{"id":3333,"date":"2019-02-22T12:41:27","date_gmt":"2019-02-22T16:41:27","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/studios.qdivision.com\/word\/2017\/?page_id=3333"},"modified":"2026-06-26T12:17:35","modified_gmt":"2026-06-26T16:17:35","slug":"analog-tape-week-faq","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"http:\/\/qdivisionstudios.com\/word\/faq\/analog-tape-week-faq\/","title":{"rendered":"Analog Tape Week FAQ"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

We\u2019re turning off the computer* for a week in SEPTEMBER.<\/strong><\/h1>\n\n\n
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Did you ever wish you could record in as they did in the heyday of the analog studio? Don\u2019t get us wrong, we like the computer, but sometimes we miss the smell and sound of analog tape, and well, the whole thing is just very different. You can always record to analog tape at Q Division, but for a few days in September we\u2019re going to make it a little easier by setting everything up ahead of time: tape machines, drums, amps, headphones, even instruments; not only that, we\u2019ll waive the tape rental costs.** We\u2019ll be renting out the studio by the day and half day for our\u00a0THIRD<\/strong>\u00a0ANALOG TAPE WEEK, where you can track basics to\u00a02\u201d ANALOG TAPE<\/strong>. Are you interested? Drop us a line!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

*Actually, we\u2019ll most likely be leaving the computer on so that we can dump your tracks to Pro Tools lickety split, and we\u2019ll most likely run headphones from Pro Tools too \u2013 to take advantage of our squeaky clean Hearback headphone mix system.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

**So, tape rental is 100% free; however, if you want to keep your work on 2? analog tape, we\u2019ll pro rate the tape cost and you\u2019ll need a tape flange, which we\u2019ll also have available at near cost.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

FAQ:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Why are you guys doing this? <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

We hear people reminiscing about tape, getting excited about it, but then the reality of working to tape hits: it takes longer and costs a lot more to work in that world. So, we thought it\u2019d be fun to give everyone a chance to work like we used to, before Pro Tools became ubiquitous, while keeping costs down. We\u2019ll eat the tape and drum rental costs, and by making it ANALOG TAPE WEEK, we\u2019ll cut a large chunk of the setup time out of your budget; this way everyone can get a taste of what it was like to work on music with your ears and not your eyes, w\/out breaking the bank.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What will be set up and ready to go? <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

First of all, the tape machine! It\u2019ll be calibrated for the tape we\u2019re supplying (3M 996), and setup to record at either 30IPS or 15 IPS. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Second \u2013 We\u2019ll have a basic rock drum kit \u2013 22\u201d DW kick, Maryland toms, Zildjan hats, and a selection of cymbals and snare drums. We can tweak the kit as needed, and we encourage you to bring your own sticks, cymbals, snares, pedals, etc. But we\u2019ve got you covered if you\u2019re coming as you are. The kit will be set up in the big room, for \u201cbig rock\u201d sounds. While tweaking is encouraged, moving the kit to the dead room isn\u2019t going to be a possibility. If you want dead sounding drums we\u2019ll go old school, and build a drum hut, like we used to be fore we had dead rooms.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

We\u2019ll also have an array of guitar amps ready to go \u2013 Fenders, Marhsalls, our Matchless, HiWatt, and small combos \u2013 Skylarks, Ampeg Reverberocket, and the like. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

For bass we\u2019ll have our B15 and either an SVT or a V4B. For keyboards we\u2019ll use whatever works best \u2013 DI\u2019s, amps, rotating cabinets \u2013 etc.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In addition, we\u2019ll have our usual collection of instruments available, including our Hammond organ and Leslie, our Rhodes, Wurlitzer, various synths, and Clavinet. (Our Mellotron is only available if you give us notice and we\u2019ve co-ordinated and have plans to use it.)\u00a0Our grand piano will also be in tune and available!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

How long is a half\/full day<\/strong>? We\u2019re thinking 10 am to 3 pm for the morning crowd, and 4-9 pm for the evening crowd, but we\u2019re flexible here. In short \u2013 5 hours for a half day block, and 10 hours for a full day. We\u2019re limiting people to no more than 1 full day, as we\u2019d like to expose as many people as possible to these sessions. Contact us for info regarding rates.<\/p>\n\n\n

