ABSTRACT
The two basic types of recording systems are analog and digital. In the context of
recording, analog usually refers to old-style tape recorders, but it also includes phonograph
records, which are more a means of distribution than a recording medium. However, you’ll
occasionally hear about an audiophile record label capturing a session live in stereo to a
record-cutting lathe. Although analog tape is still favored by some recording engineers,
considering only the percentage of users, it was surpassed by digital recording many years
ago. The main reasons digital recording prevails today are the high costs of both analog
recording hardware and blank tape, as well as the superior fidelity and features of modern
digital. Compared to editing analog tape with a razor blade, manipulating audio in a digital
system is far easier and vastly more powerful. Digital editing also lets you undo anything
you don’t like or accidentally ruin.
