Vintage Digital

Classic Recording Studio Equipment

Aphex Systems Limited introduced the Aphex Aural Exciter Type B in 1983 as a low-cost version (US$495) of the original Exciter which was offered on a $30 per minute hire basis.
After working on delivering a high end digital reverb in the Yamaha REV1, they decided to tackle the other end of the market with the Yamaha R1000 digital reverb. By comparison, the Yamaha R1000 was most definitely not in the same league as it’s more expensive sibling, but it afforded home musicians a taste of digital reverb that delivered pretty good results.
The Ursa Major 626 replaced the previous model, the Ursa Major 323, by adding more memory which allowed for longer delay times. For those who loved the Ursa Major Stargate 323 and in particular the delay functions should seek out the Stargate 626 to take advantage of those longer delay times.
Upon the release of the Fostex B-16 Multitrack Tape Recorder, it provided smaller project studios with a 16 track tape machine that offered performance and value for the very first time.
There are times when you won’t compromise on sound quality. When, no matter how difficult the material is, you must have reverberant effects that are perfectly smooth, clean, spacious, colourless. There are perhaps three or four computer-based digital reverb systems that achieve uncompromising sound quality. All sound quite natural (and relatively alike).
The Lexicon Model 200 was introduced as a more affordable reverb after the success of the Lexicon 224 had enjoyed, but it did not find favour with larger studios as the 224 did. The Lexicon Model 200 Digital Reverberator is an economical, general purpose digital reverberation device designed for recording studios, musicians, film/video production houses, and broadcasters.
The Lexicon PCM 60 was the first in a long line of PCM named digital reverbs and it offered an affordable entry into the world of Lexicon digital reverbs. The Lexicon PCM 60 was a good digital reverb however it never enjoyed the same sales or current legendary status as the later model Lexicon PCM 70 would enjoy upon it’s release.
The Dynacord PDD 14 released in 1984, is a studio-grade, programmable Digital Delay designed and manufactured in Germany. Up to eight different sounds can be programmed into the non-volatile memory and accessed directly. There is also the possibility to alter the stored programs without altering the memory contents.
In the early 1980s, the Chorus effect first introduced by Roland on their JC Series guitar amplifiers, was the effect to have, and the Boss CE-300 was affordable. The Boss CE-300 offers two independent chorus circuits to produce full pitch-deviation effects for a wider, fuller sounding effect in the stereo mode, as well as specific deep chorus effects.
The original dbx 120x, released in the 1980s, was a pioneering piece of audio equipment that made significant contributions to the world of professional audio and music production.
In 1985 it would seem MXR employed the team at ART (Applied Research & Technology) to produce a digital reverb, based on the ART 01A, and it even had ART listed as the manufacturer on the front panel.
The ART 01A is a digital reverb from around 1985, that was also licensed to MXR and sold with the same 01A name on the front panel, but refereed to as the Model 191 on the rear.