Yamaha MD8 manual

MULTITRACK MD RECORDER Owner’s Manual E MULTITRACK MD RECORDER GROUP 1 CH 1 CH 2 CH 3 CH 4 CH 5 CH 6 CH 7 CH 8 2345678 REC SELECT DISPLAY REPEAT MARK SEARCH MARK AUTO PUNCH I/O SONG SEARCH PAUSE REHE REC PLAY STOP A B LAST REC SEARCH SET EXIT ADJUST PITCH EDIT UTILITY ENTER PHONES PUNCH I/O DATA + – CURSOR 1 1 2 3 4 2 1 2 3 4 3 4 GROUP ASSIGN G[...]

Laser Diode Properties * Material : GaAlAs * Wavelength : 780–790 nm * Emission Duration : Continuous * Laser Output Power : Less than 44.6 µ W Laser output is measured at a distance of 20cm from the object lens on the optical pick-up head. (Note) This unit is classified as a Class 1 laser product. The CLASS 1 LASER PRODUCT label is located on t[...]

• Explanation of Graphical Symbols The exclamation point within an equilat- eral triangle is intended to alert the user to the presence of important operating and maintenance (servicing) instructions in the literature accompanying the product. The lightning flash with arrowhead symbol within an equilateral triangle is intended to alert the user t[...]

ii MD8—Owner’s Manual Important Read the Following Before Operating the MD8 W arnings • Do not locate the MD8 in a place subject t o exc essive heat or dir ect sunlig ht. This could be a fire hazar d. • Do not place MD8 in a plac e subject to exc essive humidity or dust. This could be a fire or electrical shock hazard. • Connect the sup[...]

iii MD8—Owner’s Manual V entilation Allow a distanc e of 10 cm between the unit and the wall so that heat gener ated from the unit will be released effectively . Also, allo w enough space between the unit and other devices. If you mount the unit in an audio rack, keep a space of 10 cm to the side panel. R emov e the rear panel of the r ack or o[...]

iv MD8—Owner’s Manual Contents 1. Welcome to the MD8 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 MD8 Features . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 Mixer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 Recorder . . . . . . . . . . . .[...]

v MD8—Owner’s Manual Ping-Pong Recording . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41 Preparing for Ping-Pong . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42 Rehearsing Ping-Pong . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43 Performing Ping-Pong [...]

vi MD8—Owner’s Manual 9. The MD8 & MIDI . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 73 Using the MD8 in a Synchronized MIDI System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 73 About Tempo Maps . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 73 Setting Up a Synchronized MIDI System . . . . . . . . . . . [...]

Welcome to the MD8 1 MD8—Owner’s Manual 1 W elcome to the MD8 Thank you for choosing the Y amaha MD8 M ultitrack MD Rec o r der . The MD8 uses the MiniDisc format for 8-track multitra ck reco r ding, with superior sound quality and quick search capabilities. T o take best ad vantage of your MD8, read this Ow ner’ s M anual thoroughly . MD8 Fe[...]

2 Welcome to the MD8 MD8—Owner’s Manual • The con venient MD D A T A disc medium requires no formatting before use, and when a project is c omplete, simply pop in a new disc and star t tracking st raightaway . • Quick location of song star t, song end, last rec or ding in/out points, and up to 10 user mark points per song. • Pr ecise punc[...]

Buying Discs for the MD8 3 MD8—Owner’s Manual Buying Discs for the MD8 It ’ s impor tant that you buy the c orr ect type of disc for use with your MD8. For 8-track reco rding and playback, you must use MD D A T A discs. R egular MiniDiscs can only be used for 2-track recording and pla yback (2TR mode). MD D A T A discs are used as a storage m[...]

4 Touring the MD8 MD8—Owner’s Manual 2 Touring the MD8 This chapter tak es you on a tour of the MD8, identifying the various parts to help you become familiar with your new recor der . Topside V iew The individual sections of the MD8 are explained on the follo wing pages. MULTITRACK MD RECORDER GROUP 1 CH 1 CH 2 CH 3 CH 4 CH 5 CH 6 CH 7 CH 8 23[...]

Input Channels 5 MD8—Owner’s Manual Input Channels A GAIN control This rotary control adjusts the sensitivity of the MIC/LINE input so that both microphone and line-level signals can be handled with ease. B FLIP switch This switch is used to select the signal sources for the input c hannel and CUE con- trols. W ith the [FLIP] switch in the up p[...]

6 Touring the MD8 MD8—Owner’s Manual F GROUP ASSIGN switches These switches are used to assign (i.e., send) the input channel signal to groups. They work in conjunction with the P AN c ontrol. For example, w ith GROUP ASSIGN sw itch [1–2] ON and the P AN control set midwa y , the channel signal is sent equally to Gr oups 1 and 2. W ith the P [...]

Master Section 7 MD8—Owner’s Manual Master Section A 9–10/11–12 input level controls These rotary controls are used t o adjust the level of the 9–10 and 11–12 input signals that are sent to the Ster eo bus for mixing. They’ r e also used in c onjunction with the GR OUP ASSIGN switches to adjust the level of the 9–10 and 11–12 inpu[...]

