Where is the distortion coming from

  • Thread starter Thread starter BMee
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BMee

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I have a very lo tech set up in my basement and Zoom 4 track mixing to 2 virtual trax, using the PA as the monitor. Then I save the mixed tracks to computer. So far sounds great.

Sometimes I'm getting distortion that I dont know where it came from.

1. WHat is the relationship between the master fader and the others during the mix process?

2. It seems when save to the computer at lower vol when I save the song, it lessens the distortion. Is that my imagination?

3. Does hte 32 KHz sampling rate make it more likely you get distortion. Any thing you can do?

4 DO you want no 0s whem yyou record the original sound or a little bit of "red" is ok?

Any help appreciated. Thanks.
 
How are you recording analog or digital....if analog a little bit of red is ok if digital red is bad (real bad) try staying under zero just a bit. my 2 cents,randy5235
 
Lower the recording volume level and dump the PA for monitors, you are missing a lot of highs with the PA, you'd be better off with a good stereo and speakers, seriously, good monitors can make a lot of difference.
 
First of all, 32K sampling rate is a problem. You want 44.1K at a minimum.
The gain or trim for an individual channel work to gether. With the fader set at unity gain (that's 0) the trim is adjusted for the incoming signal. When you do this you're calibrating this channel for signal to noise and distortions. Too much trim=distortion, not enough=poor signal to noise ratio. The individual faders slave to the the mains faders and it's kind of the same situation as in the individual channel situation where you need to be aware of how you're loading the main mix buss. Cumulatively, if you're feeding too much signal from the individual faders/channels to the main mix buss/faders=distortion, not enough=poor signal to noise ratio (noisey mix/hiss and background noise). The art is to create a good, full mix with hot enough levels for good dynamic range and sigal to noise but not so hot that it clips and distorts.
When recording to the computer or ANY digital medium, a little red is very much NOT OK. 0dBFS (dB Full Scale) on a digital level meter can not be exceeded without nasty distortion, unlike analog tape where you can get away with a little.
 
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