Tascam Portastudio 424mkIII Owners Manual

							OW NER’S MANUAL
424@$
3D0023100A 
						

							2 Safety Instructions 3
Introduction 4
The Recording System 5
The three steps to multitrack 5
Understanding the Mixer 6-7
Signal flow in the 424 MKIII mixer 6
Tape cue monitor system 7
Multitrack Cassette Recorder 8
Track Format and Tape Recommendations 9-10
PORTASTUDIO 424 MKIII Brief Guide 11-14
Step-By-Step Operations Guide 15-24
Lets try the 424 MKIII mixer 15
How to record on track 1 16
Track 1 playback through TAPE CUE 18
How to make an overdub on track 2 19
How to record tracks 3 and 4 20
How to record many sources onto a 
single track 20
How to record a mix onto two tracks 
simultaneously 21
Recording on more than two tracks
simultaneously : DIRECT 22
How to mix down 23
Using Memory Location Points 25-26
Loading MEMO points 25
Locating the tape 26
Repeat Play 27
PUNCH-IN or INSERT Recording 28-32
Preliminary 28
Rehearsal and auto in/out procedures 29
Manual punch-in 31
Bouncing Tracks (Ping-Pong) 33-34
Ping-pong procedure 33Using Effects with the 
PORTASTUDIO 424 MKIII 35-36
Setting effect send levels 35
Setting the output level of effect devices 35
Setting the mix/balance control 
on effect devices 35
How to connect your effects devices 36
Syncing MIDI-Tape—Using the 
TASCAM MTS-30 37
Troubleshooting 38
Features and Controls 39-45
424 MKIII Mixer
Input section 40
Stereo input section 41
Monitor section 41
Master section 41
Output section 41
424 MKIII Recorder
Cassette loading and dbx system 42
Transport controls 43
Track controls 44
Displays 44
Autolocators 44
Optional Accessories 47
Care and Maintenance 48-49
How the dbx Works 49
Specifications 50-52
Block Diagram 53-54
Level Diagram 55
Table Of Contents
© Copyright 1998, TEAC Corporation
All rights reserved under international and Pan American copyright conventions.
This book may not be reproduced in whole or in part, by mimeograph or any other means,
without permission.
The following marking is located on the bottom of the unit.
This appliance has a serial number located
on the rear panel. Please record the model
number and serial number and retain them
for your records.
Model number
Serial numberWARNING: TO PRIVENT FIRE OR SHOCK
HAZARD, DO NOT EXPOSE THIS 
APPLIANCE TO RAIN OR MOISTURE.
CAUTION: TO REDUCE THE RISK OF ELECTRIC SHOCK, DO NOT 
REMOVE  COVER (OR BACK).  NO  USER-SERVICEABLE  PARTS
INSIDE. REFER SERVICING TO QUALIFIED SERVICE PERSONNEL.
  The lightning flash with arrowhead symbol, within equilateral triangle, is intended to alert
the  user  to  the  presence  of  uninsulated dangerous  voltage within  the  products  enclosure
that may be of sufficient magnitude to constitute a risk of electric shock to person.
The exclamation point within an equilateral triangle is intended to alert the user to the
presence  of  important  operating  and  maintenance  (servicing) instructions  in  the
literature accompanying the appliance.
CAUTIONRISK OF ELECTRIC SHOCK
DO NOT OPEN 
						

