How to Reamp/Use Outboard Gear on the Tascam Model 12

This took me a while to figure out, and sadly there were no videos on the topic I could find, so here it is!
It's not hard once you understand it, but the manual didn't include anything about it, and I could only find a few forum posts talking about it that I still had to think about for a while before it clicked. On most interfaces, this is an easy thing to do, but the Model 12 is a different story. Hope this helps, and leave a comment if you still have questions!
0:00 How it Works
3:41 How to Set Up the Model 12
4:39 Setting up 4 Separate Channels
4:55 Reaper/DAW Set Up
7:13 Recap
8:57 What You Can Use This For
#tascam #musicproduction #reamp
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[@kevinjesensky6533]

great video. I'm about to start reamping and you made it as clear as it can be. firmware 1.4 released in august of this year (2023) allows you to route pc audio to channel 1/2, 9/10, or to the main out to free up your channels.

[@NickLeonard]

Awesome! Glad they updated the firmware too

[@JaeHimself]

Dude.... I spent all day today trying to figure this out. Just picked up a 12 and I wanted to figure out how I can create a signal loop for PC>SP404>PC without creating chaos. You're a lifesaver.

[@austinstables5015]

Brilliant video, thanks very much! I’m going to need to watch this a few hundred more times until I understand it but I’m just glad I have a reference now!!

[@parrish.interstellar4194]

Thank you. Elusive answer to an important question answered.

[@JazzKeyboardist3060]

That's what I was looking for. Thanks so much.

[@cbureriu]

ok now I'm totally puzzled great video my friend

[@RecordingStudio9]

Great detailed video. P.S. You can return the signal to the same channel (Mode in PC) as the input of every channel always goes to the appropriate USB/MTR. So in your example, DAW ReaInsert OUT 9/10 -> Ch 9/10 Mode PC -> Sub ON - > Fader 0db -> Sub Fader 0db -> Cables to Guitar Pedal IN -> Guitar Pedal OUT - CH 9/10 INPUT -> Gain to level match and back in DAW inputs 9/10.

[@NickLeonard]

I had assumed that would be too good to be true, but that's awesome! That does make it easier and tidier routing

[@RecordingStudio9]

@@NickLeonard no problem. I do have many videos of Model 12.

[@RecordingStudio9]

@@NickLeonard No, haven’t had any issues everyone else is having and I had it for some time now using it regularly.

[@RecordingStudio9]

@@NickLeonard I thought I mention that all my gear are powered via power conditioner. I know this makes a lot of difference.

[@yeojboy]

Thank you! I asked myself this question for weeks!

[@johannjohann6523]

cool video. thanks!

[@nilsgrafo5999]

Great video - the Model 12 is a great device but can sometimes be a bit quirky! I think there's an option in the menu somewhere (I'm out of town) where you can set if the Aux 2 should be pre or post fader.

[@sawssman965]

Hey can I ask a stupid question? Whats the difference between the sends and the aux? Does the aux apply to all channels?

[@plusone.network]

thank you thank you thank you several times on purpose +1

[@HelicopterRidesForCommunists]

Thanks for this video. I think this is the issue Im running into. I have the Digitakt and Syntakt in Live using Overbridge which allows individual tracks of audio and midi over usb. What I want to do is take the Main L/R outs of the DT -> effects -> the Octatrack IN A/B stereo pair and the ST -> effects -> the Octatrack IN C/D, and I want to be able to record the Main L/R outs of the Octatrack back into Ableton. It’s not working out like I expected it to.

[@z6nestudio]

I use the inserts on channel 1 & 2 for outboard gear. using a Y insert cable. Easy peasy.

[@NickLeonard]

That's a good way to do it, but it doesn't work it work on already recorded tracks unless I misunderstood it

[@paulbrauner6316]

@@NickLeonard yes you can only route analog signals to the sends I read, great video btw this problem gave me a headache.

[@adamhakim3529]

Thankyou great video. what do you think of the quality of this as a primary recording interface. Especially compared to the zoom models. Ty

[@NickLeonard]

I have no issue with the quality as far as sound goes, but I found the drivers to be unstable on my PC and caused the audio system to crash, sometimes giving me a blue screen... If you're using it primarily for mobile work or live sound, it's a nice unit. I've since sold it and gotten a Scarlett 18i20 for studio use

[@EgoShredder]

I use a Canadian manufactured Radical Engineering Pro RMP Studio Reamper that I bought from Thomann in Europe. Only does one track at a time, but is enough for home studio guitar jobs. Your manual method is good to know though. The Tascam mixer featured I have looked at a few times. Looks half decent for the money but not tried it.

