Noisy mixer or bad cords?

[RCAGuy05]

Hey folks new here but have a very open attitude about absorbing all there is to do with this medium. I'm crafty so far. My set up isn't the typical DAW neither is it a simple cassette 4 track. I'm using a Boss 8 track digital recorder and for my mixer a Crate 4 channel PA/Mixer.
Ok so I've been running my mic into this Crate PA head and then the only output jack is one that says "tape out". So I run an guitar cable from this 1/4 inch jack and into the "mic in" of the Boss Recorder. I get this amazing presence on Vocals when preamping through this PA yet not without having this horrible gritty hum partnering with the good preamp sound. Then I used an RCA adapter and the output only provide the left side of the stereo signal. Yet this half signal is almost completely quiet.
Would you say its just a noisy 'Tape out'? Am I goofing by using a guitar cable for this application. The signal is smooth I'd hate to get rid of this thing but just may if its gonna be noisy. Any suggestions?

 

[tourettes5139]

Using a line input as opposed to a mic input would help, but I think your problem may be that the power amp in the Crate (I'm just assuming that it is powered, based on your post) is adding noise to the tape outputs. Anyway, thats just my take on things.

 

[Akirby12]

I think tourettes is right, I have an old fender bassman 135 that does the same thing when recording direct.

 

[RCAGuy05]

Thanks. It sounds like that could be the cause because I already know a little about electrical noise. But then when I put an RCA adapter into the 1/4 inch. tape out jack and then ran an RCA cord from the PA to the Boss recorder only half of the signal transfered(coming only out of one side of the headphones) and significant although not complete reduction in the fizzy jagged hum . With the RCA cord there was less noise so that makes me feel it could be the wire.
I guess I'd like to hear that all I need to do is buy those "quiet cords" that are specified to be clear of fizz and hums. I'd rather hear the truth from those more experienced than me though.

 

[Dani Pace]

Here is a trick I thought you might could use (I've done it so I know it works) you can get stereo sound from a Crate mono PA head. It took me a while to discover this, run one line from the line out and a second one from the monitor out to two chanels of your recorder and presto you have a stereo mixer. This was so simple it eluded me for years. The volume control works the line out (for one chanel) and the monitor send works the other. The only drawback is the monitor line is totaly dry.

Sometimes the obvious is the hardest to see.