Just wanted to introduce myself.

doin' alright @kaathesnake!

@pokey77 @lowrider57 @dweller I'm back on AG!!!! How've ya'll been?

Hey guys! Back on AG. How've ya'll been?

@kaathesnake, Good one!

No, you're geoffkait @geoffkait , not kaitthesnake. I'M KaatheSnake! 

Hey, we almost have the same name. I’m kaitthesnake. 

@mapman Bingo! Yep! I live in Auburn, Alabama. :)

Alabama?

I lived in Huntsville for a few years back in the Reagan era.

Try down south two states. :)

Kentucky?

See if ya'll can guess which country I'm from. :)

Thank you for the welcome @pokey77 . :)

Ryan,
Thanks for introducing yourself. Though I never had a quality RTR, my good friend Nate had a Pioneer RT 707 or something like that. We recorded vinyl to it and it sounded really good. That machine cost around $500 in 1980 or so and we were so blessed with good sound for high school students.
I’m a bit surprised that the newer United Home Audio RTRs haven’t been mentioned. I’ve heard them on MBL systems many times and the SQ is just amazing. 
At the LAAS show 2017, I had the great opportunity to hear a big Studder play Frampton’s “Lines on my face”. It was glorious with DartZeel electronics; I forget the speakers but it was one of the few real delights at that show.
I do realize most of this conversation has been about vintage gear, just thought I’d mention both old and new. 
Ryan, Welcome to the ‘Gon!

Welcome aboard!

Nice @roxy54 ! Yes, the Sony Tc-558 was a nice deck. Always was reliable. :)

I wouldn't George Martin if he was still alive today would want to work in my studio @lowrider57 . I don't think he would do it for $20,000,00! Abbey Road Studios was his go to place for recording, and they had much better equipment than me.
Ryan

Wow! nice @bdp24 ! I know Mr. Al Jardine well, he's the "cranky" guy of the group, and the only original member of the Beach Boys in Brian's band, except for Brian himself. I know Mr. Blondie Chapman, but I don't know the rest of the band except for Mr. Wilson, Mr. Jardine, and Mr. Chapman. 
Ryan

This is all so interesting Ryan. I had a Sony TC-558 for many years and used it to make mix tapes of songs on albums. The sound quality was great. I'm all digital now but I love reading about this and have great memories of my machine and those days.

Hey Ryan, thanks for listing your studio gear. I'm very impressed. I have visions of George Martin working in your studio.

Have you heard of The Tape Project? They are committed to high-end analogue music production.

@bdp24 Wow! You tried to get to Brian’s mansion, eh? That was a daring attempt! Brian is a very kind fellow. He’s getting very frail and old, but he’s still rocking! I hope to meet him someday, and spend some time with him out in Beverly Hills. Yes, the TEAC A-2340 is a good deck. I like the A-3340S better, since it has 10.5" reel compatibility and runs at 15 IPS, but still that is a good deck. :)

@mantaman Thank you for the welcome. :) Yes, the Revox A77 is a nice deck. I like it. The TEAC A-6010 is also a nice deck.
Thanks,
Ryan

@lowrider57 It's very hard to type all the equipment I have, since I have so much! Well, I have an Electro Voice BK-1632 analog board (very nice board, BTW,) that I run 12 audio channels into the reel to reel then use the last 4 channels to mix and master each channel on the tape deck. I have a 2009 MacBook Pro with an 10.11 El Capitan operating system on it, Logic Pro X as my DAW, JBL LSR305 monitors, Stax Lambda Jr. electret headphones, Apex 210 ribbon mic with Lundahl transformer, MXL V69 Mogami Edition tube microphone with Neumann U87 capsule, Blue Bluebird large diaphragm condenser mic, 1960s Sony dynamic mics (I don't know what model, came out of an old Sony tube reel to reel,)supposedly the same types mics that were used to record Bob Dylan and The Band's Basement Tapes,) Focusrite Scarlett 2i2, and cables of all sorts and types, etc, Joemeek stereo tube compressor (that's named after sound pioneer and producer Joe Meek, who tragically killed himself after killing his landlady on February 3, 1967,) Realistic stereo electret condenser mics (which sound very good on acoustic guitars and Hammond organs, BTW,) 1958 beautiful condition Hammond M3 tube organ, Audio Technica ATR 20 dynamic mic (I like to sometimes use it on acoustic guitars and vocals, it has a nice treble presence :) ,) Stage Right Memphis Blue Elvis dynamic mic (mic I got off Monoprice, amazing build quality and sound for something you buy off Monoprice, LOL. Has a very rounded tone, lacks in treble, and somewhat reminds me of a 40s ribbon mic. Very dark tone.) And that about wraps up my list. :)
Best,
Ryan

@kaathesnake, I too am a Brian Wilson lover. I had a Revox A77 Mk.3 in 1975, but used a Teac 2340 (same as the 3340, but with 7" reel capacity, not 10.5") to make some demo recordings with a great songwriter I worked with from '74 to '76. We took the tapes down to Los Angeles, and went to Brian's mansion in Bel-Air to ask him to produce some pro recordings with us. Marilyn wouldn't let us talk to him! The 2340 was surprisingly close in sound quality to the Revox.