8 Touring the MD8 MD8—Owner’s Manual Display A Status indicators These indicators show the curre nt operating mode. B Pitch indicators These indicators show the curre nt Pit ch mode: FIX (fix ed) or V ARI (variable). C MTC, MIDI CLK, and MMC indicators These indicators light when the MIDI synchronization options are used. MTC appears when the [...]

Display 9 MD8—Owner’s Manual REMAIN —This mode shows the time r emaining for a song or when y ou ar e r ec o r ding a new song, it sho ws the a vailable time remaining for the song (on disc). TOT AL —This mode shows the time position within the entire disc. F Title and function display Disc titles, song titles, functions, messages, and othe[...]

10 Touring the MD8 MD8—Owner’s Manual Disc T ransport Section A Disc T ransport buttons REHE —This button is used to ent er Rehearse mode. The REHE indicators flash in R ehearse P ause mode and stay on co ntinuously while r e hearsal is in pr ogress. REC —This button is used to ent er Reco rd mode. The REC indicators flash in Rec ord P au[...]

Disc Transport Section 11 MD8—Owner’s Manual E A B Repeat buttons These buttons are used t o ent er the A and B points for A -B Repeat. F REPEA T button This button is used to select the 1 Song, All Song, A-B, and A uto Punch R ehearse Repeat modes. I t ’ s also used to cancel A -B Repeat mode. G MARK SEARCH & MARK buttons The MARK SEARCH[...]

12 Touring the MD8 MD8—Owner’s Manual Rear Panel A AC IN Connect the supplied po we r c or d here. B POWER ON/OFF switch This switch is used to turn on and off the MD8. C MIDI IN, OUT & THRU The MD8 recei v es MMC (MIDI Machine Co ntrol) c ommands via the MIDI IN por t, and outputs MIDI Clock or MT C (MIDI Timecode) fr om the MIDI OUT por t[...]

Rear Panel 13 MD8—Owner’s Manual D AUX SEND These 1/4-inch phone jacks are used t o send the A ux Send signals to external effects pro- cessors. Connect them to the effects pr oc es- sors’ inputs. E LINE INPUT 9–10/11–12 These 1/4-inch phone jacks are used t o c o n- nect unbalanced electronic m usical instru- ments and other line-level s[...]

14 Touring the MD8 MD8—Owner’s Manual G INSERT I/O These TRS phone jacks are used to c onnect signal processors for use with input channel 1 and input channel 2 ex clusively . T y pically , c ompr essors, limiters, and noise gat es ar e c on- nected to this type of connection. H MIC/LINE INPUT s 1 & 2 These inputs are used to c onnect balan[...]

Front Connectors 15 MD8—Owner’s Manual M PHANTOM POWER ON/OFF switch This switch is used to turn on and off the phantom pow er for the XLR -ty pe MIC/LINE (BAL) inputs on channels 1 and 2. Phantom powe r is used t o po w er c o ndenser micr ophones. It should be turned off when de vices other than condenser micr ophones are connected t o these [...]

16 The First Session MD8—Owner’s Manual 3 The First Session This chapter e xplains how to rec ord and mix your first MD8 session. If this is your first time with a multitr ack reco rder , we r ecommend that you start with this chapter and follow all the proc edures closely . When y ou ’ve c ompleted this chapter , have a look at subsequent [...]

Connecting the Power Cord 17 MD8—Owner’s Manual Connecting the Power Cord 1. Connect the supplied power cord to the AC IN socket on the rear of MD8. 2. Plug the other end of the power cord into a suitable AC wall outlet. Turning on the MD8 1. Press the POWER switch at the rear of the MD8. The display lights up. T o turn off the MD8, pr ess the [...]

18 The First Session MD8—Owner’s Manual Making the Connections (GRP & DIR) 1. Connect a sound source to MIC/LINE INPUT 1. If you are using a condenser micr ophone, set P HANTOM switch to ON t o turn on phantom pow er ing. 2. Set the [FLIP] switch on Input Channel 1 to MIC/LINE. 3. If you connect a line-level source, set the GAIN control to [...]

Recording the First Track 19 MD8—Owner’s Manual DIR Method 1. Press the REC SELECT [1] button. The TRK 1 DIR indicator flashes, indicating that track 1 is set to recor d directly fr om input channel 1. 2. Proceed to Monitoring & Recording (GRP & DIR) . Monitoring & Recording (GRP & DIR) 1. Press the MONITOR SELECT [CUE] switch.[...]

20 The First Session MD8—Owner’s Manual Overdubbing Over dubbing is the technique used to rec ord new sounds to empty tracks while listening to the sounds already r ecor ded on other tracks. The following ov erdubbing pr oc edure can be used to rec ord to T racks 2–8, and y ou can use the GRP or DIR method, the latt er method is used in this [...]

Mixdown 21 MD8—Owner’s Manual Mixdown Mixdown is the final technique in m ultitrack recor ding. H er e y ou mix the sounds from all eight tr acks, w ith EQ and effects to creat e a balanced stereo signal that is rec orded to a ster eo master rec or der , such as a D A T , MiniDisc, or cassette tape deck. 1. Make sure that all [GROUP ASSIGN] sw[...]

22 The First Session MD8—Owner’s Manual An Overview of Multitrack Recording This section describes the fundamental principles of multitrack recor ding. Basic Multitracking Monitoring —This is the proc ess of listening to a sound as it’ s being recorded or list ening to rec o r ded sounds as new sounds ar e r ec orded to other tracks. See A [...]

