DP 24 with CD burner volume low---Help?

[Craig Baron]

Okay here is my problem:


I record a song,then following along with the David Wills video and the manual I then use the mastering tools and then burn it to CD. I play the CD on a regular CD player and the volume is low (my CD player's max volume is 25 and though I don't have to turn it up that high I do have to turn the volume up t0 15 to hear it at a decent volume). Am I doing something wrong?
For an experiment I mastered the demo song. I though that perhaps I was doing something wrong with the recording of my own songs. I burned the mastered demo song. And guess what? I had to turn up my regular CD player up to 15. I also have a BOSS multitrack digital recorder with mastering tools/CD burner and I also have to turn the CD player up to 15 to hear that CD.
Am I doing something wrong? I also have the DP 32sd without the CD burner. If I record a song with it and then use the mastering tools and then export it to my computer to burn it will that burned CD also have a low volume?
Is it me or are the mastering tools for the digital multitrack recorders too low? And if so,then why do these companies even bother to include them? It makes no sense. And this has nothing to do with the 'loudness war'. I understand that these units do not have the mastering capabilities that professional mastering houses have,but c'mon,at least have it so that you only need to turn it up to 8 on a regular CD player.
So,once again,am I the problem? All I want to do is make the finished song a little louder than 15. Is there a way I can do that with the unit? And if not,then what software for my computer can help me make my song louder (I am computer illiterate so I would need something simple that would kind of walk me through it.)

Thanks for reading.

 

[Roundhill]

I have the same issue and it really sucks. You are doing nothing wrong. I use a standalone CD burner so I can adjust levels as needed. However, you could try the normalize function in the mastering tools and see if that helps. You could also try what you suggested - transfer to a computer and burn it there. If it does not work I'm sure computer software could help, but I can't recommend any cause I don't use a computer for music.

Maybe others on this forum could help.

 

[Craig Baron]

Thanks for the info. Which standalone burner do you use? Is it still available for purchase? How do I import my songs into it? Are there any settings that you have to set the burner to for the finished CD to be louder and if so what are those settings?

Thanks for reading.

 

[Roundhill]

I have a TASCAM CD-RW900MKII. I bought it at Sweetwater and it is still available. It works like a cassette recorder. You connect the stereo out of the DP-24 to the input of the burner via an RCA cable. You burn at real time and the burner has LED meters that you can manually turn up or down to make the CD louder.

 

[Craig Baron]

Thanks for the info. I ordered one.
Can you give me steps that you go through beginning from after you record your song on the DP 24 all the way to and including the burning of the song on the MKII? I figure that this would be a good guide for me so I have a clue as to the steps to perform so I don't want to yank my hair out from lack of a clue as to what I am supposed to do.
Also,is there a way to store the songs on the 900 MKII so that I can then make a compilation of songs onto a burned CD?

Thanks for reading.

 

[Roundhill]

Mix your song in the DP-24 using mixdown/master button, like you did. Press the same button again to get to the master screen so you can hear your mix. Connect an RCA cable from the stereo outs of the DP-24 to the inputs of the CD burner, be sure the cable of the right output goes to the right input of the burner, left to left. Turn up the stereo fader on the DP-24 all the way. Insert a blank CD in the burner. Set the input source on the burner to analog. Press REC on the burner and adjust the inputs level on the burner so the loudest parts of the song are close to zero on the meters. Don't go over zero or you will get distortion. When your levels are adjusted press play on the DP-24 and the burner and there you go. To play the CD on another player you will need to finalize the disc. You can play back the un-finalized CD on the burner but not other units. Read manual for instructions. Depending on the CD's used (I use Verbatim, a block of 100 discs for less than $20) a blank one will hold over 70 minutes so you could record more than one song before you finalize. This is not stored in the burner but on the CD. Once you have a finalized CD you could store it on your computer and from there make your compilation of songs.

Let me know how it works for you.

 

[Craig Baron]

SUCCESS!

Now I just wish I could find some tutorial as to how to properly use the e.q. on the unit. I am not a mixing engineer so this is a lot of trial and error and FRUSTRATION.

 

[Roundhill]

Glad it works!

Do you mean individual tracks, or are you having issues getting the EQ to work?

For individual tracks try cutting frequencies instead of boosting. For example is a vocal tracks sounds muddy don't boost the high frequencies try cutting frequencies. For me, cutting the mud out of a lot of tracks say between 200 to 500 HZ clears up a lot. Try not to cut more than 8db. Also, when you mix all tracks together don't waste time soloing any one track, bring up all faders and then EQ individual tracks while listening to the other tracks.

 

[songwriter16]

I just started using the DP32 and I too have a problem with the volume. It seems odd to me that the volume would be so low on this model. The previous 2488 Tascam I used I was able to make adjustments on the mix down and mastering to over come this problem. But with the new DP 32 I am stumped. Still working on the problem.