GEAR – 3 min read
After consistent thought and effort into making our Tape Machine GUI’s more streamlined and user-friendly, we’ve managed to refine the layout down to a minimalistic but optimized setup.
Tape Machine Design, Animation Changes
One of the important updates is the removal of an additional bypass button.
Integrated into the Mix: Analog-Digital Converter Control, the bypass button makes for easy and effective A/B’ing and fewer distractions between you and the music.
The Studer A812 mk1 and the Telefunken M15 offer an interesting contrast in sound. The Studer A812 leverages an open, full-bodied, but smoothly transparent sound while also maintaining great audio integrity as you begin to push the audio into it.
The M15 offers a warmer, more vintage sound and holds a particular type of magic to it that seems to draw you in the more you listen. Potentially adding rich harmonic content to a bass guitar or cello, it might be just the sound you’re looking for.
Additionally, we’ve also added some really cool spinning animations to the tape machines GUI, a small but fun detail.
Chrome Compatibility Issues and Quality of Life Improvements
We noticed that a couple of users were hit with playback issues while using google chrome and various other browsers (we suspect updates on their side), so we did a full unpacking of the code and worked swiftly on fixing the problem.
As reviewed, the issue appears to be solved, and stability has drastically improved.
Interestingly enough, we noticed that while this was all happening, Mozilla Firefox ran flawlessly at all times, so if there's any further issue, please contact us with a bug report and know that you have an immediate solution as we work on it.
Thanks to everyone for their patience on this issue.
The Magic Chain
After rigorous testing, we’ve managed to find a few really neat combinations to spice up your Analog mixing and mastering chains.
Gently pushing your track through the Studer A812 mk1 until it just touches the redline, where you’re saturating the track, bringing presence and hidden elements to the front of the mix.
Then, bounce the file to prepare the track for additional analog compression in the form of the Gyraf G24 Passive Aggressive Compressor.
Utilizing the “[Factory] Mix Glue 2 by MB” Preset, quickly dialing in the perfect bus compression that gently compliments your mix becomes easy. Dial back each threshold, and adjust the gain knob on the Mix: Analog-Digital Converter Control to send the perfect audio level into the Gyraf, aiming for subtle compression in the realms of 0.8 to 1.5db gain reduction on the VU meter.
You'll immediately notice the forward push of clarity, the openness combined with the “bringing to life” feeling from the studer, and suddenly, you don’t have to work so hard anymore to get your mix to sound like “that sound” you’ve heard so often on the radio.
“Bass Response”
Finding a suitable bass chain is a challenging task.
There’s always the issue of wondering how to add character and definition to the low frequencies while keeping everything balanced and under control.
A combination you might find interesting is utilizing the Telefunken M15 in conjunction with the Dual LA2A compressor.
First, Find the sweet spot with the M15. Push the audio just enough to get a little tape compression, but pull back enough to keep the transients strong.
Next, put your newly “Taped Up” Bass through the Dual LA2A, an Iconic compressor heavily used on nearly every record you hear today. Try aim for balancing the variances between the loudest bass notes and the softest ones, but remember. Moderation and adding just enough compression to bring the bass forward while also holding a tight balance is the key to success.