I Need Help With My Tascam 414 MK ii

  • Thread starter Thread starter mikeyshurte
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mikeyshurte

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So I just bought the tascam MK 414 ii. I used one of these about 13 years ago and that has been my only recording experience. Can I just use any old blank tape in the machine? Also it seems like we mastered the recordings onto a boombox. Does this sound right? Can I just use any home stereo with a tape deck/boombox? Thx
 
Hi there!

You can use any tape but you might want to use a "High Bias" tape and keep the length kinda short (under 60 minutes). Tapes that hold more music like 90 or 120 minutes tend to be a bit thinner and stretch over time. Cleaning the play and record heads with some denatured alcohol (I got mine at Home Depot.) and a firm Q-tip is probably a good idea too. Don't get any on rubber parts though. All this should help keep the noise to a minimum and maintain better sound quality.
A home stereo tape deck will work to mix down on. You may also want to clean the heads on that deck as well. If you have some kind of noise reduction system like dolby, that can also be used to clean up the sound as well. Technically, the heads on both the 414 and home stereo deck should probably be demagnetized, but that may not be necessary depending on your needs. I hope this helps.
 
I think Tascam specifically prefers Maxell XLII and TDK SA for these machines. You can use up to 90 minute tapes with no issues. Sixty minute tapes are preferred because the plastic is thicker and you'll be slamming it back and forth in the transport quite a bit.
 
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