tim de Paravicini’s favourite tape deck

Following the sad passing of ‘the god of open reel tape’ Tim de Paravicini (pictured right) in late 2020, Ken Kessler penned a couple of guest blogs on Tim’s life and work: “I’m sorting that for Paul McCartney” and “He worked on machines for three Beatles”, which proved hugely popular. There probably wasn’t an open-reel … More The Denon DH-710F: Ken Kessler on Tim de Paravicini’s favourite tape deck

TAS interviews Yarlung Records

California-based, Grammy Award-winning, Yarlung Records is an audiophile label with a difference. Well, a few differences actually – one being that it’s a charitable institution that reinvests its profits in supporting emerging young musicians, and another being ‘Sonorus Holographic Imaging’, a process developed with Sonorus Audio that’s designed to create a three-dimensional sound field with … More TAS interviews Yarlung Records

“He worked on machines for three Beatles”: Ken Kessler recalls Tim de Paravicini’s considerable contribution to professional recording

Time after Tim part 2 by Ken Kessler In part 1 – “I’m sorting that for Paul McCartney” – Ken Kessler remembered Tim de Paravicini as a “true god of open-reel tape”. Here, he explores Tim’s incredible contribution to the wider world of recorded music. It must have been the first time I visited Tim in Huntingdon … More “He worked on machines for three Beatles”: Ken Kessler recalls Tim de Paravicini’s considerable contribution to professional recording

“I’m sorting that for Paul McCartney”: Ken Kessler remembers Tim de Paravicini as a “true god of open-reel tape”

Part 1: Time after Tim – The Hi-Fi Years by Ken Kessler It’s still sinking in: I can’t quite fathom the world of hi-fi without Tim de Paravicini. It’s not just the massive contribution he made over a half-century. For many of us, it’s personal, as Tim was a mentor to many. Indeed, I turned … More “I’m sorting that for Paul McCartney”: Ken Kessler remembers Tim de Paravicini as a “true god of open-reel tape”

Back in the day: Ken Kessler continues to mull over the history of pre-recorded tapes

There’s a history lesson in music, sociology and economics in open-reel tape. Ken Kessler takes us on a tour. Musing about reel-to-reel users of the Golden Age of Pre-Recorded Tapes, based on the evidence provided by the 2,200+ tapes I’ve acquired, I stand confused. The dichotomy between skilled enthusiasts and clumsy oafs is, I suppose, … More Back in the day: Ken Kessler continues to mull over the history of pre-recorded tapes

The price of decks, Dark Side of the Moon and pirates: talking tape with Russia’s Stereo.ru

As part of my recent virtual visit to Smart Audio Recording Lab in Kirov, Russia, I also ‘met’ (virtually) with Dmitry Alexandrov who blogs for the Russian website http://www.stereo.ru. Dmitry, who in ‘normal life’ (as he puts it) is an architect, wanted to put a few R2R questions my way and of course I was … More The price of decks, Dark Side of the Moon and pirates: talking tape with Russia’s Stereo.ru

Those Studer battery blues: Neville Roberts saves his beloved deck with a chip, a board and little help from his friends

This is a tale of how a relatively simply upgrade to Neville Roberts’ Studer A810 turned into a major problem, and how it led him to find a company that specialises in Studer MPU boards – solving all his issues! Over to Neville… While scanning interesting pages on eBay recently (as we do!), I happened to … More Those Studer battery blues: Neville Roberts saves his beloved deck with a chip, a board and little help from his friends

A virtual visit to Smart Audio Recording Lab in Kirov, Russia

Smart Audio Recording Lab is a custom-designed recording studio that also operates as a tape label, releasing its own recordings as master tape copies. It’s run by father and son team Mikhail Mamonov and Artem Suntsov, who designed and built the studio from scratch in 2018. These guys are clearly passionate about what they do, … More A virtual visit to Smart Audio Recording Lab in Kirov, Russia

Magnetic tape: the format of choice for world-leading scientists!

A bit of a side-ramble here, triggered by an article in The New Scientist magazine that caught my attention. The headline was ‘Large Hadron Collider sticks with reels of tape for vast storage needs’ and I thought, woah, hang on a minute, are they seriously suggesting that the immense volumes of data generated by one … More Magnetic tape: the format of choice for world-leading scientists!