Reel to reel home studio setup
My dad passed away a few years ago and we're in the process of going through all of his things. He had a lot of interests so you can imagine this has been quite the effort. One of his many interests happened to be reel to reel tape machines, and it turns out he has like 5 of them. Some people from the local university are interested in purchasing one or two, but I was thinking of keeping one for myself as well.
I have been hobby producing for a few years now so I'm interested to see if there's some way I can work one of his machines into my home studio setup. I don't think there's a ton of practical need for me to have one, but it feels like a nice way of continuing his legacy and getting some use out of his old stuff. However, because I don't have a real need I'm unsure of how I would incorporate one or if it would be worth the space one would take up.
I'm tentatively thinking of using it at the end of my production to add some vintage saturation and warmth to things (kinda like jonmakesbeats on YouTube if anyone is familiar), but I'm not sure what other equipment I'd need to make this work or if it's not even possible. Has anyone else incorporated reel to reel into their home studio setup? If so, I'd love to understand your setup and how you use it.
I also am curious about the tape decks he has. I don't want or need an expensive one, but if I keep one I'd also like it to be worth it.
I can confirm he for sure has a:
- TEAC A-6300
- TEAC x700R
There are also boxes labeled:
- MX 5050
- Tascam BR-20
- TEAC x1000R
- TEAC x700R (could just be the box for the first one)
- TEAC A3440
I think my mom has taken a first pass over his stuff, so I don't believe the boxes are empty, but there's always the chance some of them are. Also, even if they aren't I have no idea the condition of any of them. The two I have seen look to be in good condition but I haven't tested them out.
I should also maybe add that he has also left behind a TEAC Tascam Model 3 mixer that I would use as the input to the tape deck. I would either go mic/guitar -> mixer -> tape for straight recording or DAW -> mixer -> tape for finishing things.
TL;DR my dad has some tape decks and I'd like to keep one but I'm not sure which or how to incorporate it into a home studio setup. Any advice is appreciated!