Re: tascam 4 track as looper?

[Daryl <highhorse@mhorse.com>]

This is what I use as my main looping device, I use two in fact.  You'll
need an endless outgoing message cassette (Radio Shack usually has them,
from 20 seconds all the way up to several minutes).  It also makes it a
lot easier to have a punch-in pedal, usually a sustain pedal for a
keyboard will work with the Tascams.  What I do is plug my guitar into
track one and use the channel assign switch to record on different
tracks, using the punch-in pedal to click on and off.   I then use the
monitor section to control the mix of the recorded tracks (this way you
can listen to what's on track 1 without having to switch it from Mic to
Tape), and plug the headphone out into my amp.

If you have the option of switching between high and low speeds, you can
send things up or down an octave.  The pitch control is usually good for
a perfect fourth or so, I usually record at one extreme of the pitch so
I can use this whole range.

If your 4-track has an effects loop, you can have additional fun by
sending signal out through any other processing you have (you'll need to
bring this up on the faders, not the monitor section) and bringing it
back into the 4-track for mechanical feedback.   This is especially
great with delays.  I include my other four-track in this effects loop,
by sending things back and forth between the two machines I can get
infinite pitch-shifting, plus the ability to mix the same thing recorded
at different speeds, with different effects, etc.

The other great thing to do is to create your own tape loop by opening
up a standard cassette and splicing together a loop.  It's not easy, but
the advantage of this is that you can flip the tape over and voila!
backwards tracks!  The standard answering machine cassettes are usually
created in such a way that they can only be run in one direction - and
if you open them up, it'll probably ruin them.  If you create your own
loops, you can also crease and wrinkle the tape to get a lo-fi effect.
I've also created tapes where I bypass the record heads, giving me
sound-on-sound capability (and a really incredible, gnarly lo-fi sound
after a few layers have built up).

There seems to be endess potential for experimentation, and it's really
cheap (I've bought all my four-tracks for between $20 and $60).  Plus,
you have a permanent record of your loops.  good luck! let me know how
it goes.

Daryl Shawn
highhorse@mhorse.com


> a while back i thought there was some posts about
> using a 4 track recorder (i have a tascam) as a looper.
> is this possible?
> just curious, i have my tascam sitting around, trying to
> figure out what to do w/ it.
> s---
> --