About Monitoring 23 MD8—Owner’s Manual About Monitoring The MD8 features a flexible monit oring system, allowing you to monit or signals at var ious points. Y ou can monitor sounds through a pair of stereo headphones c onnect ed t o the PHONES jack, or through a monitor amplifier and speakers c onnect ed t o the MONIT OR OUT jacks. The MONIT [...]

24 The First Session MD8—Owner’s Manual Multi-Sour ce Mixing In addition to the eight disc tracks, y ou can also c o nnect ext e rnal sound sourc es t o the MIC/LINE inputs and mix up to eight more sound sourc es w ith the disc tr acks. These extra sound sources ar e mixed using the CUE LE VEL and P AN co ntrols. The [CUE MIX T O STE- REO] swit[...]

Multi-Source Mixing 25 MD8—Owner’s Manual 4. Set the input channel and STEREO faders to the 7–8 mark, and set the CUE LEVEL controls midway . 5. Set the [CUE MIX TO STEREO] switch to ON. 6. Press the MONITOR SELECT [STEREO] switch and set the MONITOR LEVEL control to an appropriate level. 7. Set the STEREO fader to the 7–8 mark. 8. Press th[...]

26 Recording & Mixing Techniques MD8—Owner’s Manual 4 Recording & Mixing T echniques This chapter e xplains MD8 r ec or ding and mixing t ec hniques. Recording a New Song The NEW REC function is used to r ec or d new songs on a disc. Songs ar e r eco rd ed sequen- tially , as sho wn below . W ith a blank disc, simply pressing the [REC] [...]

Recording a New Song 27 MD8—Owner’s Manual Setting the Recording Mode The following table shows the four MD8 R ec or ding modes. Song s on the same disc can be reco r ded in differ ent modes, but you cannot change the mode during or after rec or ding. These modes allow y ou t o use disc spac e efficiently . Audio quality is the same for all fo[...]

28 Recording & Mixing Techniques MD8—Owner’s Manual Recording 1. Press the [REC] button to engage Record Pause mode. The display sho ws the number of the new song and NEW X REC . This is Rec ord P ause mode. Initially , all tr acks that can be reco rded in the current R ecording mode are select ed, as sho wn by the flashing dots. Y ou cann[...]

Manual Punch In/Out 29 MD8—Owner’s Manual Manual Punch In/Out The Punc h In/Out technique allo ws you to r erecor d specific sections of a tr ack. This can be used to co rrect mistak es or r ecord something new int o silent sections of a t rack. I f you ’r e operating the MD8 and playing or singing the par t to be rec orded, you ’ll find [...]

30 Recording & Mixing Techniques MD8—Owner’s Manual Using the REC SELECT buttons 1. Locate to a position before the point at which you want to punch in. 2. Make sure that all REC indicators are off (i.e., no tracks selected). 3. Press the [REC] button. The REC indicators (i.e., the indicator of the [REC] button and the REC message on the di[...]

Manual Punch In/Out 31 MD8—Owner’s Manual Using a Footswitch 1. Connect an optional footswitch to the PUNCH I/O jack (front panel). 2. Locate to a position before the point at which you want to punch in. 3. Press the [REC SELECT] button (or [GROUP] + [REC SELECT]) of the track that you want to record. A dot flashes abov e the c orresponding tr[...]

32 Recording & Mixing Techniques MD8—Owner’s Manual Auto Punch In/Out The A uto Punc h I n/Out function aut omat es the punch in/out pr ocedure, allowing you to conc entr ate on your pla ying or sing ing. A uto Punc h In/Out uses the LAST REC IN and OUT points as the punch in and punch out points. So you must set these points first. Once s[...]

Auto Punch In/Out 33 MD8—Owner’s Manual Using [SET] and LAST REC SEARCH Another way of setting the Punch I n and Out points on the fly is b y using the [SET] and LAST REC SEARCH butt ons (also labelled [IN] and [OUT]). Doing so has the advantage that you do not need t o select a track for rec or ding befor ehand: 1. Locate to a position before[...]

34 Recording & Mixing Techniques MD8—Owner’s Manual Single T ake Auto Punch In/Out Rehearsing Auto Punch (Single T ake) 1. Press the [REC SELECT] button (or [GROUP] + [REC SELECT]) of the track that you want to record. A dot flashes abov e the c orresponding track indicator . 2. Press the [AUTO PUNCH I/O] button. 3. Select the Auto Punch I[...]

Auto Punch In/Out 35 MD8—Owner’s Manual Performing Auto Punch for Real 1. Press the [REC SELECT] button (or [GROUP] + [REC SELECT]) of the track that you want to record. A dot flashes abov e the c orresponding track indicator . 2. Press the [AUTO PUNCH I/O] button. 3. Select the Auto Punch In mode (Single T ake) with the DA T A dial and press [...]

36 Recording & Mixing Techniques MD8—Owner’s Manual Auto Punch with a Footswitch An optional footswitch can be used to start the A uto Punc h I n/Out sequenc e. 1. Press the [REC SELECT] button (or [GROUP] + [REC SELECT]) of the track that you want to record. A dot flashes abov e the c orresponding track indicator . 2. Press the [AUTO PUNC[...]

