DP-24/32(SD) Production Tips

[David Porter]

Thank you.

 

[-mjk-]

Thanks Charlie!

 

[Mark Richards]

CREATING SEPARATE EFFECTS TRACKS:
USING EFFECT/REVERB/CHORUS/DELAY

[Note: Phil Tipping’s Sticky for this DP24/32 forum titled "Definitive Summary of Effects" is a comprehensive explanation of all the Effects found on the DP 24/32. Also, when Tracking, the Effect always goes to the Stereo Bus and bypasses the Recorder . In Bounce Mode, the Selected Track signal and the Effect signal, and the Input signal can all go to the Bounce track.]

• Record vocal to Track 1 dry.
• Set Track 1 send 1 to pre 127/127 (or as needed)
• Chose desired effect
• Set Effect out level as needed
• Set Track 1 fader all the way down
• Bounce Track 1 to Tracks 2 & 3 or bounce to a stereo track instead.
• Tracks 2 &3 will be wet (pure effect)
• Repeat with second effect to Tracks 4 & 5

Result:

• Track 1 dry
• Tracks 2 & 3 Effect 1 wet
• Tracks 4 & 5 Effect 2 wet

The Track 1 fader feeds the stereo bus, so you won't hear the dry vocal until the bounce is done.

If you want to hear the effect as you record Track 1 dry: in the Mixer screen use the vocal Input’s Send 1 to route the input to the Effect. The Effect goes to the Stereo Bus and bypasses the recorder. You could also set the vocal Input to the Stereo Bus and monitor the vocal only through the Stereo Bus (i.e. use the Input/Stereo Bus as a cue system).

This provides complete freedom to re-do/change prior to mixdown and to blend as desired on mixdown.

Reverb/Delay Tips to experiment with:

• Set the pre-delay of the reverb to somewhere around 100ms - 150ms. This could give more definition to a vocal presence in the sound field.
• Use less vocal reverb. This will help place the vocal forward on the sound stage.
• Use subtle stereo reverb to fill in the sound stage.

 

[Mark Richards]

CREATING SEPARATE EFFECTS TRACKS:
USING EFFECT/GUITAR:

[Note: Phil Tipping’s Sticky for the DP24/32 forum titled "Definitive Summary of Effects" is a comprehensive explanation of all the Effects found on the DP 24/32.]

Challenge:

• Guitar Effect is only available to one track at a time and for either record or play
• It appears that the dry/wet effect decisions must be made at time of recording and get locked in if you want to have the effect on more than one track during mixdown.

Solution for gaining the most flexibility when using the Guitar Effect:

• Record guitar dry on Track 1
• Rewind
• Turn on Track 1 "Insert Effect" in Mixer screen
• Turn Track 1 Pan hard left (for maximum volume)
• From Guitar Effects choose a single guitar effect or a desired combination and set to "play"
• Set effects level as wet as possible (the idea is to minimize the dry guitar sound)
• Return to multitrack screen
• Set Track 1 Fader to unity gain/0dB
• Enter Bounce mode
• Select Track 1 (with the chosen effect turned on) as the source; Track 2 as the Record Track
• Record the bounce. This places the guitar effect on Track 2
• Repeat with different guitar effects bounced from Track 1 to Track 3, 4, etc.
• After last bounce turn off "Insert Effect" for Track 1

The Result is a clean guitar recorded only once (on Track 1), and several different guitar effects on Track 2, Track 3, Track 4,...etc. that can be selected and blended with Track 1 on Mixdown, or combined in a bounce to another open Track or Virtual Track.

Each effects Track won't be completely wet, but should provide enough of a wet sound to blend effectively with the dry guitar on Track 1 or used in some other creative way.

It also frees up the block of guitar effects for use on some other instrument during Mixdown, and you aren't locked into an effect sound if you decide you don't like it.

 

[Mark Richards]

AUTOMATIC DOUBLE TRACKING ON THE DP-24/32:

“Double Tracking” originally involved recording live, first on one track; then recording the same material live on a second track; and blending the two tracks on mixdown to thicken the sound or create a special effect.

On the DP-24/32(SD), you can do (A)utomatic (D)ouble (T)racking – ADT:

Three Ways Using “Effect/Send/Delay”:

(1) The easiest but least flexible, blends the vocal track with a 1 ms, 2ms or 3ms delay by using Send 1 to run the vocal through the on-board Delay Effect during mixdown.

