Ramsa WRT820 Problem with OTari MTR 90 24 Track

AllenM

Member
Help!

Ive got my ramsa wrt820 connected to an MTR90 24 Track through my patchbay and all the audio I send to it is not doing much to the meters on the otari and the audio from playback sounds thin... heres what Ive got connected


Im thinking I've got some sort of problem with all the adapters...

its something like this:

audio>ramsa grp out RCA +4>tascam patchbay>Front of patchbay (1/4")>otari's patchbay 1/4">modualr xlr snake>otari input.

any help would be greatly appreciated.
 
Has the Otari been modified? A stock Otari defaults to pin 3 hot, whereas everything else is pin 2 hot. I can see that causing weird problems.
 
Perhaps you've got an incorrect configuration from unbalanced to balanced. RCA is two conductor while XLR is three conductor. What conductors of the RCA go to which conductors of the XLR? If the ground of the RCA is shorting pins 1 and 3 of the XLR, perhaps that could be causing trouble.

Time to get your DMM out and do some continuity checking.
 
Yeah...that whole RCA to XLR thing is always a messy way to connect to pro gear...then there's the -10/+4 consideration...plus what's already been mentioned.

I would like to ask how are you looking to use the mixer and the deck?
What I mean is...and as an example...I have my console and my Otari MX-80...but for tracking, I never run the signals through console, unless I want to use the preamp in the mixer, which is rare, since I'm using outboard pres.
So...I got from the outboard pres direct to the MX-80, which is a normal +4 to +4, Balanced, XLR to XLR connection...and the console then gets the output from the MX-80 to it's Line inputs.

I'm just suggesting that you may have other/better ways of interconnecting the two, depending on how you want to work.
TBH, considering you have the MTR-90...you might want to upgrade the mixer, so you have a console with a 24-channel monitor section, rather than using 8-group outputs. You also have the direct outs from the Ramsa that you can feed the deck with.

Anyway...more info is needed for a better answer to you problem...but start with the connections and how you have the console set to interface with the deck.
 
Being an inveterate "builder of things" and always wanting audio kit "normalized" in terms of connectors and levels, I would build a breakout/lifting box.

Eight group outs riight? That is four NE5532s if you configure them for "impedance" balanced output. Power the whole lot from a ~30V DC line lump, a one amp unit would be way more than adequate.
That would easily give +20dBu out. I would go nuts and fit level presets and have about 15dB of gain or it could just have a fixed gain. The lift needed to get -10dBV to +4dBu is 11.5dB, 12dB (x4) for jazz.

Dave.
 
Do you have pin 3 on the Otari connected to the tip of the patchbay jack and pin 2 connected to the sleeve? If this is a Mk2 or Mk3 MTR90 you need to check that the Otari pin 2 output is happy being connected to ground (a Mk1 will be fine as it is transformer balanced).
 
Ok I figured it out!
So....


My ramsa wrt 820 mixer has RCA group outputs that send out a +4 signal and RCA direct outs that send out -10 signal.

I have the group outputs sent to my tascam pb32h patchbay (rca in rear and 1/4 in front UNBLANCED) they are normaled
to the inputs of my Tascam MS16.
Then I have another tascam pb32h connected with the outputs of the Tascam MS16 normalled to the Tape Monitor IN of my ramsa.

I have been using a 16 track for years but I wanted to upgrade to a 24 track 2". So recently a friend let me rent the otari mtr 90 mk III. So I put the otari on a
balanced 1/4" patchbay and I connected the front of the patchbay to my Tascam PB32h patchbay with TRS plugs.
The sound was thin and the needles were hardly moving. So instead of my trs patchcable I tried a 1/4" TS cable to the tascam pb32h and sure enough it worked great. I was able to send audio to the otari and the VU was moving. So to test it I bypassed the tascam PB32h and put an RCA cable on the group output +4 and connected it to the front patchbay of the otari's patchbay. then the output of the otaris patchbay was connected with a TRS cable to the Tascam pb32h Tape MOnitor input. It worked.
So Ive done this...

I purchased two TRS patchbays that are balanced. and because I'd still like to keep my TASCAM MS16 connected I'll use the RCA GRP OUTS, DIRECT OUTS, and RCA cable snakes but attach a TS adapter to all of that so it will go into my new balanced patchbays. They come in Monday so I hope itll work out.

Note: the otari is connected with a modular snake: i/o XLR > db25> 1/4"trs breakout.
I did try one channel and reversed pin 1, 2 and it didnt help. So I put it back

The whole thing for this is my setup Ive been using since 2010 when I didnt know anything about anything. Since then Ive gradually built my studio and now things are getting hot. I have tried the whole digital thing with good results but tape workflow is my thing.
 
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