Many of our members surely know about what is sometimes referred to as Frippertronics. Some don't, so I'll attempt a very crude explanation and gladly ask more knowledgeable members to post a more exacting description.
Frippertronics consists of putting 2 R2Rs side to side -- we'll refer to them as A & B -- and then configuring the machines in such a way that tape starts at a *supply reel* on A to the *take-up reel* on B. In so doing, sound recorded on A will be played back on B, but with some delay which is dependent on the distance between A & B. It is my understanding that the delay is usually on the order of just a few seconds.
The audio of B is then returned back to A, causing the delayed signal to repeat while new content is mixed in with it.
Robert Fripp (of King Crimson fame) employed this system to record/create layered electric guitar sounds in real time. Done live, an entire performance would be recorded on the looped tape.
I saw Robert Fripp in concert almost 30 years ago at a small club in Boston. Fripp sat on a chair and next to him was a table with, IIRC, his dual modded Revox A77 R2Rs. The concert was just jaw dropping. Fripp's music arguably was the start of the genre now known as ambient.
Right now I'm listening to the Fripp & Eno album, No Pussyfooting, which essentially contains only 2 songs: The Heavenly Music Corporation and Swastika Girls. The Heavenly Music Corporation is presented in 3 different versions: normal speed, half-speed and reversed. Swastika Girls is presented normal speed and reversed.
I thought I'd start this thread here rather than in the music forum. I know we have members who use their R2Rs not only for playback but for recording. Has anyone tried their own version of Frippertronics?
Frippertronics consists of putting 2 R2Rs side to side -- we'll refer to them as A & B -- and then configuring the machines in such a way that tape starts at a *supply reel* on A to the *take-up reel* on B. In so doing, sound recorded on A will be played back on B, but with some delay which is dependent on the distance between A & B. It is my understanding that the delay is usually on the order of just a few seconds.
The audio of B is then returned back to A, causing the delayed signal to repeat while new content is mixed in with it.
Robert Fripp (of King Crimson fame) employed this system to record/create layered electric guitar sounds in real time. Done live, an entire performance would be recorded on the looped tape.
I saw Robert Fripp in concert almost 30 years ago at a small club in Boston. Fripp sat on a chair and next to him was a table with, IIRC, his dual modded Revox A77 R2Rs. The concert was just jaw dropping. Fripp's music arguably was the start of the genre now known as ambient.
Right now I'm listening to the Fripp & Eno album, No Pussyfooting, which essentially contains only 2 songs: The Heavenly Music Corporation and Swastika Girls. The Heavenly Music Corporation is presented in 3 different versions: normal speed, half-speed and reversed. Swastika Girls is presented normal speed and reversed.
I thought I'd start this thread here rather than in the music forum. I know we have members who use their R2Rs not only for playback but for recording. Has anyone tried their own version of Frippertronics?
