Porta 488mkII to CD? Possible?

[napoli187]

I'm thinking of buying the Portastudio 488mkII, and want to know if its possible to connect this to a computer or cd burner or anything thats gonna burn the mastered tracks from the 488 to CD. I've heard its possible, but a pain in the butt. Is the sound quality lost? Any help would be greatly appreciated!

[A Reel Person]

How'd I wrap that in a neat little package for'ya?

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You'd mix on the 488, and connect the Line Outs of that to either your 'puter soundcard or perhaps a standalone CDR recorder. To record to the soundcard, you'll need an RCA-Stereo-to-1/8"-Stereo adapter cable. To hook to the CDR recorder, you'll need a simple RCA-Stereo cable. If you develop a good mix on the 488, then either the 'puter or burner should be able to capture it.

[overseas]

I've been doing exactly this for a few weeks now - transferring stuff I made on the 488 mkII to my Sony VAIO laptop via an Edirol UA-20 24-bit interface. If you do as A Reel Person suggested, you should end up with good results.

Dumping individual tracks from the 488 mkII is a different story altogether because it doesn't have individual outs for each track. (It CAN be done, but it's a pain.) But from what I understand, you just want to send your stereo mix from the line-outs on your 488 to your computer.

[napoli187]

Sounds like its not too hard then, thanks guys. But i have one more question, what kind of software or device would i need to do this on my laptop? i have a run of the mill PC laptop with an external cd burner attatched to it through the usb port. what would i need to do to get this done. also, would i be able to make the cd have multiple tracks, or would i only be able to one song/track per cd? sorry, i'm new to all this!!!!

[napoli187]

Just to clarify what i wrote above, i meant can i make the cd have seperate songs on it. like track 1 on the cd is a song, track 2 is a song etc. i thought the last post might confuse people cuz of the way i used "track"(by which i meant a track on the cd, not an individual track from the 488). hope this helps clarify

[A Reel Person]

which is your normal CD standard. The titles are too many to name, but search the web for downloadable versions of stereo-only software. It's quite abundant and cheap, and the titles are many.

F/I, on two of my machines I use HP-Media-Rack, which is based on www.willowpond.com Then, I also use MAGIX Music Studio V5 [$10], which is 16-track DAW recording software, which really has the whole production suite in one package, but I only use it for simple audio-to-wav recording on the 'puter.

Then, there's the next layer in the process, of CD management and creation software, in which you'd lay out the tracks and burn the disc. Titles are many, but the one I'm most familiar with is Roxio Easy CD Creator.

Surf the web, and/or shop around at places with a large selection, like Best Buy and Fry's Electronics.

Good luck.

[napoli187]

i've seen a few cheap cd burners on ebay (the type that work without a computer) and was wondering how these would do in burning from the 488? they have analog inputs so i was thinking they probably would work. my computer is a piece of crap and more software on it is gonna slow it waaaaay down. anyone use these types of burners with the 488?

[A Reel Person]

It basically serves as a stereo component, being much like the common cassette deck. You're okay to go that route, and it cuts all the clutter and hassle of recording to your 'puter, that's for sure. I think you have the right idea, and you're on the right track. A 488 and standalone CDR recorder is a fine, simple system that gives you good sound quality, portability, and ease of use. Lots of people work this way, I'm sure. Go for it.

[napoli187]

Thanks for all the help!!!

[justinchannell]

My personal favorite WAV recorder is Cool Edit Pro. Just wanted to voice an opinion.

Question: I plan on doing something similar... would I lose anything by going from the headphone jack instead of the line outs?

EDIT: As far as burning goes, Nero Burning Rom is my personal preference.

[A Reel Person]

and use the Line Out. The headphone circuit won't give you the proper signal levels, and something could blow, then you're in repairland again.

[gospelsing]

I have a tascam 424 mkIII 4 track recorder, not much different than the 488 any 4 track cassette would work the same in this case. I just bought a dual deck cd recorder and I use it for a mixdown deck and I use cdrw. If you are doing live music you may need to mix down a time or two to get every inst. on the recording if 4 tracks aren't enough depending on how you use your channels. You can erase cdrw's and use them over and over.
You can use reverb, compression, EQ and all of this as you record or mixdown depending on what you fill it need. But you have to do it as you go. Because once you mix it you can't go back. But just remember to save your tape as you recorded it and don't record over it at least till your sure you got what you want out of it. brcause you may not like your first try or so . Just a few extra tips that my help you . For vocals I like to use reverb gate . It sound polished and cuts off at the end for my taste anyway. Hope this helps

[With_Aspartame]

All you need to buy is a RCA to 1/8" chord....the RCA plugs into the tascam's output.. and the 1/8" (which is same size as headphones incase you didn't know) plugs into the MICROPHONE input on your PC. You'll have to ensure the mic volume in the main volume controls isn't on mute...
plus, you will need some program to record to... I don't suggest sound recorder... go for Sonic Foundry's Acid Pro 3.0.. in there you can do really neat things.. like fades, volume change etc... (mastering-esque stuff)

..Good luck!

[MemoGtr]

hi everyone. i have a 424mk3 and i sent the signal from it to the sound card in my 'puter. my only question is what am i supossed to do next?? wich sowftware should i use??

[justinchannell]

Originally posted by With_Aspartame
All you need to buy is a RCA to 1/8" chord....the RCA plugs into the tascam's output.. and the 1/8" (which is same size as headphones incase you didn't know) plugs into the MICROPHONE input on your PC. You'll have to ensure the mic volume in the main volume controls isn't on mute...

