Otari MTR-90

The Otari MTR-90 is the multitrack tape machine that filled studios that could not stretch to a Studer. Japanese maker Otari launched it in 1982; the MkII followed from 1987 to 1991, then a microprocessor-controlled MkIII.

History and specs

The MTR-90 came as an 8-track 1-inch machine or a 16- or 24-track 2-inch machine, running at 15/30 inches per second with a 7.5 ips option, crystal-locked, on 14-inch reels. Otari’s pinch-rollerless, symmetrical constant-tension transport and servo-controlled DC reel motors gave stable tape handling, and the MkIII added ±20% varispeed as standard. Optional remotes and autolocators were common in commercial rooms.

In the studio

Generally more affordable than Studer or MCI rivals, the MTR-90 became a global workhorse in music studios, broadcast, film scoring stages and mobile rigs. It is credited on U2’s The Joshua Tree and, in MkII form, on Smashing Pumpkins’ Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness and Radiohead’s In Rainbows. Specific MTR-90 use on classic rap albums is not well documented.

Buying one today

The MTR-90 is one of the most common and serviceable 2-inch 24-track machines on the used market, popular with studios reviving analog tracking. Check head wear, transport function and which revision it is, and whether the remote is included.