Confessions of a M312b owner.

B

BillyFurnett

New member
First of all WOO HOO!!

So I found and purchased the M312b, BUT with it being a bit more sophisticated than the mixer section of a Porta studio I'll need some help to do a run down check of all it's features. (This simply wasn't possible at the time of purchase, but I have 48 hrs.)

So without further aideu (Or is it "ado?") PLEASE get me started. (Ghost, Herm, Reel anyone familiar with this board.)


CUBS WIN!
(It feels completly insane in Chicago! Growing up and later in life living blocks from Wrigley Field puts the Redline EL train, Old Style & Bud beer AND the Cubs into your blood...
Them winnning a world series is a sign of the apocalypse!)
:) :) :) :) :)
 
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Billy,

First of all, CONGRATULATIONS!!!:D :D :D

Welcome to CLUB312!

If you only have 48hrs to check it out, re-read the post about what to check and how to check it and make sure everything on it works.

How's the condition of the mixer? Beat up? scratched? dented? mint, hopefully?!

Seeing as many people consider Toronto and Chicago, sister cities, I will jump on the Cubs bandwagon and hope they go all the way too!

Cheers! :)
 
Being a Chicagoan I DO have the power to officially deem you a Cubs fan. (You're in.)

Ok, see, unless I'm missing something (Who me? Never! LOL) What exactally do I have to do to check each channel...Like what do I select to monitor it through headphones?
I did Ext in. (No problem) What are the returns for the 38?

Condition IS just shy of mint. All lights work, no facial scars. No dints or dents. OMFG! The faders are almost better than sex!!!

This thing is HUGE! (I really thought it was just gonna be alittle bigger than my Porta Two! )

If everything works fine I will be in another realm with happiness!
(No kidding, If I would have seen one of these for $300 after buying a Berhinger I would have seriously turned suicidal!)
That makes you guys are hero's! LOL


THE CUBS LOVE EVERYONE!
:)
 
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Billy,

I'll cut and paste this back into here so you can stay focused on what to check for.
As far as checking out the mixer in the store, let them give you a mic and a pair of headphones and test each channel out one at a time to make sure they work at passing a clean signal through to the master outs and all the aux and effect out sends that can be monitored through headphones via push buttons in the master section of the desk.
Click to expand...

Sorry, I am too lazy to type it out all over again!:D

Just go through each channel, one at a time with a signal going into each input, balanced, un-balanced, tape returns 1 - 8 just under the doubled buss outs in the master section on the back on the left hand side.

Plug the monitor outs of the 312 into a stereo system and listen that way too as well as on headphones so you can see if it all works.

Did you get the owner's manual by any slim chance??

Cheers! :)
 
I went back and checked it out, but thanks for reprinting (Copying) it.

No manual.

Ok, I've gotten this far. I have signal from the line in (CLEAN SIGNAL!) And the VU works, but I can only monitor it via PFL...Should I be able to hear it with just the "Chan. On" ?

THANK YOU GHOST (AND SORRY)

:)
 
The Returns are for your 38 reel to reel.

The 1 - 8 RCA's on the back panel correspond to channels 1 - 8 on the mixer. Those return jacks also route to the axillary (rotary knob section) on the master section of the board so that you can have all 8 tape tracks playing through there while overdubbing and still have all 12 channel's available on the mixer for other duties like over dubbing or more effects returns.

The M312B is actually a 22 channel board in disguise! Know you know the secret!

I am heading to bed shortly but hopefully, ARP will come on board soon and relive me on the over night shift!

Congrats again, Billy. I am very happy for you.

Cheers! :)
 
turn on the orange Stereo button on the channel you want to feed to the stereo faders on the right side of the board and the 1 - 4 buttons to feed the buss master faders beside the stereo ones.

Cheers!
 
I will make a scan of the signal flow diagram from my owner's manual tomorrow night and send it to you via e-mail so that I can preserve the resolution of the scan and that will give you a very good visual of where all the signals flow in the board and what buttons effect the routing.

