Eight-track collectors are the archivists of a unique and glorious technology. We embrace a machine that has ceased to exist in the present, one which Madison Avenue has, arbitrarily, made synonymous with "last year's model," obsolescence and backwardness (they scream, "You don't have a cellular phone yet? You probably still listen to 8-tracks..."). We are a group that refuses to believe it when corporate America insists that the new technology sounds better; a group whose members understand implicitly the relevance of looking back in history in order to see forward.

From 8trackheaven.com

Posted by: Mac - People Stop Wars on April 8, 2003 07:56 AM

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"Sounds better"

Many critics of MP3 format argued it was a step backwards in sound quality, a factor which didn't seem to bother many MP3 users.

Posted by: on April 8, 2003 08:21 AM

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Well, owners of vinyl make the argument that CDs are too perfect, and remove the life from the music being played. I've heard detailed explanations as to why this is true, and I agree, but for the non-audiophile, this is a moot question. They don't like the scratchy bits in the background and during the silent parts, so CD clarity was a boon.

I agree with the same arguments about the poor quality of MP3, but again it addresses the need for customization and portability that many consumers have.

So, I don't think it is retro posing to have a non-digital studio. The true audiophile will love the idea of no digital equipment and will probably buy as much as possible from a company who can deliver a superior experience. So the trick now becomes how to make money and attract artists who wish to record in that type of environment.

As for 8-track, it is hard to be a fan of a format that required a large, cumbersome machine, boxy modules that got dirty easily and seemed to attract dust like a magnet (yet were hard to clean) and offered absolutely no customization. I could record from radio, tape, and vinyl and got similar sound quality; easy choice.

Posted by: Lydia on April 8, 2003 05:09 PM

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Unfortunately, if you down this track too far, you end up like The La's. A great band, who produced one superlative album, but became obsessed with getting true 60s ambience in their music. To the point where not only did they want genuine 60s equipment in the studio, they wanted it to have genuine 60s dust inside it! Needless to say, they never produced a second album and the UK music scene lost a great songwriter (Lee Mavers). Bottom line is, use what you're comfortable with, but don't get obsessed.

MP3s - I'm not an audiophile, but they generally sound awful to me. Windows Media files seem to give much better clarity for about the same file size.

Posted by: Alan on April 9, 2003 04:23 AM

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