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General Recording to Cassette Thread!

I just started using a tascam portastudio 414 and I'm having a great time recording with this thing. I was planning on recording some loops to cassette and playing them back for live use, but I've ran into some problems. When I play back whatever I record into my little portable rca tape player, it plays way too slow. What can I do to prevent this? Would a different type tape help? I don't really know anything about tape speeds.

Highly doubtful that the type of cassette is causing speed/pitch issues.

Is the pitchwheel/fine tuning adjustment centered?

Either way, experiment with it.
The machine is probably overdue for recalibration+new belts/o-rings.

charles wrote:General Recording to Cassette Thread!

I just started using a tascam portastudio 414 and I'm having a great time recording with this thing. I was planning on recording some loops to cassette and playing them back for live use, but I've ran into some problems. When I play back whatever I record into my little portable rca tape player, it plays way too slow. What can I do to prevent this? Would a different type tape help? I don't really know anything about tape speeds.

The 4 Track Records at HALF SPEED... You need to take whatever you recorded on the 4 Track and Master it down to a regular 2 Track Tape Deck... Listen to the 4 Track and adjust the Volume and Pan and EQ for each Track till you like it then rewind and plug the Output to another 2 Track regular type Tape Deck and record what you just listened to... You'll have a 2 Track Tape that will play on any player... You can also use the transfer time to add Compression, or Reverb, or Delay, or some kind of effect to the Mixdown 2 Track... Lemme know...

Whoops! I remembered the 4xx series being like my 246: 2 speed modes in addition to the pitchwheel

Your 4-track probably records at double speed.

sonidero wrote:

charles wrote:General Recording to Cassette Thread!

I just started using a tascam portastudio 414 and I'm having a great time recording with this thing. I was planning on recording some loops to cassette and playing them back for live use, but I've ran into some problems. When I play back whatever I record into my little portable rca tape player, it plays way too slow. What can I do to prevent this? Would a different type tape help? I don't really know anything about tape speeds.

The 4 Track Records at HALF SPEED... You need to take whatever you recorded on the 4 Track and Master it down to a regular 2 Track Tape Deck... Listen to the 4 Track and adjust the Volume and Pan and EQ for each Track till you like it then rewind and plug the Output to another 2 Track regular type Tape Deck and record what you just listened to... You'll have a 2 Track Tape that will play on any player... You can also use the transfer time to add Compression, or Reverb, or Delay, or some kind of effect to the Mixdown 2 Track... Lemme know...

Ah, I see. Bummer, I don't have a tape deck. The input on my portable tape player is jacked. I guess I'll have to put this project on hold until I find a good deck.

Thanks for the help though

Goodwill or Craigs List is full of Tape Decks... Ask friends or family, most people would likely just give you one...

sonidero wrote:

charles wrote:General Recording to Cassette Thread!

I just started using a tascam portastudio 414 and I'm having a great time recording with this thing. I was planning on recording some loops to cassette and playing them back for live use, but I've ran into some problems. When I play back whatever I record into my little portable rca tape player, it plays way too slow. What can I do to prevent this? Would a different type tape help? I don't really know anything about tape speeds.

The 4 Track Records at HALF SPEED... You need to take whatever you recorded on the 4 Track and Master it down to a regular 2 Track Tape Deck... Listen to the 4 Track and adjust the Volume and Pan and EQ for each Track till you like it then rewind and plug the Output to another 2 Track regular type Tape Deck and record what you just listened to... You'll have a 2 Track Tape that will play on any player... You can also use the transfer time to add Compression, or Reverb, or Delay, or some kind of effect to the Mixdown 2 Track... Lemme know...

Actually, the 4-track records not at half speed but faster than normal speed. That's what results in the higher quality recordings. I'm not sure if high speed is actually twice as fast as normal speed, but it is faster. The faster you record (ips), the higher fidelity you will get. I've used a 414, but I currently use a 424 mkII. If you want, you can switch the 414 to "normal" speed, I believe, and that would make playing the tape in regular decks ok.

You could also record on high speed on your 414, and then find a regular tape deck that has either a high speed switch or a variable speed control.

I love 4-tracks and am about to do my next record on the 424 mkII. Great EQ and two fun effects sends!

Plus make sure you are using Type II High Bias tapes!

You need to master it down to two tracks via a regular tape deck. If you play the tape you recorded on in your 4 track back in a regular tape deck you'll only get 2 tracks of playback and when you flip the tape over, the other 2 tracks will be reversed. That's how cassettes work. There is a right and left channel for both directions, a 4 track recorder utilizes all 4 tracks in one direction. So unless you bounce everything down to the 1 and 2, it won't matter what speed you record at.