VF-160 Track Mastering

  • Thread starter Thread starter shinealight
  • Start date Start date
S

shinealight

New member
As I don't have our recordings or the machine handy at the moment, I would like to know what the Fostex VF-160 does when you master the tracks?

Would it sound better if I were to transfer everything to Sound Forge and master it manually?
 
No mastering.

shinealight said:
As I don't have our recordings or the machine handy at the moment, I would like to know what the Fostex VF-160 does when you master the tracks?

Would it sound better if I were to transfer everything to Sound Forge and master it manually?

You can't do 'mastering' on the vf160. You can record and mix and add a little compression and effects, and then burn the mix to an audio CD, but that's really not 'mastering'. To master you'd have to transfer your music to a PC and use a program like Soundforge or send it to a pro mastering house.
 
Someone posted this on another BBS. They claim it works quite well. Hopefully, I'll have time to try it out this week.

1) Perform internal mixdown.
2) Set Chan 1 to Aux 1, PRE fader
3) Set Chan 2 to Aux 2, PRE fader
4) Route Aux 1 to Stereo left of effects chain, route Aux 2 to Stereo right of effects chain.(compressor,limiter,eq,exciter,etc..)
5) Stereo left at end of effects chain to Chan 3, Stereo right at end of effects chain to Chan 4.
6) Chan 1 & 2 faders to zero.
7) Chan 3 pan hard L, Chan 4 pan hard R.
8) Direct Record Chan 3 & 4.
9) Adjust as desired.
 
orc, what do you mean?
I have heard some radio ready stuff that was done intirely internal with a vf-160(fostex.com has a forum and song section).
From what I've been able to gather, mastering consists of what is done to the song(s) between the final mix and the duplication master. Using compression, eq, harmonizers, exciters and whatever else to get more of a polished final sound on your two track stereo master.
You can run it into a PC and use some mastering software on it or run it through some outboard gear to an external recorder and/or CD burner or presumably back into the vf-160 where you can burn a CD.
Back in the '80s, I ran the Tascam Porta1 through a Radio Shack 15 band stereo eq into a Panasonic jam box to make masters. Then duped on the same jam box.
I've got a bunch of reasons not to run it to a PC and no real compelling reason to do it.
If you want to run it to a PC, go for it, but it's not necessary.
 
Back
Top