[@NickLeonard]

It does a lot in one box, which is great. Main problem I've had with it is some driver issues/latency/reliability as an interface. It's been mostly fine, but it can be a pain sometimes

[@talkbackstu]

Small studio owner here and I really appreciate this video.. Quick question: is this a good way to setup an FX outboard gear like TA1VP (vocal chain processor) as a send on my AUX channel? This way I can plug in a mic on any open channel and then apply the FX via AUX knobs... For instance, if I go: AUX OUT > FX IN and then FX OUT > Open Mixer Channel, will this signal flow give me the ability to use this FX as a send on the AUX channel in the mixer? I am mostly recording rappers and wanted to find a way to have autotune on a send so I can adjust the level on the AUX knob. Beacause channels 1/2 are only inserts on mixer AND PC default, I was looking for different ways to use FX outboard gear without having to run mics directly through it - I would rather have clean signal of microphone coming into mixer and then add FX from there. Played around with the Model 12 for a while before I found this post. I have been looking for something like this to run my TA1VP (auto-tune) through the AUX outputs. Thank you for sharing and I will definitely be tuning in for more :)

[@NickLeonard]

Awesome, glad it helped!

[@IamTheNameless1]

Thanks for the video! I currently have a soundcraft mtk 12 im very unhappy with. gain sucks, dynamic mics wont even work without a preamp, theres tons of other issues too. I was considering this mixer for an interface and was wondering a few things im hoping you could clarify? Did they ever do a firmware update to allow switching the USB return audio from channel 1/2 over to 9/10? seems like that would be the most obvious thing they could of done when it was being made. Also, I personally love to apply eq to my usb return audio channel strip. a nice V curve for media. add in a little highs, remove a bit of mids, add in some lows for explosions in games or movies, or good bass extension in music. you know, fun stuff lol, then i typically flatten it back out when im mixing and mastering. Is this something the tascam can do? And lastly, How is the gain staging on this? Do you have any issues powering mics like a shure sm58? Usually those need 60db gain before they even really come to life but it says the max gain the tascam puts out is 50db. I know those are just numbers, cuz i had a yamaha mg10xu that only had 60db max gain and it pushed a sm58 with authority around half gain it would start clipping. This soundcraft i have now i can max out gain and get nothing but a faint sound. So im really hoping the model 12 is better! lol Sorry for the many questions my man, Im just trying to find the right mixer for me and i cant find some of these answers online. Best to ask someone with experience! Thanks in advance.

[@NickLeonard]

As for a firmware update, nothing out as far as I know. I kept looking because eventually some bug would cause audio services to stop and it wouldn't work until I restarted the whole PC, or it would crash my computer. That really killed it for me, but I only ever found one other person having this issue, maybe it's just my machine. Yes you can EQ the main outs, though you can also do that with a free system wide EQ that won't affect your DAW anyways and have more bands. The preamps are clean and powerful, I'm using and SM57 here for my voice and have no noise issues

[@IamTheNameless1]

@@NickLeonard Thanks for getting back to me man. Subscribed!

[@danitempest]

I simply want to send the sub outs to my reel to reel tape deck for mastering in DAW mode but no signal seems to reach the tape deck. Any ideas what I am missing?

[@daughtersofdelos]

Thanks for this video. I think you answered my question during the tutorial. I want to run a final mix through a pioneer SR 101 reverb amp to get a nice stereo tube reverb sound in the finished product. I looked all over to find something and you are the man. I should end up running the final stereo mixes from the DAW through the sub channel to my old reverb unit to a stereo channel 7/8 or 9/10 and then we’re good? Or did I miss something. Thanks again so much.

[@NickLeonard]

That should work! Just a stereo output on 3+4 from DAW > sub mix > reverb > back in on 7+8

[@daughtersofdelos]

If you have any other pointers in the future I will be watching. Thanks again!!!

[@BkuBrown]

What edrum kit do you have there? Any videos demonstrating?🙏🏽

[@NickLeonard]

It's a Roland TD-1K with some upgrades and modifications, I've done a couple videos on it and explained what all I've done to it. For playing, I just recently did a demo of Hertz Drums with lots of playing on my kit: kzbin.info/www/bejne/qZPcc3umfs-jq5Y

[@sehnal139]

Good day Nick, can i record vocal to a laptop using onboard EQ and effects? cheers

[@NickLeonard]

Yes, but you'll still want an audio interface for good quality and at that point, you can use plugins. Going straight into the mic jack of a laptop will work as long as you keep the volume low, it may not do stereo though, and a lot of effects will be.

[@MrNinehunid]

Nicholas leonard, have a sub my friend. Thank you so much!

