Studio evolution
After purchasing a TEAC Portastudio M144 in the early 1980s, real multi-track recordings (4-tracks) were started and my home recording studio was renamed "Twilight Studio". With this compact device the recordings are made for Simple, at home and on location. Then a Tascam 22-2 Master Recorder was also added for mastering.
FYI: my M144 has been expanded with extra insertion points on each channel and my 22-2 has a special emphasis filter for extra noise reduction
Recording stages...
In the late 70s, making music yourself became more important and the possibility arose to record multiple layers through sound-on-sound recordings with an Akai 4000DS MK II tape recorder.
This is how my first solo recordings and the recordings of Fangorn came into existence.
In the early 70s I started experimenting with combining different sound sources and a microphone via a DIY Philips mixer as a sound engineer for a self-made radio station without a transmitter (everything recorded on cassette).
The long way of recording techniques, different developments and different recording media
The computer entered the studio in 1990, thanks to the rise of MIDI. From that moment on I used an Atari 1040 STe with Cubase, with which the MIDI signals from my Roland D-20 keyboard could be recorded on diskette. Especially useful for arranging your own music.
So far all audio has been recorded analogously on tape or cassette. In 1994 the Tascam DA-88 digital 8-track recorder changed that. It records the audio signals digitally on a Hi-8 video cassette. Because of this I was relieved of the noise of analogue tapes and this audio signal could also be synchronized with the MIDI signals of the Atari. New possibilities for better recordings, which were also used for the Unity CD. An (analog) Spirit Folio Rac Pac mixer served as the entry for the instruments and Cubase kept everything under control.
In 1998 an extra step was taken towards the digital domain. The mixing console also became digital (Spirit Digital 328) and I switched to an Apple computer with Logic as a sequencer software with audio recording capability. From now on everything was recorded via digital signals, whereby signal processing via software plug-ins was also possible. The number of recording tracks was only limited by the processor capacity of the computer. My solo CD has also been recorded in this way. In essence, the studio still runs this way, with some (software) upgrades taking place.
In short, unlike the latest generation of producers, I did not start directly in the digital recording domain, but over the years I have experienced many wanderings along various new developments. As a result, I learned a lot about recording techniques and MIDI, among other things. An exciting journey, in which especially the limitations lead to extra creativity.
The only disadvantage: there is still a huge amount of work to do in converting four decades of recording material from various media to the digital domain ...