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Mono reel-to-reel recorder, circa 1965 |
Since the age of thirteen I've had some sort of "recording studio" in my basement.
The first one, in 1965, consisted of a Sears catalogue mail-order reel-to-reel recorder, about the size of a telephone directory (see image).
I discovered, by covering the erase head with Scotch tape, I could record a second and third track of audio without erasing the first one (although the quality diminished exponentially with each pass). Later I inserted a small "Radio Shack" toggle switch to disable the erase head. From that day on I was hooked on recording, and I dreamed of one day building my own studio.
Over the years I've had a series of basement studios. A long list of recorders, mixers and miscellaneous gear came and went: Philips, TEAC, Revox, Ampex, Neve, Sound Workshop, Urei, Pultec, Neumann.
By the summer of 1989 my home studio was stretched to the limit. I had Studer 24-track recorder, an SSL E-Series console, and rack-upon-rack of compressors, limiters, reverbs and effects units. I was writing and recording with Aerosmith at the time ... very loudly ... and I had a new-born baby napping upstairs. My wife had been very tolerant up to this point, but she gently suggested it might be time to move the studio out of the house!
I looked for a building to rent, but as soon as I said "recording studio" the answer was "no vacancy". I thought about buying a building, but I couldn't find anything suitable.
So I purchased a vacant lot, hired an architect, and began the design and construction of Armoury Studios ... from the ground up.