A picture is worth a thousand words and this one is worth 10 times that!

Nite.:cool:
 
Thanks for the help and the congrats Ghost.

I'll keep pluging away (Ha Ha!) at it.
It's Sooooooooo quiet and the headroom from the line in is far out! (The EQ rocks!)

I still don't know if I want the PFL all the time...No right?

I'll catch you next time in.

EDIT: Ohhhhhhhhhh THAT orange button! LOL

I'm still confused, but it works so far.
:)
 
I still don't know if I want the PFL all the time...No right?
Click to expand...

Right. you only use PFL, ( pre fader listen) when you want to isolate a single channel in a mix without muting everything else. Otherwise, leave it off at all times.

:cool:
 
I'm just nervous and excited (Very much dorking out!).
I can imagine you smacking me out of a hysteria and saying "Come to your senses man! You've read about pre fader listen a million times!!" Akin to some disaster movie like "Towering Inferno" or The *Posidian Adventure! LOL

I understand now that you have to use L/R on the channel AND the Stereo/Mono in the.....OTHER section. (LOL)
So far everything works without a snap, crackle or pop any where. The EQ is just F#*%ing incredible!
I never thought I'd be happier in my life than when I got my 38, but I'm am simply floored by this board!
I can't imagine the 320 or the 500 series! I don't know how big the 320, 512 and 520 are, but I imagined the 520 to be about this size and this to be (As I said before) just a bit deeper than my Porta... This is a mega bonus to me because it means the control surface isn't all cluttered up... When I got near the mixer section at the place I got it from I recognized the obvious Tascam knob color scheme, but I was like "THAT badboy can't be it." because it was so big.
I'm also blown away that there isn't a damned thing on this board which feels "cheap" or fragile under my touch... It's straight up solid. It was worth every second of the wait and searching.

The sum total of this and my 38 is going to raise the quality of my finished songs at least a thousand fold. I think when I die I'm gonna have them wrap my body in my 456 master tapes!


Thank all of you guys for your help and support.


NOW LET'S GO GO GOOOOOOO CUBBIES!!
:) :) :) :) :) :) :) :) :) :) :) :) :) :) :) :) :) :) :)
 
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Yeah man, you really scored!

The 38 an M312B is a super-dee-duper combo! There's nothing cheap on that board. It's heavy duty, all the way. They sure don't make gear like that any more! Oh yeah, it's *slightly bigger than a Portastudio! [yuk yuk].

WTG! You'll be rocking in no time!


;)
 
Man Reel I gotta thank YOU personally as well, because just as Ghost did (Both of you from my first posts on Tascam bbs right up to a few days ago) were there everytime I began to falter and you both kept saying "Dude, cool your jets... You will/must/frickin' better! find a Tascam board and all will become clear."

YOU my man were dead right!
Thank You Reel.

(LOL-I didn't know a signal could be THIS CLEAN and rich!
I have to go back to testing it... Damn there's alot going on on these things. )


You must be a Cub fan at heart as well.
:)
 
FIRST OF ALL:
I have to send a "Thank you buddy" out to Herm...
If he wouldn't have mentioned about the return policy at this place I'd still be searching.

Herm you can't believe the weight and stress YOU have lifted from my shoulders in what I thought was a hopeless search for a Tascam board. Free at last!
THANK YOU HERM
:)

OK:
Man!
When you guys said the routing on these mixers was "Flexible"
you weren't just woofing!

So far I've checked:
All Mic & Line in's to meters, phones and a few sets of the RCA outs. (Works great!)

AND All Tape in's with the "Tape return section."

(Does the "Tape return" button stay non engaged when in use?
When you press it down does that cut it out??
How do you EQ to the tape in's signal?
Is it proper, easier or better to use direct out and Line In to and from the multi-Track?
How many more questions will it take before one or all of you guys scream?)

