Re: [ARSCLIST] 8-track conservation and preservation

[E Sutter <esutter@xxxxxx>]

Hello,

Many thanks for you many helpful tips!!  I am going to do a little bit on the
sociological aspects of the 8-track in my presentation and manual.  I find the
whole "tracker" culture an interesting one.  I had no idea!  And yes, I am
talking about the Lear cartridge.  Who knew they would make something of a
comeback.  I was hoping to locate the documentary about the collectors but
unfortunately have not been able to do so.  I find it quite interesting,
however, that everytime I ask someone I always get laughed at.

Anyway, it should be an interesting manual to write and I thank you for the
8trackheaven.com link.  Lots of great tips there!

Thanks again for your help.  I appreciate it very much.  Happy moving!!!

Elizabeth Sutter

Quoting "Richard L. Hess" <ArcLists@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>:

> Hello, Elizabeth,
>
> You're at my wife's alma-mater! Good choice of schools <smile>.
>
> As an aside, I'm in the throes of packing for a move back to Aurora,
> Ontario, my wife's hometown and I will be practicing tape restoration and
> related consulting from Aurora starting in the fall. My wife's from Aurora,
> I lived there once, and it seemed like a good time to move back.
>
> Are you talking about the 8-track Lear cartridiges?
>
> I can think of several good reasons to preserve them--and they're all
> outlined at the 8trackheaven Web site.  http://www.8trackheaven.com/
>
> But, seriously, as a delivery medium for recorded sound, I thought at the
> time they left something to be desired. While I (and, more importantly, the
> clients) have been pleased with the results I have obtained restoring a few
> old
> 8-tracks, it really was never a truly high-fidelity medium. For a variety
> of reasons, in part due to Nakamichi, Maxell, and TDK, (among others),
> cassettes' fidelity surpassed 8-tracks early on and 8-tracks never caught up.
>
> The four short programs were always a bother, but the format was instantly
> adaptable to discrete quadraphonics and while I can't say it soared on
> that, there were a few good decks made that could create and play 8-tracks
> with reasonable quality.
>
> Personally, I was delighted when the CD took off. At least for me, it
> solved all of the challenges with all of the previous commercial media. I
> do think some CDs sound awful, but that's not the fault of the medium, but
> rather due to CD reissue errors--errors often of not understanding the
> subtleties of playing the original master tape.
>
> Since 8-track was essentially a distribution medium and I would hazard a
> guess that perhaps 90% of the units out there were players only, there is
> not a large body of work enshrined on 8-tracks and no where else. These
> were all derivative from LP or cassette releases. It was just another
> format. I don't think (m)any record labels considered
> 8-track the premiere format for release of most music. At the time 8-tracks
> were popular, I think most serious audio enthusiasts were content with the
> LP. We all knew how well the LP could work, and many of us had tapes. The
> professional reel-to-reel tapes sound better than anything we've ever had
> in our homes, but, to my ears--and those of many knowledgeable
> colleagues--CD is the closest we've had.
>
> So, if there are a few recordings available only on LP, 8-track, and
> cassette and not on CD, give me two pristine LPs if you want the best sound
> possible.
>
> The phenomenon of the 8-track is certainly an interesting study from a
> sociological perspective, but I would not be so interested in it from a
> technical perspective. I don't see libraries maintaining large 8-track
> collections--there are better ways to access the material. I would think if
> a library received a unique recording on 8-track they would be best off
> transferring it as files to their file server--or at least having it put on
> CD.
>
> There are some significant "time bombs" in 8-tracks, including lubrication
> loss and deterioration of the pressure roller that is part of the
> cartridge. Also the availability of players is a big issue. I doubt new
> ones will be made. It appears that the 8-track newsletter is essentially
> out of business after a big resurgence in the 1990s. A note I saw on the
> 8trackheaven Web site tonight indicated that eBay changed the whole feel of
> the 8-track resurgence--for the worse and the editor is now disheartened.
>
> Anyway, I do not know of any serious scholarly works looking at the
> 8-track, but there are some Audio Engineering Society papers about its
> development.
>
> We won't see new 8-tracks being made, either, as most of the duplication
> lines have been junked. For better or for worse, tape is a dying medium. It
> has served us well for 50 years and it remains strong in some niches, but
> at all levels, machines are harder to come by--especially the good ones,
> and media is starting to sound like the same story. There is one
> manufacturer of media left for analog tape--Quantegy.
>
> Cheers,
>
> Richard
>
> At 10:20 PM 7/26/2004 -0400, you wrote:
> >Hello,
> >
> >I am a student in the Library and Information Science program at the
> >University
> >of Western Ontario, in London, Ontario, Canada.  Currently I am enrolled in
> a
> >class called Conservation and Preservation Management.  My final project is
> a
> >presentation and manual about 8-tracks.  I am finding some helpful
> >websites but
> >was also wanting to find some academic literature on the topic.  If this
> >exists.  I also wanted a supporting reason for preserving this media.  If
> >someone could give me any advice on any good resources, please let me know.
> >
> >Thanks,
> >Elizabeth Sutter
>