Cassette tape loops

- musicdeath schrieb...
- Benutzer
- 14. Apr. 2008, 7:51
Cassette tape loops

Has anyone had any success making tape loops with the humble compact audio cassette? I've followed the advice given here, but have had mixed results. While my very first Möbius loop worked fine, I've yet to make a satisfactory standard tape loop. Of my, perhaps, 8 or 9 attempts, most have refused to pass through the mechanism at all, even though the reels turn freely by hand. The remaining 2 or 3 have played, but the tape constantly slips on the reels giving an irritating squeaky effect. I've used rubber cement on the reels as the tutorial suggests but have found that it makes little difference. In fact, unless it's applied very carefully, surplus cement on the edges of the reels can cause friction and prevent the reels rotating properly. Any advice?

[quote][b][user]musicdeath[/user][/b] sagte: Has anyone had any success making tape loops with the humble compact audio cassette? I've followed the advice given [url=http://en.wikibooks.org/wiki/Making_Cassette_Tape_Loops]here[/url], but have had mixed results. While my very first Möbius loop worked fine, I've yet to make a satisfactory standard tape loop. Of my, perhaps, 8 or 9 attempts, most have refused to pass through the mechanism at all, even though the reels turn freely by hand. The remaining 2 or 3 have played, but the tape constantly slips on the reels giving an irritating squeaky effect. I've used rubber cement on the reels as the tutorial suggests but have found that it makes little difference. In fact, unless it's applied very carefully, surplus cement on the edges of the reels can cause friction and prevent the reels rotating properly. Any advice? [/quote]

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- bbblood schrieb...
- Benutzer
- 13. Jun. 2008, 8:52
Everytime I've done it in the past it's been really easy.

Have you checked out the kid making a loop on youtube? That's pretty much the way I make them.

www.myspace.com/bbblood // http://bbblood.blogspot.com

[quote][b][user]bbblood[/user][/b] sagte: Everytime I've done it in the past it's been really easy. Have you checked out the kid making a loop on youtube? That's pretty much the way I make them.[/quote]

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- Singulair schrieb...
- Benutzer
- 10. Jul. 2008, 18:53
mine always slip too. it's so frustrating

[quote][b][user]Singulair[/user][/b] sagte: mine always slip too. it's so frustrating[/quote]

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- Singulair schrieb...
- Benutzer
- 22. Jul. 2008, 21:07
the whole thing won't spin if i'm only rotating one of the rotors, which is how the tape p[layer works. i'm being very precise, so seeing people's success's easy-peasy is frustrating :<

[quote][b][user]Singulair[/user][/b] sagte: the whole thing won't spin if i'm only rotating one of the rotors, which is how the tape p[layer works. i'm being very precise, so seeing people's success's easy-peasy is frustrating :<[/quote]

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- [Gelöschter Benutzer] schrieb...
- Benutzer
- 23. Jul. 2008, 18:24
http://en.wikibooks.org/wiki/Making_Cassette_Tape_Loops

Make sure to put rubber cement or something around the white plastic reels, it gives them friction to pull the tape.

[quote][b][user][/user][/b] sagte: http://en.wikibooks.org/wiki/Making_Cassette_Tape_Loops Make sure to put rubber cement or something around the white plastic reels, it gives them friction to pull the tape.[/quote]

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- ivanmatthew schrieb...
- Abonnent
- 24. Jul. 2008, 9:02
[quote][b][user]ivanmatthew[/user][/b] sagte: [/quote]
Bearbeitet von ivanmatthew am 4. Jun. 2011, 17:18

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- staticdiva schrieb...
- Benutzer
- 28. Jul. 2008, 2:22
Hello.
I had quite satisfactory results with commercial tapes for answering machines - they're the ones you're supposed to use to record your answering message. The lenght is fixed (about 30 seconds, if i remember), and you can play only one side (moebius-type loop), but you can pull out the tape and change the lenght (cut & shorten it or add more tape). If you pull it apart (=if you open it) it's quite difficult to put it back.