Auto Punch In/Out 37 MD8—Owner’s Manual Multi T ake Auto Punch In/Out As previously mentioned, M ulti T ake P unc h In/Out means that y ou can recor d several ver - sions of the same exc erpt, audition them, decide which one y ou lik e best, and then discard the remaining T akes. Y ou need t o set the Punch In and P unch Out points for M ulti T[...]

38 Recording & Mixing Techniques MD8—Owner’s Manual Performing Multi T ake Auto Punch for Real 1. See steps (1)–(3) above. The display no w r e ads TAKE 1 Load . N ext, the Pre-R oll point is located automatically . The REHE indicators flash and the displa y shows TAKE 1 Rehe . The A UT O PUNCH IN and OUT indicators appear . This is M ul[...]

Auto Punch In/Out 39 MD8—Owner’s Manual Auditioning Y our T akes Her e is how to audition all the tak es you rec o r ded: 1. At the NEXT TAKE message that appears when the MD8 returns to the Pre-Roll point, use the DA T A dial to select MONI TAKE . 2. Press the [ENTER] button. The display no w shows the message TAKE X MONI (where “X ” repre[...]

40 Recording & Mixing Techniques MD8—Owner’s Manual Setting the Pre-Roll & Post-Roll T imes Pr e-R oll and P ost-Roll are used in c o njunction with the A uto P unch I n/Out function. Pr e-R oll r efers to the time before the IN point at which pla yback starts. P ost-Roll refers t o the time after the OUT point at which pla yback st ops[...]

Ping-Pong Recording 41 MD8—Owner’s Manual Ping-Pong Recording The ping-pong reco rding technique (also kno wn as bounce down) is used to free up tracks for further recording. This is acc omplished by bouncing do wn (i.e., mixing and rec ording) one or two existing tracks to an unused track. Those tracks can then be used for fur ther reco rding [...]

42 Recording & Mixing Techniques MD8—Owner’s Manual Preparing for Ping-Pong 1. Press the [ ] SONG SEARCH button to locate the beginning of the song. 2. Set the [FLIP] switches on the source track channels to PB. This sets the disc playback (track) signal as the source for the channels. 3. Set the faders on the source channels to the 7–8 m[...]

Ping-Pong Recording 43 MD8—Owner’s Manual Rehearsing Ping-Pong 8. Press the [REHE] button. The REHE indicators flash. 9. Press the [PLA Y] button to start the rehearsal. The rehearsal starts and the PLA Y indicators lig ht up . The REHE indicators stop flashing and light up continuously . Y ou should now be able t o hear the sour c e tracks c[...]

44 Recording & Mixing Techniques MD8—Owner’s Manual Ping-Pong with Overdub The ping-pong technique can be c ombined with ov er dub r ec o r ding. This allows you t o bounce do wn tracks and record a new sound sour c e simultaneously . I n the follo wing illus- tration, for example, T racks 5, 6, and 7 are bounc ed to T r ack 1 along with a [...]

Ping-Pong with Overdub 45 MD8—Owner’s Manual For mono Ping-P ong operations, be sur e to connect the additional signal sourc es to the LINE INPUT s that can be assig ned to the desired GR OUP (1/3 or 2/4). 6. Continue with Preparing for Ping-Pong on page 42. During rehearsal, balanc e the lev el of the new source with the existing tracks. If yo[...]

46 Recording & Mixing Techniques MD8—Owner’s Manual Pitch The Pitch function allo ws you to adjust the pitc h for playback and rec ording. The pit ch can be adjusted appro ximately ± 12%. N or mally , the Pitc h function should be set to Fix, w hich means the pitch is fix ed for normal operation. See Pitch Applications on page 87 for some[...]

Using a Footswitch 47 MD8—Owner’s Manual Using a Footswitch An optional footswitch can be used to c ont rol the MD8. A par t from a few small differences, footswitch operation is essentially the same as pressing the MD8 [PLA Y] button. Co nnect the footswitch to the PUNCH I/O jack at the front of the MD8. The following is a summar y of footswit[...]

48 Recording & Mixing Techniques MD8—Owner’s Manual Applying Effects The A UX SENDs 1 and 2 allow y ou to c onnect external effects pr ocessors and apply effects to MD8 signals. Effects can be applied when r ec or ding tracks, using ping-pong, or during mixdown. T ypically , reverb and delay type effects, which are oft en applied to several[...]

Applying Effects when Recording 49 MD8—Owner’s Manual Applying Effects when Recording 1. T o send an input channel signal to an effects processor , set the [FLIP] switch to the up position, the fader to the 7–8 mark, and turn up an AUX control. The input channel signal is sent to the effects proc essor . 2. Use the GROUP ASSIGN switches to as[...]

50 Recording & Mixing Techniques MD8—Owner’s Manual Patching in Signal Processors Input channels 1 and 2 featur e INSER T I/O jacks. These mak e it easy to patch ext ernal sig nal proc essors directly into these two channels. T y pically , compressors, limiters, and noise gates are used for this type of connection. R everb , delay , and oth[...]

