Yamaha MT50 Owner's Manual - Page 6

2 Chapter 1: Welcome to the MT50 About Multitrack Recording Multitrack recording simply refers to recording on more than one track (a track is a physical strip on a recording tape). Invented by Les Paul in the 1950's, multitrack recording constituted a revolutionary breakthrough in the recording arts. Suddenly, you could record multiple instruments on separate tracks on a tape and mix them together later, making adjustments to each track independently. The MT50 gives you this incredible capability in a compact, portable unit that you can use to make multitrack recordings almost anywhere--at the rehearsal studio with the band, or in your bedroom. If you combine the MT50 with other music technologies such as MIDI and digital effects processing, you can make some great-sounding recordings. Are Four Tracks Enough? The MT50 is a four-track tape recorder: its recording heads create four separate tracks on a tape. You will also notice that the left side of the unit is composed of four groups or "modules" of identical controls. These modules control four separate mixer channels with faders, tone, pan, and auxiliary send controls. This combination of four inputs, four mixer channels, and four tracks gives you an enormous amount of flexibility. You can create a signal that runs from any input to any track on the tape. (In other words, there is no need to record input module 1 to track 1 on the tape; input 1 can be routed to tracks 2, 3, or 4.) You can overdub your own recordings, listening to one part while recording another. You can also transfer recorded takes from up to three tracks to an unrecorded track. Then you can record over the initial tracks, and perhaps repeat the process. Using this technique--called ping-pong recording--you can effectively expand your four track studio into a virtual ten-or-more track studio! A Few Suggestions • Avoid rheostats (dimmer switches for electric lights), air conditioners, and fluorescent or neon lights. They all add hum to your recordings. • If you use microphones to record, it is helpful to record in a room that sounds good: in other words, an appropriate acoustic environment. Also, you can experiment with the placement of your microphones; minor adjustments can deeply affect the sound quality. • Use high quality, shielded cables. • If you have an analog or digital reverb effect unit, you will probably want to use it. However, use it sparingly. Too much reverb can quickly muddy your sound. Consider saving reverb until the final mixdown, so you apply it evenly to the entire mix MT50 User's Guide