[quote][b][user]staticdiva[/user][/b] sagte: Hello. I had quite satisfactory results with commercial tapes for answering machines - they're the ones you're supposed to use to record your answering message. The lenght is fixed (about 30 seconds, if i remember), and you can play only one side (moebius-type loop), but you can pull out the tape and change the lenght (cut & shorten it or add more tape). If you pull it apart (=if you open it) it's quite difficult to put it back.[/quote]

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- bbblood schrieb...
- Benutzer
- 20. Aug. 2008, 13:18
ivanmatthew said:
I have to admit, i cheat when it comes to tape loops. I couldn't be arsed scratching and pasting things together like a caveman riding shortbus to arts and crafts school. I loop with a computer program, say Audacity, then record straight to cassette from PC.

Admittedly, playback is a hassle because you're rewinding and shit. You're also limited by the length of a particular tape.

I mean it doesn't really matter how you do something, this will work as well as making a prepared tape. I still record a lot of stuff from pc that I've prepared onto mini disc or tape.

www.myspace.com/bbblood // http://bbblood.blogspot.com

[quote][b][user]bbblood[/user][/b] sagte: [quote][b][user]ivanmatthew[/user][/b] said: I have to admit, i cheat when it comes to tape loops. I couldn't be arsed scratching and pasting things together like a caveman riding shortbus to arts and crafts school. I loop with a computer program, say Audacity, then record straight to cassette from PC. Admittedly, playback is a hassle because you're rewinding and shit. You're also limited by the length of a particular tape.[/quote] I mean it doesn't really matter how you do something, this will work as well as making a prepared tape. I still record a lot of stuff from pc that I've prepared onto mini disc or tape. [/quote]

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- analogonz schrieb...
- Benutzer
- 28. Sep. 2008, 8:50
yay! finally ive done my first tape loop! its quite easy and fun so i think im gonna make loads more of it! haha.. check it out at

myspace.com/gonzoisduckdive

ps: its an excerpt of ali akbar khan's psycho sitar.

[quote][b][user]analogonz[/user][/b] sagte: yay! finally ive done my first tape loop! its quite easy and fun so i think im gonna make loads more of it! haha.. check it out at myspace.com/gonzoisduckdive ps: its an excerpt of ali akbar khan's psycho sitar.[/quote]

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- CityOfSalt schrieb...
- Benutzer
- 16. Jan. 2009, 9:57
A big problem I've had with standard cassette loops is the inherent degeneration, which I'm looking for a way to remedy. If I make a 2-second loop of say some soul singer after about 2 hours of playing it, the signal will sound like underwater distorted guitar.

[quote][b][user]CityOfSalt[/user][/b] sagte: A big problem I've had with standard cassette loops is the inherent degeneration, which I'm looking for a way to remedy. If I make a 2-second loop of say some soul singer after about 2 hours of playing it, the signal will sound like underwater distorted guitar.[/quote]

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- [Gelöschter Benutzer] schrieb...
- Benutzer
- 2. Mär. 2009, 9:57
hehe deterioration is a good thing! it's fun to experiment with tape loops.

i haven't made one that flows properly yet but near enough. then i put it into the four track and made 4 different sounds then panned them like crazy

[quote][b][user][/user][/b] sagte: hehe deterioration is a good thing! it's fun to experiment with tape loops. i haven't made one that flows properly yet but near enough. then i put it into the four track and made 4 different sounds then panned them like crazy[/quote]

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- sofiesea schrieb...
- Benutzer
- 17. Jun. 2009, 12:48
ok about this stuff.. i've followed that advice on wikipedia as well but am never sure how much overlap to allow? i think that getting the edges as close together as possible is the answer but i also think theres slight difference in length depending on what tape holder you are using to start with as well.

one tip i have though is to use heavier, usually more expensive tape to make the loops with. the lighter stuff can become such a fiddly nightmare..

party on Wayne

[quote][b][user]sofiesea[/user][/b] sagte: ok about this stuff.. i've followed that advice on wikipedia as well but am never sure how much overlap to allow? i think that getting the edges as close together as possible is the answer but i also think theres slight difference in length depending on what tape holder you are using to start with as well. one tip i have though is to use heavier, usually more expensive tape to make the loops with. the lighter stuff can become such a fiddly nightmare.. [/quote]

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- 1111222334 schrieb...
- Abonnent
- 28. Jun. 2009, 16:46
has anyone successfully created a frippertronics device with cassette players? i don't want to get another reel to reel because they're so massive.

