Why hasn't many music artists perform music the way it exactly sounded in the 60s & 70s? Do they not use the same recording equipment?
I think there are a lot of artists who would absolutely love to record music exactly as it sounded in the 60s and 70s. We can see where the players are still using the classic instruments and amps along with the venerable Hammond B3 organ with the Leslie tone cabinet.
Computer software developers are selling all sorts of digital models of classic, vintage recording technology. Some are very good and lend a little bit of classic vibe to the recording. But they’re only short links in a long chain that can’t be entirely made up of software.
The disconsolate fact is that it’s just too expensive and perhaps even impossible to build a studio that’s based solely on the equipment from the 60s and 70s. While the old gear was very well made, it still requires maintenance and service. Repair parts are either extravagantly expensive or completely impossible to come by.
Two inch reel tape is now running over $300 for every 15 minutes of recording time. You’d need a minimum of six reels ($1800), and you’d still have to carefully conserve tape use. Reference calibrated alignment tapes are necessary for routine maintenance and one alignment tape for a 2” multi-track deck is now $899, from MRL Labs. You’d need one for each of two operating speeds, plus a few for the 1/4” two-track mix-down deck. A studio would be looking at around $10,000 just for tape inventory.
When we start considering all the processing hardware involved, things get downright crazy. For example, many or most of the 60s and 70s hits were mixed or mastered using the hallowed Fairchild 660 compressor. Take a peek at this link. This is one unit. You’ll need two for stereo mix-down - $118,000 a pair.
Analoguetube Original Fairchild 660 & 670 audio compresson equipment
The final nail in the coffin is the fact that it’s really hard to make money selling records these days. It’s just not practical to invest millions in a studio that would have to charge far more than any artist could hope to earn back.
We can certainly mimic the old recording techniques, artistry and production styles of the 50s and 60s. That can do a lot. But to make it exactly as it was from the days of old would be a daunting task.
But we being the 21st century Musicians we will still try our best and make beautiful music worth listening to ..
thank you for reading