							3
Safety Instructions
CAUTION:
·Read all of these Instructions.
·Save these Instructions for later use.
·Follow all Warnings and Instructions marked on the
audio equipment.
1) Read instructions— All the safety and operating instructions
should be read before the product is operated.
2) Retain instructions — The safety and operating instructions should
be retained for future reference.
3) Heed Warnings— All warnings on the product and in the operating
instructions should be adhered to.
4) Follow instructions — All operating and use instructions shoud be
followed.
5) Cleaning— Unplug this product from the wall outlet before cleaning.
Do not use liquid cleaners or aerosol cleaners. Use a damp cloth for
cleaning.
6) Attachments— Do not use attachments not recommended by the
product manufacturer as they may cause hazards.
7) Water and Moisture— Do not use this product near water _
for
example, near a bath tub, wash bowl, kitchen sink, or laundry tub; in a wet
basement; or near a swimming pool; and the like.
8) Accessories— Do not place this product on an unstable cart, stand,
tripod, bracket, or table. The product may fall, causing serious injury to a
child or adult, and serious damage to the product. Use only with a cart,
stand, tripod, bracket, or table recommended by the manufacturer, or sold
with the product. Any mounting of the product should follow the
manufacturer’s instructions, and should use a mounting accessory
recommended by the manufacturer.
9)A product and cart combination should be moved with care. Quick
stops, excessive force, and uneven surfaces may cause the product and cart
combination to overturn.
10) Ventilation— Slots and openings in the cabinet are provided for
ventilation and to ensure reliable operation of the product  and to protect it
from overheating, and these openings must not be blocked or  covered. The
openings should never be blocked by placing the product on a bed, sofa,
rug, or other similar surface. This product should not be placed in a built-in
installation such as a bookcase or rack unless proper ventilation is provided
or the manufacturer’s instructions have been adhered to.
11) Power Sources— This product should be operated only from the
type of power source indicated on the marking label. If you are not sure of
the type of power supply to your home, consult your product dealer or local
power company. For products intended to operate from battery power, or
other sources, refer to the operating instructions.
12) Grounding or Polarization — This procuct may be equipped with
a polarized alternating-current line plug (a plug having one blade wider
than the other). This plug will fit into the power outlet only one way. This
is a safety feature. If you are unable to insert the plug fully into the outlet,
try reversing the plug. If the plug should still fail to fit, contact your
electrician to replace your obsolete outlet. Do not defeat the safety purpose
of the polarized plug.
13) Power-Cord Protection— Power-supply cords shoud be routed so
that they are not likely to be walked on or pinched by items placed upon or
against them, paying particular attention to cords at plugs, convenience
receptacles, and the point where they exit from the product.
14) Outdoor Antenna Grounding — If an outside antenna or cable
system is connected to the product, be  sure the antenna or cable system is
grounded so as to provide some protection against voltage surges and built-
up static charges. Article 810 of the National Electrical Code, ANSI/NFPA
70, provides information with regard to proper grounding of the mast and
supporting structure, grounding of the lead-in wire to an antenna discharge
unit, size of grounding conductors, location of antenna-discharge unit,
connection to grounding electrodes, and requirements for the grounding
electrode.
Note to CATV system installer:
This reminder is provided to call the CATV system installer’s attention to
Section 820-40 of the NEC which provides guidelines for proper grounding
and, in particular, specifies that the cable ground shall be connected to the
grounding system of the building, as close to the point of cable entry as
practical.
15) Lightning — For added protection for this product during a lightning
storm, or when it is left unattended and unused for long periods of time,
unplug it from the wall outlet and disconnect the antenna or cable system.
This will prevent damage to the product due to lightning and power-line
surges.
16) Power Lines — An outside antenna system should not be located in
the vicinity of overhead power lines or other electric light or power circuits,
or where it can fall into such power lines or circuits. When installing an
outside antenna system, extreme care should be taken to keep from
touching such power lines or circuits as contact with them might be fatal.
17) Overloading — Do not overload wall outlets, extension cords, or
integral convenience receptacles as this can result in risk of fire or electric
shock.
18) Object and Liquid Entry — Never push objects of any kind into
this product through openings as they may touch dangerous voltage points
or short-out parts that could result in a fire or electric shock. Never spill
liquid of any kind on the product.
19) Servicing— Do not attempt to service this product yourself as
opening or removing covers may expose you to dangerous voltage or other
hazards. Refer all servicing to qualified service personnel.
20) Damage Requiring Service— Unplug this product from the wall
outlet and refer servicing to qualified service personnel under the following
conditions:
a)when the power-supply cord or plug is damaged.
b)if liquid has been spilled, or objects have fallen into the product.
c)if the product has been exposed to rain or water.
d)if the product does not operate normally by following the operating
instructions. Adjust only those controls that are covered by the operating
instructions as an improper adjustment of other controls may result in
damage and will often require extensive work by a qualified technician to
restore the product to its normal operation.
e)if the product has been dropped or damaged in any way.
f )when the product exhibits a distinct change in performance _ 
this
indicates a need for service.
21) Replacement Parts — When replacement  parts are required, be
sure the service technician has used replacement parts specified by the
manufacturer or have the same characteristics as the original part.
Unauthorized substitutions may result in fire, electric shock, or other
hazards.
22) Safety Check— Upon completion of any service or repairs to this
product, ask the service technician to perform safety checks to determine
that the product is in proper operating condition.
23) Wall or Ceiling Mouting — The product shoud be mounted to a
wall or ceiling only  as recommended by the manufacturer.
24) Heat— The product should be situated away from heat sources such
as radiators, heat registers, stoves, or other products (including amplifiers)
that produce heat.
ANTENNA
LEAD IN
WIRE
ANTENNA
DISCHARGE UNIT
(NEC SECTION 810-20)
GROUNDING CONDUCTORS
(NEC SECTION 810-21)
GROUND CLAMPS
POWER SERVICE GROUNDING
ELECTRODE SYSTEM
(NEC ART 250. PART H)
NEC - NATIONAL ELECTRICAL CODEELECTRIC
SERVICE
EQUIPMENT
Example of Antenna Grounding as per
National Electrical Code, ANSI/NFPA 70
GROUND
CLAMP 
						

