Interviews
Andrija Tokic: Alabama Shakes, Hurray for the Riff Raff
by Larry Crane
Dropping in at Andrija Tokic's Bomb Shelter Studio in Nashville, Tennessee, one might be forgiven for assuming they fell through a time warp. Wood and stone walls harken back to another time, and...
Hip-Hop
Doomtree: Minneapolis Hip-Hop
by Zac Meyer
Doomtree is a hip-hop collective base in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The seven-member band and record label is known for its homegrown DIY ethos, wide range of musical influences, and lyrical complexity...
Interviews
Chris Walla: Making Tape Loops
by Larry Crane
Way the heck back, in issue #19 ofTape Op, we interviewed Chris Walla, then an integral part of the up-and-coming Death Cab For Cutie. Now Chris is off on his own, and his first music expedition (and...
All About Eno
Leo Abrahams: Brian Eno, David Byrne, Wild Beasts
by Larry Crane
I caught Leo Abrahams at his London home after a soundtrack session at Abbey Road and before heading over to play guitar on a recording with Jarvis Cocker of Pulp. It's all in a day's work for this...
Interviews
Ariel Rechtshaid: Madonna, Charli XCX, Adele
by Zac Meyer
Ariel Rechtshaid is busy. Last year alone he released productions with Charli XCX, Tobias Jesso Jr., Brandon Flowers, Little Boots, Carly Rae Jepsen, Adele, Lower Dens, and some pop singer named...
Interviews
Dave Pensado: Mary J. Blige, Beyoncé, Macy Gray
by Larry Crane
Partway through my chat with world-renowned mix engineer Dave Pensado he said,"Be careful that you don't confuse advice with opinion." Hanging with Dave you realize he is a veritable fountain of...
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The Future of Clocks: Clarifications in the Audio Clocking Paradigm
by Allen Farmelo
Contributing writer Allen Farmelo started off writing a review of the Stanford Research Systems PERF-10 rubidium audio clock for Tape Op. After many hours of immersive listening and extensive research...
Clay Blair: From the Producer’s Workshop to Boulevard Recording
by Larry Crane
I had heard, from contributor Alex Maiolo, that someone from North Carolina had moved out to L.A. and accidentally discovered and re-opened the famed Producer's Workshop studio in Hollywood. That...
Jesper “Yebo” Reginal: Crunchy Frog Records
by Alex Maiolo
Independent scenes were popping up all over the US and UK in the '80s and '90s. Labels like Touch & Go and Merge started in spare bedrooms. Simple Machines went so far as to give away their...
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End Rant
Don't Trust Your Microphones
by Larry Crane
While interviewing Andrija Tokic for this issue of Tape Op he told me, "Mics are nothing like ears. It's about learning how to get what you like out of a sound." I couldn't agree more. I'm...
Gear Geeking
Audio Analysis Software
by Andy Hong
When I'm reviewing gear, audio analysis software like FuzzMeasure [this issue] gives me the ability to resolve differences in sound quality and consequently use objective language when conveying those...
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Alpha 50 Active Monitors, Alpha 80 Active Monitors
by Focal Professional | reviewed by Lance Jackman, Scott McChane
In a previous issue, I wrote a glowing review of Focal Professional's mid-priced Alpha 65 2-way active nearfield monitor [Tape Op #104]. The Alpha 50 is the smallest speaker...
BeatStep Pro Controller & Sequencer
by Arturia | reviewed by John Baccigaluppi, Suzanne Ciani
While I have a few minor quibbles, the Arturia BeatStep Pro is a super fun hardware sequencer and controller, and it's a great deal. Go price out a 16-step analog sequencer, and you'll have a hard...
PSP L’otary rotary speaker plug-in
by PSPaudioware.com | reviewed by Dave Cerminara
PSP L'otary is an emulation of the classic Leslie 122 and 147 rotary cabinets. I've been a big fan of PSP's products since my first use of the company's fantastic rendition of the Lexicon PCM 42 delay...
AHB2 power amplifier , DAC2HGC A/D converter & preamp
by Benchmark Media Systems | reviewed by Tom Fine
Before she joined Jefferson Airplane, Grace Slick was in a band called The Great Society. They made an LP, Conspicuous Only in Its Absence, the title of which has stuck in my mind ever since I first...
Pro-C 2 compressor plug-in
by FabFilter | reviewed by Dave Hidek
FabFilter Pro-C 2 is the new and improved version of their Pro-C, a compressor plug-in that captured many hearts back in 2007, in part due to its GUI that was straight out of Star Trek: The Next...
ÜberMod, Freq Echo, Shimmer, Room, VintageVerb, and Plate reverb plug-ins
by Valhalla DSP | reviewed by John Baccigaluppi
Valhalla DSP is a new plug-in company consisting of Sean (coding) and Kristin (graphics, marketing) Costello, who together run a small and efficient operation. There are a few things that make...
