Tascam MSR-16 settings/setup/trouble question

T

TBean

New member
Searched for info on the MSR 16..the sequence if I remember correctly for setup and recording a track was power on.. press load + reset for fresh footage settings,press track desired..the tracks red led blinks..to record a track press play+record..red led for record and track now remain solid..The audio level led's on selected track move with audio..Track's audio in = from the mix board.the msr16's rear audio out for that track is connected directly to an external amp. When trying to record a track the audio level leds are active indicating audio in for that track and i can hear it from the external amp..After recording on the selected track its a complete zero..no audio or led activity..replaced the reel with a known master tape....went through what i think is the correct sequence to record on any empty track.. The results were the same..decent audio levels in..audio leds move..audio out to the amp is present and heard..but after recording with good levels on the msr 6 a rewind always ends up with an empty track. not even a slightest movement of the tracks audio level led's.. It does erase a prerecorded track but nothing is recorded. Maybe i forgot the correct sequence to record ..wanted to use this deck due to the remote control and features on the 16th track for sync. something my 3340 or 80-8 doesn't have.
Thanks for any help.
Respectfully
TBean
 
Just checking, you have disarmed the tracks after recording, right? (i.e. the light is not still blinking)
Do you have 'All Input' selected, because that will make all channels echo the input and ignore the playback.

Does your existing master actually play back? That is unclear from your description... If not, check the fuses (there is a separate one for the audio subsystem - don't know if it would still be able to echo the input or not with the fuse blown). Also, check the condition of the heads. If they're covered in blank or brown gunk, you are going to get this kind of result. They should be shiny.

I have a TSR-8 so the controls may vary slightly, but most of this should still apply.
 
JP,
Just got back in the grotto...Yes a master from a past 16 track works on play...It has 5 empty tracks. I can record on to that tape on the 80-8 but so far not the msr 16...early today opened it up..to check cable,connections,fuse etc..didn't see fuses yet like the 80-8...was side tracked with another project.decided to post the problem and admit faded grey matter might be the issue..( sure hope its my grey processing unit needing a reboot)

Yes after recording on the selected track it was disarmed..( not blinking) ..All input was not selected.. will be looking into the issue later tonight...
Thank you very much for the info..
TBean
 
Using an MSR-16 with Logic and a Tascam DM4800 mixer

Does anyone have any idea of the procedure involved in using the MSR for recording several audio tracks from a sequence?
I know you have to record a pulse to track 16 on the MSR, but I have no idea where to start. How does the tape machine know where to start the bass line on track two if it doesn't start till half way through the song?
Do you record the midi time code pulse first and then have to punch in and out on the MSR?
I think I'm in over my head........:confused:
 
midipuppies said:
Does anyone have any idea of the procedure involved in using the MSR for recording several audio tracks from a sequence?
I know you have to record a pulse to track 16 on the MSR, but I have no idea where to start. How does the tape machine know where to start the bass line on track two if it doesn't start till half way through the song?
Do you record the midi time code pulse first and then have to punch in and out on the MSR?
I think I'm in over my head........:confused:
Click to expand...

The tape machine doesn't know, it just records and plays back. What is actually generating the bass sequence? A computer?

The way I work is I write all the MIDI tracks first on computer. Then, when I'm happy with the song, I record the timecode on track 8 (having a TSR-8) using a sync box.
When the timecode is played back into the computer, it will jump to the correct position in the sequence. Then you can entire record the entire track or punch in and out as need be.

Does that help?
 
Using an MSR-16 with Logic and a Tascam DM4800 mixer

Yes, that does help. Thanks!
So, the midi sequence: does it write all the track data to the tape machine?
So if I want to record one midi track's audio onto the tape machine at a time, will it understand that? Say I have already recorded the track data to channel 16, and then I want to write a midi track's audio to track 8, the tape machine just goes to the right point in time on the tape and starts recording it?
Thanks, Jay
 
Ah, no. The tape deck is the controller. When you press play on the deck, the computer will jump to match the appropriate position on the tape. Making the computer slave to the tape is easy, especially for MIDI. Making the tape deck slave to the computer instead requires more expensive equipment and is pretty much backwards for what you seem to be doing.

EDIT:

I figure I should describe my usual working process in more detail, see if that helps.

1. I plan out the song and compose it in a MIDI sequencer. (I use SONAR for the composition and then export it into Rosegarden for recording, because SONAR is crappy when it comes to sync, but your mileage may vary). I move the song along so that it starts after about 5 seconds. That will give the sync box enough time to lock properly.
If I'm doing a more complex piece with two TSR-8s synchronized, I'll generally leave about 30 seconds at the start for it to lock.
I also plan out which tracks of the MIDI sequence are going on which tracks of the tape. This is more of a hassle for me because I only have 7 to play with unless I use two decks.

2. I find a blank section of tape and record the timecode on track 8. I'll usually leave about 15-30 seconds extra in case I want to extend the ending slightly or something. I record the timecode as SMPTE at 25fps using a Phil Rees TS-1 synchronizer. At this point I unplug the MIDI connection from the sync box, because otherwise it will generate MIDI data while it's recording and the sequencer will act upon it which I don't want.

3. I switch the synchronizer into playback mode and plug the MIDI cable back in. At this point I will check Rosegarden to make sure it is listening (On the TS-1 this can be done by switching it into record mode briefly).
The sequencer is set up to listen to MIDI channel 1 on a dedicated MIDI port I use for the TS-1 sync box. It is set to do an MTC chase, which means that the sequencer will follow the tape.

4. In the sequencer I mute all the tracks except the one(s) I'm going to print to tape. Usually I start with the bass or drums first, occasionally the lead melody. Depends on the song. I make sure that the synthesizer I'm going to record is routed to the track I'm going to use (I use a switchbox and a sub-mixer for this). I will do a level check at this point.

5. I arm the track, I press REC-PLAY on the tape deck and wait. At this point the computer should be playing the bass track etc, which the deck will now be recording. I might watch the levels or I might go off and do something else for a little while and just listen.

6. When the track is recorded, I rewind the tape, select the next track to record and repeat the process. The computer will jump to the correct position and the new track will line up perfectly with the first one, since they're both clocked against the same timecode. I can also rewind to mid-way in the song and punch something in if I like - typically if I want to use a monotimbral synthesizer for two different voices at different points on the same track. The computer will (after a few seconds) jump to the appropriate part of the song according to the timecode on track 8.

7. Repeat until the song is done, record the vocal track(s), mix

...does that help?
 
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