In 1988, I was exposed to the world of studio recording by one of my bandmates who had a home recording studio, featuring a Tascam 38 1/2" 8-track reel to reel deck. We used this studio to record some parodies for an Orlando radio station's morning show disc jockeys. Our most popular creation was "What Are The Words To La Bamba" that received airplay not only on that station but on a number of other stations throughout the U.S. By watching how tracks were laid, how effects were used, and how songs were mixed down, I learned the basics of recording.
At the end of the year, I bought a used Tascam 244 Portastudio 4-track cassette recorder, an all-in-one machine that pales in comparison to the sound quality that can be achieved with today's
technology, but it was quite the impressive little dynamo in its day. It offered everything that I needed in order to dive headfirst into the world of multi-track recording as it was entirely self-contained with a mixing board that controlled the four tracks and the stereo Master. It offered two parametric EQ's, DBX noise reduction, the ability to record on individual tracks or simultaneously on all four tracks, and the ability to
bounce up to three tracks onto one so as to free up tracks for more instruments or vocals. Naturally, the bounced track's quality would suffer as it would now be second generation with some tape hiss, but the quality reduction was not very noticeable when backing vocals or tracks that would be given less prominence in the final mix were bounced. I found the best tape for recording on the machine was Maxell UDXL II C-60 cassette tapes that offered 15 minutes of recording per side. Analog VU meters allowed you to see a signal's
input strength and keep the signal from being too hot, causing clipping. Input signal was adjusted through trim pots that included an "overload" red light that would illuminate if the signal level exceeded the reference level by 20db. Other welcome features were the ability to adjust recording speed by +/- 15%, and with the use of a foot switch, mistakes in tracks could be corrected by punching in and out where needed.
For reference monitors, I settled on a pair of Realistic Minimus-7 bookshelf stereo speakers that were not only very affordable but which delivered exceptional sound quality for their price. Capable of
handling 45W RMS each and with a 50Hz to 20KZ frequency range, they were perfect for my purposes.
I used this setup for a year or so and created a bit of a cottage industry for myself, recording a number of 15-second parody songs for rock station disc jockeys in Orlando. They would tell me what songs they wanted me to use and whether they wanted a song for the beginning, middle, or end of their shows. I would then write new lyrics and record the songs. Over time, with the money I made from selling these parodies, I was able to eventually upgrade my studio to an 8-Track reel to reel recorder, a rack with outboard effects, and a 24-channel mixing board.
