Cassette Tapes: Can they sound as good as digital?

Рет қаралды 6,704

Күн бұрын

“Why bother with cassettes? They were rubbish!” In this video I set out to find out just how much of a difference there actually is between a tape and a digital recording. I've lined up a bunch of different types of tape side by side, so we can compare the audio quality between them and a digital source. I think you may be surprised by the results...
Here's a link to the uncompressed recordings I made from each of the tapes:
drive.google.com/open?id=1H7y...
All music in this video was made by The Orphic Creative
☺️ Subscribe here for more interesting music stuffs ☺️
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
kzfaq.info/love/DSO...
☺️ Follow me also on these other social media things ☺️
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Facebook: / orphiccreative
Twitter: / orphiccreative
Instagram: / theorphiccr. .
☺️ Listen here and download to my musics ☺️
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Soundcloud: / grant-14
Website: orphiccreative.co.uk
Sans Vox Playlist: • The Orphic Creative - ...
☺️ Some gear & software I use ☺️
-----------------------------------------------------
Video:
Panasonic Lumix GH3 (main camera)
Panasonic Lumix G5 (secondary camera)
GoPro Hero 4 Black (not much, it’s pretty rubbish)
iPhone 6 (not as bad as you might think)
Zhiyun Smooth 4 (3 axis gimbal)
DJI Spark (drone)
RPGT Video Lighting Softboxes
Audio:
Rode Stereo Videomic Pro (Hot shoe mount mic)
Rode SmartLav+ (Lavalier Mic)
Roland R-05 (sound recorder)
Music Production:
Main DAW: Ableton Live 10 (Primary DAW)
Logic Pro X (Secondary DAW [I still love you bae])
Ableton Push 1 (Ableton Controller)
Alesis MidiMix (Mixery controller thingie)
Sennheiser HD650 (Studio headphones)
Sennheiser HD25 light (DJ Headphones)
KRK Rokit RP6 G2 (studio monitors)
Video Production:
Final Cut Pro X (But don’t do it)
☺️ About the Moi ☺️
-------------------------------
My name is Rob and I go by the working title of The Orphic Creative. I’m a composer, songwriter, music producer, sound engineer and DJ, and occasionally also a human. I love anything to do with music tech and recording; I love making videos; and I love setting myself weird or interesting challenges and experiments with all of the above. Oh, and making some dank ch00ns bro.
I’m also passionate about proving that you can make great music with whatever you have in front of you right now, without needing to be a slave to the latest technology, software or plugins. Music stuff is expensive, but making music shouldn’t be. In fact, limiting yourself is one of the best ways to encourage your creativity.
Some fantastic music charities to support:
www.youthmusic.org.uk A UK charity investing in music-making projects for children and young people experiencing challenging circumstances.
www.helpmusicians.org.uk A UK charity helping musicians of all ages at times of crisis, but also at times of opportunity, giving people the extra support they need at a crucial stage that could make or break their career.
---
❤️ Thanks so much for watching. You’re awesome. If I’ve brought you some joy today, share me with a friend and spread the love ❤️

Пікірлер: 93

@JacobFrey 2 жыл бұрын

Fantastic video, thank you for creating and sharing. I was completely wrapped up in the comparisons, especially the tape vs tape examples. I'm a huge fan of Tony's videos from C.C. - Your contribution to the sound and use of cassettes is very commendable - you should have at least 20k more views on this video.

@TheOrphicCreative 2 жыл бұрын

Thanks very much, I appreciate that!

@theblowupdollsmusic 4 жыл бұрын

I just wanted to thank you for taking the time to do this! It was extremely informative, and very helpful. I love tape and find it forgiving regarding harsh frequencies like hi-hats and great for subtle mix glue. I also like a bit of hiss, I think it adds a hint of subtle character.

@TheOrphicCreative 4 жыл бұрын

Yes, I totally agree on the hiss! Its the same reason I don't mind a few pops or crackles on an old LP. Glad you enjoyed the vid 😊

@MagnusPaul1976 Жыл бұрын

Remember that a cassette is not a cassette without its own distinctive hiss. 👌 There were a few portable vinyl player models manufactured back then, however these were quite bulky and heavy to carry around ! 👍

@PauloJMateus Жыл бұрын

I just love cassetes, they are so tactile. It’s an amazing experience even with the hisss.

@TheOrphicCreative Жыл бұрын

Absolutely agree. I've loved playing with them since I was a kid. They still continue to surprise me with how good they actually are.