Quick Search Functions 51 MD8—Owner’s Manual 5 Quick Sear ch Functions This chapter e xplains the quick sear ch functions. Sear ching for Songs The [ ] and [ ] SONG SEAR CH buttons can be used for locating songs at any time ex c ept when r ec or ding. The [ ] SONG SEAR CH butt on locates the pr ev ious song and the [ ] SONG SEAR CH butt on loca[...]

52 Quick Search Functions MD8—Owner’s Manual 3. T urn the CURSOR shuttle to the left to rewind at the desired speed The display sho ws the value of the selected Review (REV) speed (see the above illustration). 4. If you like, you can “lock” the currently selected Cue/Review speed by pressing the [ENTER] button. That way , you don’t need t[...]

Searching for Markers 53 MD8—Owner’s Manual Sear ching for Markers The [ ] and [ ] MARK SEARCH butt ons ar e used t o sear c h for mark ers within a song. The [ ] MARK SEARCH butt on locates the previous marker and the MARK SEARCH [ ] button locates the ne xt mar ker . For a song with no markers inserted, you can only locate the Start and End m[...]

54 Quick Search Functions MD8—Owner’s Manual Adjusting Markers Once inserted, mark e rs can be finely adjust ed in one-frame steps. This also applies to the LAST REC IN and OUT points (they double as Punch I n and Out points). The Star t and End markers cannot be adjusted. 1. Press the [ADJUST] button. The display sho ws MARK X: ADJST (“X”[...]

Adjusting Markers 55 MD8—Owner’s Manual 4. Use the DA T A dial to adjust the marker and the [PLA Y] and the CURSOR shuttle to audition the new marker position. The marker can be mo ved in 86-frame steps to a new position within the 10 seconds of sound data loaded into memory . If you want to mo ve the mark er to a position bey ond this range, y[...]

56 Quick Search Functions MD8—Owner’s Manual Erasing Markers 1. Press the [ADJUST] button. The display sho ws MAR X: ADJST . 2. Use the DA T A dial to select the marker that you want to erase. 3. T urn the CURSOR shuttle to the right to make the ADJST message flash. 4. Use the DA T A dial to select CLEAR. The display sho ws MARK X: CLEAR . 5. [...]

Repeat, Cue List & Program Play 57 MD8—Owner’s Manual 6 Repeat, Cue List & Program Play This chapter e xplains the R epeat, C ue List, and P rogram Play functions. One Song Repeat One Song Re peat pla yback allo ws you to pla y one song repeatedly . 1. Use the [SONG SEARCH] buttons to select the song for repeat playback. 2. Press the [R[...]

58 Repeat, Cue List & Program Play MD8—Owner’s Manual A–B Repeat A–B Re peat pla yback allo ws you to r epeatedly play a section of a song. Pla yback r epeats between the specified A and B points, which can be in separate songs. 1. Press the [PLA Y] button to start playback. 2. Press the [A B] button when you hear the beginning of the [...]

Cue List Playback & Copy 59 MD8—Owner’s Manual Cue List Playback & Copy The Cue List function allo ws you to c ompile a cue list (i.e., a sequenc e of cues for playback) using markers. C ues ar e loaded into memory for continuous, uninterrupted playback. The C ue List can also be c opied t o cr eat e a new song. A Cue List can c ontain [...]

60 Repeat, Cue List & Program Play MD8—Owner’s Manual Program Playback The Pr og ram Play function allows y ou to compile a pr ogr am of songs for custom playback. The Pr ogram may c o ntain up t o 36 steps. 1. Press the [UTILITY] button and use the DA T A dial to select the PRG Play function. 2. Press the [ENTER] button. The display sho ws[...]

Editing Songs & Tracks 61 MD8—Owner’s Manual 7 Editing Songs & T racks This chapter e xplains the edit functions that can be used with songs and tracks. V iewing Disc Contents The Disc Info function allows y ou to view how the songs and blanks on a disc are organized. U sing this function is invaluable for the Song M ove function (see p[...]

62 Editing Songs & Tracks MD8—Owner’s Manual Erasing Discs The Disc Erase function allows you t o erase all songs on disc. Erasing all songs formats a disc. A disc that has been used to st ore computer data m ust be formatted using this function before it can be used with the MD8. 1. Press the [EDIT] button and use the DA T A dial to select[...]

Copying & Converting Songs 63 MD8—Owner’s Manual 6. T urn the CURSOR shuttle to the right to select the first track of the song copy . The number of this track (probably “1” now flashes). 7. Use the DA T A dial to select another track. Doing so means that track 1 of the copy will no longer correspond to track 1 of the orig inal. Y ou [...]

64 Editing Songs & Tracks MD8—Owner’s Manual 12. Press the [TOC WRITE] button to update the TOC. The following illustration shows a few possible applications of the Song Copy function. It is so flexible that we cannot sho w all possibilities. J ust remember that y ou are free to choose whichever track(s) you lik e for downscaled versions ([...]

Moving Songs 65 MD8—Owner’s Manual 4. Press [ENTER] to renumber the songs. After r en umbering the songs, the displa y will br iefly show TOC Write to signal that the T OC is being updated. Moving Songs The Song M o v e function allo ws y ou to mov e a song t o a blank ar ea. Doing so means that you cr eat e a blank ar ea on disc that can be u[...]

