Tascam 414mkII stereo issues

[zmb]

I'm having a problem recording stereo signals into my Portastudio 414mkII. I want to use the stereo inputs 5-6 in combination with the normal tracks 1-4 because I have a drum machine that outputs in stereo and I can do all the mixing I want in the drum machine itself, no need to use up two full-featured tracks..

My recordings are coming out seemingly in Mono, or as if only the left or right signal is being recorded to both buses on the tape. I made a recording to demonstrate. I'm playing a wide-panned stereo sound into the stereo input 5-6, no inputs on tracks 1-4. Just FYI, tracks 1-4 are all set to L or R bus on record function and are panned directly in the center.

For playback, I turned the tape cue knobs on tracks 3 and 4 to maximum (i.e. to listen to what's been recorded onto the left and right buses) and the monitor switch to tape cue.

The first portion is just monitoring my instrument before any recording, you can hear the high hats panning back and forth. The second portion is what I recorded to tape, playing back via tape cue as described above. It sounds like a mono signal getting louder and quieter. Indeed it is that, if you want to download and look at the waveforms.

View attachment Untitled.mp3

I'm using Maxell XL II high bias tapes and I cleaned the tape heads with some radioshack head cleaner last night. Thanks for any help.

 

[A Reel Person]

...

You have to use a proper 1/4" TRS (stereo plug) to L/R (RCA or 1/4") Y-cable to use Input 5/6 effectively as a stereo pair (on one input jack, 5/6).

The Tape Cue monitor is a mono playback feed.

 

[zmb]

Yes I have a TRS to L/R RCA Y-cable, otherwise I think I would hear this problem even when monitoring the signal from my inputs.

If tape cue is mono playback, wouldn't I hear just a steady stream of high hats in the example audio file I attached above? It's high hats panning slowly back and forth (the first segment, recorded straight from the MON OUTs of the 414, no tape), but all that seems to have been recorded is either the left or the right signal at a much higher level than intended.

Thanks for your help but I think there might be a problem with the machine. I'm trying to find someone who can help repair it. Either that or the tape? Does that make sense? Are there types of cassettes that will just plain not record properly?

 

[A Reel Person]

...

Listened to the audio clip.

I think the rising and falling of the signal as it's panned could be a phase cancellation issue. If one leg of the signal is reversed in respect to the other, then some frequencies will cancel each other out, then when they coincide again they will build up, past nominal levels.

Without scoping it all out in person, and assuming I have understanding of all of your details straight, that's the only thing I can offer,... plus simply what it sounds like: phase cancellation. This may not be any fault or inconsistency on your part, but may be something inherent in the drum machine's output. Could be a miswired cable, or any number of things. I'm really in no position to say. It is peculiar, and I hope you get to the bottom of it. /DA

(It's definitely not the tape, and I can't verify but somehow doubt it's some inherent flaw in the 414mkII).

 

[A Reel Person]

Just a quick quip, and not to assume too much, but...

your 1/4" TRS-to-L/R(stereo) Y cable or adapter may be miswired.

I'd suspect something like that way before I'd be worried about the internals of the 414mkII.

Then again, that's just shooting from the hip on my part, at this point.

How about cabling your stereo drum machine signal to 2 independent channels on 1-4 of the Portastudio, playing with the pan & seeing what you come up with?

 

[zmb]

Yeah I should try a few other configurations in 1-4. I've been very discouraged lately, need to spend more time with it. The problem I keep running up against when thinking of possible causes is that the audio I'm monitoring is so radically different from what is recorded... If it were the Y-cable or something with my connections I would think I'd hear it when monitoring the inputs. Well I'm still stumped but will keep experimenting. Thanks for your help, I appreciate it.

 

[zmb]

OK I think I made some progress. the issue seems to be with playback, not recording.

I tried the same test as before, recording into stereo INs with everything else set to safe mode. Then, to listen to it play back, I hooked my speakers up to Line Out and (this is the key) panned the tracks so that 1 & 3 were hard-left and 2 & 4 were hard-right. In other words I made the individual track pan settings reflect the record-mode Bus setting for the "mixdown". In this way I got stereo playback, though the left channel was a little quieter (maybe this is some other issue, track 1 has always been a little finicky on my machine, I'm just happy I can record a stereo signal!).

Maybe this is obvious to everyone except me (and indeed it makes some mention of this in the manual, it wasn't that clear to me though) but I wanted to leave this explanation here for anyone else having the same trouble! Thanks for the help A Reel Person