Little or no signal for line inputs - DP-32

[John Davidson]

I usually record using mics anyway, but when I connect anything up guitar / yamaha motif with line jacks I don't get a proper signal. The input light flickers when I play on the input(s) connected but that's it - there's no noise. Doesn't matter which input I use or where the guitar/line is set,
The only time I've got any kind of proper signal: initially, when I plugged in a mic it was with a cable with a line connector at the mixer end; I did manage to record, but with a very quiet signal so changed it for one that's xlr both ends and recording with mics is fine now.
Any help much appreciated.

 

[Gravity Jim]

When you plug in your guitar, are you plugging it in directly? The impedance of a guitar output won't drive a line input: you need a preamp (like the dreaded POD) or direct box to plug a guitar into a console. By the same token, the outputs on a synth like the Motif aren't really "line level:" they are preamplified by the synths internal amp. You need to turn the synth's volume control all the way up and then turn up the DMs preamps to taste.

If you're already doing this and getting no level, there is likely something wrong with those inputs.

 

[John Davidson]

Thanks for your reply. Yes I'm plugging both the Motif and the guitar in directly - I don't have anything like a POD. Even with the Motif volume turned full up I just get the light for the input blinking when I play, but no actual sound coming through. Please excuse my ignorance, but what's a DM in this context.
Cheers

 

[Gravity Jim]

Typo. I meant DP.

Well, that explains the guitar signal, unless the DP32 has an input labeled "Inst." Are you turning up the preamps/trim pots on the DP32 when you play the Motif?

Also, is that linking light red? If it is, you might just gave the unit set up wrong. I'm committing the venal sin of trying to help without a thorough knowledge of the gear in question, but... a red light that blinks at you on a channel input almost always means too much level... which would indicate that your Motif is coming in crazy loud and just isn't making it to the outputs.

 

[John Davidson]

Ugh! Right I've had a play around and realised I've been a right idiot. You don't get any sound through until you highlight the record for each track to which the inputs are assigned. Quite how I managed to miss this when clearly that's what I've been doing when recording with mics I don't know!
Anyway, the sound's coming through from the Motif plenty loud enough. Many thanks for your responses.

 

[Gravity Jim]

Glad to help. Rock on!

 

[BobV55]

Assuming the DP-32 is laid out like the DP-24, input H should have a small switch beside it labeled Line/Inst to switch impedance and plug a guitar directly in. With any input, you first assign the input to the track you wish to use, then press the Record button on that track, which will blink red. Adjust the trim for that input to get a good signal without clipping (back down if the OL light is blinking for that input), and your signal should record properly.

 

[Jimi Jones]

Yeah, Bob, the DP-32 and DP-24 are basically laid out exactly the same, except for the track count, and both DP-24/32 have the "High-Z" switch you spoke of on input H, off topic here a bit, I wish Tascam's marketing hadn't called the DP-24/32 a 24-track and a 32-track machine, it confuses most everyone, because most people think that the two tracks from a "Stereo" track can be manipulated, and they can't, they're composite tracks operating as one, but the real kicker is on both of these machines you see 18 physical faders on the DP-24, and 20 physical faders on the DP-32, not 24 or 32 faders, Tascam should make amends and come out with a real 32 track DP, one with 32 faders, all stereo tracks with the ability to change them to mono...yeah now that would be cool.

 

[BobV55]

That would be awesome...I've had to compromise and bounce two tracks to a stereo pair to free up tracks for backing vocals more times than I'd like. Sure, it works fine, but it eliminates the ability to make changes to one of those two tracks during mixing without affecting the other one. I have enough room on my desk for a wider console....(is Tascam listening?).

Can't complain though...my friends and I started with a 4 track cassette based Tascam in the mid '80's...maybe the 244? Anyway, what the DP-24 offers is luxury compared to those early days!

 

[Jimi Jones]

No, I can't complain either, but sometimes it baffles me how Tascam's power team makes these decisions, for example I was looking at the old 2488 neo, and it had S/PDIF on it input and output which makes sense, I mean you could use the digital output for digital monitors, or use the digital input for keyboards that have digital outputs, or if you synchronized two units together, you could run the output digitally from the slave unit into the master unit as an input source, therefore keeping everything in the digital domain without having to be sampled again, as it is now if you're fortunate to have two of the original DP-32's and you run the output from the slave unit into the input source on the master unit you will be going in as analog, at which time it will be converted to digital again, the kicker is this.......it was already digital to begin with, this wouldn't occur if these units had digital inputs / outputs.......just my two cents.

 

[Gravity Jim]

TASCAM designs these machines, just as every electronics company does, by balancing the cost of features again customer demand. The vast majority of DP users are not interested in daisy chaining two of them together: they are home recordists who have their hands completely full with 32 tracks (even if some of them are linked permanently as stereo pairs). Every port added to the design adds to the cost, and of 99.6% of your buyers are never going to use an SPDIF port, then you're just not going to include it. That's how real world product design gets done.

 

[Roundhill]

Many companies listen to what their customers want and incorporate these ideas into future models. TASCAM is not one of those companies. I remember the first tascam forum website and several users discussed great ideas for improvements to the 2488. Every idea was ignored.

Here are some of the items missing from the new DP's that were on the 2488's - tone generator, one internal effect send, SPDIF (which I used all the time), pitch control, CD burner, hard disk (more reliable than SD cards in my opinion), MIDI, more mono tracks, and others. The cost difference between a 2488 ($799) vs. DP-32 ($499) is not that great and I and others would gladly pay more for a better machine, but TASCAM seems to care more about money (even worse now that Gibson own's them) than creating innovative products with input from their customers. It's a shame because they could make a killer porta-studio.