66 Editing Songs & Tracks MD8—Owner’s Manual Dividing Songs The Song Divide function allows you t o div ide songs into several independent songs. Song s can also be arranged as a progr am for playback. See P rogram Play back on page 60 for more information. 1. Locate the position where you want to divide the song and press the [P AUSE] butt[...]

Combining Songs 67 MD8—Owner’s Manual Combining Songs The Song Combine function allows y ou to combine adjac ent songs that were divided using the Song Divide function. Songs that we re recor ded separately cannot be combined (though you can select their n umbers, the displa y will tell you Can't Combn when you press the [ENTER] button to [...]

68 Editing Songs & Tracks MD8—Owner’s Manual Erasing Songs The Song Erase function allows you t o erase individual songs, which ma y be necessary to make r oom for new mat erial you wish to rec o r d. 1. Press the [EDIT] button and use the DA T A dial buttons to select the Song Erase function. 2. Press the [ENTER] button. The display sho ws[...]

Erasing Parts 69 MD8—Owner’s Manual Erasing Parts The part Er ase function allows y ou t o erase a section of a track. The section t o be erased is determined by the IN and OUT points. These points can be set by holding do wn the [SET] button while pressing [IN] or [OUT] r espectiv ely . 1. Press the [EDIT] button and use the DA T A dial to sel[...]

70 Editing Songs & Tracks MD8—Owner’s Manual Copying T racks The T rack Copy function allows y ou t o c o py indi vidual tracks. The c opy is rec or ded at the same volume lev el as the original. 1. Press the [EDIT] button to call up the Edit menu and use the DA T A dial to select the T rack Copy function. 2. Press the [ENTER] button. 3. Us[...]

Copying Parts 71 MD8—Owner’s Manual Copying Parts The P art Copy function allows y ou to c opy a section of one tr ack to another track. The sec- tion of the source track to be c opied is determined by the IN and OUT points. These points can be set by holding do w n the [SET] button while pressing [IN] or [OUT] respecti vely . The part is copie[...]

72 Other Functions MD8—Owner’s Manual 8 Other Functions Frame Display The Frame Disp function allows y ou to choose whether the display c ounter shows 86 frames per second, the standard frame count for MiniDisc, or 30 frames per seco nd for when the MD8 is generating MTC. 1. Press the [UTILITY] button and use the DA T A dial to select the Frame[...]

The MD8 & MIDI 73 MD8—Owner’s Manual 9 The MD8 & MIDI MIDI sequencers and MIDI c ontrolled musical instruments have bec ome essential tools for modern recor ding. It’ s common these days not t o r ec or d MIDI instruments until the final mixdown. This has the benefit of freeing up tracks for acoustic sounds and reduces the need for [...]

74 The MD8 & MIDI MD8—Owner’s Manual Setting Up a Synchronized MIDI System The following system shows ho w the MD8 can be int egrated into a MIDI-based r eco rding system. A coustic sounds are rec or d ed t o the MD8, w hile MIDI instruments are controlled by a MIDI sequence r , which receiv es MTC or MIDI Clock fr om the MD8. R emote MD8 c[...]

Using MTC 75 MD8—Owner’s Manual Using MTC Setting the MD8 for MTC Operation 1. Press the [UTILITY] button and use the DA T A dial to select the MIDI Sync function. 2. Press the [ENTER] button. The display sho ws Sync OFF . 3. Use the DA T A dial to select MTC (MIDI Timecode). Sync MTC appears on the display and the MT C indicator to the left of[...]

76 The MD8 & MIDI MD8—Owner’s Manual Using MIDI Clock Setting the MIDI Sequencer The MIDI sequencer must be set t o r ec ei v e and synchronize t o an e xt ernal MIDI Clock source. Refer to y our MIDI sequenc er’ s user manual for more information. Exact MIDI Clock operation depends on what external synchronization featur es y our MIDI se[...]

Using MIDI Clock 77 MD8—Owner’s Manual 5. Use the CURSOR shuttle to select the measure and time signature param- eters and set the desired values using the DA T A dial. The setting range for the measure parameter is 1–999, w hile M eter allows for 1–99/2–16 set- tings. In other w ords, you c ould pr ogram a 99/16 time signature. W hile th[...]

78 The MD8 & MIDI MD8—Owner’s Manual 5. Use the CURSOR shuttle to select the measure, beat, and tempo param- eters and set the desired values using the DA T A dial. The measure can be set fr om 1 to 999. The beat parameter depends on the number of beats per measure, which is specified by the M eter setting. F or example, for a M eter setti[...]

Using MIDI Clock 79 MD8—Owner’s Manual The following example shows ho w sor ting works when a tempo step is delet ed. Saving a T empo Map The Song T empo (M eter and T empo) settings are st ored as soon as y ou update the T OC by pressing the [T OC WRITE] (ST OP) button. It will be automatically loaded when you select the song in question. Afte[...]

80 The MD8 & MIDI MD8—Owner’s Manual Controlling the MD8 with MMC Quite a few of the MD8’ s functions can also be c ontr olled using MIDI M achine Control (MMC) commands. MMC is shor t for a set of MIDI messages that can be used to control audio and video (tape) machines, disc r ec o r ders, and other equipment. T y pically , MMC commands[...]