(2) Slightly more complex and a bit more flexible, involves cloning the vocal track to an empty track, then using move/paste to offset the cloned track from the vocal track by 3 ms or so (about 1 frame).

(3) The most complex, but also providing the greatest flexibility, also uses the on-board Delay Effect set as in #1 by creating a doubled track on a bounce track that you can then mix with the original, allowing maximum control over level, pan, eq, etc. on mixdown. This involves assigning the source vocal to Send 1; entering Bounce Mode, Selecting the source Track as the signal to bounce; arming an "ADT" stereo-pair track (e.g. 23/24 to receive the bounce; and ~this is critical~ setting all physical faders except the master stereo fader all the way down/off. Do a final check, then press the Record button.

The result is a pure stereo "ADT" Track that can be blended with the primary vocal and/or further processed with reverb, EQ, etc. while still leaving the on-board effects features available to other Tracks during mixdown.

 

[Mark Richards]

SETTING SEND LEVELS:

The reason for the 'Send 1 Master Send' (which controls the cumulative level of all Tracks going into the chosen effect) is to prevent distortion that could result from overloading the following effect's input stage. This is called 'gain staging'...managing the cumulative output of each component in the chain before it gets to the next component in the chain. (This also includes considering the level setting for the effect's return into the stereo bus.)

The rule of thumb is that the output at each stage should be at about 75%-80% of maximum (so that transients - the things that make the meters flash red and are too fast to catch - won't cause problems).

So, if you have several Tracks feeding 'Send 1' (and drums in particular, but just about any percussive instrument - including pianos and guitars), you want to keep the combined level of all the Tracks from overloading the effect's input stage, and you want to keep the overall output of the effect from overloading the internal send return (input stage) on the stereo bus.

Apart from gain staging considerations, how you set and control the effect depends on what sound you're going for with the effect. For example, if you set 'Send 1' to 'Pre' for all Tracks being processed, the amount of reverb in the mix will be the same for all processed Tracks regardless of the relative levels of those Tracks in the mix. Setting 'Send 1' to 'Post' allows the faders to control the relative level of the effect for each Track.

There are all sorts of combinations of 'Pre' and 'Post' levels that you can use in your mixes. Have fun experimenting. You can't really hurt anything.

 

[Mark Richards]

USING THE TRIM KNOB:

The Input Trim Knob is not a volume control. It's a variable pad meant to tame low impedance source Input levels. As it turns counter-clockwise, the Input Trim Knob’s sensitivity decreases. If the Trim Knob were a switch instead, it would be labeled "Line" on the left and "Mic" on the right, and have two midway positions labeled "Mic -40dB" and "Mic -20dB".

• The Trim Knob impacts the signal level at the Input, the Track Record Level, and the Track Meter.

• The source connected to the Input is the primary control over of the signal level being recorded. The Trim Knob is there to reduce the level of a hot low impedance signal.

• The Trim Knob generally should be set full right for Low Impedance (LowZ) sources (mics), and full left for high impedance (HiZ) sources (guitars, keyboards, outboard effects returns, pre-amps, etc.)

• Guitar pickup/stomp boxes are a high impedance source. Connected on Input, the initial Trim Knob setting should be full left (CCW). Adjust the guitar's/stomp box on-board volume to control the input level for recording.

• Some vintage and single pickup guitars have an output signal too weak to drive the DP’s line level HiZ Input to a satisfactory level. The professional, correct solution is to use a pre-amp or a stomp box to boost the guitar’s output signal and keep the Trim Knob full CCW. However, if you are dead set on doing so, it’s possible to increase the Input's sensitivity by turning the Trim Knob clockwise to bring the incoming signal up to an acceptable recording level. But: doing so may introduce noise or other signal degradation.

• If a LowZ mic is overloading the Input, the first option should be to move the mic further away from the source. If that doesn't solve the problem, ~then~ use the Trim Knob to manage the overload of the mic’s Input signal.

• If a HiZ source is overloading the Input, the first option should be to reduce the output level of the HiZ source.

• The proper way to raise a weak LowZ mic’s incoming signal is to bring the mic closer to the source.

• The proper way to raise a weak HiZ line level incoming signal is to increase the source signal’s output or connect the source to a pre-amp.

Additional info about using the Trim Knob is here in Post #67:
https://www.tascamforums.com/threads/share-dp-24-32-sd-production-tips.5747/page-4#post-34180

 

[Mark Richards]

USING THE STEREO BUS:
[NOTE: When Tracking, the Effect always goes to the Stereo Bus and bypasses the Recorder . In Bounce Mode, the source Track signal and the Effect signal, and the Input signal can all go to the Bounce track.]