 

[Gravity Jim]

What you know about marketing would fit in a thimble, Roundhill. And nothing has changed since the Gibson purchase. They haven't had time. If you hate TASCAM so very, very much, why don't you burn your little 32 and stomp off in a huff? Spitting venom and conjecture on this forum won't do you or anybody any good.

 

[BobV55]

It's been a long ride with Tascam for my friends and I...my friend Ed bought the Portastudio 4 track cassette unit (I think the model was a 244) back in the mid '80's, then I got a 688 MIDIstudio in the '90's (loved the meter bridge on that one), which was also cassette based. We went dormant for a few years, and I got a Pocketstudio 5 as a writing tool, which was really handy and a clever build. Next, in either 2004 or 2005, I bought the original 2488 when it was released (that one was a lot more than $749...more like 12 or 13 hundred), and I did use the SPDIF out to my tower (installed a Sound Blaster card with a dongle that provided SPDIF I/O). Now, we use my DP-24, where I simply connect to a laptop via USB to transfer mixes into Sound Blaster Pro (with iZotope's Ozone) for mastering and editing. It has become easier along the way, and the recording quality has become better as we go along.

Long journey, and have learned a great deal along the way, while having fun and making music with my friends. I wasn't aware that Gibson has acquired Tascam, and I'm not overly pleased to hear that, as I don't like the direction they are taking with iconic instruments (not to mention a 31% price hike in 2015). It makes me glad I got my 2012 Trad Plus when I did, which will suit me well for a long time to come.

But I'm moving off topic. I'd like to see a unit with more mono tracks available. On some tunes, I've had to bounce 2 mono tracks to a stereo pair to free up the mono tracks for backing vocals, etc., and in doing so, have greatly limited my mixing options for those tracks. Hindsight is always 20/20, and I've listened to a mix after time has passed and thought about how it might sound if that track were panned to that spot in the spread....so, a wider unit with more mono tracks would definitely spark this user's interest. Imagine a DP-48, with 6 linked stereo pairs and 36 individual mono tracks! Given the wide body housing that would take, can we make the color screen a little bigger too? These old eyes aren't getting any better as time goes on. Also, can we step up to USB 3.0 to facilitate faster transfers? It's good practice to back up the SD card, do a format, then restore from the backup, to avoid card based errors, and the USB transfer speed is the bottleneck in that process.

As wish lists go, I think this one's pretty reasonable, and would benefit a lot of current DP-24/32/32SD users.

 

[Roundhill]

What you know about marketing would fit in a thimble, Roundhill. And nothing has changed since the Gibson purchase. They haven't had time. If you hate TASCAM so very, very much, why don't you burn your little 32 and stomp off in a huff? Spitting venom and conjecture on this forum won't do you or anybody any good.

I use this forum to try and help others, Gravity Jim. I don't insult others intelligence and character as you did in your response. Shame on you. I and others on this forum have helped future and current DP owners with the 24 bit (pop and click) recording problem. Quite a good thing.

Oh, and when I do "burn my little 32" (I own a 24 not a 32) I will invite you over for a beer and you could show me how to do it.

 

[Jimi Jones]

Well Gravity Jim,

I do agree with you, because after all it is a business, and Tascam isn't making these machines strictly for musicians and recording aficionados, however I still believe that their balancing act is a little unbalanced, if you look at the price of the original DP-32, and look at the price of the DP-32SD, I have a very difficult time believing that CD burner and MIDI, along with its sync capabilities cost that much, taking away the CD burner makes a lot of sense to me, because you can pass that on to the consumer, but not including SPDIF or MIDI is simply stupid, for a lack of a better word, even if you raised the cost a little to offset the cost of including these vital elements, and here's another thought, if Tascam is forced to think this way instead of thinking creatively to provide both solid and great features along with smart and proper cost cutting measures then we as consumers won't see very good products in the future, furthermore whats going to happen when Tascam looks up and see's all those DP-32 machines on the shelves, and nobody is buying them, what does that tell you about business..?, there a famous phrase, "If you build it they will come", well to put things into perspective, this business is a balancing act, and Tascam simply has to be creative in the production of their DP units, I mean things like making the faders a little smaller, but still effective , or simply putting an HDMI port on the machine instead of an actual LCD, again passing this on to the consumer, but reducing cost of the machine, not sacrificing what I would call VITAL features, measuring how many people will buy a particular machine has always been a mystery with audio companies, the proof is in the pudding, give the people what they want and be extremely creative when it comes to sacrificing certain features, especially features that are extremely contemporary in today's recording environment whether in a commercial studio or in someone's home, its still recording.

 

[Dennis FMRJE]

I am glad I have the DP24's with midi and CD burner, I midi my two DP24's to give me 16 digital track recording capability-this is where one the benefit is; the digital output/input was also a great feature missed. I think the scandisk is better than the HD's of the 2488/788, I suffered a few HD failures during a performance. I concur those "mono-stereo" pairs are a problematic description of its functionality. A 3.0USB and HDMI ports would be ideal. Waiting on my return DP24's for the fix of 24bit pops/clicks from Tascam Factory Service.

 

[Jimi Jones]

Gravity Jim,

Here's another thought I had when it comes to Tascam and business decisions, when a company makes changes to a product, i.e. deleting features from the product, they still hope it sells well, even if they sacrifice some major features, they usually do this to cut down the overall cost and increase profit, but in the end they still hope to sell enough units to justify the investment to manufacture them, I don't think the DP-32SD is selling very well right now (IMO), I've been checking out EBAY and it seems as though there are a ton of DP-32SD units on there that don't seem to be going away, makes me wonder if those new units are selling very well since they destroyed the original version, and its interesting that you don't see that many of the original DP-32 w/MIDI, it also makes me wonder what kind of DP with at least 24 or 32 tracks will they build to replace the current one..?