record and play levels not the same

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gitarman4u
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2013/07/08 00:07:12 (permalink)

record and play levels not the same

when I record a track, I set the levels to just before they clip in the meters but when I play them back, you can barely hear them and the levels in the meters are next to the bottom ... is there a way to make the levels on the meters on record and playback the same ? Both record and playback meters are set to the same thing ... I use a quad-capture interface with auto sens and it sounds good when recording but playback is low..
Thanks ..

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    John
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    Re: record and play levels not the same 2013/07/08 00:17:30 (permalink)
    I'll bet you adjusted the fader so the level  would be high enough when you recorded. What you don't realize is that Sonar has no control of record levels. Its totally up to your hardware. You should leave the track level at unity and adjust the level coming into your AD converter.  

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    John
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    Guitarhacker
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    Re: record and play levels not the same 2013/07/08 08:25:35 (permalink)
    Yep.... set the input levels in the interface's software control panel.
     
    Output levels are also set there.
     
    Get that balanced and it will be reflected in the DAW.

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    gitarman4u
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    Re: record and play levels not the same 2013/07/08 21:15:16 (permalink)
    I usually leave the fader on 0 and increase my input on the interface to bring up the levels until the meters on the channel just starts to clip and then I back off until it stops clipping. But when I play it back, the meters show about a quarter of the way up ... I have to normalize the track to get the volume up enough to hear it ... looks like the meters should be the same whether your recording or playing back .. if it is showing -6 db on the meters when recording it, then playback should also be at -6db on the meters I would think ... 

    Sonar X3e Producer , Dell I5 2nd gen., 8 gig ram, windows 7 64 bit.
    Roland Quad Capture  interface, Tascam US-800 interface , Line 6 pod, mesa boogie Mark III , Mesa Boogie Express 5:50, Zion guitar, Les Paul guitar, Ovation accoustic, fender P bass, akai mini laptop keyboard, M Audio 49 Key keystation, Shure,MXL,Audio Tech mics
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    John
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    Re: record and play levels not the same 2013/07/08 21:49:49 (permalink)
    I would check my meters settings in the TV menu. Sonar has record meters and playback meters which can have different settings.
     
    If you haven't changed the meter settings be sure that gain is set at unity too.
     
    BTW did you disarm the track before you played it back? 

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    John
    #5
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