Eek, not the Microphone input. Only the Line In.

[A Reel Person]

from your soundcard into "16-bit/stereo/44.1kHz WAV files".

Then, once having recorded WAV files to the computer, you'll need another program to lay out the WAV files into songlists, and burn the CDR from there.

Just-FYI, I'll use either "HP-Mediarack" [came bundled on my HP-Pavilions] OR "MAGIX Music Studio v5" for basic audio-to-WAV recording. Then, I'll use "Adaptec Easy CD Creator v3.5" to create cd layouts & burn CDRs.

[Note], this "Adaptec" software is currently known as "Roxio Easy CD Creator".

[Note2], "Magix Music Studio" is audio-multitrack & midi recording software, and there's a stripped/bargain version called "MAGIX Audio Studio", which is a low-priced bargain software that records audio-multitrack-only, but no midi. Recently, I got "Magix Audio Studio v5" for $10 @ Best Buy stores, and for anyone who needs audio but not midi, it is quite sufficient enough to use for audio-to-PC mixdown purposes.

[Note3], this "MAGIX" software I refer to above is true DAW-multitrack software, capable of 16-track-multitrack-audio, but I've only used it for tape-to-PC stereo WAV file recording only. The multitrack capability is there, however, I'm not much into strict 'puter recording, YMMV.

[gospelsing]

As for sending to a computer, the only reason I send Mine to a computer is to cut the dead ends out the beginning and the end .
But as far as mixing down goes I have better luck at using my outboard gear such as . Reverb or effects unit, compressor, EQ, and I'm wanting to get a parametric EQ to add to my arsonal if that's spelled right. and I mix down to a cd recorder using music cd's because that's all they will use. I get a better sound because I can hear what I'm doing While I'm doing it if you know what I mean . But after I mix to my cd recorder then I put the cd in the D: drive or cd drive and copy it to magix studio 7 which is the one I have . Cut the ends save it to a file then open that in roxie and space the tracks because it does that easly and burn a cd . I don't have to send it one track at a time and make a mess out of it or send all in one track and agian make a mess of it .and I can bounce to my cd recorder and send it back to my recorder as many times that I want and not loose much if any of what I have tried so hard to record. To me this is the best way I have found and cd recorders are going down big time .

[A Reel Person]

until I'm satisfied with the mix, then switch to RCA-1/8" Y-cable adapter and record directly into the soundcard's LINE IN. That's a snap, and works best for me.

Also, I don't own a standalone CDR recorder, but I can see certain advantages they offer.

[MemoGtr]

errrrrrrrrrrrrrr....ok
someone at the store told me its better to get an audio interface better than a rca-audio chord
whats that??

whats the difference??

[gospelsing]

I don't know what a audio inface is but I also was told that a digital cord from my cd recorder would work better than a rca cord would and it would if it was a digital to digital or I had some kind of anolog to digital converter but strait out digital don't recognize anolog without a AD converter so some thimes what they tell you in the store are not always true . But it might be better I don't know, Haven't been there yet.

Hey reel person I have some M audio monitor speakers that I use on my computer. But I have a PA system that I use to mix down on because I can compare to other recordings to compare to but the real test is when I put it in other cd players be it a car boom box or what ever . But I would say that the speakers you use would work fine. I know no matter what speakers you use you have to have an ear for those speakers to get what you want .
But I use to record my mix on a sound card like you said but the cd recorder really helps alot . Infact a cd recorder recording live gives an unbelieveable sound in it's self . And if you have magix studio or something like that it really is good to use for us guys on a tight buget .

[MemoGtr]

argh....thanks anyway
i guess im staying with the rca/audio chord

[A Reel Person]

"I think you need an audio interface",... sounds like he's trying to sell you a Tascam US-122 or US-244, USB/Audio interface,... or some such other gadget. Hint: Something he could sell to you.

I'm not selling anything, only offering friendly advice, based on my own first hand knowledge and experience. It's only advice, and users are free to find their own solutions.

Yes, the MAGIX Music Studio software and MAGIX Audio Studio are affordable recording software titles, good for people on a budget, and better if you can find older versions at cutrate sale prices. Magix Music Studio is currently in v-7, and sometimes v-5 or v-6 can be found at clearance prices, YMMV. I use v-5, and it's functional enough to do what I need to do.

Yes, whatever you're mixing on, it's best that you're familiar with the sound of your own system/monitors, and that helps in getting the best and most consistent mix possible.

[MemoGtr]

hehe.... guess you're right
the guy at the store showed me an audio interface with rca inputs/outputs and a usb chord to plug in the PC... $86
maybe that would give me a better performance
what i want to know is if thats compatible with CEP?

[DogRox]

I just posted a message in another thread regarding audio capture through USB port.. and I have one of them devices now.. and very happy with it.. specially :

you can read my post here:

http://www.homerecording.com/bbs/sho...09#post1617209

Originally Posted by MemoGtr

hehe.... guess you're right
the guy at the store showed me an audio interface with rca inputs/outputs and a usb chord to plug in the PC... $86
maybe that would give me a better performance
what i want to know is if thats compatible with CEP?

[carelessorc]

MemoGtr: A lot of people seem to think that the soundcards supplied with most computers are not the highest quality so they upgrade them with either a better card or an external interface (if you have a small computer or a laptop you'd have to go the external route). I think you should try your soundcard (use the line in) and see what it sounds like. If it's OK - stay with it.

Orc