Tascam 488

[magritte]

guys, i am reading the review (quoted below) of the 488 and have a few questions.

The bad news is that there's no clean upgrade path from the 488. The reason: unlike the 424, where you have one output jack for each track (or the Yamaha 8-track cassette as someone kindly pointed out), the main audio outs on this beast are the ones marked L and R. So there's no easy way of making backups of your tapes, and if you've recorded the 8-track masterpiece of the century, you'll have to mix it all down on your 488. However, it is possible (although tricky) to get all the tracks out to an ADAT, digital recorder, mixing board, or whatever...see this page for a way to do it!

We may as well get all the bad news out of the way at once. While the frequency response of the mixer section goes all the way to 22 kHz, the recorder section is rated at only 40 Hz to 14 kHz. I tested this informally with the Mix Reference CD, my spectrum analyzer, and the VU meters; sure enough, serious pooping out was evident at 15 kHz and up (I will not embarrass myself by noting at what frequency my ears starting pooping out, but that's why I have test equipment). Now, in actual use, the 488 MkII sounded just great, though I'm not going to try to B.S. anybody that it's as clear as, say, a TASCAM DA-88 digital multitrack or anything similar to that.

Another thing: only 2 of the input channels have XLR connectors! Did TASCAM think that someone would lay out mucho dinero for one of these machines and then use 2 balanced mics and 2 consumer grade mics?

You can only record 4 tracks at a time on the 488 anyway, though that's hardly unique among 8-track cassette. And if you use C-60 tapes as recommended (and I recommend you do, too), you're only going to get 15 minutes' worth of sound on a tape (although this can be a Good Thing in the unlikely event that one of your tapes gets chewed up; at least it wasn't an entire CD full of music!).

Can you please tell me what this all means? I know how to record, but I really don't know the lingo or anything behind the machines I use. I know that the mixing console I have right now has 8 inputs and outputs, so it's easy to get music off the machine and I can monitor through my board/headphones as I record. It also has phantom power and a balanced mic input for each track. Will I not be able to do all of this with the 488? The review states it only has 2 balanced inputs. How will this effect me if I track 1 instrument at a time? At all or no?

Thanks.

[austin]

I've had a 488 mkII for a few months and I'm enjoying it.

If you only track one instrument at a time, the limited number of XLR inputs should not be a problem for you -- because you can route those inputs to any track. So you could keep your mic plugged into channel 1 the whole time, but record it onto track 2, 3, 4, etc.

I'm pretty sure that the other inputs are balanced too, but they are balanced 1/4-inch inputs, not XLR -- so you can't plug in more than two mics directly, but you could connect two more preamps using balanced 1/4-inch cables if you ever need to record four tracks at once. (You know the difference between XLR & 1/4", and between balanced/unbalanced, right?)

The lack of dedicated outputs for each track is a bit irritating -- it will be harder for you to get your tracks out individually to your other board, or to separate tracks on a computer. There is a reasonable workaround for this (follow that link on the page you've quoted -- it'll tell you how) but it's a bit of a pain.

[magritte]

I've had a 488 mkII for a few months and I'm enjoying it.

If you only track one instrument at a time, the limited number of XLR inputs should not be a problem for you -- because you can route those inputs to any track. So you could keep your mic plugged into channel 1 the whole time, but record it onto track 2, 3, 4, etc.

whew, this was a main concern. i record 1 track at a time, but i like to have the click track playing through my headphones while recording. would that be possible?

(You know the difference between XLR & 1/4", and between balanced/unbalanced, right?)

yes, that much i do know.

The lack of dedicated outputs for each track is a bit irritating -- it will be harder for you to get your tracks out individually to your other board, or to separate tracks on a computer. There is a reasonable workaround for this (follow that link on the page you've quoted -- it'll tell you how) but it's a bit of a pain.

thanks.

right now i'm recording on a tascam tsr-8, and i'm wondering if i should make the switch. with the 488, can you record 8 tracks at once on the cassette before bouncing? if so, is it an 8 track or a 4 track?

[austin]

i record 1 track at a time, but i like to have the click track playing through my headphones while recording. would that be possible?

