4-track troubles

[HomeCatMickey8]

I just bought a new Tascam 4-track yesterday. I recorded my first song last night with just guitar and vocals. When I finished recording it, I took it out of the 4-track and put it into my sterio. When it played the first track played out of my left speaker and the second played out of the right speaker. Is there a way to make both tracks play through both speakers?

[megan bacon]

the panning dials need to be both set to the centre

[isojoe420]

You need to master it onto another tape with an external tape deck.

[HomeCatMickey8]

I had the pan dials on the center. So I guess it just happens that way. When I listen to it from the 4-track both tracks go through both sides of my headphones.

[airborne50caliber]

Nononono, listen. A 4-track uses a conventional cassette:

Track 1 - Side A Left
Track 2 - Side A Right
Track 3 - Side B Left
Track 4 - Side B Right

Get it? So if you record something on track 1 and something else in track 2, the panpots centred will mean you hear them both centered in your headphones, but obviously when you put the cassette onto a normal stereo (2 - track) tape deck, Track 1 is left and track 2 is right, so that's how it plays! This is absolutely normal and you need to get a cassette deck capable of recording and send the stereo outputs of your multitrack to this. This way what you hear in the headphones will be recorded.

[HomeCatMickey8]

How much is one of these tape decks?

[isojoe420]

You want something like this (http://www.musiciansfriend.com/srs7/fg=141/g=home/search/detail/base_pid/240693/)

But I'm sure you could find it cheaper some where else.

Look on ebay! :D

[airborne50caliber]

If you've got a computer, try using that to mixdown to instead of the tape deck.

[isojoe420]

If you've got a computer, try using that to mixdown to instead of the tape deck.
Good idea.

[HomeCatMickey8]

Of course I have a computer... I'm not too good with it though. If I have a CD burner can I put the stuff from the 4-track to the computer and burn it onto a CD?

[gaz12369]

If you've got a computer, try using that to mixdown to instead of the tape deck.

Just out of interest, how do you 'mix down' properly on a computer, because exporting the song to an mp3 isnt really mixing...

:S:S:S

[HomeCatMickey8]

You can get software that has mixing programs. You can probably download mixing programs if you don't want to spend $15 on the software.