[@montjamz]

How can you use this with EZdrummer in your Daw ??? thanks great content

[@NickLeonard]

Same way you would with any interface. EZDrummer or any drum software plays off a MIDI file. You could follow this video to output a drum software recording to a physical hardware unit

[@jadedwane2393]

Hi there , how do I set the pc audio to main outs ? So I have all my channels free for synths etc ? Would be awesome to know how to set that

[@NickLeonard]

As far as I know, there's no one to do that on windows unless they updated something

[@yoco93cro]

I got my model 12 two days ago and was dealing with this yesterday. What I am curious to know if it is somehow possible to print the compressor and eq moves to the daw without routing it through aux or sub to another channel. I'm not talking about analogue hardware, I am talking about digital mixer itself: open the project in f.e. Reaper, send the vocals channel to f.e. channel 3, do some (one knob) compresion, adjust the eq on the channel and print that to the daw (or at least to sd card?). Is it possible to do that without sending it through aux/sub to another channel?

[@NickLeonard]

Not that I'm aware of, you can either print the effects going in, or run the dry tracks back out like I showed here and print them on the way back in again. The EQ/Comp sections are just analog. The digital mixer part is the faders, pan, solo/mute/record buttons for DAW control. Now in MTR/portable recorder mode it may be different

[@yoco93cro]

@@NickLeonard Models 16 and 24 are analogue, this one is digitial. I got an idea watching another video and it works - in audio interface mode send a track you want to edit to some empty channel, adjust comp and eq, add fx if you want and then in DAW insert a new channel and select channels 11, 12 or 11/12 as audio input and if you record that channel(s), it will print the aforementioned edited channel, because channels 11/12 are main out! I tried this in reaper and works smoothly and I'm very happy it does. I have another question: which SD card size would you recommend for Model 12, how many GBs would be enough?

[@NickLeonard]

@@yoco93cro awesome, thanks for sharing that! 64gb will get you many hours in MTR mode and I can't imagine needing more than that. Smaller would be fine too. Even a little 16gb would still have plenty of recording time

[@yoco93cro]

@@NickLeonard thank you!

[@pepuletrz]

it has main outs. for monitors

[@late4suppa1]

Is it possible to record effects like delay on a vocal? I have an external effects loop set up on Aux 1 but it doesn't record. I think I'll try an insert. Probably the only way I'll be able to record with the vocal affect audible on playback. Any other thoughts as to how I can route this?

[@NickLeonard]

that's exactly what I'm talking about in this video, if your source is routed out of Aux 1 to your delay, you just need to take the output of the delay back into an input and record that

[@late4suppa1]

@@NickLeonard I've decided to add reverb out of the DAW. Working with the Aux's on this board is one of it's negative points in my opinion. There should be an effects return. Anyways thanks for getting back to me so quickly. I'm assuming there's no way to record internal mixer effects internally?

[@JazzKeyboardist3060]

Ok. It's the "from what Inputs" part that I am asking about. If the Model 24 is defined as an input device I should be able to see it in Studio One in the dropdown list for each track. But how does S1 know which Model 24 channel it should accept information from?

[@NickLeonard]

It will appear as 24 inputs and however many outputs it has, so when you tell a track what input to use, you can select 1-24 inputs from the Model 24

[@JayHughes-zv5qr]

I'm watching videos to decide if I want to buy the Model 12, and this one has me both confused and worried. With a traditional audio interface (like my Scarlet i818) all computer audio - whether from a DAW or iTunes or system audio) is carried back over the USB cable and out through the interface's Main outs, typically controlled by a volume knob. Why can't the model 12 use the Main outs at the output? The Main outs have a fader. Why does the Model 12 take up input channels with output tasks?. It makes no sense. The Model 12 only has (2) stereo inputs, and I'm supposed to take up 50% of them with outputs? Will I have to take up channels 7+8 with my computer audio output if I want to play iTunes or listen to system sounds? Can't all these outputs just be routed to channels 11 and 12 (the Mains)? This is truly bizarre. Am I misunderstanding here? Any help would be much appreciated.

[@NickLeonard]

Your concerns are right on the money. The main outs do carry the signal, but they're routed internally through 1+2, it is odd, and could've been done better imo. I think the Model 12 has it's good use-cases, but mostly if mobile recording and mixing is a big priority. I've since gotten an 18i20, and as an interface, it's a much better fit. I had some driver stability and latency issues with the Model 12, and it just got frustrating. I originally thought I'd record my band live with it, but it's way too much work to try to set up 8 mics while setting up my bass gear in a 15 min change over at a gig. While it works as an interface pretty well, if that's your main use, I'd stick with a more traditional interface and I'll be getting a smaller Zoom handheld for mobile use as it's much more portable anyways. You can also use it as a live mixer, but again, I'd get a dedicated mixer for that, and already have a smaller Behringer mixer that fills that role for most things. Some people really like having the extra features for trying to record and produce without a computer, and it may be great for that, but there's no way I'd prefer to work that way!