@mikesaunders4694 2 жыл бұрын

It’s worth it just to watch the reels slowly hypnotically spinning around……..mmmmmm, lovely

@TheOrphicCreative 2 жыл бұрын

Can't get enough of it 🙂

@thanosb.5403 2 жыл бұрын

Found so many new old stock SAs at the flea market (mid 90s ones) that I've now filled a couple of shoe boxes!!! Cassettes integrate so many of my early life memories that they'll never go away!!! Thank you for the excellent video... Tape recording is here to stay!!

@lajosvarga6431 2 жыл бұрын

Good job. Great comparison. Thank you very much for your efforts. At first, I missed the annotation of the individual tracks (which corresponds to which tape), but I was able to cope that. So, congratulations.

@hifirulezzz 2 жыл бұрын

Just imagine that 90% of all music we are listening to today as a "digital" has been recorded with Reel to Reel tapes 🤪

@jmi5969 Жыл бұрын

I'm afraid that the people who listen to music (any music, and analogue recording in particular) are an outgoing breed. The young generation that I see around is completely indifferent to music. It's not part of their world. They think it's an unnecessary nuisance spread by the media. And, having listened to modern commercial tops-of-the-pops, I'd rather agree.

@TheOrphicCreative Жыл бұрын

I'm sorry, but that is absolute nonsense. Young people listen to just as much music as any other generation. What's changed is the way they consume it. The 'top of the pops' music you refer to is in fact the last remnants of the old obsolete music system which was highly restrictive and had a chokehold on artists' creativity. That IS dying, and good riddance to it. These days people don't need to listen to the radio or buy what record companies think you should hear. We have Spotify, Bandcamp, KZfaq and SoundCloud, where independent artists can make their own platforms to publish their music. That is where you'll find the real talent. There is more variety and innovation in music today than at almost any point in history, but you have to go looking for it, you can't just wait to have it served up to you by music corporations. What you hear on the radio is not representative of modern music anymore.

@jmi5969 Жыл бұрын

@@TheOrphicCreative I'm sorry, I don't hear anything on the radio - the last decent radio station in my city was shut down a year ago. The few remaining FM stations cater mostly to 40+ generations.

@darinb.3273 Жыл бұрын

@@TheOrphicCreative Hey there if you really want to spot the differences invert either the digital track or all the tape recordings and then play them both at the sametime. You will have to ensure EXACT synchronization of the two files or it won't work. If the files are EXACTLY the same then they will cancel each other out. Fun to tinker with if you want enjoy the music whatever your format is. One of the other posters was reffering to older music before digital equipment became popular and even though it was redistributed on CD it was originally recorded on studio analog equipment. I'm sure a lot of record labels reprocessed (digitally remastered) the original analog tape recordings. That's all the other poster was saying we're talking just after compact disc was released. I have some of those early CDs and I can hear the hiss from the originals recorded on the studio analog equipment.

@TheOrphicCreative Жыл бұрын

I did actually try this off-camera, but because there are micro-fluctuations in the tape speed, the recordings aren't close enough for this to work.

@markchandler7085 2 жыл бұрын

Great comparison. Maxell made some great type 2 cassettes. Sony Minidisc combined the convenience and flexibility of cassette with a digital recording...and made editing a breeze but it's days were numbered 😞💽

@bosco7837 4 жыл бұрын

This is an excellent video and it's great to hear a direct, tangible comparison between multiple brands/types. I still use tapes all the times - for me it's a very practical way to record music. There's a lot of stuff on Tidal that I wouldn't be able to afford on CD (because it's expensive or has only been released on vinyl) so I just connect the laptop to the ampli through a simple audio interface and record the albums I need through an Aiwa tape deck, so I can listen to them without the PC. I found out I can achieve quite remarkable recordings with five minutes of work, adjusting the bias, the sensitivity and the other levels correctly. For me it's a great way to "save" your music in a way that actually does the music justice, both visually and sonically. Good job, cheers!

@TheOrphicCreative 4 жыл бұрын

Thanks for taking the time to comment, and I'm glad you found the video interesting. As you say, if you spend a bit of time getting the bias and other adjustments right, you really would be very hard-pressed to tell the difference between a good tape recording and CD. Particularly when just listening in a home environment on a hifi system.

@AndyX 3 жыл бұрын

your nostalgia and tactile interaction assumption is not the main reason for the resurgence of cassette. tape recording actually started to become popular again by the people who are back into records and analog who wanted way to record and play their music without wearing out their records, and keeping the music in the analog realm. it makes no sense to transfer an album to digital, when streaming and cds better suit that purpose

@bletheringfool 2 жыл бұрын

And the original reason many of us copied albums from records onto tape back in the day

@TheResistorNetwork Жыл бұрын

Fun video and nice sample of tapes. Cassettes are fun, which is what matters to me.