							Using this manual: To get the most out of your
424 MKIII, please take the time to read through
this manual. Some time spent now will keep you
from overlooking some of the features that make
the 424 MKIII a more creative tool. You may
discover some new tricks you havent tried
before.
Use of capital letters
: In general, we use all upper
case type to designate a particular switch,
control, jack name or label (like PAN). Transport
modes and some features are described with an
upper case first letter (like Record mode). The PORTASTUDIO 424 MKIII is... 
The PORTASTUDIO 424 MKIII is a 4-track
Multitrack Master cassette tape recorder and a
full-function mixer with 8 inputs/stereo outputs
combined into a single workstation.
Its high audio quality and creative flexibility
reflect the experience and innovation that have
allowed TASCAM to earn its reputation in
professional audio production fields, and its user-
friendly design makes the 424 MKIII suitable for
anyone, from expert to novice.
NOTE FOR U.K. CUSTOMERS
DO NOT cut off the mains plug from this
equipment. If the plug fitted is not suitable for the
power points in your home or the cable is too
short to reach a power point, then obtain an
appropriate safety approved extension lead or
consult your dealer.
If nonetheless the mains plug is cut of
f, removethe fuse anddispose of the plugimmediately, to
avoid a possible shock hazard by inadvertent
connection to the mains supply.
If this product is not provided with a mains plug,
or one has to be fitted, 
then follow the
instructions given below:
IMPORTANT. DO NOT make any connection to
the larger terminal which is marked with the letter
E or by the safety earth symbol or coloured
GREEN or GREEN-and-YELLOW.
The wires in the mains lead on this product are
coloured in accordance with the following code:
BLUE: NEUTRAL
BROWN: LIVE
Introduction
CAUTION :TO PREVENT ELECTRIC SHOCK,
MATCH WIDE BLADE OF PLUG TO WIDE
SLOT, FULLY INSERT
ATTENTION :POUR ÉVITER LES CHOCS
ÉLECTRIQUES, INTRODUIRE LA LAME LA
PLUS LARGE DE LA FICHE DANS LA BORNE
CORRESPONDANTE DE LA PRISE ET
POUSSER JUSQU AU FOND.About the weld line
There is a patterned stripe-like effect on the
bottom surface of the 424 unit. This effect is
called a weld line and is a natural result of
the resin molding process employed in the
manufacture of the 424 unit. It is not a crack
or scratch, and will cause no problems with
the operation of the 424 unit.
As these colours may not correspond with the
coloured markings identifying the terminals in
your plug proceed as follows:
The wire which is coloured BLUE must be
connected to the terminal which is marked with
the letter N or coloured BLACK.
The wire which is coloured BROWN must be
connected to the terminal which is marked with
the letter L or coloured RED.
When r
eplacing the fuse only a correctly ratedapproved type should be used and be sure to re-fit the fuse cover.
IF IN DOUBT — CONSULT A COMPETENT
ELECTRICIAN.
4 
						

