new user of tracktion

[martien]

hello,
I'm just a starting with Tracktion and I can't monitor track 1 while I'm recording on track two. What am i doing wrong? I have a synth on track 1 and I want to record on track 2 while I'm listening to track 1.
mar10

[Peter Widdicombe]

Synth on 1 - is it an audio or MIDI track? Is it .vst synth and does it play properly if you aren't recording?

What are you recording on track 2 - audio or MIDI? If MIDI, what kind of interface is it - an actual MIDI interface, or USB to a controller keyboard?

Do you have any tracks solo'd or muted?

[martien]

Thanks Peter,
I'm new in the audio language, so I'm trying to explain. Both tracks are audio tracks. I'm using the Behringer Xenyx Q802 usb as a mixer. I can play track 1 , but when I want to record on track 2, I can't hear the recorded track 1. Do you know a place where I can find a solution for this kind of basic problems. I've watched the video's on the tracktion site, but I can't find a solution for my problem.
thanks for helping me
martien

[chico.co.uk]

Thanks Peter,
I'm new in the audio language, so I'm trying to explain. Both tracks are audio tracks. I'm using the Behringer Xenyx Q802 usb as a mixer. I can play track 1 , but when I want to record on track 2, I can't hear the recorded track 1. Do you know a place where I can find a solution for this kind of basic problems. I've watched the video's on the tracktion site, but I can't find a solution for my problem.
thanks for helping me
martien

Just to double check this - when you hit play, you can hear track 1 fine?
But if you put the audio input to track 2, turn on record on that input, then click to record, you *don't* hear track 1 any more?

[martien]

yes, that's what going on

[chico.co.uk]

Just to rule out something bizarre in the edit you're using (because this should "just work", without you needing to do anything special), can you create a new project, and a new edit, record some audio on track 1, move the input to track two, and try to record on that. Does it still do the same thing?

Because that really shouldn't happen, this isn't something you normally even have to think about

[martien]

oke, 1. I recorded a piano on track 1, moved it to track 2, recorded again on Track 1, can't hear track 2, can play them both
2, Recorded on track 1, moved it to track two, recorded a new piano over track 2, burt can't hear de first recording while recording. when I play the track I can hear them both.
Still the same

[chico.co.uk]

I think this is an issue with the mixer, not Tracktion. I'm basing that on the info in this review of the Q802USB on YouTube, and the comments. Have a listen to this part of the review;



Somebody in the comments says - "my problem is when i activate the micro then i dont hear the computer sound anymore", which sounds like the issue you're having

I think there must be a way to set the outputs, in software, possibly in control panel, for the mixer, so you can monitor while recording, but it sounds like this mixer doesn't do it out of the box.

You might want to try contacting behringer about this, unless someone has one of these mixers? I don't, so can't give you steps to sort this, but I don't think it's a tracktion issue. Try doing the same thing in reaper, which is shareware, so free to try. If it does the same thing in Reaper, it's a mixer issue;

http://www.reaper.fm

Just to clarify - this should just work in tracktion. You don't have to do anything special with any other audio input i've tried in the past.

[martien]

thanks for your advise, I'm going after the Behringer!!

[martien]

Your were right, it is the same thing in Repear, so it looks like it is a Behringer setup-thing I. thanks anyway, martien

[chico.co.uk]

I would think there *must* be a way of playing with the settings in the audio driver so it works the way you would expect. That video suggests getting a special cable, but that seems crazy. Unfortunately can't really help more, because I don't have the mixer, but i'd poke around with settings for the output in the audio bit in windows control panel, that kind of thing

[martien]

It's a Behringer build in thing, recording and monitoring isn"t possible with the XenyxQ802usb.........good to know....before buying...
http://forum.music-group.com/showthread ... xenyx+Q802

[chico.co.uk]

It's a Behringer build in thing, recording and monitoring isn"t possible with the XenyxQ802usb.........good to know....before buying...
http://forum.music-group.com/showthread ... xenyx+Q802

Okay, reading that, try pressing the "to Phones / CTRL RM", and check you can hear track 1 when you hit play (the track you've already recorded). If you can, it reads like you probably won't be able to hear the track you're trying to record, from what they say in that thread.

You may be able to sort that though, by monitoring the input in software, rather than through the mixer itself.

To try that, click on the audio input in Tracktion, then click "Live Input Monitoring" in the properties panel down the bottom, to turn that on. That will let you hear what's coming in, but might introduce latency (a lag between you pressing a key, and hearing it sound)

If so, and you're on windows, you want to install Asio4All drivers, and use those as the audio drivers for the Q802 mixer. You can get those here - http://www.asio4all.com/

I noticed Behringer mention using Asio4all in other threads, so I assume their mixer doesn't come with Asio drivers, or usable Windows Audio drivers. But worth trying the Windows Audio ones, if it has any.

[Peter Widdicombe]

One of the potential difficulties of these small mixers is the recording of new audio and playback of existing audio. Do you flip the USB setting from "main mix" to control room? Or are you using headphones? Do you have the potential of hearing both control room and main out at the same time?

Set the wrong way, you may wind up recording both existing tracks plus new track onto any new recording; or possibly not hearing previous tracks at all (as you seem to be getting). I assume the recording is done on the "main mix" output... ?

Can you control which inputs go to control room or main mix? From a picture of the mixer, it looks like you can't...

[Peter Widdicombe]

From the manual:
USB/2-TR TO MAIN MIX
When the USB/2-TR TO MAIN switch is depressed, the USB/2-Track input is
assigned to the main mix, providing an additional input for tape machines,
computers, MIDI instruments or other signal sources that do not require any
processing. The 2-Track Out/USB recording signal are muted to avoid feedback

This kind of implies it really doesn't do conventional 2-way USB IO.
Now what you COULD possibly do is to have whatever speakers you have connected to the COMPUTER used to hear all the tracks; and treat the 802 simply as an INPUT signal mixer - whatever is playing into the 802 is recorded; but you use the computer audio for "other" tracks you have already recorded.

I have the non-USB version of the 802 as a first mixer; and was using line inputs and outputs to record using it; but had to get inventive to use it - basically, the FX send was used as the input to the computer AUX IN for recording; and computer audio out was sent into 2 channel AUX RETURN of the 802. This way, everything played "all the time" and ONLY the 802 channel with FX SEND level at non-zero would be recorded - and it was restricted to MONO, as FX send typically is.

I replaced it with the Mackie ProFX12, as it's USB allowed 2-way audio; in fact it's USB switch would prevent USB audio input received (i.e. the full mix) from going back out through the USB back to the computer; so only the "NEW" sound via the 12 input channels would be fed to the computer while recording.