Controlling the MD8 with MMC 81 MD8—Owner’s Manual Setting the MMC Device ID Because MMC messages are univ ersal commands, you may ha v e to set the MD8 so that it only responds to c er tain MMC messages. This is only nec essar y , ho wever , if you are contr ol- ling several MMC-compatible devices that must not ex ecute the same messages. A De[...]

82 The MD8 & MIDI MD8—Owner’s Manual Tempo Map Chart Meter Te m p o Step Measure Time Signature Step Measure -Beat T empo A 001 / A 001–1 B / B C / C D / D E / E F / F G / G H / H I / I J / J K / K L / L M / M N / N O / O P / P Q / Q R / R S / S T / T U / U V / V W / W X / X Y / Y Z / Z[...]

MD8 Applications 83 MD8—Owner’s Manual 10 MD8 Applications This chapter sho ws ho w the MD8 can be used for various applications. One-T ake Recording One-T ake rec ording is ideal for live r ecording or r ecording bands that like t o record with all members playing together . I n this syst em, vocals, backing v ocals, guitar , and drums are rec[...]

84 MD8 Applications MD8—Owner’s Manual MIDI Home Studio In this system, ac oustic instruments are rec orded t o the MD8, while MIDI instruments are controlled b y a MIDI sequencer , which r eceiv es MT C or MIDI Clock fr om the MD8. Since the MIDI sequencer pr ovides repeatable playback and is synchr onized to the MD8, the MIDI instruments need[...]

Using the MD8 with Another Mixer 85 MD8—Owner’s Manual Using the MD8 with Another Mixer In this system, the MD8 is used in conjunction w ith another mix er , in this case, a Y amaha 03D Digital Mixing Console. T rack sig nals are fed to the 03D via the MD8’ s DIRECT OUT s. The 03D offers 4-band parametr ic EQ, two stereo multi-effects pr oces[...]

86 Beyond the Basics MD8—Owner’s Manual 11 Beyond the Basics This chapter pr o vides some advanc ed tips and t echniques for MD8 r ec o r ding. Effects Return Y ou can use LINE INPUT s 9, 10, 11, and 12 with an external effects pr ocessor . But they can also be used as extra stereo inputs. The y accept line-lev el sig nals that can be assigned [...]

Pitch Applications 87 MD8—Owner’s Manual Pitch Applications Adjusting the pit c h is a c ommon m ultitrack technique. It’ s useful when recor ding instru- ments that are slightly out of tune. F o r example, you ’ve rec or ded the drum and bass parts and now it ’ s time to recor d the ac oustic piano part. H o w ev er , the piano is a litt[...]

88 Beyond the Basics MD8—Owner’s Manual Mixdown This section pro vides tips and techniques for achieving the perfect MD8 mix. • Balance levels —you should alr eady hav e some idea of how you want y our mix to sound. This will, obviously , depend on the application and the instruments being mixed. Start w ith all fa ders positioned at the 7?[...]

Q&A Section 89 MD8—Owner’s Manual 12 Q&A Section This section is intended to answ er y our questions about the MD8 and MD D A T A discs. What’ s the difference between MiniDiscs and MD DA T A Discs? MiniDiscs wer e designed to st or e mono and ster eo sound data. MD D A T A discs were orig- inally designed to store c omputer data. Ide[...]

90 Q&A Section MD8—Owner’s Manual Do I have to sacrifice one track to record timecode? N o. The MD8 generates MT C (MIDI Timecode) or MIDI Clock from the disc ’ s internal sync signals. So ev en in a synchr onized MIDI system, all eight tr acks are a vailable for sound reco rding. How many songs can I store on an MD DA T A disc? U p t o [...]

91 MD8—Owner’s Manual T roubleshooting If you ’ re having difficulty operating the MD8 or if it doesn ’t seem to w ork as expected, look up the symptoms in the following table and follow the advice pr o vided. Symptom Advice The MD8 cannot be turned on! Make sure the power cord is connected to a suitable AC wall outlet and plugged into the[...]

92 Troubleshooting MD8—Owner’s Manual MIDI sequencer does not synchronize to the MD8! Make sure that your MIDI sequencer supports MTC or MIDI Clock. Make sure that the MD4’ s MTC or CLK function is turned on. MTC appears on the display when MTC is used and MASTER appears when MIDI Clock is used. Make sure your MIDI sequencer is set to synchro[...]

MD8 Transport Modes 93 MD8—Owner’s Manual Appendix MD8 T ransport Modes ● On z Flashing Mode Indicators MD8 Status REHE REC PLA Y Stop — — — No activity . Play —— ● Normal playback Play Pause —— z Playback is paused. Cue FF —— ● Quick preview at 0.5X, 2X, 4X, 8X, 16X or 32X play . Review —— ● Quick review at either[...]

94 Appendix MD8—Owner’s Manual Display Messages Message Meaning A A A A D D D D J J J J S S S S T T T T S S S S t t t t o o o o p p p p The [STOP] button was pressed, so the Adjust function was cancelled. B B B B l l l l a a a a n n n n k k k k D D D D i i i i s s s s c c c c The disc is blank. B B B B L L L L A A A A N N N N K K K K X X X X Th[...]

Specifications 95 MD8—Owner’s Manual Specifications Recorder Mixer 0 dB is refer enc ed to 0.775 V r .m.s. Digital/Audio Sampling Frequency: 44.1 kHz Compression: A TRAC Frequency Response: 20 Hz–20 kHz, +1 dB, –3 dB THD+N: Less than 0.02% (1 kHz) S/N: 96 dB typ. Rec/Play 8-track independent simultaneous record/play (Recording time: 18 min[...]

