I have a Tascam Portastudio 424 MK III
Does anyone know any good videos/tutorials on getting the most out of a four-track tape recorder (regardless of make/model)? I have the manual for mine and I can do some SUPER basic stuff, however I'm curious to see other people's workflows and to learns some tips and tricks!
>>60770092
Is it good? I've wanted one for a few weeks now
>>60770399
yeah i really like it. it's a bit more "90s digital" than the MK II or MK I, which is both good and bad?
I got it for a steal on craigslist -- $60. Try to find one if you can!
>>60770445
Okee sweet
>>60770445
>it's a bit more "90s digital"
what does that mean?
>>60770092
Look into using the DBX noise reduction
I've been using mine for years and just noticed the switch on the back. boy do I feel dumb
>>60770630
I believe this was the last of the 424 MK series and it boasted an LCD display as well as digital play/pause/stop/etc buttons as opposed to physical push buttons
>>60770791
Yeah, I've heard this is the best route to go. How different does it sound without it?
>>60770630
I'm not that guy, but I think 90s digital would be a bad way to describe it. When I think 90s digital I think shitty bitrate and 12 bit depth.
>>60771038
yeah, you're right lol. I think I meant more along the lines of "late nineties digital tech"
>>60770998
I haven't been using it cause I don't have the right high quality tapes to record on anyways, and I tend to get a pretty huge amount of tape hiss, and sometimes there's pretty severe high end rolloff.
>>60771143
>>60770092
If you're running out of tracks but you want to do more overdubs, you can bounce down all your current tracks to a single track by using the FX send and running it back into the portastudio to record onto an empty track.
For example if you're using tracks 1, 2, and 3 and track 4 is empty, you would turn the FX send knob on the 3 tracks that have audio so that those 3 tracks will be sent out the FX send output in a single channel. Then just run a cable from the FX send output into the empty track and record until the entirety of those first 3 tracks are now on the fourth track. Now you're able to record over the first 3 tracks with any additional instrumentation while still keeping the original audio of it on track 4.
>>60772613
Why don't you just implement a DAW into your workflow & use the Tascam for auxiliary effects? Like keep your "untaped" dry layer in the computer, double it with the tape layer & roll off the hiss with a shelf?
>>60772846
I think you can do that without hardwiring by setting it to bus record in stead of direct input and panning all the tracks you want to bounce to the left or right (depending on the channel)
Also, with bouncing you really have to plan it out, because whatever you bounce gets sort of muffled
>>60772872
You're going to get some synchronization and phase issues if you're doubling it with the original digitally-recorded version. Since cassette recorders rely on physical motors to drive the tape, there are going to be slight speed fluctuations which will become increasingly apparent over time if you're playing something recorded on tape on top of the same thing recorded digitally.
>>60772914
>I think you can do that without hardwiring by setting it to bus record
Ah, didn't realize. I'm used to doing it on my Yamaha MT100II with the FX send method because that's really the only way to do it since it's not as advanced as the 424 MKIII.
>>60772956
I've recorded a full album with tape layers & digital layers and didn't have a problem. I would just run a track as segments of small loops, and would quantize the tape layer to the correct positions. It's time consuming, but I think worth it.
>>60772872
yeah, I usually rolloff the noise afterwards, and I usually use the tascam as sort of a middleman, I like to bounce stuff back and forth from my DAW. where I run into problems is when I try to put together a full track on the tascam, they always come out very grimy and muddy when I don't use high bias tapes.
>>60772613
From experience - don't EVER record on anything but type ii hi-bias, after some time cheap tapes will wear out the heads and leave residue.
Um, as far as getting the most out of it:
Plan your mix ahead of time
Maybe think about focusing on mono recording
If not, changing the EQ on parts can "effectively" make it into two parts, even if panned on different sides.
So like:
Record track 1, record track 2
Bounce track 1 and track 2 to 3
Bounce them to track 4, but each w/ different EQ
Then record another track to track 1, bounce that and one of the two "stereo" parts with that, to track 2
Record via Buss a new track using the other stereo bounce to track 1.
You effectively have 6 tracks at this point and can repeat the process.
It gets messy, but it works for simple songs or atmospheric songs. Don't expect to have an expert mix or anything - as you continue to pingpong record there will be more and more noise.
There's a band called Helvetia - their song Old New Bicycle was done on 4track
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YIlV3tCoK94
>>60773043
Also - forgot to add, for mastering, it's possible to use the effects lines as tracks 7/8, but I'd only suggest doing this on un-bounced tracks.
It's a lot more work than computer, and a lot more limitations - but if you're innovative you'll figure something out :)
>>60773043
>From experience - don't EVER record on anything but type ii hi-bias, after some time cheap tapes will wear out the heads and leave residue.
yikes, that's bad news for me (been using regular cassettes in my tascam for years)
I regularly clean and demagnatize my tape heads between bigger sessions, would this mitigate the damage? how do cheaper tapes wear the head?
>>60773033
I've just always tried to utilize tape for bass compression and high end wobble. Anything high end, I intentionally overemphasize the chorus effect made by dual layering the dry computer layer, and then run the computer signal through a small clone pedal before recording it to tape. I think it's all really based on what type of music you're trying to make. I'm trying to make dance music, so all performances are very staccato which makes the quantization easier.
>>60773079
One more thing I forgot to add by the same band, an entire album done on 4track
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9R90FYOq9Ho
They're very capable machines. This is just a suggestion, but think about getting a decent EQ unit or two. The built in EQ on the Tascam is very weak IMO.
Another 4track band (I don't like them so much, but still well-done:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WfWcw0t8Ago
The difference between the two is that I *think* helvetia is Mic'd so there's a bit more breathing room as far as limitations go. Astrobrite is done all direct-line.
>>60773043
Helvetia are dope thanks for the heads up
>>60773140
>The built in EQ on the Tascam is very weak IMO
Yeah, I totally noticed that the high mids on mine just sort of manage muddiness and don't always do too much to the sound
>>60773104
I'm not sure the specifics, but when I bought mine I was told that the cheaper tapes will "flake-off" onto the heads - cleaning them like you said will help.
Like, when I first started, I didn't really listen and just used cheap cassettes I'd pick up at salvation army or something, after a while (like after recording through two or three) I'd notice that the noise on recordings was really noticeable. After a proper servicing they're spic and span
>>60773182
oh, you had me scared for a bit there.
I don't use salvation army tapes, I bought like 100 cassettes off some craigslist lady and most of them were brand new and only taped over once. They seem to be ok, but I've been getting more noise lately, probably due for another demagnatizing/cleanup.
>>60770445
dude, you got a sweet deal
i dont make songs on mine i just use it as an effect or mixer
>record drums a little hot into it then record the track into my laptop
instant vintage drums feel, also
>connect the 4 outs of my sampler into each channel of the tascam and make a nice 4 bar beat
>hook up a reverb or delay into the fx sends
>mix the effects at taste
>"re-sample" the result into the sampler or laptop
>profit
I recorded this using the same model as OP. After reading this thread, I realize I really should start cleaning my heads, and get a demagnetizer..
https://soundcloud.com/yuhjamrecords/demo-2-my-unexpected-pleasure