I've had a Teac X-10R since about 1982.  With it, I use a dbx 224 to remove tape hiss and dbx 3bx range expander. 

Back in the day, I'd spend hours and sometimes days mixing a 10" reel, or simply recording some of my favorite albums.  I don't have the patience or desire to do that anymore, but I still like listening to those old reels.

Welcome Ryan,
I'm with ya, and my fav, teac....the A6010, which i first bought home from a far far eastern vacation courtesy of Uncle Sam,
But my all time fav is the Revox a77 Mark 3 dolby B (again 10" reels)
                                      Enjoy..........the mantaman

Ryan, do you have a studio setup with a console? Can you tell us what associated gear you are using?

@lowrider57 FYI, I have an Ampex 300 3 track, I COMPLETELY forgot that one, and it's my biggest deck! Big as a refrigerator! 3 350 tube preamps! Yes, the 440 is a nice deck. :)

Yes @dweller , there were decks that recorded at 30ips. Before my time.

Ryan, it's so cool you are in touch with Brian Wilson.
And very cool that you're working with pro gear. My favorite deck was the Ampex 440, a real workhorse. Definitely need to have an engineer on staff to keep those up and running.

There are threads about tape stock and which is the best new production brand... SO expensive.

Used a Techniques 1500 (may have been a 1700) around 1980 in a Hollywood duplication studio (made duplicates of radio commercial tapes for national/local distribution). Very nice machine! Didn’t they make R2R decks which recorded at 30 ips way-back-when? Ultimate sound! Finally, don’t forget to demagnetize your razor blades before making a splice!

@best-groove Thank you for the welcome! :)

@jond Thank you for the welcome! Yes, reel to reel tape decks and the reels can get quite pricey, but they're definitely worth the extra buck if you love hifi sound. :)

Thank you for the welcome @stereo5 ! That was a nice deck! I always liked them. :)

Nice deck @orpheus10 ! 3 speed deck with my favorite speed, 15 IPS! Great stereo mastering deck, I bet. :)

Also, @lowrider57 , I buy tapes off eBay, usually used, I like older Scotch tape from the 50s-early 60s, (150, 190 acetate, 290, 203, etc,) as they have no sticky shed and sound amazing. I then splice the 7 inch reels onto plastic NAB 10.5" reels and use them like a professional. :)

@lowrider57 Hey! Hope things are well. The thing that got me fascinated into reel to reel and analog recording formats was the Beach Boys and the Beatles. They used 1/2" 4 track Scully 280 machines, I think. I had a few home vinyl record cutters made in the 40s for voice use, but I wanted to go a little farther with sound fidelity and go to what my hero Brian Wilson used to make his masterpieces (he and I chat on Twitter a lot.) I first started using 3 3/4 IPS and 7 1/2 IPS decks to get my feet wet with analog, but I soon wanted something better, bigger, and more accurate. I spent 2 months struggling to find the perfect deck, I got a TEAC 80-8 deck off eBay, but the guy had no way to deliver it, so that was out. I looked and looked for much longer, until my dad surprised me with something amazing. He had purchased a MIB TEAC A3340S from a seller named hifi on eBay, the deck ran at 7 1/2 IPS AND, my favorite part, 15 IPS, the professional studio recording speed! I've loved that deck ever since, and I don't want to replace it anytime soon. I currently have a Roberts (Akai) 1725 tube recorder (not fully working), a TEAC A1200U, (Perfect working condition,) and of course, the TEAC A3340S (Mint condition perfect working machine.)
Thanks,
Ryan

I was listening to my Technics 1500 2 track as I read your post.


      https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f7BU6azwk78

Welcome :)

Hi, Ryan.
  As a young guy, how did you get involved with reel to reel?
   I've had my hands on many 1/4" and half inch decks in my profession. I wish I could afford to invest in R-R for my home system.

What decks have you owned and what tape stock have you tried? Ever buy any NOS stock, by that I'm referring to virgin or one-pass vintage tape?

Yes welcome Ryan! Fascinated by reel to reel just not enough room here for one and the reels seem so expensive. But they sound amazing!

Welcome Ryan.  I was a big reel to reel enthusiast back in the 70's.  I had I believe a Teac A2100S.  It was 3 heads, solenoid controls and did 3 3/4 and 7 1/2ips.  It was also auto reverse.    I wish I had kept it but sold it when CD came out.  Have fun.