Tascam 48 recording volume

[audiocrzy]

This is one of many questions I have asked on AK about the Tascam 48 I am working on. None of the other questions have gotten any answers. I’m assuming that it being a professional deck no one knows the answers.

Here is what I’d like to know now.
To record with the Tascam 48 does it need something in the frontend between the source and the inputs on the recorder? If I plug a source from my pioneer receiver directly into an input channel the meter on the Tascam shows input but the recorder does (as far as I can tell) not have an input volume control. All of the consumer recorders I’ve had do have a volume control but not the Tascam 48. Maybe that’s how professional recorders are but I don’t know for sure. Hopefully someone does and will shed me some light.

Thanks

 

[benricci]

This is not a consumer product, like a cassette deck or stereo R2R.

This is an 8-track tape recorder made for professional or amateur home recording studios. You'd typically run balanced outputs from the individual channels of a mixing console to each tape input. So yeah, you'd be using the channel fader at the console to control channel volume going into the multi-track recorder (in this case, the TASCAM 48).

You then feed the outputs of each tape channel back to the console so you can mix the album when you're done recording or overdubbing each instrument.

You'd then typically bounce that (once you're happy with your mix) to a 2-channel stereo mix for mastering purposes.

 

[audiocrzy]

This is not a consumer product, like a cassette deck or stereo R2R.

This is an 8-track tape recorder made for professional or amateur home recording studios. You'd typically run balanced outputs from the individual channels of a mixing console to each tape input. So yeah, you'd be using the channel fader at the console to control channel volume going into the multi-track recorder (in this case, the TASCAM 48).

You then feed the outputs of each tape channel back to the console so you can mix the album when you're done recording or overdubbing each instrument.

You'd then typically bounce that (once you're happy with your mix) to a 2-channel stereo mix for mastering purposes.

Thanks benricci, I assumed it was something like that. I’m go to try using my Pyle preamp for the recording. Probably not the best method if it works at all. It only has 1 stereo output that I can raise or lower with the volume control. I want to be able to test the Tascam recording function and if the preamp works can do 1 channel at a time on the recorder. I know it won’t be the best quality but It’s better then nothing at all.

I knew going in it is a Professional recorder way above most consumer tape recorders. It may have been in a professional recording studio at some point. Who knows, maybe Neil Young was recorded with it.

 

[benricci]

I knew going in it is a Professional recorder way above most consumer tape recorders. It may have been in a professional recording studio at some point. Who knows, maybe Neil Young was recorded with it.

It was likely in a very small studio or someone’s home project studio. Commercial music studios of the day would have been using bigger Studers, Otari’s or something similar. TASCAM units were more for the amateur home recorder, smaller studios or pro musicians recording demos at home.

 

[audiocrzy]

Finally received the pinch roller and counter roller that was rebuilt by Voice of Music. They did an excellent job. I haven’t been able to test any of the recording or playback of the 48 till now. All 8 channels are recording as I think they should but channel 7 plays back with very low output. The 48 being modular made it easy to trouble shoot to the board level and I identified what REC/OUTPUT board was the culprit. Since I don’t have the equipment or skills to isolate the failed components on the board I did a Google search by board part number and found a seller on EBay that had 2 claiming they were from a ( we will see ) working Tascam 48 so I purchased 1 for $50 shipped.
Once I get that board and it actually works I’ll go forward and do what ever adjustments the maintenance manual recommends with the equipment I have. Some of the adjustments may not be possible because I don’t have the equipment necessary.

 

[audiocrzy]

The replacement rec/output board came today and it works beautifully. Now all 8 channels record and playback. I’ve been doing a lot of recording and playing back and this Tascam 48 sounds amazing. If I could justify using it as my home RTR I would but the cost of 1/2” tape will keep that from happening.