sonar and tascam dm 4800

asking this question one more time. does anyone use the tascam dm 4800 with sonar as a control surface and mixer? how do u like it? does it work well with plugin manipulation?thanks

thanks for the input how does it work with plugins?control wise is it as crapy as the mackies? also i wouldnt be using there card i have a motu hd192 and 24io is going through this mixer going to effect my siginal flow?how would recom i hook it up with that setup im at a cross roadsin my studio to either stay with sonar or go pt i have finally got my system stable but would like a nice control surface THAT WILL CONTROL PLUGINS without a promblem and 24 faders.....when i have used a digi002 the plugins could be tweak right away via knobs know i wont be buying that but a control24 which i have been told works as well.....so thats my sit. dont get me wrong i love the sound of my motus and sonar but the pt controller24 seems like it intergrates well with its monpoly..lol and im so sick pf using a mouse to control my plugs it drives my nuckin futs

Hi Rob; I have a DM4800, X48 and Sonar Producer 7.0.2. Although my intent is to use the DM4800 primariliy with the X48, I also wanted the option to use it as a control surface with Sonar and a computer interface/control surface (lot's of options and flexibility). So I can't answer your question directly, but at least you can see what the rationale was/is. Also IMHO, most control surfaces are lacking and what people really want are mixers anyway, and they also need the functionality of a mixer (monitor section, mic pres, faders, etc., etc) which is why I chose the DM series to serve both purposes. I'm also awaiting the FW card update (as is everyone else) as I've just purchased a quad core machine with Vista. Please regard anything that Muziekschuur says with the utmost respect and confidence as I do as he is extremely knowledgable and can help you in understanding the TASCAM mixers.
DJT

How are you doing, choicewize?

Hello Muziekschuur:

First of all, I've really enjoyed reading your threads and want to thank you for all the support you show to us new users and not-so-new users. I am using SONAR Producer Edition and have used the Cakewalk stuff for many many years. I have a small home music studio and use it for friends and a little production here and there. I presently use two old Tascam M2600 MII analog boards (31x8 & 16x8); my method of computer interface is two Motu units (8x8), all with an old Windows XT computer...so you see I'm needing to get into a digital mixer and new computer. So, I have been reading everything I can find on the web about the DM4800 (including its manual) and how it would work with a new VISTA desktop that I plan to purchase. Can you look over my questions below and comment...I would really appreciate it. Thanks.

1. Is the DM4800 and the additional Firewire Card now compatiable with Window Vista Home Premium? I don't think I can purchase this unit until I'm assured of VISTA compatiability. I will be selling my M2600 boards and with at the point of no return once I do this.

2. If I do not initially use the Firewire card, can I still get a large amount of I/O between the DM4800 and SONAR using USB? Have I understood this correctly, the USB can get me 24in and 24out at a maximum of 48 and not 96 sampling? If this is so, for my needs it sounds like the USB would be fine until the Firewire Card is VISTA approved...then the 96 would be great.

3. I know about getting the 1st 24 analog inputs via the DM4800's inputs. I would like to bring in the next two sets of 8 inputs via tha Adat method. I have two ADAT XT-II tape decks that I'm thinking I could use as my Adat Interfaces--this is because they have preamps in them. So if I hook the 1st XT up to the DM4800's Adat connections on the back, and purchased an Adat card for the 2nd XT-II...do you think this would work? I know both of my Adats only output 48k samples...but would that still be ok? Down the road I would purchase Adat convertors to actually received higher sampling rates.

4. What about the Analog input card that is available for the DM4800, would it be better to forget the Adat methods and install two of these cards into the DM4800 for 16 more inputs? Are their preamps good?

5. I have never had to deal with clocking stuff: Will I have to connect cables from the DM4800 to the computer, or to the Adat XT-II units if I'm using them for additional inputs?

6. In my present computer, I use the motherboard Firewire and an additional Firewire card. I split my two Moto input modules between the two firewire methods, but cascade my two external hard drives off of one of the firewire methods. Is there any tricks like this I need to know before purchasing the new VISTA computer?

Well, I've taken a lot of your time...again I thank you for your time and energy and I hope someday when I'm up and running on the DM4800 with a VISTA computer running SONAR that I can pass information on to those who are starting up too.

Thanks again.

In this scenario both the X48 and the D4800 & IFFWM MKII can be used independent from each other so you can service the X48 or the DM-mixer and still be able to get work done....

Very important as maintenance is allways something wich you should do but on the same time, work needs to be done, clients needs to be helped.