@DarrenJohnston-su6ck Жыл бұрын

Well done. That's a fair test. I have also 2 metal tapes (Maxell MX90). Those surprised me as well just how good they sound. Nothing wrong with tapes if you record or play them in the right deck.

@Robert-sg4ep Жыл бұрын

I like the soft sound of cassette,thats why i still litening them ! Great video mate ! Thanks !

@zaahirelahie4304 2 жыл бұрын

1. This was a good video. 2. A really good cassette deck (pitch control, bias, level, azimuth, low wow & flutter) can take even type 0 tapes and make a decent recording. The key is having a good deck. 3. Secondly get good quality tapes, based on what type of recording you intend to do. Use type IV metal only for master recording or high end recordings, otherwise good type II tapes should suffice. Good type II tapes are those tapes that have a blend of Chrome , cobalt and iron 3 oxide. These tapes give a full 20hz - 20,000 hz response. 4. Tapes are very versatile. You can boost the left or right channel, mix the equalizer on the master or left/right channel and make the original song/music/sound, completely different and better especially 70's disco, 80's pop/rock, heavy & glam metal music. Modern (1991-2021) are all mixed for digital format and will probably sound better on a CD, but older music were originally mixed for analog Vinyl records and reel to reel tapes.

@who_cares848 Жыл бұрын

Having a good audio source is important too. When I record FLAC files to good type II tapes it sounds as good if not better than mp3.

@Domzdream 5 жыл бұрын

Interesting clip mr. Orphic.

@TheOrphicCreative 5 жыл бұрын

Thank you sir!

@SmilyTheMare Жыл бұрын

just got this video suggested to me love it

@jezbon Жыл бұрын

How do you not have hundreds of thousands of subscribers?! You're videos are brilliant. Plus, you know... bit of alright too. 😉 lol. Hope you keep posting.

@TheOrphicCreative Жыл бұрын

Ah thank you ☺️ Pretty new still so still working on growing my subscriber base, and fitting it in with my paid work. But plenty more in the pipeline, don't worry 🙂

@MikeDS49 5 күн бұрын

Great review using a great deck! One small note, the SA isn't a "true chrome", as it uses a ferro-cobalt, or "super avilyn" coating.

@Govier Жыл бұрын

Very cool experiment. I've mastered an album entitled 'Glittering Wheels' much in the way you've done in this video. I think that it certainly adds a touch of pleasant compression. You touched on this in your video, but I've been using used tapes lately on my portastudios as I see no difference between a used tape and an unopened tape, if they're stored in the same way. It's not like the 'sealed' ones are hermetically sealed or anything. Sometimes you'll get a dud used tape but for the most part they're fine. I think that the real difference in sound comes from recording a song entirely to cassette (on a portastudio) as opposed to into a DAW and then mixing that master down to a cassette. Very cool video though and thanks so much for taking the time to make it.

@TheOrphicCreative Жыл бұрын

Yeah definitely agree, most of the tapes I use have been used several times at least. I seem to recall that VWestlife did an experiment where he recorded/played a cassette over a hundred times and it still sounded exactly the same. I also have tapes which I used and abused as a kid and didn't take care of at all well, and they mostly still sound great. Tapes are surprisingly resilient! Not sure if you've seen my other video on the Portastudio I restored, but I really like the pleasant tape saturation it adds to tracks recorded on it, and I often incorporate that into my productions.

@JURASSICDIVERUK 3 жыл бұрын

Cassette tapes are gorgeous through modern amps and speakers!

@DarrenJohnston-su6ck Жыл бұрын

And wonderful through 70's amps/receivers as well.

@JURASSICDIVERUK Жыл бұрын

@@DarrenJohnston-su6ck definitely yes

@velisusi1 Жыл бұрын

Casettes are cool like good casette decks…. very relaxing to record something to tape (controlling VU-meters) and finally listen how you succeed 👍👌🎵

@Konstantin_Terletskiy 2 жыл бұрын

What is interesting about Type II Pure Chromium Dioxide cassettes, DuPont gave the license to produce Crhromium Dioxide tapes to the Soviet Union in about 1980, so SVEMA factory in the USSR was producing 60-minute MK60-4 cassettes. I have two of these, recording quality is pretty good, but it loses some level. I have 1988 Soviet-made RAPRI-102 two-head deck, which has Japanese sendust head and manual bias adjustment control on board. By the way, somehow BASF Chrome Maxima (or even Chrome Extra) do not lose level on this deck. But cobalt TDK SA tape give me even more level on playback that I had set on nrecording. Also ORWO factories in German Democratic Republic were making pure chromium dioxide tapes, which were used in ORWO cassettes and Soviet TASMA MK60-7 cassettes. I have several TASMA MK60-7, it also loses a bit of level.