							5 The PORTASTUDIO 424 MKIII is a complete audio
production facility in a single box. It is divided
into two major sections: a full-function mixer and
an 4-channel, multitrack cassette recorder.To complete the recording system, youll
additionally need these: Input devices
(microphones, instruments), Output devices
(headphones), 2 track recorder, Effects
processors, etc.
The Recording System
The Three Steps to Multitrack
In TRACKING and Overdubbing, the mixer inputs
are usually microphones or instruments, going to
different tracks of the recorder. 
In OVERDUBBING, the MONITOR section and
TAPE CUE of the mixer must be used to listen to
previous tracks while you record new ones, so
there is a two-way flow through the console. In MIXDOWN, signal comes from the multitrack
and is sent to an external 2-track recorder. 
						

							6
jacks. This is the most important signal route in
the mixer and is called Main Mix. The illustration below shows how input signals
pass through the 424 MKIII Mixer section. After
the MASTER fader they go to the L/R LINE OUT Signal Flow in the  424 MKIII Mixer
Understanding the Mixer 
						

							7 Tape Cue Monitor System
The TAPE CUE mix and MONITOR switches are
also crucial for successful multitrack recording,
because they control what you hear in the
headpnones. This CUE mix is totally independent
from the Main Mix going to tape. If you dont use
the CUE mix, you run the risk of  accidentally
bouncing tracks every time you record new
material.The 4 TAPE CUE controls act like a separate 4x1
mixer, dedicated solely to enabling you to hear
playback from the multitrack recorder in your
headphones. The settings of these controls don’t
affect the mix going to tape. When the
EFFECT/CUE switch is set to the center position
(EFFECT 2/CUE), the EFFECT 2/TAPE CUE switch
is set to TAPE CUE, the TAPE CUE of the tracks
you want to hear are turned clockwise, and the
MONITOR LEVEL is turned up, you can hear the
tape playback in the headphones and MONITOR
outputs. You can adjust the monitor level of each
track by adjusting its TAPE CUE control. The
channels of the Main Mix remain free to handle
external inputs for recording.
If you can hear tape playback in your headphones
when TAPE CUE is off (in the left position), it
means youre hearing tape through the Main Mix.
This is correct for mixdown and bouncing tracks,
but during overdubbing it can cause previous
tracks to be mixed together with new tracks,
instead of each part remaining separate. Use the
TAPE CUE to avoid this.
The MONITOR SELECT LINE OUT switch affects
whether you will hear the off-tape signal (OFF), or
the LINE OUT signals in MONO or stereo (L-R).
When you are recording, you should set this
switch to OFF, the EFFECT/CUE switch to EFFECT
2/CUE, and the EFFECT 2/TAPE CUE switch to
TAPE CUE. 
						

							8·A three-point autolocator (MEMO/LOC 1 and 2
and RTZ) lets the tape STOP at, or PLAY from
preset points.
·REPEAT allows a section to be played over
and over between the MEMO 1 and MEMO 2
points.
·REHEARSAL programs the 424 MKIII to repeat
a punch-in/out sequence as many times as
you wish, and AUTO PUNCH actually executes
it on tape exactly as you previewed in
REHEARSAL.
·Two tape speeds offer HIGH for greater
fidelity, and NORMAL for compatibility with
standard cassette tapes.
·The tape speed can be increased or decreased
with the PITCH CONTROL dial in both
playback and record, to match pitch or for
special effects. The 424 MKIII records on readily available
standard (Philips) Compact Cassette tape, high
bias Type II. The recorder has 4 tracks while the
mixer has a stereo output; however, using the
DIRECT feature you can record on any or all of
the 4 tracks at one time. For more details, see
Recording on More Than Two Tracks
Simultaneously, page 22.
The 424 MKIIIs dbx Noise Reduction virtually
eliminates unwanted tape noise. A special SYNC
feature tuns off the dbx on track 4 separately,
making it possible to record and play back the
MIDI sync tones or SMPTE/EBU time code
without being affected by the dbx encode/decode.
This ensures that the sync tones/code are
recorded and played back without unnecessary
processing. With proper operating techniques, it
is not necessary to leave a guard band between
music and sync tone tracks because of the low
crosstalk of the TASCAM heads.
The transport controls of the 424 MKIII are micro-
processor operated, allowing highly reliable
functions that make the unit easier to use:
Multitrack Cassette Recorder 
						