96 Appendix MD8—Owner’s Manual General Specifications subject to change w ithout not ice. Power Requirements USA & Canada: 120 V/60 Hz, Others: 230 V/50 Hz Power Consumption 40 W Dimensions (W x H x D) 484 x 102 x 412.3 mm W eight 6.4 kg Operating Conditions T emperature 5˚C–35˚C (41˚F–95˚F) Humidity 10%–95% Supplied Accessories [...]

Block Diagram 97 MD8—Owner’s Manual Block Diagram PB MIC/ LINE 3 Band EQ 3 Band EQ LINE MIC/ PB CUE MASTER 2 1 DIRECT 2 to Ch2 FLIP (CUE) GROUP 2 CH 2 Tr2 to Ch2 FLIP (EQ) from Ch2 from Ch8 GROUP 4 CH 8 to Ch8 FLIP (EQ) Tr8 to Ch8 FLIP (CUE) 8 REC Recorder PB PB Rec REC Recorder PB PB Rec from TRACK DIRECT OUT to Rec from PB 2 4 1 3 MONITOR LEV[...]

98 Appendix MD8—Owner’s Manual Dimensions W: 484 mm D: 412.3 mm H:102 mm Unit: mm[...]

Glossary 99 MD8—Owner’s Manual Glossar y A TRAC —An acron ym for Adapti v e T r ansform A coustic Coding. This is the c o mpr ession technique used to fit the same amount of data as that of a 120 mm CD on a 64 mm MiniDisc. U sing the A TRAC syst em, the MD8 provides an 8-tr ack reco r ding time of 18 minutes. A TRA C uses established psychoa[...]

100 Glossary MD8—Owner’s Manual Low-Level Signal —A signal in the range from –100 dB to –20 dB. Microphone and elec- tric guitar sig nals are in this range. The MD8’ s MIC/LINE inputs support low-lev el signals. Contrast with Line-Level Signal. MiniDisc —A compact data st orage medium designed to stor e music. MiniDiscs come in two va[...]

Glossary 101 MD8—Owner’s Manual Phono Jack —Also know as an R CA jack, this ty pe of connector is oft en used on semipro- fessional audio and video equipment. Ping-Pong —A reco rding technique used t o transfer (i.e., mix and r erec ord) one or more tracks to other tracks to free up those tracks for fur ther recor ding. The MD8 allo ws y ou[...]

102 Index MD8—Owner’s Manual Index Numerics 2TR IN Connecting 85 2TR IN connectors 14 2TR IN MONITOR SELECT switch 7 A A-B buttons 11 A–B repeat 58 AC IN connector 12 ADJUST button 11 Adjusting markers 54 Advanced multitracking 22 All song repeat 57 Applications MIDI home studio 84 One-take recording 83 Assign, see Group assign ATRAC, definit[...]

Index 103 MD8—Owner’s Manual Erasing Discs 62 Markers 56 Parts 69 Songs 68 Tracks 68 Error messages 94 EVEN, pan 18 EXE, definition 99 EXIT button 11 F Fader Input channel 6 STEREO 7 Fast Forward 51 First session 16 First track recording 17 FIX 8 FLIP switch 5 Footswitch Auto punch in/out 36 Connector 15 Operation table 47 Punch in/out operatio[...]

104 Index MD8—Owner’s Manual MIDI Clock 79 Definition 100 Indicator 8 Sequencer setting 76 System setup 74 Using 76 MIDI Timecode see MTC MiniDisc Definition 100 Types 3 Mixdown Beyond the basics 88 Definition 100 Operation 21 Overview 22 MMC Device ID 81 Indicator 8 Receive 81 MMC (MIDI Machine Control 80 Moni Take 39 MONITOR LEVEL control 7 O[...]

Index 105 MD8—Owner’s Manual REHE button 10 Rehearse Pause mode 93 Rehearsing Auto punch 34 , 37 Mode 93 Ping-pong 43 Remain 28 REMAIN, time counter 9 Remote control 80 Renumbering 64 Repeat A–B 58 All songs 57 Indicators 9 One song 57 REPEAT 1 indicator 9 REPEAT A-B indicators 9 REPEAT ALL indicator 9 REPEAT button 11 Resetting the pitch 46 [...]

YAMAHA [Multitrack Recorder] Date: 11 Sept 1997 Model: MD8 MIDI Implementation Chart Version: 1.0 Function... Transmitted Recognized Remarks Basic Channel Default Changed X X X X Mode Default Messages Altered X X ************** X X X Note Number True Voice X ************** X X Velocity Note On Note Off X X X X After Touch Keys Ch’s X X X X Pitch [...]

Source: Source: Source: Source: Source: Source: Source: Source: Source: Source: 12345678 Tracking Sheet Title: Session Info Track List Mixer Setup Date: Step: Process: Notes: Step 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 → → → → → → → → → Section Repeat Title Cue List [S] [1] [2] [5] [E] [3] [4] [6] [7] [8] [9] [10] Marker Log 1 1 2 3 4 2 1 2 3 4 3 4 GR[...]