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Are there any limitations? <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Because we\u2019re working with (giant 14? reels) tape, we only have 33 minutes per reel (at 30IPS) or 64+ minutes (at 15IPS), so we\u2019re asking bands to consider the length of their pieces. This just makes it much easier to manage the tape during takes. Average length songs aren\u2019t a problem \u2013 but epic songs\/pieces  require some consideration.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Can we bring our own 2? tape?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Maybe! Let\u2019s discuss this ahead of time; we\u2019re able to calibrate the machine for two presets, and we plan on setting it up for 30 and 15 IPS and using NOS M3 996, so other tape formulations would require re-calibration, which isn\u2019t quite in the spirit of being setup and ready to go.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What happens when we\u2019ve got a keeper take? <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

There are a couple of options:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

1 \u2013 The 70\u2019s \u2013 stay on tape! We\u2019ll cut the piece of tape and put it on a comp reel, where you can keep working on it till the song is finished, then you can mix it to 1\/2\u201d tape in Studio A like a drug lord<\/del> rock star. If you choose to keep working to that piece of tape in the future, there could be a modest fee. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

2 \u2013 Track and dump. Record to tape for as long as you’d like, then transfer to pro tools, and keep working on it in the box at a later date.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

We want to book three days of ANALOG TAPE WEEK. Can we do that? <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

We\u2019re capping bookings at a single full day (or two half day blocks), because we\u2019d like to get as many people to check out ATW. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

BUT, we\u2019d be more than happy to discuss an analog (or other) lockout at another date. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Our drummer has the best taste in brews and ties but drops a beat every once in a while (ok, he also speeds up during fills); can you fix that? <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

While analog beat detectors are not just the thing of urban legends (check out Mr. Matthew Ellard, the fastest razor we\u2019ve seen), we\u2019d like to keep tape edits to a reasonable minimum. But, we\u2019ll be happy to keep take 4, but pull the chorus from take 2 or an intro from take 1, and grab the solo section from take 3. But if you think you might not be able to make it through a complete take and don\u2019t like the way your band deploys accelerandos and retards, we recommend sticking to Pro Tools for the time being. You are of course welcome to play to a click \u2013 this, and other tricks, can make editing drums in PT easier after the fact.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Can we track an entire album in 1\/2 a day? <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Well, you could conceivably do that; we\u2019d recommend this option for bands that have been touring\/playing a ton. Also, 15 IPS is your friend in this scenario. Leave enough time to dump said album to Pro Tools; if you\u2019d like to track and keep an entire reel of tape, there would be a tape fee. Finally, you might consider blocking out two half days if you think you\u2019re up to tracking more than one or two song. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Oh man, we love the idea of saving on setup costs, but we\u2019re really not a tape band. Can we book a block and track to Pro Tools?\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

You could! But you might be surprised by how much fun you might have trying something new \ud83d\ude42<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I\u2019d love to learn more about analog tape, are you guys offering any tape workshops? <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

We\u2019re looking into the possibility of offering tape workshops \u2013 setup, calibration, preparation, editing, and more would all be covered. Drop us a line and tell us you\u2019re interested in this sort of thing, and we\u2019ll let you know when we offer it. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

I love working with engineer\/producer XYX \u2013 can he be on our session?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Maybe! We\u2019re reserving the right to staff these sessions with engineers who are comfortable in tape world, but as you know \u2013 some of our engineers and alumni engineers have rates for specific things and might not be available for ATW, but as with everything in life \u2013 this is subject to change and worth asking Ed about!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Can we bring an engineer for our session?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sure, but since this is ATW<\/strong>, we\u2019ll be staffing the session with a staff engineer anyway, so we won\u2019t necessarily be able to offer a discount.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I\u2019m an engineer; can I bring a band in?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Yes! But, as we pointed out above, since the nature of ATW<\/strong> is sort of complex, we\u2019ll be staffing the session with one of our engineers too. Please check in with Ed and work out some details.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The fine print \u2013 we reserve the right to change any of these terms at any time; you know how it goes \u2013 things can change; if we have an overwhelming response we\u2019ll add days, but if you book a day and we can\u2019t fill the space around it with ATW sessions we might ask you to move your dates.<\/p>\n\n\n

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