Folkways Records: Moses Asch and His Encyclopedia of Sound, Richard Carlin, Peter D. Goldsmith
by Tony Olmsted | reviewed by Matt Frazier
Moses Asch is almost certainly the only record-label owner to have had his aspirations personally endorsed by Albert Einstein. From this auspicious encounter, Asch went on to release titles by...
Apollo 8p Thunderbolt 2 audio interface
by Universal Audio | reviewed by Dana Gumbiner
Universal Audio is back with updated versions of their well-regarded Apollo line of interfaces [Tape Op #95, #99, #101]. Let's talk about the Apollo 8p variant. Similar to its predecessor, this is a...
Anthology X plug-in bundle
by Eventide | reviewed by John Baccigaluppi
As I mentioned in my review of Pro Tools HD Native [Tape Op #84], when I ditched my TDM rig for a native system, I never looked back - with the one exception being the loss of the TDM-only Eventide...
B1 & B1D 500-series mic preamps
by Burl Audio | reviewed by Geoff Stanfield
Burl Audio is already well known and loved for its two-channel B2 Bomber AD/DA converter [Tape Op #79] and multi-channel B80 Mothership [#84], but maybe less so for its boutique all-analog audio gear....
5C Super Sound Cube speaker
by Auratone | reviewed by John Baccigaluppi, Andy Hong, Scott McChane
John Baccigaluppi and Scott McChane both spent time on the recently reintroduced Auratone 5C Super Sound Cube. John owns a pair of vintage 5C speakers that he's relied on for 25 years; they are...
NC3FXX / NC3MXX-B-CRYSTAL XLR connectors
by Neutrik | reviewed by Allen Farmelo
While shopping around for some XLR connectors, I came across the NC3MXX-B-CRYSTAL connector from Neutrik and just laughed. A ring of Swarovski crystals embedded into a black XLR connector for $25...
Firefly tube direct box
by Radial Engineering | reviewed by Pete Weiss
Radial Engineering has been creating robust, well-designed, great-sounding audio boxes for decades now. The Canadian company - pioneers in the re-amping game - excels at solving problems that audio...
Ocean Way Audio / Cliff Mics
by RM1 ribbon mic | reviewed by Geoff Stanfield
New ribbon mics are everywhere these days. They have always been part of every good studio's microphone locker, but in recent years, there have been several new ideas for what a ribbon mic can be....
Clarett 8PreX Thunderbolt audio interface
by Focusrite | reviewed by Dana Gumbiner
Focusrite comes out swinging into the growing Thunderbolt interface market with this unbelievably affordable entry, the flagship in their new Clarett range of interfaces. I say "unbelievably...
GTAW4 & GTAW5 sound-hole truss-rod wrenches
by CruzTOOLS | reviewed by Pete Weiss
As I barrel toward the half-century mark, I find I am way more active with guitars than in the past. Not only am I playing more than usual, I'm also adjusting, setting up, fixing, and even cobbling...
Celesoníc US-20x20 audio interface
by TASCAM | reviewed by Alan Tubbs
Many, um, "experienced" readers have fond memories of their first TASCAM/TEAC analog reel-to-reel or Portastudio cassette decks, while digital whippersnappers will be more familiar with TASCAM's...
FuzzMeasure 4 signal analysis software
by SuperMegaUltraGroovy | reviewed by Brad Williams
For acousticians and those engaged in research and development, the ability to measure attributes of rooms, speaker systems, and audio circuits is obviously invaluable. While the need for this...
HEXT headphone extension cable
by Sonic Nuance | reviewed by John Baccigaluppi
Every once in a very rare while, a new pro audio product appears that is extremely well designed and fills a very obvious need, yet somehow, the product didn't exist earlier. When you finally get your...
V610 Complimiter
by Spectra Sonics | reviewed by Garrett Haines
The V610 is an enhanced version of the classic Complimiter from Spectra Sonics. Spectra Sonics was founded by William G. Dilley in 1964 to build products for recording and broadcasting studios. Dilley...
DDL-500 500-series delay
by Eventide | reviewed by Eli Crews
Okay, Eventide has just officially become my favorite pro audio manufacturer on the planet. I had almost finished this already favorable review, and then I got something in the mail that made me come...
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Music Reviews
The Complete Concert By The Sea
by Erroll Garner | reviewed by Tom Fine
Recorded at the Carmel, California, Sunset Center with a single Altec mic onto an Ampex 600 full-track tape deck on September 16, 1955, this concert became one of the best sellers in the Columbia jazz...
Music Reviews
The Complete Matrix Tapes
by The Velvet Underground | reviewed by Larry Crane
This four-CD box set includes 42 live performances by the legendary Velvets at the San Francisco club, The Matrix, in late 1969. Some of the material was on 1974's venerable 1969: The Velvet...