Tascam 488 Question

[Elvis Ramone]

I just bought a Tascam 488 (its the older model thats light gray) and I have a question about the mic/line inputs... I see that only two of the inputs say mic/line and those two are the only ones that have the trim knobs so my question is even though the rest of the inputs only say line can I still put a mic in those inputs and mic my amps to record? And if I can will it sound good? I had a Tascam 424 MKII 4 tracker (the newer model) before and all the inputs had a trim knob but on the one I just bought there only have two trim knobs. I wonder if I should have bought this 488...

 

[chipper]

Yo, Elvis;
Just want to say I never believed you were dead. Anyway, in answer to your question, the 488 is a good machine and it will be possible to use the other inputs. I know this as I got one for my songwriting partner about 6 months or so ago and he uses his all the time. I have the 488 Mark III myself and I prefer it because it's more user-friendly, IMHO. As long as your machine is in good working order, I'd suggest you give it a chance. I hope this has been of help to you.

chipper

 

[Dex]

Indeed, you can use the other inputs, but you will need an external preamplifier (preamp) for every input you want to use.

The trim controls are for the preamps in the mic/line channels. Any line channel has either a) no preamp or b) a buffer preamp only. (1:1 amplification)

Basically, you'll need an external preamp box for every additional mic you want to plug into the line channels, or a small external mixer. We used to use a Mackie 1202-VLZ, a small high-quality mixer. In fact, its quality was such that we used its preamps for everything, rather than those in the 488 MkII we had.

Of course, if you have a keyboard or a giutar/bass amp with a line out plug on it, then you can run one of those directly into the 488's line channels.

Have fun,
D.

 

[Elvis Ramone]

Thanks! That helped me out.