As the professional audio division of the Japanese TEAC Corporation, Tascam has its origins in the late 1960s when the Tani brothers – both engineers – and Dr Abe (a senior engineer at TEAC) formed a special R&D group named TASC (TEAC Audio Systems Corp) for the purpose of researching ways to apply TEAC’s recording technology for musicians and recording studios. Today, it marks 50 years of innovation in sound recording and engineering.
In 1971 Tascam (TASC AMerica Corp) was established for the purpose of distributing TASC products in the US and conducting additional market research. In 1974, Tascam was absorbed by the rapidly growing TEAC Corporation of America sales and distribution company, and Tascam became the official brand name of all TEAC recording products designed specifically for musicians and recording studios.
The Tascam name has a rich history – both in terms of the company’s technological achievements and the artists and engineers who have used the company’s products. The Tascam Series 80-8 tape deck was a half-inch, open reel 8-track format recorder. It was used to record the voices of R2-D2 and C-3PO in the making of the first Star Wars movie, A New Hope, in 1977.
The company effectively invented the home studio revolution, beginning with the 4-track Portastudio 144 that appeared in 1979, and followed by the DA-88 Digital Multitrack 1999, and beyond with the Model series of recording mixers.
Bruce Springsteen fuelled the home recording revolution the help of his friend and guitar tech Mike Batlan, when they used a Portastudio 144 to record what would ultimately become the 1982 album Nebraska. Equally noteworthy, singer/songwriter/actress Lady Gaga’s father gifted the to-be star a Portastudio – ‘I could just sit at the piano and hook up a mic and record by myself. That’s probably the best gift that my dad ever gave me’.
Over the years, countless artists have used Tascam products to further their careers, including rock artists Tommy Bolan and Doyle Wolfgang von Frankenstein, videographer Chris Beals and producer/artist/engineer KC Porter. Tascam products have been used on tens of thousands of recordings, and hundreds of gold and platinum records.
‘Over the course of 2021, Tascam users and prospective customers will have much to look forward to,’ the company promises. ‘There are a variety of promotions planned where music afficionados will have the opportunity to expand their equipment arsenals. And of course, Tascam will introduce new products in 2021 and beyond that address a wide range of applications. In closing, everyone at Tascam wishes its ever-growing community of users a heartfelt thank you.’
More: www.tascam.com
