[sdiy] Should I repair my Fostex, or should I go HD recording?

[WeAreAs1 at aol.com]

In a message dated 12/26/04 11:00:59 AM, rude66 at xs4all.nl writes:

<< heh.. read the beatles' studio sessions books. sgt pepper and the white

album were made on 4 tracks (or maybe the latter with 8) and include

enormous amounts of overdubs. >>

First, let me preface by saying that I think Sgt. Pepper is still the 
greatest record ever made.  Period.

However, if you listen to it with a critical ear, you will eventually have to 
agree that Sgt. Pepper is an extremely lo-fi record.  You can really hear all 
that sludgy tape-bouncing noise buildup and loss of clarity -- mostly on the 
basic track sounds (drums, bass, etc.).  Since the vocals were usually the 
last thing committed to tape, they usually did not go through any tape transfers, 
and do not usually display any apparent generational loss.  Also, with a few 
exceptions (such as "She's Leaving Home"), it's a very densely mixed and 
orchestrated record.  The sonic density helps to mask some of the crappy sounding 
tracks.  Additionally, in general, the lead vocals on Sgt. Pepper are mixed WAY 
out in front, more so than on most rock and pop records of the day.  Since 
most of the vocal tracks are first generation, your ear tends to hear that vocal 
recording quality as the general tonality of the record, but it's not.  Just 
try to ignore the lead vocal parts and listen to just the drums, bass, and 
rhythm guitars.  You may be very surprised.

That having been said, I'll say once again what I always say:  Records are 
not about equipment or even about the recording process.  They are about SONGS 
and PERFORMANCES.  In the case of Sgt. Pepper, the greatest band in the world 
simply wrote some of the best songs they ever wrote, performed them extremely 
well, and pulled out all the stops with regard to creativity in the studio.  It 
matters not that the recording quality is relatively lo-fi.

For another example of an incredibly GREAT record that was incredibly poorly 
recorded, look no further than Bob Dylan's classic "Like A Rolling Stone".  
Actually, look no further than the very first sound heard on the record, which 
happens to be a single snare drum hit on beat 4, just before the band comes in. 
 That snare drum sounds like a wet cardboard box being hit with a piece of 
meat, possible a turkey leg.  It doesn't get any better later on, either.  
Nevertheless, that record is one of rock's great works of art, and arguably one of 
Dylan's very best.

Oh, and how about Little Richard's incredible "Tutti Frutti"?  The lead vocal 
is recorded so hot and distorted that it may as well have been recorded 
through a Z-Vex Fuzz Factory (it sounds like tape distortion to me..).  Did that 
stop it from being one of the greatest rock records ever made?  No, that 
distorted vocal probably actually helped it achieve that status!

The inverse is true, also.  That is, one can make incredibly beautiful (or 
incredibly horrible) recordings on high quality modern digital equipment.  It's 
never about the gear -- It's all about THE SONGS, baby.  You want to make a 
better recording?  Write a better song.