Advanced Functions: 4-Track Reel to Reel Recorder

Video Transcript

"For Expert Village, I'm Kurt Glaser, Chief Engineer of KGB Studios. Welcome to this next section where we're talking about 4-track reel to reel recorders. So let's continue. In the last session, we took a look at some of the basic functions on our reel to reel or 4-track tape recorder. In this session, we'll dive in a little deeper in the functionality as we see here on the deck. So here we have the 4-track tape recorder. Let's go through the functions on the deck, starting from the top down on this reel to reel. Up over here, right in the middle, you can see right there in the middle of the screen, that's the tape counter and that's for measuring, it's not real accurate way to measure the device, but it does give you some sort of help in terms of locating what goes on these tapes. And these are the reels, this is the left reel. This one right here is the left reel, followed by this one over here which is the right reel. Down over here, this switch right here is the tape speed switch. You can set it at three and three quarters inches per second or at the more dynamic and better for live recording, seven and a half inches per second or IPS. This piece here is the head, which we will go into a little bit further. And we'll talk about these other devices over here. This piece over here, the multi-sync is a real important piece which we'll talk about when we get into the live recording. These are the basic function switches. Fast forward, stop, record, etcetera. And you can actually record one track at a time on a 4-track that separates from what the other types of decks you can use. This sets the type of device that you for are, excuse me, taping device whether high or low bias. Power and pause, of course, obvious connections there. Down over here in the bottom left hand corner, these are the devices for the microphone is set here on the outside and on the inside you have this dual function knob where you have the mic here, or the line and we'll talk about that in a minute. Headphones for front and back, stereo of course. And these are called the volume unit meters or VU meters, right here and there are, of course, four of those. This is where you plug your microphones in. We'll talk about that again in a little more detail when we get into the deeper functions. And this tells you which ones you can monitor. So, if you're listening to the record, you'll be on particular channels. And then far over here, to the far right and the bottom, this is the volume controls on each of the stereo channels. And down over here, we have the sound on sound which is the SOS, sound on sound, or the echo device and you can control the amount with this control here. Very interesting device. So that is the unit itself and that's the functions, the basic functions of a 4-track reel to reel tape deck."