There's more than one "typical use" for a DP24/32:

(1) There's the PA board "live" recording scenario.

(2) There's the "one-man-band" scenario. In this scenario:

You want to record a dry vocal track and a dry acoustic guitar track, and as you record the tracks and you want to hear a different blend of the vocal and the guitar, as well as the Effect (Reverb/Chorus/Delay), while monitoring.

You can monitor the vocal and guitar through the Stereo Bus, using the Mixer screen to set the monitored levels, pan, eq, and Effect (i.e. use the Inputs/Stereo Bus as a cue system - see also "Custom Cue Mix" below).

In the Assign screen set the vocal's Input and the guitar's Input (Source "A"~"H") to the desired Tracks and also assign the vocal's Input and the guitar's Input to the Stereo Bus. In the Mixer screen use the vocal's Input Send 1 and the guitar's Input Send 1 to route the Input signals to the Effect, and turn off Send 1 for the vocal and guitar tracks. With the vocal and guitar Inputs set to the Stereo Bus, you can turn down the Track Faders and use the Input Virtual Faders to set the monitor level.

When Assigned to the Stereo Bus, the "Virtual Fader" for the Input (Source "A"~"H") Mixer screen goes straight to the Stereo Bus, bypassing the Recorder. The Virtual Fader has no impact on the Track meter; the Track incoming signal level; or the Track output signal level (i.e. the Track Faders can be all the way down, and the Input signal still can be heard/adjusted when the Input is also assigned to the Stereo bus in the Assign screen, so no need to arm the Track to hear the Input signal).​

This can be useful at times when creating initial tracks, when overdubbing, and when adding new material in real time to a Bounce track. Two examples:​

· A Custom Cue Mix

Assigning Source inputs to the Stereo bus and using the Mixer screen allows the performer to have a custom mix of the Source signals and Effects/EQ in real time (if the performer needs or wants one) that doesn't depend on or impact the Track signals going to the Recorder or that pass through/depend on the Track Fader levels going to the Stereo bus. The Input's EQ, Phase, Dynamic Effects, if set, will impact the signal going to the Track and will be recorded. (see the Block Diagram in the OM).​

· Sound-On-Sound

The Source input signal can be mixed into a Bounce Track in real time along with the previously recorded tracks being bounced (what we used to call "sound-on-sound" in the good old days). When used in Bounce mode, to make this work, before entering Bounce mode, the Source Input signal must first be assigned to the Stereo Bus.​

After entering Bounce mode:
° Tracks 1,2,3,4 are selected for bouncing to Track 24 by turning on Tracks 1~4 Select buttons. Mix level is controlled by the Track faders. Track Effects/EQ must be set in advance and can't be adjusted on-the-fly.

° Track 24's REC button is turned on.

° To add the Source Input "A" signal to the Bounce, press the Input "A" Source button to turn it on. The Mixer Screen controls the Source Input Mix level by using the "Virtual Fader" for the Source Input, as well as Source Input effects and EQ, if desired.

° Monitor the bounce by selecting "Bounce" using the "Monitor Select" button.​

(3) There's the "recording engineer/band" scenario, in which the owner of the DP24/32 is using it to record other performers in a studio-like setting.

In this scenario:

The Stereo Bus could be used to feed a headphone cue system during tracking and overdub. One practical application would be having the drummer and bass player lay down the rhythm tracks while the guitarist and singer provide a cue performance that isn't recorded because those parts will be overdubbed later.

The bass and drum Inputs are assigned to Tracks to be recorded. The bass and drums Inputs, together with the singer and guitarist Inputs, are all assigned to the stereo bus for monitoring while tracking.​

 

[Mark Richards]

USING THE SAME MIXER SETTINGS FOR MULTIPLE SONGS:

[This method is a variation of Phil Tipping's that he describes in his excellent free video tutorials found in the Sticky post section of the "2488 and DP24/32" Forum home page.]

You can't copy the settings directly from one recorded song to the other recorded songs after they've all been recorded.

However there is a work-around:

• Load, save and protect the one song you've completed (let's call that "song#1").

• After loading "song#1", create a new song called "mixdownset", then save it and and assure it's protected. This will carry over into an empty song all your "song#1" settings except the fader settings from "song#1".

• Load "song#2" and export all the Tracks to Audio Depot.