[@Mixbywheeler2024]

I am trying to figure out how to run out of my daw into a preamp then into the board and back in would this method work doing that ?

[@NickLeonard]

yes, any outboard gear you want

[@Mixbywheeler2024]

Thanks nice video

[@HelicopterRidesForCommunists]

Yeah I just got my Model 12 and I didnt want to have to send it back. I really like having devices that utilize audio over usb. I hate cable clutter.

[@JazzKeyboardist3060]

Is there any way to use a Model 24 to send its output through the USB port to a computer running a DAW, and expect it to be able to break out those signals to individual tracks in the DAW. None of the videos I have watched mention it, so my assumption is that it is not possible. I guess if I had a different interface with at least 16 inputs, I might be able to use Model 24 outputs for each channel as inputs to the interface, then send that to the DAW.

[@NickLeonard]

It does send individual tracks! You can record on all 24 channels and they will be individual tracks in your DAW just like any interface. There aren't 24 analog outs, so it wouldn't work to patch each to a separate jnterface, plus, it might not sound great to run from one preamp to another.

[@JazzKeyboardist3060]

@@NickLeonardThanks. Is there anything I should expect to configure in a DAW to make that happen? How does the DAW know which channels to assign to which tracks?

[@NickLeonard]

@@JazzKeyboardist3060 the same way any interface does. If you want to record a source on input one, you'd create a track in your DAW, select input 1, and arm it for recording. You can do this with however many inputs the interface has simultaneously

[@danitempest]

Hello Nick. Would you know a work around for sending the sub outs to a tape deck in DAW mode for mixdown? It seems the sub outs are useless in DAW mode. I would like to mix down my songs from Ableton to 1/4 tape.

[@NickLeonard]

Try the normal PC mode, it should be the same procedure as in this video

[@danitempest]

@@NickLeonard But the songs I have created are in my DAW. The whole purpose is that I want to take my music and mix it down to tape. So, are you suggesting i mix the songs down to mp3/wav then master to tape using PC mode?

[@NickLeonard]

@@danitempest no, you can use PC mode fine in the DAW, that's what I'm doing. DAW mode is specifically for DAW control and recording automation

[@danitempest]

@@NickLeonard That worked Nick! Thank you for your help. Wouldn't you think there would be a mix out option in DAW mode though? I'll have to write Tascam about this one. 😁

[@danitempest]

@@NickLeonard Oh, interesting. So, which setting on the Tascam menu are you using then? What is "PC" mode?

[@JazzKeyboardist3060]

So what you are saying is that it's an automatic mapping based on the channels that are active and set to record.

[@NickLeonard]

Not quite. If I wanted to record on all channels simultaneously, I'd need to set up that many tracks in my DAW with each recording that specific channel, 1, 2, 3, etc. It's the same as any interface, you tell your DAW how many tracks to record and from what inputs.

[@theserulesoflife]

I’m still confused- what’s the easiest straightforward way to send drums to an external analog compressor? Best to just use the insert on 1&2?? I would be using an MPC connected by USB so I’m able to send all tracks (kick snare hats) to the same output channel (1 or 2 mono ideally - don’t need stereo drums) TIA

[@NickLeonard]

I never really played with the inserts, but I believe you have to use a TRS y-cable for those. It should work fine, I don't know if it's any easier than the method I laid out in this video. Say you have your MPC output to channel 3 of the model 12, then use the ch3 aux knob to send that to the aux mix and run the compressor off the aux mix and back into a new channel.

[@dulusmusica]

hey man! I'm trying to setup my new bigsky pedal and i'm having some troubles, sent you a message through facebook but you might not see that so i'm trying over here, i'm having dry audio bleed and huge latency issues, could you help a man in need? haha

[@luizferrysinger]

I want to buy a mixer that has a usb output so that a can connect a mobile phone and record videos with the audio from the mixer.....is it possible to do this?

[@NickLeonard]

Yes this should work fine for that, it's maybe overkill, but I don't see why not. Multitrack support would depend on the phone app you're using

[@aldente42092]

Wow i still cant get it to work in logic pro x

[@Alfernav]

I got lost :( and im looking for Tascam Model 12 or Presonus StudioLive AR16

[@NickLeonard]

They both look like they have similar features. I haven't used the PreSonus. The Model 12 was largely good, but I had driver issues with my PC and it was sometimes unstable. It doesn't seem like many others did though, so take that with a grain of salt.

[@atom_jack]

Doesn’t seem like you can do this in DAW control mode :(

[@NickLeonard]

No, I'm pretty sure that overrides it