							9 Tape Speed and Track Format
The Portastudio 424 MKIII uses a HIGH speed of
9.5 cm/sec. (3-3/4 inches per second) which is two
times (2X) the normal speed of a standard audio
cassette. Its NORMAL speed is 4.8 cm/sec (1-7/8
i.p.s.), the same as that used by conventional
recorders.It also employs a discrete 4-channel format head
developed especially by TEAC for TASCAM
multitrack cassette recorders. Here is a
comparison of various cassette formats:
Track Format and Tape Recommendations
Playing back standard (stereo) prerecorded
tapes: Tapes recorded on stereo cassette
recorders can play back properly on the 424 MKIII
if you set the track playback, tape speed, and
noise reduction type correctly. Tracks 1 and 2
roughly follow the standard stereo format, but
tracks 3 and 4 use the Side B (reverse side)
tracks. So you must turn off Track 3-4 playback to
avoid hearing the flip side playing backwards. If
the cassette was recorded with Dolby B type
noise reduction, the DBX NR switch should be set
to OFF.
For the same reasons, tapes recorded on the
Portastudio 424 MKIII will not play back properly
on stereo cassette recorders. Material recorded
on the 424 MKIII must be mixed down to stereo
for final distribution.
The 424 MKIII needs the entire width of the tape
to record its four tracks, eliminating the option of
recording on both sides (actually, its both
directions). Therefore, you should decide whichside (side A or side B) you want to use and
use that side exclusively. Its a good idea to get
into habit of consistently using the same side on
all multitrack tapes.
Tape Type
The Portastudio 424 MKIII is internally adjusted
for HIGH BIAS Type II tape. This means that for
best results, you should only use tapes of this
type. TDK SA, Maxell XL-II or equivalent
formulations are recommended. We strongly
suggest that you select one good quality brand
and use it exclusively. The time you spend
creating your multitrack master is much more
valuable than the money you save by buying
inferior tape. The cassette shell essentially
becomes a part of the 424 MKIIIs transport. Poor
quality shells can cause wrinkles, snarls and
shredding of the edges of the tape with use. Even
small scratches on the tape oxide can cause
dropouts (temporary loss of signal) on one or
more tracks. High quality tapes are less likely to
cause problems in the long run. 
						

							10Accidental Erase/Record Protection
To protect a finished master tape, it is necessary
to punch out both record protect tabs. Even
though you are recording in only one direction,
the 424 MKIII uses the entire width of the tape, as
mentioned above. If, for example, you remove
only one of the tabs, you could accidentally insert
the cassette into the 424 MKIII backwards and
erase all four tracks of the master.
Tape Length
Use the shortest possible tape for a given work. It
is not unusual to play a tape 100 times before you
are finished, so select a cassette length that is as
close as possible to the length of the program
you plan to record. Cassettes C-60 length and
shorter are often made from thicker stock than
longer cassettes.
The tape used in C-120 cassettes is extremely thin
and can cause winding problems, crimping,
wrinkling, and other damage to the oxide coating
of the tape which will destroy your work. Dont
use C-120s in the 424 MKIII.
Remember that at 2X normal speed, and the
one-side-only 4-track single direction format
means that you have only one quarter of the
normal play time:
Tape Speed
Cassette9.5 cm/sec. 4.8 cm/sec.
C-46 11.5 min. 23 min.
C-60 15 min. 30 min.
C-90 22.5 min. 45 min.
(approx.)
Side A
safety tab
Side B
safety tab