Hi.
First and foremost, I hope you have the owner’s manual and have done your due diligence to study it. That is your best resource and help for the kind of issues you’re having I believe.
Section 3 of the manual dives into recording and overdubbing procedures.
You have 4 input channels, and those input channels can be routed or sent or assigned to two different places as determined by the “buss selector” switches located by the PAN knobs (the ones labeled MIX/DIRECT). Those switches determine where your signal goes. If the switch is down (DIRECT), the signal on that mixer channel is sent to the correspondingly numbered tape track (so input 1 goes to tape track 1 if you are recording and that track is armed). If the switch is in the up or MIX position that input channel goes to two places, technically: the L/R buss…two places, the L output buss and the R output buss…and how much of the signal goes to the L or R buss depends on the position of the PAN knob on that input channel. If the PAN knob is centered, the signal is sent equally to both the L and R buss. If you PAN hard L it only goes to the L buss, and same goes for the panning hard R; only goes to the R buss. If you’ve recorded to track 1, and now are overdubbing a new track to track 2, you have to be careful how you are listening to your playback from track 1. So we’ve touched on where the signal GOES from each input channel depending on the MIX/DIRECT switches, but now let’s touch on what the mixer input channel listens to, via the source select switches (the INPUT/TRK switches above the channel fader).
If you recorded to track 1 and are listening to the playback of that track during the overdubbing procedure on track 2 (so you are recording new material to track 2 and listening to track 1 in the process) and you set the source of input channel 1 (what channel 1 listens to) to tape track 1 (the INPUT/TRK switch on channel 1 is set to TRK) and have the buss selector switch (where the signal GOES) set to MIX, and the PAN knob is centered, the playback of track 1 is being sent to the L and R busses equally. So stop here and think about that…the playback of track 1 is being sent to both the L and R busses and you have armed and are recording on track 2, and track 2 is going to record anything assigned to it directly from input channel 2 (via channel 2’s MIX/DIRECT switch), AND anything assigned to the R buss, which in the settings above now includes the playback of track 1. You’re going to record whatever is new AND re-record track 1 to track 2. You have to spend some time understanding the architecture of how and what each of the 4 input channels can listen to, and where and how you can send those signals to the tape tracks and/or the L/R buss, and how you can strategically control and build your project using those source and assign controls AS WELL as the track arming controls.
Where you are probably tripping yourself up is how you are trying to solve the problem of “How do I listen to what I already recorded while laying down subsequent tracks (overdubbing)?”
Generally speaking, you do not and should not listen to your recorded tape tracks by setting the input channels to listen to them (using the INPUT/TRK switches set to TRK) during recording and overdubbing processes. You set those switches all to TRK when you are done laying down all your tracks and you are ready to mix down…all 4 input channels would be set to listen to each tape track (all channels sourced to their respective TRK), and each channel would be assigned to MIX. So then you’re wondering “Well how then DO I listen to my tracks while overdubbing?” Notice there is also a source select switch for the AUX buss…see there by the AUX knob on each channel…INPUT/TRK X (1, 2, 3 or 4). This is your “tape cue” facility…a way to listen to the tape tracks of your choice independent of what the respective input channel is set to listen to OR where it is assigned or sent to…an independent mix facility. So going back to the above scenario, if you have recorded on track 1, and are now wanting to overdub on track 2, let’s say via e-bass connected to input 2, the INPUT/TRK switch on channel 1 should be set to INPUT to avoid it sourcing the playback of track 1, and rather the INPUT/TRK1 switch by the AUX knob should be set to TRK 1, the knob should be turned up, and then make sure you have AUX selected in the MONITOR SELECT section by the PHONES level knob. This lets you listen to the AUX buss in the headphones. You can also set the channel 2 INPUT/TRK 2 switch by the AUX knob to INPUT so you can hear your e-bass connected to input 2 in the AUX buss. You now have an independent mix of your track 1 playback and your e-bass in the headphones…it will be a mono mix. When you are done recording and want to audition your project you can listen to it in stereo (by setting the input channels to listen to their respective tracks (via the INPUT/TRK switches by the faders, and assigning the input channels to the L/R buss via the MIX/DIRECT switches by the PAN knobs setting them to MIX and then using the PAN knobs to create your stereo mix…make sure STEREO is selected in the MONITOR SELECT section), but during tracking and overdubbing you’re just monitoring for good signal and such so it’s in mono. Understand these source and assign controls are used in different ways during the different stages of the process…they serve multiple purposes. They can also be used in creative ways, but we’re sticking to the basics for now.
I know that’s a lot of information, but hopefully if you read through it a couple of times and walk through it on your 160 it will help. Also remember your manual…this is all in the manual.
