Track volume on CD

[Bob Womack]

Originally Posted by Northward

Nice! There was a time you could have these for a song in Norway. Back when the 'superiority' of anything digital was embraced.

Thanks. The first recorder I did really serious work on back in 1978 was this model. I found this one in the 90s as a memory and it has already seen service restoring an historic recording from the '60s.

Speaking of compression and music in cars: did you know that the NAD 6300 cassette deck had a button for alternative recording named 'CAR' (compressed audio recording). Apparently this made a more compressed recording than usual, making it better suited for listening in car and for walkman use with more noise around. I'd say these engineers where ahead of their time looking at state of affairs today.

I wonder if using this CAR button would prove beneficial in home recording? On a track by track recording before the DAW. Sort of a poor mans 'hitting tape hard' - utilising the full with of the cassette tape. Using tape compression rather than a plugin compressior.

I didn't remember the CAR function. I have a little Tascam digital portastudio for quick scratch stuff and it offers a stereo compressor as an insert in the stereo bus and again in the mastering channel. I think that is a better location for an auto-compression scheme because the material is already mixed, much like the material the CAR system was used on. However, compression is an effect that I think is particularly hard for a typical novice to handle and the result can often be quite ugly.

My apologie to the OP for my sidetracking. But we're sort of still on the subject of compression and with knowledgeable people's attention, I just have to ask

Oooo... I dunno. It's just me.

Bob