Depends on how you deal with the click, I suppose. You could always record it to its own track and then record over it later.

with the 488, can you record 8 tracks at once on the cassette before bouncing? if so, is it an 8 track or a 4 track?

Yes, it's 8 separate tracks. You can only record onto 4 tracks at once, but you can play back (and separately control) all 8.

[magritte]

what's the difference between the tascam 488 and the tascam 488II?

which one is better? thanks.

[creature.of.habit]

you have a tsr-8 and you're thinking of a 488..why on earth?

[snatchman]

you have a tsr-8 and you're thinking of a 488..why on earth?

My thoughts exactly. I sure convinence comes into play here. But I think the sonic differences from the TRS-8 to cassette kinda rules out the convinence!.... (IMHO)..I'm not dissing' the 488 though...

[magritte]

what's the difference between the tascam 488 and the tascam 488II?

does anyone know the answer? thank you.

[RefD]

FWIW, the 238 is compatible with the 488 and 488mkII and has individual outs.

[magritte]

FWIW, the 238 is compatible with the 488 and 488mkII and has individual outs.

i don't know what this means.

[creature.of.habit]

it means the you can play tapes made by the 488 or 488mk2, on the 238 and vice versa...it also means you can take 8 mono tracks out of a 238, which can't happen on a 488 i think.

the differences between the 488 and the 488mk2 are mainly in the mixer section if i recall correctly, with the mk2 having more features, including the balanced inputs and i think 4 inserts or some ridiculous shit like that...better than nothing, but you know..

again, if you have a tsr8, it's pretty silly to go for a 488, unless you don't want to deal with threading tape, etc...it's pretty friggin night and day, especially without outboard pres, a real downgrade.

[magritte]

it means the you can play tapes made by the 488 or 488mk2, on the 238 and vice versa...it also means you can take 8 mono tracks out of a 238, which can't happen on a 488 i think.

the differences between the 488 and the 488mk2 are mainly in the mixer section if i recall correctly, with the mk2 having more features, including the balanced inputs and i think 4 inserts or some ridiculous shit like that...better than nothing, but you know..

again, if you have a tsr8, it's pretty silly to go for a 488, unless you don't want to deal with threading tape, etc...it's pretty friggin night and day, especially without outboard pres, a real downgrade.

thanks. i understand it is a downgrade, but that is exactly what i want. i decided i liked my lo-fi recordings from ten years ago (done on 4-track) more than the fancier stuff i did on the tsr-8. it's just a preference thing.

thanks for the info on the 488II--i think i'll go with that model.

[creature.of.habit]

the mk2 is the way to go then, if you really need 8 tracks. a 4 track will sound more robust, but the 488 is a good recorder, i've owned one.

[magritte]

a 4 track will sound more robust.

is there a similar 4 track would you recommend?

why do you say it would sound more robust?

thanks.

[creature.of.habit]

a 244 or a 246 (if you need the extra mixer hassle) will get you a much more robust sound cause you're printing 4 tracks on a cassette (just compare that to the tape you use on the tsr8)..so each track has more space in the tape than say an 8 or 6 track, where you're printing 8 tracks on such a small tape.

sound quality has to do with the recorder of course, but also (and especially) with tape speed and width.

the 244 and 246 are the best portas ever built...everything else from there is downhill, safe for the 424 which is a good recorder.

the 488 will sound a tad cleaner than the vintage portas, and it's a good recorder in its own right. if you wanna hear what it sounds like, check out olivia tremor control.

personally, i think that if you don't necessarly need the 8 tracks, you should look for a 4 track...either a 244, a 246 or a 424. the first 2 are built like tanks and sound much better than anything you'll ever get out of cassette. but they're also older than any 424 you can get (that means problems can arise maintainace wise, much sooner than on a 424 for instance), so i think your best bet would be a 424 (mk2 or mk3)...the 488 descends from that line (424), so they will sound pretty close, with the 424 sounding a tad more robust.

mind that a decent external pre takes everything (regardless of recorder) to another level. be it an electro harmonix 12ay7, a little dmp3 or whatever...even an art tube mp. cassette recordings will sound a lot better with one of these things bonning your mics before going into the recorder.

with all this said, if you think you're ever gonna need 8 tracks, go with the 488, it's a good recorder and the mixer is very cool and flexible.