Tascam 2488 Neo

[elwoodblues1969]

Manny,

In case you are unaware,RCT mentioned a very simple procedure,which is that you fast forward to the point in the song where you want it to end and then you depress & hold the "locate set" button,while also hitting the "out" button and viole'...your good to go.

-Thom

[Pflava]

I just got the Neo and am pleased with it so far, but like others I've found the manual to be nearly useless on it's own. I do plan to order the DVD online, but this is the problem that currently has me stumped:

I am on my first song and laid down the first guitar. I assigned the Multi Effect to the track and got a decent OD with some chorus and recorded it (track 4 if it matters). Then I went to record a new guitar on track 5 and wanted a similar sound, so I assigned the Multi Effect to track 5. The problem is that as soon as I do that, track 4 loses it's effect in playback and all I hear is the raw, un-effected guitar. Is it actually the case that you can only use the Multi Effect on one track, because that's how it seems? I know someone else posted a similar concern earlier but I never saw a clear answer. I called TASCAM tech support, but they aren't open on Saturday. I am a novice, and you guys really seem to know your stuff, so any help would be greatly appreciated. Thanks...

[ruserious]

I bought my original 2488 several years ago and loved it but wanted a little more with the mastering end of things to give the polish to the final piece. I bought the 2488 neo last nov 2008 and I am pleased with it. I use yamaha qy 700 and the yamaha qy100 and recently added a gibson les paul, a yamaha motif 6 and I am able to complete all my projects without anyone else. The Motif 6 and the whole set up is great. I would buy another tascam 2488 in the future when this one wears out.

[goldibleedsblue]

I have been using this the 2488neo for several months now. I have used Tascam portastudios for ages and have always loved how well it works to quick record a live session or when ever its needed.

However, I just recently started running into issues with it freezing up or becoming non responsive. I will use 7-8 tracks live, all mic'd. (24bit just because). Nothing else fancy, effects can come later etc. In my last two session the studio made it to 1hour 3mins and 57mins before this message appeared:

"MTC Slave mode selected. Cannot do this now"

I NEVER use midi or sync stuff. Just flat out live recordings. So I click exit and then the system is locked. If I click on anything such as menu to save it I get this message:

"Cannot do this when not stopped. Stop the transport."

Well, it is stopped. The record light is out and only functions that work while recording are responsive such as effects, map etc. The PLAY button can be pressed and will light but the track time is frozen as what ever it froze it. Then I cannot get it to save. Just messages about stop the transport. No HD light. Any ideas?? Its very embarrassing and more to have an hour of music lost and drunken musicians get pissed.

[jferencz]

I too have had the same incident with my MKII. I record every live show. WHat I noticed is that the unit gets very unstable after a lot of recording, re-recording, erasing, recording again. Even though I had plenty of room (HD spac) left, it wasn't until I did a reformat that the machine got stable again. Once you get into that lock up mode your screwed. So my advice, record until the partition is full, save and back everything up, reformat the partitions and give it a go again. Since doing this approach, I have never had a lock up issue since.

[jdiedrick]

I have a question about the functionality of the Tascam 2488 that I'm wondering about before picking one up. I'm working on an audio project that requires me to record audio from a mic, then allow playback of that track while recording on another track. The previous recording is played back through speakers while being recorded by the same ambient mic again. This process repeats for about 10 sessions. I just need to make sure the Tascam 2488 allows me to playback any recorded track through speakers while recording any ambient noise in the room (thus recording the previous recording session being played back).

[Andrew_Malloy]

The simplest answer is to mute the speakers and use headphones while overdubbing.

[NITROSTAR]

To Jdeidrick,

Yes.

I have a BLUE Woodpecker and I sometimes do this in my recordings.

Simply playback thru your monitor speakers with the mic recording,
on another track of coures.

NITRO

[Guitarman1951]

I've had my tascam since sept of 2009 and still can't copy my songs on a disk. I have done everything there is to do, mixed and recorded fine but when it comes to copying the music the disk is shoot out and i'm told it can't copy, now i've read everything and still when i call the tec they tell me the same thing. I'm tired of this and still have my warrenty and might send it back.

[Andrew_Malloy]

Does it give you an error code or a reason you can't copy?

[RadMan47]

I've had my tascam since sept of 2009 and still can't copy my songs on a disk. I have done everything there is to do, mixed and recorded fine but when it comes to copying the music the disk is shoot out and i'm told it can't copy, now i've read everything and still when i call the tec they tell me the same thing. I'm tired of this and still have my warrenty and might send it back.

I had that happen to me a couple of times. Turned out the CD's were bad. Also, if you haven't mastered your recording, it will not burn a CD.

Be well .... Ken

[alfano12]

I am a cellist and just got my 2488Neo. I want to record a live concert consisting of Piano, Violin, Viola and Cello, but I know very little about recording. My question is, can I set up the machine before I start playing, start recording and let it run? Then, after the concert, hopefully I can work on the EQ and mastering, and make a decent sounding CD. This will be recorded with a stereo set of microphones on one track, so no mixing is required.

I would appreciate any advice.

[RadMan47]

First of all, yes, you can set the Neo up in advance to record your concert. It would be easier if you had someone who, on cue, could press the [Record] and [Play] buttons to start recording and then the [Stop] button at the end. That would save a lot of dead air time and eliminate some disk space editing.

As for the stereo pair of mikes, that is fine, but I would give them each their own channel. In fact, in the setting you are talking about, I would opt for three mikes strategically placed and recorded onto separate channels. Doing so would enable you to pick up all the ambient sounds of the performance.

Lastly, all recordings need a little mixing to heighten the performance and to recreate it. The Neo gives you the ability to do this post performance mixing, along with whatever EQ enhancements you desire.

Good luck with the concert.

Be well .... Kenny

[alfano12]

Thank you, Kenny, for your help. I was thinking of miking the strings with the stereo pair and then one mono on the piano.

[RadMan47]

My initial impression is that one mic on a piano might be a bit thin. What will your actual stage configuration be like and how far apart will each instrument be from each other. Knowing that may help to determine the best setup for the mics, as well as how many to use. Since you are recording a live performance, I would think that you'd want to capture as much of the live ambience as possible, which would suggest using more, rather than less, mics. Recording a rehearsal would go a long way in helping to make those determinations. Recording a rehearsal at the concert venue would be even better. It makes the post performance mixing process so much easier.

Be well .... Kenny