@jmsjms296 2 жыл бұрын

I guess time has come to sell off a few hundred of my vintage Maxell XL-II and TDK (all well kept) C-90... Thanks for the info!

@musicstevecom Жыл бұрын

Great Video, Can you do a video of the new cobalt chrome tapes? its not real chrome and I think theirs 3- Mfg.? TASCAM, National Audio Company and more

@TheOrphicCreative Жыл бұрын

Interesting! Will look into this 🙂

@TayWoode Жыл бұрын

I’ve got 100s of cassettes all multitracks coz I’ve got an old Amstrad studio 100 I used years ago to record songs, I might dig them out and have an old school nostalgic mix about 😂

@brucepremier Жыл бұрын

In fact YOU CAN skip between tracks on proper cassette decks. When you are lucky enough to have an high end deck with a proper way to bias and calibrate, you get amazing results with a great cassette (not even a new sealed one 😉). Not to mention that little compression right... Love that format!

@leekwhon1770 Жыл бұрын

I listen to vinyl records, cassette tapes and CDs only I hate streaming music

@anuarivanov6790 Жыл бұрын

Yes metal type like a digital sound. I like type 2 record

@monsterrun 2 жыл бұрын

With the proper magnetics heads and nifty metal tape...you could travel with portable casette players that have raw dsd512 recorded on them..

@dirty-moto Ай бұрын

Does your cassette deck not have a skip track feature? It only works if detecting silence between tracks, but while the tape is playing in either direction, I press fast forward and it'll stop fast forwarding upon reaching the next song.

@TheOrphicCreative Ай бұрын

Yes good point, my deck does have that. I was thinking more in terms of portable Walkman type players, but actually many of the later ones had that feature too 👍

@vindicari 2 жыл бұрын

all sounded the same to me

@valentingheorghe1693 2 жыл бұрын

As long as electronics manufacturers don't put on the market new high quality tape decks with all available settings for playback and recording a high quality tape, there's no point in using cassettes. You have to scavage for vintage tape decks, because they were built really wel,l and then you have to service them and pray that you find spare parts anymore. So, for the compact cassette to really make a comeback, manufacturers have to revive their good tape decks production lines. It is fun, beautiful and a really intimate experience to listen to cassettes and reel to reel, but the market have to convince the electronics manufacturers to release them again.

@TheOrphicCreative 2 жыл бұрын

Yes, I agree, most people don't have the time or interest to keep old decks working, and the new stuff is all cheap rubbish. Probably the Tascam deck is the best you can buy but even that is just a knock-off Tanashin mechanism which wasn't even thT great in the first place

@valentingheorghe1693 2 жыл бұрын

@@TheOrphicCreative When a pretty serious manufacturer puts Tanashin mechanics inside its products, there must be something wrong with the concept and the intent. Present Tascam decks cannot even be called semiprofessional equipment. They are just simple cassettes players that look like a proper deck.

@TheOrphicCreative 2 жыл бұрын

Yes, its a shame, particularly from a company like Tascam that used to have an excellent reputation.

@sexytasmin Жыл бұрын

The TDK SA is NOT a chrome tape it is a type 2 cobalt doped ferric tape designed to work at 70 micro seconds equalisation (Check Cassette Comeback Channel).

@TheOrphicCreative Жыл бұрын

Yes, that is something which I explain in the video 😉

@davidlynch433 2 жыл бұрын

I have all the modern digital systems i.e. DAC'S and streaming plus CD players and all that stuff but they are all so boring to look at, I have an old 90's vintage tape deck as well because I love to watch those old tape meters dance I just love it and I don't care if the sound isn't quite as good as modern digital.

@DarrenJohnston-su6ck Жыл бұрын

I have a 22 component Hifi-setup. Nothing is younger then 1988. I adore the vintage sound quality.

@mrk131324 2 жыл бұрын

If you want to get (back) into cassettes, here is an important tip: Buy tapes! Whenever you see a good deal, hit it. Unopened type IV tapes got for 30 - 150€ per tape nowadays. Used cassettes are a (necessary) alternative. Yes, you can get net UX type I tapes for 2€ a piece, but for the good stuff, you want type IV.

@vindicari 2 жыл бұрын

what headphones are you using?

