Tascam 414

[Magic Potion]

Guys im new here and i just wanted to know if the 414 is fairly similar to the 424. Im new to recording my self and i wanted to start of with analog and do it the way it was originaly done.
i went to my local music store and the only anaolg 4 track tascam they can get is the 414 and there are only 3 left in australia. Do you think it will make much difference if i go for the 414, really its the only one avalible to me unless i go on ebay, but then it will be from the US and the power adapter and stuff will be totaly different. Also if i buy of ebay i cant be sure that it will work 100%. tell me what you guys think

 

[cjacek]

Well, the way it was "originally done" was very far removed from a cassette 4 track but on a general level I see what you're saying. For your situation I'd honestly recommend you get the brand new 414mkII from you local music store. I've had both the 424mkIII and the 414mkII and both sounded similar. The 414mkII is basically a stripped down version. I personally prefer the more basic 414mkII over the 424mkIII. I loved the simplicity of the 414mkII. If I had the choice as you have, I'd get the 414mkII and learn all that there is to on that unit and then ..... move up to open reel. Make sure you carefully read the manual.

 

[Magic Potion]

thanks alot for helping me out, ill get it, the funny thing is there are only 3 more in australia haha. i do want to move up to open reel, but like i said im new and dont know anything. the 414 will set me up and if i ever need help ill just check out this forum and stuff. When i said the way it was originaly done i ment the way the bands i like did it, but yea you understood ^_^ lol. once again thanks so much!

i aslo added you some rep! just thought id also add somthing, when i went to the store the guy there was trying to make me go digital, he was like why do you want analog, you can get so much mroe out of digital! then i was like dude im new to recording and ive read about the differences between digital and analog. i want a warmer sound and id just like to learn the hard way before going digital (even if i did). Then he was saying how you can imitate analog recording on digital, but a friend of mine was telling me once the sound goes digital all the sound waves get turned into binary like 1's and 0's and you loose alot of the original sound qualtiy that you could get from analog. lol im only 14 so he proabbly thought he could easily convince me to buy some other crap. lol retail sellers

 

[cjacek]

Thanks for the rep my friend.

Yup, that salesman pitch sounds very familiar. Rather than me going on about it, visit the Analog Only forum below this one. I think you may find the following thread interesting: https://homerecording.com/bbs/showthread.php?t=233014

Hey, if the 414 is cheap enough, get 2 or strike a deal with the store manager for a greater discount if you clean out their stock (that would be 3 units).

Also, it's not really "the hard way" but rather the easiest thing you can do to start recording on analog. In fact, the best thing you can do for your recording skills is to start out on a basic 4 track cassette.

A couple of tips:

(1) pay special attention to recording levels, making sure to stay around 0db for peaks with the bulk of your material being recorded at or below that,

(2) properly clean the tape path after each session with 90 - 99% isopropyl alcohol and cotton swabs, cleaning in the direction of tape travel and only the heads and metal parts with the alcohol. Make a mental picture of the pinch roller and how clean it is when you open up the unit and, when you see the pinch roller get a bit dirty with tape oxide, after a number of sessions, take a lightly water dampened microfibre cloth (I use that but it can be any lint free cloth) and clean the pinch roller with it. Preventative maintenance is very critical. Make sure no lint remains on the heads or pinch roller. Make sure you squeeze excess alcohol / water out prior to cleaning.

(3) use only good brand name tapes, 60min or less, such as Maxell or TDK

 

[Magic Potion]

thanks alot for your help. If i wanted to record songs onto my pc from my 414 would i need something like this?

http://www.musiciansfriend.com/product/ART-USBPhonoPlus-v2-Computer-Interface?sku=180039

like i said i don't know alot about this stuff but can i put my 414 into that and then plug that into my pc through the usb connection and record that way?

Whats the most effective way to get stuff on my pc through my 414 without loosing alot of quality and stuff.

im sorry if my questions seem simple and frustrate you, im just looking for answers lol.

 

[cjacek]

You need a simple and inexpensive Y-cable, 2 RCAs on one end and 1/8" on the other. Just plug it into the RCA OUTs on your 414 and go into LINE IN of your soundcard.

