prosheditor
Well-known member
After looking through some old tape stock in my modest archive library comprised of source, work and finished product mix tapes in various formats such as, 8mm ME, mini & full DV / DVC Pro, 3/4" U-matic SP and Beta SP collected over the last 25 yrs, the memories started coming back along with really appreciating how tough those things were back then.
In my early days and brief time in news, I remember seeing worn out, marked up tape shells with layers of old labels that looked so bad it was hard to believe ‎that their inner tape ribbon could still hold information with so many passes, load-ins, ejections, FF, RW, pre-roll cues, jogs and shuttles along with being tossed around in and out of hot, cold, dry and wet environments.
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If you can recall, what are the worst tape shell & ribbon conditions, brands and formats, you saw or were made to work with along with the maximum number of passes you were able to get out of a single tape before experiencing dropout, a jammed ratchet or broken tape?
Also, what ‎did you consider the best ENG /EFP tape format and brand for field use or mastering?
In my early days and brief time in news, I remember seeing worn out, marked up tape shells with layers of old labels that looked so bad it was hard to believe ‎that their inner tape ribbon could still hold information with so many passes, load-ins, ejections, FF, RW, pre-roll cues, jogs and shuttles along with being tossed around in and out of hot, cold, dry and wet environments.
‎
If you can recall, what are the worst tape shell & ribbon conditions, brands and formats, you saw or were made to work with along with the maximum number of passes you were able to get out of a single tape before experiencing dropout, a jammed ratchet or broken tape?
Also, what ‎did you consider the best ENG /EFP tape format and brand for field use or mastering?