What is a Tape Project tape?

[cupboy]

I'm a bit new here. Have no idea what these tapes are. Are they 2 track or quarter track, what speed. How much do they cost or do you need a "subscription" ? Some link someone can refer me to ?

[ironbut]

Here you go:

http://www.tapeproject.com/

[ozzmittel]

Here you go:

http://www.tapeproject.com/

It's cool. But i can't find too which tape use TP for releases.
It's RMGI or ATR or other?
It's SM911 or SM468?

And why TP don't use long play tape like LPR35?

[ironbut]

Hey ozzmittel,

The Tape Project uses RMGI 468.
To make long play tapes, the backing is thinner. When the backing is thinner, tape problems such as print through and stretching are much more common. Also, many of the long term issues which can occur from less than idea storage become severe more easily.
I collect old tapes and it's amazing how great 50 year old tapes can sound. But it didn't take long before I realized that I should pass on any of the "long play" tapes. Almost none of those ever sound very good (and some are downright unplayable).

[ozzmittel]

The Tape Project uses RMGI 468.

Thanks

But why RMGI and why SM468?

SM468 vs SM911

RMGI vs ATR vs Zonal (ATR make tapes in the USA!)

Quality, Price, Long time life, etc...

IMHO: SM911 is better but maybe SM468 is cheaper?

And 1 more question:
TP 1" master is SM468 too?

[docb]

We started the project before the ATR tape was available in 1/4" and we chose to do an entire series on one brand of tape. In our opinion SM911 is not the better choice than SM468. The thing 911 does is allow you to slam the tape harder with signal - useful if you are recording something hot and you want some headroom, not really useful in mastering. We have found that SM468 is superior in its archival qualities at the levels we record the tapes. Some running masters are on 468, some are on ATR. The tapes sound quite similar.

I think that this and most of your other questions have been discussed on the forum in the past and I suggest doing some browsing through the archives.

 

[TonyB]

Hi Dan,

What tape would you use to record live sound with good archiving properties? US Recording Media seem to suggest that for the live sound SM900 is the best: "recording live material, we strongly suggest SM900 for the increased dynamic range, headroom, and lowest noise characteristics. SM900 tends to be the most transparent tape with an amazing sound field."

At the same time they do not speak of 468 that highly: "RMGI 468 is designed for more non critical applications, but still has a large following for its sound." I would think the Tape Project is critical enough  :-)

You mentioned that 468 is excellent for archiving at the levels you use. Archiving is definitely important. What levels do you use in the TP?

TIA<

TonyB

[docb]

We record the Tape Project albums at 250nWb/M on SM468 because it sounds great and the signal retention over time is excellent. For live recording I would suggest giving ATR Master Tape a try. Here's a link to the specs:

http://www.atrtape.com/pdf/ATR%20Tech%20Web.pdf

[TonyB]

Thanks, Doc.

I thought these were the reasons behind your use of 468.

Unfortunately, US Recording does not ship outside of USA and the local Toronto supply only sells SM900 and SM911. For copies I should try 468 at 250nWb.

Regards,

TonyB

[ironbut]

Hey Tony,

I second Doc's suggestion of using ATR tape for live recording. It has the widest dynamic range and that's one of the things you should look for when recording live instruments and voice. If you want to try it out, there's a guy on eBay with one for sale who's in Montreal. If you like it, you can buy cases directly from ATR (or maybe you can talk Mike into singles?).

[TonyB]

Thanks, Steve.

I found a person in Montreal whos link is on ATR web site. The price is the same as on ebay, 10% higher than in USA. The other prices are not as nice: $49/$69 HAN D MAG becomes $125 here.

Regards,

TonyB