@TheOrphicCreative 2 жыл бұрын

Sennheiser HD650. They're my workhorse studio headphones

@thehunterofdeath2180 2 жыл бұрын

Cassette tape are back from the dead just need a good tape deck players I got a revox 215 they sound nice on that deck but is one of the best tape deck in the world made on Germany they got some low end tape deck that sound good too like denon tape deck n nakamichi low end are pretty good too oh could buy a old tape deck that is repair from the 90s on ebay because they don't make good tape deck anymore for what I know so far good video let keep the cassette tape alive back they so cool n some deck look cool too so many out there

@user-ud9rn7dw6q 11 ай бұрын

Buy a nakamichi zx9 or cr7 or a Yamaha kx960 you’ll be impressed mate cassettes are great if you have a good deck good tapes and know how to bias and calibrate

@monsterrun 2 жыл бұрын

I assume that just like vynyl records..tapes are exclusivly analog signal so they depend solely on the quality of the magnetic read write head. And technicaly writing heads should be more bulky then just reading heads. Have them do both means compromise..we cant really expect to fully get the best out of tapes unless these can be modified.

@TheOrphicCreative 2 жыл бұрын

I think that's definitely true. Especially since the cassette standard was a compromise to begin with - it was the narrowest tape at the slowest speed they thought they could get away with. Even just doubling the tape speed like in some 4-track cassette machines makes a pretty impressive difference to the sound quality

@jeffhottman8572 Ай бұрын

They make new blanks not just old stock

@TheOrphicCreative Ай бұрын

There are some new tapes still being made, yep. The Fox C60 that I tested in the video is one of them. But the TDK and other tapes I tested are not made anymore today unfortunately

@groominvineyards Жыл бұрын

were they recorded for the first time in the video? cheers

@TheOrphicCreative Жыл бұрын

Yep, they were all new old stock tapes which had not been recorded to previously

@groominvineyards Жыл бұрын

@@TheOrphicCreative amazing sound, thumbs up for the recording quality too, great job on that!

@juanbaclavab 9 ай бұрын

Everyone talks about the importance of sources such as CD players and how much they can affect the sound but no one wants to talk about cassette players and how could they affect sound too. They play a cassette on an early 2000's CD player and think that all of them must sound the same. No one wants to give cassettes a chance, it's kinda bizarre on why.

@TheOrphicCreative 9 ай бұрын

Absolutely agree. I think maybe it's because people just expect tapes to sound a bit crap, so they don't consider that playing and recording them on a high quality deck would make a difference.

@jmi5969 Жыл бұрын

4:15 "cheap tape is a recipe for..." - strongly disagree. Yes, once we believed that pricier tapes are the holy grail... and then I rediscovered the cheap ferrics. A good cheap ferric, like late 1990s Maxell UDI (yes, Japanese-market UDI is still quite affordable) can sound excellent when played on a decent transport. It's not as much about the quality of biasing and recording, as it is about the playback transport.

@TheOrphicCreative Жыл бұрын

Yeah totally, the right cheap tapes can still sound fantastic, I agree. The point I was getting at was more about the average consumer using cheap supermarket tape on a crappy stereo and then wondering why the recordings sounded rubbish. But yes, even very basic tape on a good system can still sound remarkably good, if it's recorded well.

@scotthullinger4684 2 жыл бұрын

Can Cassettes sound as good as digital? As long as you have a premium quality cassette tape, a premium quality tape deck, and the sort of music and SPEAKERS which can easily demonstrate the differences in a comparison, then the answer is ... almost. Yes, cassettes can sound almost as good as digital. Kinda / sorta. Shall we put a percentage on it just to be silly? Then it's 80% as good as digital.

@TheOrphicCreative 2 жыл бұрын

Yep, absolutely agree. Definitely needs the best equipment to make them shine

@wer123456 Жыл бұрын

I would've loved some Dolby C on these bad boys

@TheOrphicCreative Жыл бұрын

I did consider doing some dolby recordings, but I decided I wanted to show the raw characteristics of the tapes without modifying their response. I think the Fox C60 in particular would definitely benefit from some dolby NR.

@wer123456 Жыл бұрын

@@TheOrphicCreative a properly calibrated tape would theoretically sound the same (ie. Same frequency response) with perfect azimuth and bias, haha. Just without hiss at specific points based on their companding algorithms. I think your deck would make a good test case for something like that. Does it have fine bias control?

@TheOrphicCreative Жыл бұрын

Thats true, although the NR algorithm does introduce some artifacts, particularly on transients. My deck does have bias adjustment and calibration so I could adjust for it. Perhaps a good subject for a follow up video 🙂