Tape...

[smash]

Hi Guys,

Excuse my digital-era ignorance, but is 2" 24 track tape still available?

Where is the best place to buy from? How much can I expect to pay for the various reel sizes?

Thanks,

Smash.

[Linear]

Hi Guys,

Excuse my digital-era ignorance, but is 2" 24 track tape still available?

Where is the best place to buy from? How much can I expect to pay for the various reel sizes?

Thanks,

Smash.

Hi Smash,

Well considering I babble and blather on more than most about tape, it would be kinda stoopid if I didn't respond.

Yes tape is still available. I get tape from various sources, however the Quantegy distributor in Australia is a good start - Independent Tape Service in Artarmon

http://www.itsaus.com.au/

I think you can buy tape from retailers but most of them don't stock tape so they'd just get it from ITS anyway.

It's become rather expensive after Quantegy filed for chapter 11 - About $450 per 2" roll in single quantities - cheaper in bulk. Note that 2" tape can take a number of tracks (usually 16 or 24) - it always amuses me when people specifiy the number of tracks on a tape. 1" can be 2, 4, 8 16 or 24 tracks!

Apparently there are a couple of other vendors in the pipeline (one company remaking BASF900 and another - ATR services I think making a new formulation) however I won't be believing it until I see it. If they do this could bring down the price of tape a little.

I remember all the doomsdayers saying the end of tape is nigh, but given how many projects are ~still~ done on tape, the end is some way off yet.

If you want to record on tape but can't afford it, look around for some used 499 or GP9 (avoid 456). Both tapes didn't suffer from shedding, and GP9 in particular has a really good binder meaning they will last a long long time. You often see tape for sale that was used on a single session, and it's more than good enough for another project.

Chris

[smash]

Thanks for that.

Smash.

[JulienG]

Note that 2" tape can take a number of tracks (usually 16 or 24)

There were the Stevens machines (with a great interview in a recent Tape Op) that went up to 40 tracks.

[anj]

hi there smash.............

if your interested i have a couple of spare brand new rolls of quantagy 499.
these have never been used

[Kris]

If anyone is interested I have acces to a whole stack of one-pass stock, ie it's been used once and then erased.

Cheaper than new.

[wez]

David's been recording over Nick Cave safety clones from Abbey Road (Nocturama or Boatman's call, can't remember). scary & fascinating at the same time.

[Chris H]

David's been recording over Nick Cave safety clones from Abbey Road (Nocturama or Boatman's call, can't remember). scary & fascinating at the same time.

When i record to tape ( not oftet these days ) the client buys the tape, I store it, so it doesn't get recorded over without their permission. But if david owns the tape he can record over it i suppose. Might be a bad business decision to record over Nick Cave tapes if he owns them as they might be worth a few dollars to a collector? A mate of mine has the or an Australian copy of The 1/4'duplication master of Peter Frampton Live.
It's was a good listen on my Ampex, lacking in highs though after all the years in storage.

[wez]

Mick Harvey gave Atlantis the tapes. as they were safetys there was no reason to keep them after the record had been made. i don't know if there's much of a collectables market for 2" session tapes.