Fostex D-160 Multitrack recording using overdubbing, Adjusting the recording level rehearsal

D-160 Owner's Manual (Recording /Playback)

3-4. Multitrack recording using overdubbing

You have mastered basic recording/playback in the previous section. In this section, we will make a multitrack recording.

Multitrack recording is a series of operations in which you record sound sources to multiple tracks and combine these recordings into two mixes (L, R). In this process, the most important step is "overdubbing." "Overdubbing" means recording a new sound source to another track using input monitoring, while listening to the playback of the pre-recorded sound (that is, playback monitoring).

The following is an example of an overdubbing procedure:

Step 1: Record a drum machine to Track 1

Step 2: Overdub an electric bass to Track 2 while listening to Track 1

Step 3: Overdub an electric lead guitar on Track 3 while listening to Track 1 and 2

Step 4: Overdub an electric side guitar on Track 4 while listening to Track 1, 2 and 3

In this way, we will overdub sound a sources to Track 1 through 16 as shown in the diagram below.

Track 1	Track 2	Track 3	Track 4	..........	Track 14	Track 15	Track 16
Drum	E. Bass	E. Guitar	E. Guitar		Vocal 2	Piano	Synth.
Machine				...........

*Restore the default setting on the D-160.

*Stay in the same Program until you finish overdubbing.

*Check the Program selection and the sampling rate setting. Do not change these settings until this session is complete.

Selecting a recording track

1. Press the RECORD TRACK select key of an overdub track to "READY" the track.

For example, if you are overdubbing Track 2 while listening to Track 1, set the RECORD TRACK select key "2" to "READY." (Number "2" will blink.)

Adjusting the recording level (rehearsal)

2. Press the RECORD button once. (The RECORD LED will blink.)

The "READY" track will enter input monitoring mode, and "SAFE" tracks will enter playback monitoring mode.

3. Press the PLAY button to play back data from the beginning of the program (ABS 0).

Adjust the playback monitoring level of the "SAFE" tracks, and play a musical instrument while adjusting the GROUP OUT level on the mixer, that is, a recording level on the recorder.

4. Rewind data to the beginning of the disk by Pressing the STOP button and the REWIND

button simultaneously.

Start overdubbing

5. Press the RECORD button while holding down the PLAY button.

Recording will start, and the RECORD LED and the "READY" track indicator will light.

6. Play the instrument while listening to the playback as you did during rehearsal.

7. When recording is complete, stop the recorder, and locate the beginning of the data.

Playback

8. To prevent accidental recording, switch the RECORD TRACK select key of the "READY" track to "SAFE."

9. Press the PLAY button to start playing back the recording.

On the mixing console, adjust the playback monitoring level of the already recorded tracks and newly recorded track.

Repeat the steps described above to overdub Tracks 1 through 16.

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