TASCAM
Professional audio division of TEAC, inventor of the Portastudio.
TASCAM is the professional audio arm of TEAC Corporation, whose headquarters are in Tokyo, Japan. The company is widely recognized for inventing the Portastudio, the first home studio recorder to use standard cassette tapes for multitrack recording, and for sparking the Home Recording movement through what it called the "Project Studio" concept.
The brand began as a research unit within TEAC, known as TASC (TEAC Audio Systems Corp), tasked with adapting the parent company’s recording technology for use by musicians and in recording studios. Key figures in this group were Mr. K. Tani, a co-founder of TEAC-Japan, and Dr. Abe, a senior TEAC-Japan engineer. In 1971, TASCAM (TASC AMerica Corp.) was established to sell TASC products in the United States and to conduct market research there for the Japanese parent. Its first U.S. office was at 5440 McConnell Avenue in Los Angeles, moving in 1974 to 7733 Telegraph Road in Montebello, California. The first products bearing the TASCAM name appeared in 1973: the M-10 modular 12x4x2 mixer and the Series 70H-X and 70H-8 multitrack recorders. On March 4, 1973, TEAC merged Tascam Corporation into TEAC Corporation of America (TCA), while TEAC-Japan retained exclusive worldwide rights to the TASCAM brand for professional audio gear.
In 2013, Gibson Brands Inc. acquired a majority stake in TEAC Corporation, TASCAM’s parent. In October 2017, TASCAM partnered with the Philly punk band the Dead Milkmen and the philanthropic label The Giving Groove to sponsor a remix contest. Gibson later returned its TASCAM stakes during an internal restructuring in 2018. The company released the Model series in the fall of 2018 with the Model 24, a 24-track integrated production studio for mixing, recording, and DAW control. The Model 16, a lower-priced 16-track version, followed in 2019, and the Model 12 added MIDI controller capabilities, hardware improvements, and stereo Bluetooth inputs and routing.
TASCAM’s Portastudio and Pocketstudio lines include the 144 (1979), the world’s first four-track recorder based on a standard cassette tape, inducted into the Mix magazine TECnology Hall of Fame in 2006.
Quick Facts
- Hq Location City
- Tokyo
- Hq Location Country
- Japan
- Area Served
- Worldwide
- Industry
- Electronics
- Parent
- TEAC Corporation
Facts from the source article.
Lore & Background
TASCAM began as a research and development group called TASC (TEAC Audio Systems Corp), formed to apply TEAC's recording technology to musician and studio products. Founders included Mr. K. Tani, a co-founder of TEAC-Japan, and Dr. Abe, a senior TEAC-Japan engineer. In 1971, TASCAM (TASC AMerica Corp.) was founded to distribute TASC products in the U.S. and conduct market research. Its first headquarters was at 5440 McConnell Avenue in Los Angeles, moving in 1974 to 7733 Telegraph Road, Montebello, California. On March 4, 1973, TEAC merged Tascam Corporation into TEAC Corporation of America, with TEAC-Japan retaining exclusive worldwide rights to the TASCAM brand for professional audio products.
In 2013, Gibson Brands Inc. bought a majority stake in TEAC Corporation. TASCAM partnered with the Dead Milkmen and The Giving Groove for a remix contest in October 2017. Gibson later returned TASCAM stakes during internal restructuring in 2018. TASCAM released the Model series in Fall 2018 with the Model 24, followed by the Model 16 in 2019 and the Model 12, which introduced MIDI controller capabilities and stereo Bluetooth inputs.
Reader's Guide
TASCAM's significance lies in its pioneering role in home recording. The Portastudio 144, introduced in 1979, was the world's first four-track recorder based on a standard cassette tape, earning induction into the Mix magazine TECnology Hall of Fame in 2006. This device, along with subsequent models like the 388 Studio (the first eight-track 1/4-inch multitrack and mixer combination) and the 488 eight-track cassette recorder, democratized multitrack recording for musicians. The company's innovations extended to digital recording with the 564 MiniDisc-based Portastudio (1997) and the 788 24-bit eight-track hard-disk Portastudio (2000). The 2488 24-track hard-drive Portastudio was named Music Trades Magazine Product of the Year and MIPA Desktop Recording Workstation of the Year in 2004.
In professional audio, TASCAM's DA-88 DTRS eight-channel digital recorder won a TEC Award, an Emmy Award, and an NAB Professional's Choice Award. The MX-2424 24-channel hard disk recorder earned a PAR Excellence Award and a TEC Award. The company's field recorders, such as the DR-100 and DR-680, received TEC Award nominations. TASCAM tape Portastudios were cited by Reverb.com as one of the top used gear pieces to increase in value in 2020, with original units jumping 30-65% over their price two years prior.
Did You Know?
- The DA-88 DTRS eight-channel digital recorder won an Emmy Award in 1995.
- TASCAM tape Portastudios increased in value 30-65% over two years as of 2020.
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