Just bought a 1968 Scully 284-8, 8 track recorder that possibly was used at A&M Studios! Help!

[FollowFarnsworth]

Hey guys!
I recently joined this group to track down some information reguarding a Howard Holzer Audio Engineering Company who apparently was the head engineer at A&M, my machine has his tag on the back
I found a listing in Idaho Falls for a 1968 Scully 284-8 one inch eight track deck and 5 boxes of tape and a Quantum Audio Labs QM8 mixer. The guy said it was formerly owned by Del Shannon and that after Shannon's death his father went to the funeral (apparently was a friend?) and had been told to get some recording equipment that Del had. So, he brought it back to Idaho Falls and began recording. This person passed away earlier this year and his son was moving to Denver and couldn't take it with him. He was asking for $1,500obo and told me to offer him something as he had already sold it but the guy who bought it was killed in a car crash before he could pick it up!! I offered $500 knowing that it would cost double that to get it here.
Sooo
I just received the deck itself and it is in very good condition, as it turns out it is a SYNCMASTER model. But, the boxes of tape and the remote has been "lost" by the carrier... The deck has a tag on the back of it that says Holzer Audio Engineering Van Nuys California. From what I gather Howard Holzer was the engineer who originally designed and built A&M studios. I also read that from 1968 to 1971 A&M used a Scully 284-8 and after 1971 the opted for a different manufacturer. So, I believe that there is a chance THIS Scully is the same one that I have seen in pictures with Carly Simon, Joni Mitchell, and James Taylor in front of it. Can anyone help me or direct me to who might know more information about the studio equipment from 1968 to 1971?
Thanks!
-Chris

 

[Rudy]

We don't have much of that type of information here, but I have a few contacts who might know where to get that sort of information. I can ask around. The engineer Stephen Barncard used to be a member and paid us a visit many, many years ago--he was an A&M studio engineer, and might know something about it also.

I do know that Bruce Botnick engineered some of those early A&M albums recorded to 8-track. (The second Brasil '66 album, Equinox, I believe was one of the first to be recorded in the new studio.)

Nice score on the deck! I'll ask around a bit.

 

[FollowFarnsworth]

Thanks! I really appreciate it. I was wondering if Howard Holzer was still around if I could ask him but, haven't found any real leads.

 

[Dave]

Here's a link I could quickly find on the Scully Corporation:

http://museumofmagneticsoundrecording.org/ManufacturersScully.html

It, of course, seems to specialize in nearly the entire field of Record-Sound Recording... I've had some Mobile Filedlity and Sheffield Lab discs, recorded from Direct-to-Disc, and which most-all, have boasted of using the Scully System in their recordings, too...


-- Dave

 

[Rudy]

Thanks! I really appreciate it. I was wondering if Howard Holzer was still around if I could ask him but, haven't found any real leads.

I don't know--that was 45+ years ago. Most of those guys are either retired or...gone. But, I did get a couple of contacts to get you started. I'll send those privately.

 

[jukeboxexpress]

Scully recorder? Nice piece of history. I know Scully more for disc lathes . It seems the best recording studios used Studer tape decks and Ampex. As cheap as Herb Alpert was, I'd think that he might settle for second-best.Have you seen how crude and plain A&M studios were? Heck, even the 1956 Capitol studios blew them away. Holzer is infamous for creating the CSG-Haeco system which distorted many a recording.
I'm surprised Carole King didn't snap up that equipment, she lives up there in that neck of the woods, but she's history. Recording now can be accomplished with a laptop computer and they don't need the reel-to-reel dinosaurs anymore.