• Load the empty "mixdownset" song, then save it as "song#2mix", and unprotect "song#2mix". This retains "mixdownset" as an empty song for use again later and applies the settings used in "song#1" to "song#2mix".

• Import all the "song#2" Tracks from Audio Depot into "song#2mix".
• Mix and master "song#2mix".

• Repeat for the remaining songs ("song#3"/"song#3mix", etc.) If the fader settings will be the same for all the remaining songs, just leave them as they were for the "song#1" mix.

With some pre-planning forethought, if you want all songs mixed with the same settings:

• After completing the first song, Save and Protect it.

• Create a new empty song called "template", turn off your EQ and effects but keep the settings, then Save and Protect the "template" song file.

• For each new song, Load the template, Save as your "song-title", and Unprotect it.

• Then start recording your new song tracks. When you're ready to mix, turn on the EQ and effects.

 

[Mark Richards]

USING INPUT DYNAMIC EFFECTS WHEN TRACKING

Dynamic Effects are available on Inputs A~H. The Dynamic Effect can be applied to the initial signal as it’s being recorded. The Dynamic Effect also can be applied to a previously recorded track to preserve production options on mixdown.

As an example, using a vocal recorded previously on Track 1:

Track 1’s Send 2 (which must be set to “Pre” to make this work) can be used to bring the original recorded vocal signal into Input C; one of Input C’s Dynamic Effects can be turned on; Input C can be assigned to Track 2; and Track 2 is then armed (set to Record-ready). This sends the vocal signal + the Dynamic Effect to Track 2 while preserving the original vocal signal on Track 1.

You then can play Track 1 and quickly compare the impact of Input C's Dynamic Effect on the vocal signal v the original vocal sound on Track 1 by bringing up the faders on both Tracks 1 & 2; using the Mute function to turn Tracks 1 & 2 on and off; and making adjustments to the Dynamic Effect’s impact in real time.

Once satisfied with the Dynamic Effect you can record the vocal + Dynamic Effect on the Track 2. This also opens the door to all kinds of creative options for blending, panning, EQing, delaying, etc the two vocal signals when you got to mixdown.

To monitor Input C and its Dynamic Effect without recording the signal or being in Record-ready mode, assign Input C to the Stereo bus. The virtual fader on the Input C's Mixer screen then controls the Input C signal level + Dynamic Effect going to the Stereo bus.

 

[Mark Richards]

MASTER SONG VOLUME LEVEL

Two Points to Consider:

1. Consistent average audio levels from song to song is much more important than maximizing the audio level of each song. Every audio playback system your listeners will use has a volume control. As long as your average song level is consistent from song to song, your listener can set the playback volume control once and enjoy your music. Experiment and see what works best with your type of music and the sound you're looking for. Particularly where dynamic range is important, automatically adjusting the overall audio level until the highest level of the song reaches the maximum limit isn't necessarily better or best.
2. However, if you think your listeners will be playing your music intermingled with commercially released songs, and you prefer having your music match the audio level of commercially mastered music, and you don't plan on having your music commercially mastered, then a key factor in maximizing the audio level of your song is the ability to control the average to peak ratio of the audio level so you can maximize the average audio level.

This chart demonstrates the average to peak impact on audio playback level (click on the thumbnail to enlarge):

• The first song was mixed and mastered using mjk's technique - sub-mix a group; master the group sub-mix using the on-board Compression mastering tool; repeat; then make a final mix of all the mastered sub-mixes (as described by -mjk- elsewhere in this sticky thread: https://www.tascamforums.com/posts/28928

• The second song was mastered using custom multi-compression settings.

• The last song was mastered using only simple compression.

The stereo mix audio levels differed for each demo song by as much as 6 dB, so Compression gain was applied to each song during mastering to adjust each song to a maximum peak audio level without clipping.

I also applied very mild single compression and compression gain adjustment (+/-) in real time to fine tune all the songs in the demo clip to the same approximate peak audio playback level without clipping, as might be done when mastering an album of songs.

None of the demo song masters (including the demo clip itself) have had EQ applied during mastering, nor have they been Normalized. All were processed completely within the DP-24 environment.

The Results
Notice how the second song has an average audio level slightly lower than the first, and the third song is lower still. Yet all three have audio peaks at the same level (about -1 dBFS). The third song won't sound as loud as the first two at the same audio playback setting, or conversely, you would need to turn the playback volume up on the third song by about +3 dB to hear it as intended when compared with the first two.

