Tascam 488?

  • Thread starter Thread starter Doc Holiday
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Doc Holiday

Doc Holiday

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Can anyone give some feedback on the Tascam 488? I've seen quite a few on ebay. I've been recording on a Roland VS880EX for the last couple of years and I'm ready to give up on digital. I've got an old 424 Portastudio that I like the sound of and I was wondering how the 488 compares.
 
Hello, just hi-jacking this thread to ask if anyone can post an explanation (plus schematic/line drawing) for how Tascam can squeeze eight tracks onto an 1/8th of an inch of tape.

I tried asking at Tascam forums, but the damned thing is down AGAIN :mad:
 
I used to own a 488 MKII and it sounds great for a cassette multitracker. They do just what you said, squueze all of the info on to 1/8" tape which means each track gets I think 1/16" of tape (I suck at math). But anyways, these things can be pushed to make great recordings, check out this ep I did on one....www.myspace.com/beggarscantbechoosers. All four songs were done on the 488 MkII and I'm quite happy with the way they came out! If you can get one in good condition I say go for it, otherwise if you want to step it up a bit, get a Tascam 388, it's a 8 track 1/4" reel to reel recorder and an excellent 8 bus mixer all in one! Good Luck
 
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taperocket said:
I used to own a 488 MKII and it sounds great for a cassette multitracker. They do just what you said, squueze all of the info on to 1/8" tape which means each track gets I think 1/16" of tape (I suck at math). But anyways, these things can be pushed to make great recordings, check out this ep I did on one....www.myspace.com/beggarscantbechoosers. All four songs were done on the 488 MkII and I'm quite happy with the way they came out! If you can get one in good condition I say go for it, otherwise if you want to step it up a bit, get a Tascam 388, it's a 8 track 1/4" reel to reel recorder and an excellent 8 bus mixer all in one! Good Luck
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Sounds good. Did you have to do a lot of track bouncing?
 
Doc, I just picked up a used 488 at a yard sale and haven't test driven it yet. The transport is a bit noisy but all else seems to be in order. I'll update on the quality of recording when time permits me to actually break away and use it.

I don't have a manual as the person selling it couldn't find it and they are really hard to find. I only paid $25 for the 488 so paying $30 for the manaul is out of the question (I'm frugal). So, anyone know where to download a manual for the 488?

Also, anyone know if the 488 is the precursor to the mkII? I'm new to the Tascam world as I was using the Yamaha MT4X which I liked, but needed more tracks.
 
phillyd said:
Doc, I just picked up a used 488 at a yard sale and haven't test driven it yet. The transport is a bit noisy but all else seems to be in order. I'll update on the quality of recording when time permits me to actually break away and use it
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Cool. Let me know what you think of it.
 
Doc,
Thanks! I bounced all 8 tracks to my dat and then back to the 488 so I had a total of 16 tracks to work with.
 
I haven't forgotten about you Doc Holiday. My parenting and work responsibilities are pulling me away from the world of recording. Soon as I can steal some moments I'll post back w/the results.
 
Not trying to pump my song, but go to www.soundclick.com and search artist Dale O'Brien. Open the tune "Wild-Eyed Jim's" ....pure 488MKII. 8 tracks with no bouncing...2 drum tracks, bass, two guitars, one lead guitar, two lead vocals. Don't open the other tunes as they are of my 80's band and were recorded in a studio, not on the 488. Wild-Eyed Jim's was, though. Keep in mind I have some outboard gear with it(Pro VLA before master deck, Midiverb IV in aux loop, ART EQ), but the sound is still representative of what a 488 MKII will do, and I believe the 488 is basically the same machine minus some mic pre's or XLR inputs or something.
 
phillyd said:
I haven't forgotten about you Doc Holiday. My parenting and work responsibilities are pulling me away from the world of recording. Soon as I can steal some moments I'll post back w/the results.
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No problem. I'm in the same boat.
 
Seeker of Rock said:
Not trying to pump my song, but go to www.soundclick.com and search artist Dale O'Brien. Open the tune "Wild-Eyed Jim's" ....pure 488MKII. 8 tracks with no bouncing...2 drum tracks, bass, two guitars, one lead guitar, two lead vocals. Don't open the other tunes as they are of my 80's band and were recorded in a studio, not on the 488. Wild-Eyed Jim's was, though. Keep in mind I have some outboard gear with it(Pro VLA before master deck, Midiverb IV in aux loop, ART EQ), but the sound is still representative of what a 488 MKII will do, and I believe the 488 is basically the same machine minus some mic pre's or XLR inputs or something.
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S.O.R.-I checked out your tune. Nice tone on the lead guitar. I think I will try to score a 488MKII off ebay. Thanks for the reference.
 
I still have mine. It's been boxed up for a few years now. I'm planning on finding all my old 8 track tapes from it and recording them straight to my 16 tk dig., then selling it since I don't use it.
 
I just got a 488MKII off ebay. It is in great condition and so far everything seems to be working ok. Thanks to everyone for responding to my questions.
 
That's a cool unit!!!

Did you get the manual, or did you catch the link to a (bootleg) pdf copy of the 488mkII manual??

/DA
 
The manual came with it. My work schedule this week has prevented me from experimenting with it as much as I would have liked. But I'm really excited about it.
 
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