Stereo Bus

[Doodle46]

Ref. - Tascam DP-32sd:
The term “Bus” is beginning to sink-in... somewhat. My understanding is that a “Bus” is the path that signals travel on. This sounds sensible enough, unless you are me.
I am a retired guitarist, and although my knowledge of Music Theory is better than satisfactory, I have zero electronic training, and my recording knowledge is limited.
On my machine, below track assignments, I see 8 buttons titled STEREO BUS. I know what to do with assignments (etc), and I’m having no trouble completing my recording projects. However, I am on a mission to learn as much as I can about my Tascam DP-32sd, and recording in general.
Q. Why do I need those 8 “Stereo Bus” buttons, and how I can use them in my recording process? What is their significance? Are they simply additional tracks, to be used like any other track? Can someone please explain them to me in language I can understand?

 

[RustyAxe]

Routing directly to the stereo bus bypasses EQ, FX, etc. It allows you to hear the input without arming the track. So, you could bring another source into your headphone or monitor mix without recording it. Personally, I have no use for routing to the stereo bus, but I suppose someone might, and will chime in here.

 

[Dunny]

I am glad someone has asked the question about the stereo bus facility thanks Doodle46 , it not clear in the manual what its used for, so i have overlooked it as well , maybe used as a mixer facility for inputs , mix and then out to the Stereo bus , in other words , out to the speakers , cant see at the moment where or when i would use it TBH, but i bet someone on here will have the perfect use for it ?

 

[David Porter]

Guys... watch the Tipping videos. He explains this explicitly. The genius of his explanation approach is that he uses the signal flow diagram from the DP manual... which helps simplify and make things crystal clear.

 

[Doodle46]

Thank you, RustyAxe & Dunny, for your input. The manual offered me no help either, and I could find no other info, so I’ve been in the dark about this. As of yet, I could never find a use for the Stereo Bus, and based on what you both told me, I probably won’t need it anyway.

 

[David Porter]

I don't have the time right now but when I get back to my office in a little while I can point you to the video where Phil explains the stereo bus. It's free information and it's very helpful

 

[Doodle46]

Good point, jimi ray clapton. I totally agree with you, regarding Phil Tipping’s YouTube tutorials. He is amazing, and has been a tremendous help to me. I just wish I could remember in which video he talked about the Stereo Bus.

 

[Doodle46]

That would be great. Thanks a lot!

 

[David Porter]

So... a couple of thoughts... that may or may not be helpful. But I can only explain from my own understanding and viewpoint.

I think of the signal flow through these units as water flowing through a pipe. The water enters the pipe at a given location (in this case - the inputs)... and flows through the machine and may or may not be affected along the way. You might add "color" to the water (EQ or effects)... or you might raise or lower the temperature along the way (volume). But at some point the water makes it's way to the exit point ("outputs"). The "bus" is one part of the piping that carries the water. What makes a bus special or unique from the other "pipes" is that it is a *common* carrying point in the piping system. Now I'll try to leave the water analogy behind.

Different sources (live inputs or previously recorded material) might end up traveling down the same path - together. When they do - they are on the same bus. What sources and how sources get on the same bus together just all depends on what you're trying to do.

This machine has 3 distinct buses: stereo bus, bounce bus, and send bus.

I found Phil's approach to the videos helpful. He, at first, did not talk about "recording" or "recorded tracks" at all. He kept it simple and just discussed the DP as a simple audio mixer - where you simply have 1 or more live inputs (up to 8 with the Tascam DP)... and you mix them together and send them to an output... in most cases some sort of amplification - like a PA system or near-field desk monitors. In this way you can see how 1 or more live signals all come into the machine and are then sent to the stereo bus where they are all "mixed" together and then make their way off the stereo bus and to the outputs. It's a simple signal flow.

In video 3A he demonstrates this - slowly and simply.

In the "assign" screen - you are given the options of where you want to send the input signal(s). All of the top area in the Assign screen are the "track" assign options - which send the input signal(s) to the tracks of your choosing - usually to be recorded for later playback. However - if you just want to send those same input signals directly through the machine to the outputs for simple mixing as described above - you would "assign" those input directly to the stereo bus using those eight buttons along the bottom of the Assign screen.... where it would subsequently be sent to the outputs... (or wherever).


The videos when used with the block diagram in front of you are a powerful tool for gaining a near global understanding of these machines. You can SEE how the water flows - and Phil explains everything beautifully.

Hope this helps.

 

[Dunny]

Thats perfect JRC i will check out the video on you tube but thanks for your time to reply and shed some light on the subject , which is becoming clearer to me and the others probably . still cant at this moment in time, see a use for my particular needs , but i am pretty sure it will at some point

Cheers

 

[Doodle46]

Thank you very much, JRC. That erased a lot of my confusion about the Stereo Bus.

 

[David Porter]

"still cant at this moment in time, see a use for my particular needs"

Me either. I have not ever used the "bottom row" A-H stereo bus routing assignments in a practical, useful sense. Most of us are more interested in "track assignments" because we're wanting to record and use the multi-track recorder operations of this machine.

One practical use of the stereo bus assignments might be to send a live signal (perhaps playing along in real time) on to the stereo bus and have it join up with already pre-recorded track material which has also been routed onto the same bus. Now the pre-recorded material is mixed with your live performance... and is sent out to perhaps a PA system, or an external recording device... or maybe just to your headphones.

One of my favorite things about these devices and their many uses and capabilities is:

The rules are... there ain't no rules.

 

[David Porter]

On a related note... Phil explains at about the 14:00 mark of Video 3A where the routing point is in the block diagram. In the picture it is just seen as a switch... but it represents *everything* you see when you open the Assign screen. And as he explains... the "switch"... as it's drawn in the block diagram... is not an "either/or" routing option... as in... you are not limited to sending an input signal(s) to either the stereo bus OR the "multi-track" recorder section (Tracks 1-32). You can do both... simply by selecting whatever assignments you want in the Assign screen. There is no limitation... although the block diagram picture does not show this accurately.

 

[Mark Richards]

There's more than one "typical use" for a DP24/32. There's the PA board "live" recording scenario; there's the "one-man-band" scenario; and then there's the "recording engineer/band" scenario, in which the owner of the DP24/32 is using it to record other performers in a studio-like setting.

In that last scenario the stereo bus could be used to feed a headphone cue system during tracking and overdub. One practical application would be having the drummer and bass player lay down the rhythm tracks while the guitarist and singer provide a cue performance that isn't recorded because those parts will be overdubbed later. The bass and drum inputs are assigned to tracks to be recorded and are heard through the multi-tracking system's track faders that feed the stereo bus. The singer and guitarist inputs are assigned to the stereo bus only, bypassing the multi-track recorder.

Here's how to use the stereo bus in the "one-man-band" scenario:
You want to record a vocal track dry, but want to still hear the effect as you record the track. In the assign screen set the vocal input to track 1 and also assign the vocal input to the stereo bus. In the mixer screen use the vocal input send 1 to route the input to the effect. The effect goes to the stereo bus and bypasses the recorder. With the vocal input set to the stereo bus, you can turn down the track 1 fader, and monitor the vocal only through the stereo bus (i.e. use the inputs/stereo bus as a cue system).