Those things are widely available in just about any store which sells audio / video stuff. I'm sure you can get it locally.

 

[Magic Potion]

hey man, i havent been on lately and my 414 has arrived only i need to buy headphones and tapes lol. ive read trhough the manual and i sorta have an understanding of it. Im so glad im going analog instead of digital.

The cool thing is im going to record my friends band and i will learn a few things from that and the bonus is he is going to pay me for it and stuff, i still need to buy 2 mics at the moment though and get that y-cable. I thought of the y-cable trick but would i need to record onto a tape and then play it and record it onto my pc or could i just connect the cable into my pc and record from my pc? in otherwords would i need tapes to get the stuff onto my pc? also should i consider getting a better sound card for better sound quality and stuff, or is it a waste of time? do you know of any soundcards you could recommend? once again, thanks alot for the help!

 

[Magic Potion]

dude i bought the y cable and it works fine, only on my tascam it doesnt show levels WHen the y cable is pluged in and only 2 of them light up, and when they do they are over six, but they arnt really recording at that. It does all work but is this normal?

 

[cjacek]

I thought of the y-cable trick but would i need to record onto a tape and then play it and record it onto my pc or could i just connect the cable into my pc and record from my pc? in otherwords would i need tapes to get the stuff onto my pc? also should i consider getting a better sound card for better sound quality and stuff, or is it a waste of time? do you know of any soundcards you could recommend? once again, thanks alot for the help!

If you intend to record and multitrack to cassette tape then yes, obviously you need to have the tape recorded in order to transfer the mix to PC via your soundcard.

If you intend to bypass the cassette recorder and use the mixer section to record direct to PC then that's a whole different story and I don't know why you'd consider getting a cassette porta if you don't plan to record on it.

My motherboard is from 2002 or 2003. It has integrated audio. Sounds fine with no hiss or any other noise introduced when recording to the line in via 1/8". If you have a decent motherboard, that should be enough. What I would do if I were you, is try to transfer a short clip of you playing or talking, after recording it onto your 414 and see what the quality on the other end is like.

 

[cjacek]

dude i bought the y cable and it works fine, only on my tascam it doesnt show levels WHen the y cable is pluged in and only 2 of them light up, and when they do they are over six, but they arnt really recording at that. It does all work but is this normal?

Have you read pages 22 and 23 in your manual ?

http://www.tascam.com/Products/414mkII/Porta_414mkII_manual.pdf

I'm not sure what you're saying or asking. Can you please clarify ?

 

[Magic Potion]

If you intend to record and multitrack to cassette tape then yes, obviously you need to have the tape recorded in order to transfer the mix to PC via your soundcard.

If you intend to bypass the cassette recorder and use the mixer section to record direct to PC then that's a whole different story and I don't know why you'd consider getting a cassette porta if you don't plan to record on it.

The only reason i was using the mixer section to record directly to my pc at the moment is because some tapes i bought of eBay haven't arrived yet, and i was dying to muck around with it. i have some type 1 tapes but i didn't want to use them just in case they stuff the recorder up as i read that it was specially made for type 2 tapes, and ive been recommended to only use them by you anyway lol. Man the y cable works fine when i record from the mixer straight to the computer, ive just been stuffing around with it at the moment and waiting till my tapes arrive.

sorry about that silly question i asked about the levels. what i meant was when i plug the y cable out into my pc, only the tracks 2 and 4 light up fully, but if i swap the y-cable around tracks 1 and 3 light up fully. im not actually recording from tape to my pc, im going straight from the mixer to the pc. although only the 2 left tracks light up or only the 2 right tracks light up but i pan all tracks in the center and they all turn up on my pc anyway, so it does work, i was just confused why the 2 right tracks light up, or why the 2 left ones light up. When the y cable is not plugged into my pc they all remain fine. Could this be because im going straight fro the mixer to the pc, and not actually going from the tape to the mixer to the pc?

 

[cjacek]

Ok, I see. Can you tell me exactly how you're hooked up, both into and out of the 414 and also which switches are on / off ? Better yet, can you upload a couple of photos of your setup, so that I can see what's going on with the mixing section (what's switched and what's not) and also your connections ?