To bring the third song up to the same average audio level of the other two songs by relying only on compression during mastering would have required applying more compression to the third song, which would have had a negative impact on the third song's overall quality. The solution in this instance would be to remix the original tracks to a higher average level by better controlling during mixdown the individual instrument track(s) driving the peaks.
​

Here are some suggestions to consider:
When Tracking

• The goal at this stage is to record each Track to a close approximation of the level/balance you want it to have in the final mix. That means paying close attention to where mics get placed; making effective use of limiting and compression; watching for safe recording levels on the Track meters; etc. (developing this takes some planning and practice - this is where tracking/mixdown sheets can become very helpful).
• Set all Track Faders and the Stereo Bus Master Fader to Unity Gain.
• Set the monitor level to produce a 70 dB SPL at the listening position or in the headphones (if you don't have an SPL meter, there are numerous smart phone SPL apps). If your music sounds good at 70-75 dB SPL, it will sound great when played back at louder levels.

On Mixdown

• Set the monitor level SPL at the listening position or in the headphones to produce a 70 dB SPL (see above).
• The Track Faders start at Unity Gain, Stereo Bus Master Fader stays at Unity Gain.
• Where needed, the individual Track faders can be tweaked down from Unity Gain to get a final balance for the stereo master. The individual Track Fader positions become the visual points of reference, making the Stereo Bus Meters and your ears the only other references needed.
• Add effects, EQ, etc. to the individual Tracks as desired.
• Solo individual Tracks if necessary to confirm how the Track fader position correlates to the soloed Track as shown on the Stereo Bus Meters. (Obviously this is done before recording the actual stereo master.)
• Do a dry run (or several) to practice the Mixdown if it's necessary to make tweaks to individual Track levels as the Mixdown progresses, relying on memory for the changes (or notes if things get complicated), and using the fader positions as a visual reference points. (The other good reason for tracking/Mixdown sheets).

Another very effective mixdown technique making use of sub-mixes and the Master compression tools has been described by -mjk- elsewhere in this sticky thread.

When Mastering

• Rely on your ears and the stereo meters to get consistency in the stereo mix level song to song. Apply a bit of subtle EQ and/or compression to a stereo master to tweak it a bit if needed.
• Don't Normalize the stereo masters unless you have an excellent peak-to-average ratio. High peaks (near 0 dBFS) relative to the average sound level will render Normalization useless.
• The multi and single compressors have "Gain" settings. The reason the Gain setting is there is to compensate for changes in volume resulting from the application of EQ and Compression.
• Compression gain can also be used to adjust the overall sound level during the Mastering process.

Try this experiment:
· Using Single Compression to keep it simple, set your various EQ and compression levels; playback the song; watch your stereo meters for the amount of headroom and the Compressor meter for the amount of gain reduction.

· Use the Compressor Gain control to compensate so that the stereo meters stay in the green at about -6dB, with peaks at about -3dB. Listen for distortion (audio sounds "grainy"). If you hear distortion, back off the Compressor's Gain setting. If you don't hear distortion, try raising the Compressor Gain to bring the stereo meters up until there is a very occasional blip in the red. Then back off the Gain until the red blips go away. Listen for distortion. If you hear distortion back off the Gain again until the distortion is gone.

· You also could try turning on "Auto Make" in the Compressor and let the DP do some of the work.​

[NOTE: If a change is made in Master mode to a Preset Compression (e.g. Multi/Basic Cd), that change is preserved with the individual song, and will be recalled when returning to Master mode as long as the Compression button remains On for that song. However, the changed Preset is not available to other songs, and if Compression is turned Off in Master mode for the particular song, the change to the Preset is lost for that song. A User customized preset is stored internally in the DP and is available globally.]
​

 

[Mark Richards]

DOING MANUAL FADES

Here's one technique for doing a manual overall fade out at the end of a song when creating the stereo master:

• Enter Mixdown mode

• Set the "in/out" points of the song

• Press "F1" to set the screen to "Timeline"

• Press "Record" (or "Play" to practice the timing)

• Watch the the Timeline Screen as the song approaches the "Out" marker

• Start moving the Master Fader down so that it reaches infinity as the song hits the "out" marker and automatically stops.

Not hard at all. Just takes a reasonably steady hand and some practice. A similar technique works for an overall fade in. Working multiple individual Track faders when mixing down gets a bit more challenging. In the good old days before automation sometimes we had three pairs of hands working the board.

