Audio Engineering Society (AES) 141 AES Convention
Los Angeles, CA      September 29th through October 2, 2008
Report By Ray Chowkwanyun And Bob Duchan

Recording The Masters And AM Belgium

   This is the one you want: Agfa 468

Tons of excitable Frenchmen (is there any other kind?) and one grizzled stone cold American pro by the name of Don Morris.

Don Morris learns a squirrelly amateur. Don claims theirs is better than the original 468 with better top end. That's possible. Wonderful though the 468 be in all other respects, it could strike the untutored as dull, especially compared to Ampex 456. But that's just its neutral character. It doesn't sizzle. It tells the truth.

Now Don gets into ancient history. The original machine made the tape in one process binding the rust to the backing simultaneously. That machine remains stuck in concrete in Deutschland. These guys are based in France so they had to go to a two step process where the backing is made first and then the rust is stuck on to the backing in a process aptly described as growing rust. The result is a desirable polishing of the tape resulting in a lift in the top end. US $95 for a half inch reel.

Speaking of polishing, I said I got some lightly used tape from some religious outfit whose name escaped me at that instant. Oh, the Scientologists, Don says. I just sold them thirty five thousand reels. All I can say is God bless the Scientologists for supporting analog tape. 

Mulann's partner AM Belgium makes magnetic heads for the Studer A80, A800, A807, A820, and A827 including a butterfly type. Hmmm, might get me some spares. I'm all about having a big spares bin.

---> Back to main AES 141 show report homepage.