I HAVEN'T yet checked:
Direct outs, Aux send/Returns, the 7 XLR in or outs, Inserts.
(What are sub in's and PGM or PGM inputs/Out's?)

So I'm about halfway through checking it out, but I'm pretty certain SHE'S "The one."



SOMEHOW I JUST KNOW THE CUBS LOVE THIS BOARD TOO!
:)
 
Good morning Billy!

Ok! Let's get to work here!
(Does the "Tape return" button stay non engaged when in use?
Click to expand...
No. The opposite. When you are in mix-down mode, you would want to use the mixer's main 1- 12 channel strips where you have full use of the eq, aux and effect sends.
When you press it down does that cut it out??
Click to expand...
No. The opposite. It routes it away from the main channel strips and lets it flow through the tape cue mix section on the right side of the board which only has level, pan, another aux send section for additional sub mixes, like a singers cue mix for his headphones as an example.
How do you EQ to the tape in's signal?
Click to expand...
You can only make use of the boards eq when you are routing a signal through the main channel strips.
Is it proper, easier or better to use direct out and Line In to and from the multi-Track?
Click to expand...
On an eight track recording situation like yours where you will be recording primarily by yourself, I would just hook up the 38 to the 1 - 4 main buss outs, which are doubled specifically for an 8 track machine. This will allow you to record up to four tracks directly with the board's busing system and allow you not to have to re-patch anything.
If you use the channel strip's direct outs as your hook up method, you are marrying each strip to a particular channel on the 38 and you might want more flexibility then that, say when you are doubling a guitar or vocal part to different tracks on the recorder, with the busing method, you press a button, with the direct out, you have to re-patch.
How many more questions will it take before one or all of you guys scream?)
Click to expand...
As long as I am in a decent mood, which is most of the time, don't sweat it!:cool:

So it sounds like you like the board!:rolleyes:

I am glad all our poking and prodding steered you in the right direction!

Another satisfied customer!

Cheers! :)

---------------------------
---------------------------
Sorry Billy, I was still a little asleep when I started this thread! Go back and re-read my answers. The first two question/answers have been edited.
 
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Yes.... "The Board."

"The Board" is powerful and all knowing.

All thoughts and actions are dependant upon "The Board."

"The Board" is love.

Do not anger "The Board."

"The Board." knows if you've been sleeping, it knows if you're awake...

"The Board" knows if you've been bad or good, so you better be good for goodness sake.

"The Board" is coming to town.

Welcome my son.... Welcome to "The Board."



"The Board" Thanks You and says "GO CUBS!"
:)
 
BillyFurnett said:
Yes.... "The Board."

"The Board" is powerful and all knowing.

All thoughts and actions are dependant upon "The Board."

"The Board" is love.

Do not anger "The Board."

"The Board." knows if you've been sleeping, it knows if you're awake...

"The Board" knows if you've been bad or good, so you better be good for goodness sake.

"The Board" is coming to town.

Welcome my son.... Welcome to "The Board."



"The Board" Thanks You and says "GO CUBS!"
:)
Click to expand...

Ok. Now it's getting weird:confused:

Either Billy is drunk or just in love.:confused:

Resistance is futile.
 
Hey Hey Congrat,s Billy on the new board. I really like mine and i wish i could be more help on setting it up but I still do not have a manual and there is a ton of stuff I need to learn about this board.
I just know enough to use for the basics and to run one effects unit in and out and thats about where I have to stop till I get a manual.

Have fun with your new toy!
 
Oops!

I missed a question!:D
(What are sub in's and PGM or PGM inputs/Out's?)
Click to expand...

The sub ins are what I use on mine to cascade two M312B's together to form what I like to call the M324B.

You take the program buss outs, stereo buss outs, aux, effect and solo outs from the first board and plug that into the sub ins of the second one.

That way, whatever you do on the first board, gets sent to the corresponding section of the second one.

Program out puts are the 1 - 4 buss outs that feed the inputs of your 38, reel to reel.

Cheers!:)
 
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