Tascam 388 Stereo Inputs - Drum Machine

[akpasta]

Hi Folks,

I'm using a software based drum machine, DM1 for iphone and I want to run it stereo to my Tascam 388. The headphone out from my phone is of course a stereo headphone jack. How do I get a stereo mix to the 388? Can I simply use one balanced cable that goes 1/8" to 1/4"? Do I have to split it to 2 channels with a Y-adapter to 1/4" mono?

I don't have a Y-adapter, but i DO have a Boss RV-3 pedal that has a stereo input and a L/R out

Advice?

Thanks!

[A.David.MacKinnon]

A Y cable will do it. Probably the pedal too but maybe with some added good or bad artifacts.
The bigger question is do you really want a stereo drum track? Also, is the sound coming from the drum machine truly stereo? Just because it’s coming from a stereo jack doesn’t mean that the source is actually stereo.
I do a lot of writing and recording on an 8 track machine and honestly stereo anything is way low on my list of priorities. I’d rather have that extra track free for something else. If the drum machine allows you to pan the individuals parts I’d pan them all to the middle and then only use one side of the headphone feed.

[A.David.MacKinnon]

ps - try FunkBox for IOS if you haven’t already. It’s my go to virtual drum machine. Looks like the interface of the DM1 is quite similar. FunkBox has samples of all the classic machines and sounds great. Super easy to use and very tweakable.

I just run the headphone out of my iPad to a mono line in on my 488. No issues.

[markjazzbassist]

i echo David's thought that on 8 track a mono drum track is paramount. use those other tracks for synth fx and sweeteners.

[akpasta]

Thanks for the advice and tips

I like the DM1 but there’s things it def can’t do. You can’t tweak Individual drum sounds much. Pitching down kills the fidelity and there’s only one tom.

I was working on a song with kind of a lush percussive arrangement so I wanted to pan the open hats, cymbal, bells and whistles etc to get some depth. I generally do 5-6 tracks of percussion including Tambo, shaker, clap overdubs etc and then bounce a stereo mix to 7-8 and I was basically gonna do this with th drum machine too.

Once you fill your 8 you can dump to digital anyways for fine tuning and any last minute doubles or whatever.

[akpasta]

ps - try FunkBox for IOS if you haven’t already. It’s my go to virtual drum machine. Looks like the interface of the DM1 is quite similar. FunkBox has samples of all the classic machines and sounds great. Super easy to use and very tweakable.

I just run the headphone out of my iPad to a mono line in on my 488. No issues.

Thanks for the rec. what do you like about it over dm1?

[A.David.MacKinnon]

I haven't used DM1. Just looked at the specs and layout. I like funkbox because it's super quick and easy to get something happening. For me drum machines are usually a placeholder when I'm writing. They almost always get replaced by real drums. Funkbox usually egts me where I need to be pretty quick which is important when I'm chasing a bigger idea and just need to get it down.
I also like that you can select a few beats at the same time (like you can with the old push button organ style drum machines).