[quote][b][user]1111222334[/user][/b] sagte: has anyone successfully created a frippertronics device with cassette players? i don't want to get another reel to reel because they're so massive.[/quote]

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- zvodkaz schrieb...
- Benutzer
- 1. Dez. 2009, 2:06
i once new a girl who made one with one of the two deck boom boxes, just put slits in the side of both the tapes and ran it out of one tape, across the boom box and into the other tape

[quote][b][user]zvodkaz[/user][/b] sagte: i once new a girl who made one with one of the two deck boom boxes, just put slits in the side of both the tapes and ran it out of one tape, across the boom box and into the other tape[/quote]

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- StarCoreA schrieb...
- Benutzer
- 5. Jan. 2010, 21:06
CityOfSalt, of you don't like tape degradation, then why are you bothering to use cassettes in the first place? If you want to make a loop that stays clean forever just use looping software in the digital domain.

[quote][b][user]StarCoreA[/user][/b] sagte: CityOfSalt, of you don't like tape degradation, then why are you bothering to use cassettes in the first place? If you want to make a loop that stays clean forever just use looping software in the digital domain.[/quote]

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- esperikglare schrieb...
- Benutzer
- 17. Feb. 2010, 9:59
zvodkaz: I would love to try this

[quote][b][user]esperikglare[/user][/b] sagte: zvodkaz: I would love to try this[/quote]

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- esperikglare schrieb...
- Benutzer
- 17. Feb. 2010, 10:00
zvodkaz: I would love to try this

[quote][b][user]esperikglare[/user][/b] sagte: zvodkaz: I would love to try this[/quote]

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- pulsing schrieb...
- Benutzer
- 8. Apr. 2010, 8:20
I successfully looped the bewitched soundtrack into a pretty cool rhythm. It wasn't really planned though so I felt bad using it. I used an aux cable to hook up a small portable tape player to an amp through the headphone jack lol. Youtube kid helped - was the only "guide" around then. This was beginning of 09, probably better guides around now. Definitely give the analog tape loop a try - totally rewarding, after the fiddly frustration of coarse haha.

I thought this was what this group was referring to as "Tape Music" but from the comments on the main page it seemed be tapes as a means of recording? For a amateur-Esq sound I guess?

Anyone know if this group is more orientated toward tape looping or tape recording?
Thanks

[quote][b][user]pulsing[/user][/b] sagte: I successfully looped the bewitched soundtrack into a pretty cool rhythm. It wasn't really planned though so I felt bad using it. I used an aux cable to hook up a small portable tape player to an amp through the headphone jack lol. Youtube kid helped - was the only "guide" around then. This was beginning of 09, probably better guides around now. Definitely give the analog tape loop a try - totally rewarding, after the fiddly frustration of coarse haha. I thought this was what this group was referring to as "Tape Music" but from the comments on the main page it seemed be tapes as a means of recording? For a amateur-Esq sound I guess? Anyone know if this group is more orientated toward tape looping or tape recording? Thanks[/quote]

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- madstringbean schrieb...
- Benutzer
- 15. Okt. 2010, 4:45
When I was learning how to make loop tapes I realized there are two ways of doing it and one is much less complicated, but most sites online seem to teach the more complicated version. I made this detailed photo - tutorial to help people learn what I think is the much easier way:

http://www.moonpieinthesky.com/buildsandbends/?p=310

Check out my band: Moon Pie
Your source for psychedelic/industrial/circus/shoegaze pop

[quote][b][user]madstringbean[/user][/b] sagte: When I was learning how to make loop tapes I realized there are two ways of doing it and one is much less complicated, but most sites online seem to teach the more complicated version. I made this detailed photo - tutorial to help people learn what I think is the much easier way: http://www.moonpieinthesky.com/buildsandbends/?p=310 [/quote]

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