Tascam 424 MKII Basic Question

Posted on Dec 16, 2005 07:01 pm
JimmyH
Member Since: Dec 16, 2005

I have done a few hours of searching on this forum and only found one topic close to this, but not exactly. I thought I would go ahead and ask it and see if someone might be able to give me some advise. I have a Tascam 4 track, and I want to record some "backing tracks" that are CD to the tascam. The backing tracks are just a drummer, bass and rhythm guitar. Then I want to add my steel guitar to that and obviously combine the 2 so that my steel guitar and the backing tracks end up together. To do this, would I just go from the headphone jack on my boombox to the line-in on channel 1 and put the backing tracks on channel 1, then play steel over channel 2 when thats done ? My goal is to get the backing tracks and steel on the cassette and then I plan to put them on my computer and make a CD out of it using something like audacity. Does this sound logical to do it this way ??

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Noize2u
Czar of Midi
Administrator
Since: Apr 04, 2002

Dec 16, 2005 11:14 pm

The headphone out on the boombox will not give you enough signal to even record. If ou get anything audible it will probably be very distorted as the inputs of the Tascam are expecting a much higher signal.

Aside from that you run the risk of doing damage to the headphone output of your boombox as you will be sending it into a mono input which will short the left and right channels together.

However, if you boombox has a line out or you have access to a CD player with a line out you can get the backing track's in it that way.

I'm curious why you dont just record to the PC and save yourself a couple of step's? There are several multi-track recording app's in our Recording Directory.

JimmyH
Member
Since: Dec 16, 2005

Dec 17, 2005 12:01 am

Well, actually, I only wanted to use it because I just bought it, perhaps without enough information, but I bought it nonetheless. I thought it might be fun to mess with it and thought maybe that idea would work, but I was not sure. I was told it would, but I always like a second opinion, and appreciate yours. I have a CD player with a single RCA out put on the back. Do you think that I could convert it from RCA on one end and to a 1/4" on the other and do it that way ? Also, what exactly is the purpose of the "sub input" on the back of the unit ? Its a double RCA, and someone said it could be used for a CD, but I am not sure thats true. If I did that, where would it record to ?....James

Noize2u
Czar of Midi
Administrator
Since: Apr 04, 2002

Dec 17, 2005 10:28 am

Jame's, the single RAC might be a s/pdif conntection. Which is a digital conntection that supplies both the left and right channel's out of the Cd player. IS the CD player fairly new? IF so that might be what that is, hard to tell but it sound's logical. But yes youcan just convert the line out RCA's to 1/4" jacks to go into the Tascam for sure.

I guess you could try using the headphone out and see what kind of signal you get. I would definately get an 1/8" stereo to 2 1/4" mono cord though so you can do the track's in stereo. You might end up using what is called an insert cable which take's the 2 1/4" mono connector's and then send's them to a 1/4" TRS connector which you will then need to get an adapter from 1/4" TRS to 1/8" TRS to fit in the headphone jack.

Yes, the sub inputs would just be another set of channel input's. Not exactly sure were the signal is sent but I am assuming it would just be sent through the master. It's possible it will record to the track's but I cant say for certain.

You might try the mkIII manual which is here. www.tascam.com/Manuals_And_Tech_Docs.html I could not find the mkII manual on the site.

JimmyH
Member
Since: Dec 16, 2005

Dec 18, 2005 09:49 am

I have a manual, but as usual,, its pretty vague. I needed up just closing the room up and mic'n the boom box and got the tracks over there like that. I really appreciate your help man.....James