 

[Mark Richards]

USING TRACK SHEETS:

Back in my studio days working with analog tape, I made sure that before a session started, certain things were always done to make the session more efficient.

Experienced recording engineers might take these for granted. For everyone else, I thought it might be helpful to pass a few of them along that might apply to using the DP-24/32 for recording projects.

• A track sheet was kept for each song as a planning document and permanent record of the session.
• Track assignments for instruments and vocals were planned in advance and recorded in the track sheet.
• The recording sequence for base tracks and overdubs were planned in advance and recorded in the track sheet.
• The track sheet also recorded the number of takes and the start point on the tape of each take.
• The names of the artists performing on the song, the producer, and the engineer were also recorded on the track sheet, along with the type of tape used, the tape speed, and the specific multi-track tape machine.
• A separate mixdown track sheet was used for the "best take" to make a permanent record of fader levels, effects and settings, and other mixdown decisions. Likewise, if we mastered the mixdown tape in-house.
• At the start of each song (both the multi-track master tape and the 1/2 track stereo master tape), we recorded a 1kHz calibration tone at 0VU, and an "A/440" tone. This facilitated playback calibration of the tape when played on a machine other than the one used to create the original recording.

Why bring these things up in a DP-24/32 digital world? I thought there might be several parallels: While using track sheets to plan out your projects and mixdowns may seem like an impediment to creativity, it forces you to think things all the way through in advance, and thus avoid the frustration that can come with doing things on-the-fly.

• Once you have a permanent record of the project, you can use it as a reference for future projects; and you can use it to recreate your mix accurately if the need arises.
• If you're collaborating on the project and passing the multitrack files around, it helps assure everyone involved has a clear understanding of the project.
• Placing a tuning tone at the start helps assure the musicians can be in tune with the initial recording, particularly if the multi-tracking will occur at different times, locations, or using different machines.
• Placing a unity gain/0dB level tone at the start provides a standard to help assure all instruments and vocal levels will be consistent, particularly if the multi-tracking will occur at different times, locations, or using different machines.
• A Google Search will find numerous examples of professional track sheets and images that you can adapt to your own work flow and idiosyncrasies.

Here's an an example of track sheet I've used for forever and adapted for use with the DP-24/32:
https://www.dropbox.com/s/gzjeperovzujn0u/Track Sheet Example.jpg?dl=0



​

 

[David Porter]

Skimming through... Mark.... that stuff is GOLD. Just outstanding stuff there, sir.

Thank you so very much for sharing!

This thread is a *powerful* resource. Thanks guys!

 

[-mjk-]

@Mark Richards, home run! You really know these machines very well, and with your professional studio background, you just gave away thousands of dollars of billable hours worth of information! I know this took weeks of work, so let me say that we all very much appreciate this huge effort!

 

[-mjk-]

@Mark Richards, that post on Mastering, is one of the most valuable posts on the whole forum. It's important to understand what Normalizing really does, and the concept of peak to average ratios and how it all works and interacts to create this illusion of loudness. I think you explained it brilliantly, and yet simply so that most anyone can understand. Excellent work!

 

[Mark Richards]

David, mj, thanks so much for your kind words.

I hope this sticky encourages forum members to look here first for ideas and solutions, and to offer tips of their own.

 

[Bravohorn1]

Mark,
This is insanely good stuff. It will take me much trial and error I think, but thanks to you, Phil, David and others, at least now I can go through that process. Wow...

 

[Bravohorn1]

Oh yeah,
I was becoming a little disenchanted with the 24, bc I thought I had maybe bought the wrong set up, and limited my future recording endeavors. These posts have reinvigorated me. I know I'll have a need for more advanced equipment later on, but this stuff will fill a much needed gap in the meantime.
Thanks everyone

 

[-mjk-]

Hi @Bravohorn1. this is in no way meant as a criticism, but several of us, like Mark and Phil, do come from a professional audio background. That DP-24 is not limiting your future recording endeavors. The limiting factor is your own experience and familiarity with the machine, and recording engineering science - and that is temporary. I have no doubt that with patience, and a meticulous approach (pre-planning using track sheets and other documentation), you will be able to achieve whatever you want. I'm personally getting some amazing sounding tracks on my DP-32, and what I'm doing with it rivals some of the stuff we did at Longview Farms on an SSL-G and Studer 24 track machine. Keep going over the videos, the sticky posts, and glean as much info as you can from those resources. And, by all means, ask questions.