mixing question

[billyboy2674]

when I try to mix onto my cassette deck it always sounds much weaker...the bass isnt there-the sound is greatly reduced from the original source which is the tascam 4 track.Question being,whats the best way to get the sound to the other side(recordings of the cassette deck)in its most robust form,being as close as posible to what Im hearing on the tascam 4 track?

thx,
william.

 

[billyboy2674]

the reason Im asking is because I'm building up an analog home studio and want to see how I can get the best sound from it so I can sell my music online in the future.I dont know if too many musicians sell their music online if it has been recorded at home but I do suspect it's possible.I would also like to recommend david nevue's book on internet marketing for anyone out there who may be looking into selling his/her music online in the future:

http://www.musicbizacademy.com/bookstore/htpromotemusic.htm

 

[RideTheCrash]

I'm not very knowledgable on analog tape, but I know a cassette deck with some cassette tapes won't cut it for good sounding analog. Studios that use analog tape use like 2" reels.

 

[DigitalSmigital]

We all have the same problem when starting out...

I could be wrong, as I am not there to analyze your recording.

BUT


When you first record your tracks, you need a very strong signal to tape. The novice's first few tries captures a weak signal, which sounds fine in the TASCAM's cue mix, but when you mix down from the Line Out, you are still sending a very weak signal, which in turn gives you an even weaker result.

Each bounce, which essentially what a mix down is, lessens the signal strength. You need to start off with the hugest signal you can muster on each track, without excessive clipping, so that when mixing, you can lower the levels on track 2, if needed, while retaining the largest signal strength on your other tracks.

Compressors can help, but are a double-edged sword.

 

[Farview]

Are you using a component tape deck or an all in one stereo (boombox) deck. If the mixdown deck you are using does not have record level controls, it has an auto level built in and will kill your sound.
BTW Cassette was never considered a professional mixdown medium. !/2 inch tape was standard and 1/4 inch would still be worlds better than cassette.
Just because it is analog doesn't make it better. Really good, high end analog stuff is great, cheap consumer stuff isn't, for the most part.

 

[billyboy2674]

Im using a component tape deck.
If I have to record with the hugest signal so that with each bounce I still have some power,then what happens to about 100 songs Ive recorded so far?are you telling me Ive lost all that work?I sure hope not-I think that if it sounds so sharp in the tascam(which it does)there must be a way to capture more of that signal when I finally record the song onto CD format.I pray to God there is.lol

 

[DigitalSmigital]

A weak signal will still sound OK in your cans, the real test is Monitor Out or Line Out signals on your TASCAM.

While it is true that it will be difficult to make money selling an end product produced on a cassestte 4 track, you can produce excellent demos with them.

 

[Farview]

You should plug the headphones into the cassette deck and listen to what that deck is getting. If you are going to put it to CD, why don't you just mix down to the computer.

 

[DigitalSmigital]

Which TASCAM four track do you have?

 

[billyboy2674]

portastudio 424 mk-II.....you guys are great to help me out with this.
farview-the reason I dont mix down to the computer is simple-I know nothing about that!lol

which leads me to the following-lets say I were going to buy a computer recording system or whatever thats called....which would be the basics I would need?can I get a cheap one off e-bay for example(I'm low budget here guys)...and then the main question.....how would I go about mixing my analog tapes or cd's in that computer system and what would I have to do for that connection wise and equipment-wise?Can the computer software greatly enhance an analog master?If that is so let me know all the fundamental stuff I would need because I have some great songs recorded in analog I dont want to lose(or have to rework).
thanks to all for your help!

william.

 

[Farview]

You most likely have a soundcard with a line in. You would need an adaptor (rca to 1/8 stereo) to plug into the line input. The software yo would need can be gotten as a free download (somebody help me out, I forgot the name of the free one.) or for very cheap (<$50) I'm sure your computer has a CD burning program that came with it. You won't have to worry about getting higher quality soundcards and programs right away. The step up in quality over the cassttes will keep you happy for a while.

 

[billyboy2674]

My Pc is no good for that though-so Im thinking of getting me a new system altogether so I can record my new songs as well as remix the old analog ones effectively.
thats why I'm asking what would be the basics I should look for in a computer recording system as far as soft and hardware is concerned,.amount of memory needed and if the enhancement is really pronounced with an analog recording,in other words,can I tweak myself to heaven?

any further suggestions welcome!!

 

[Farview]

That depends on if you just want to use the computer as a mixdown deck or if you want to track with it. If you are going to track with it, how many tracks will you need at once?
What is wrong with your computer? I was able to do mastering on a 200 mHz pentium II with 64 megs of ram running Windows 95. I doubt you can find a computer that slow that would allow you to use the internet in any usable way.

 

[billyboy2674]

my analog recordings are 2-4 channels at the most and very dry.
This pc I have now wont recognize the cd-rom.The drive that is.I can hear all sound through earphones but since windows wont recognize the drive I cant do anything with it.
So I'm looking to buy me a computer system instead.With the intent I already mentioned.But I havent any knowledge of the basics so I wanted to see what recommendations I can get from you experts.;-)

 

[Farview]

search the computer recording forum. all the answer are there.