The three eras of pre-digital recording in 18 photos (1877 - 1975)
Enter a world of tape, circuits and mechanical madness
The Magnetic Era (1945 - 1975)
Legendary guitarist, composer and technician Les Paul shows off his DIY eight-track studio.
Thelonius Monk listens to a hi-fi stereo playback at Reeves Recording Studio in NYC (1951). (Photo by E. Edwards)
One of the first mobile studios. Bob Fine's recording truck saw thousands of hours of action and was at one point allowed to enter the Soviet Union (during the hight of the Cold War) to record Russian musicians (1952 - 1962).
Taken from a 1950's DIY electronics publication. (Radio Craft & Radio Electronics #405)
