TASCAM DP-004 Portable 4-Track Digital Pocketstudio OWNER'S MANUAL

D01054920B
DP-004
Portable
4-Track Digital
Pocketstudio
This device has a serial
number located on the
bottom panel. Please
record it and retain it for
your records.
Serial number:
__________________
OWNER'S MANUAL
IMPORTANT SAFETY PRECAUTIONS
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
Read these instructions.
Keep these instructions.
Heed all warnings.
Follow all instructions.
Do not use this apparatus near water.
Clean only with dry cloth.
Do not block any ventilation openings. Install in accordance with the
manufacturer's instructions.
8 Do not install near any heat sources such as radiators, heat registers, stoves,
or other apparatus (including amplifiers) that produce heat.
9 Do not defeat the safety purpose of the polarized or grounding-type plug. A
polarized plug has two blades with one wider than the other. A grounding type
plug has two blades and a third grounding prong. The wide blade or the third
prong are provided for your safety. If the provided plug does not fit into your
outlet, consult an electrician for replacement of the obsolete outlet.
10 Protect the power cord from being walked on or pinched particularly at plugs,
convenience receptacles, and the point where they exit from the apparatus.
11 Only use attachments/accessories specified by the manufacturer.
12 Use only with the cart, stand, tripod, bracket, or table specified by the
manufacturer, or sold with the apparatus. When a cart is used, use caution
when moving the cart/apparatus combination to avoid injury from tip-over.
13 Unplug this apparatus during lightning storms or when unused for long
periods of time.
14 Refer all servicing to qualified service personnel. Servicing is required when
the apparatus has been damaged in any way, such as power-supply cord
or plug is damaged, liquid has been spilled or objects have fallen into the
apparatus, the apparatus has been exposed to rain or moisture, does not
operate normally, or has been dropped. Do not expose this apparatus to
drips or splashes.
2 TASCAM DP-004
•• Do not place any objects filled with liquids, such as vases, on the apparatus.
•• Do not install this apparatus in a confined space such as a book case or
similar unit.
•• The apparatus should be located close enough to the AC outlet so that you
can easily grasp the power cord plug at any time.
•• The main plug is used as the disconnect device; the disconnect device
should remain readily operable.
•• An apparatus with Class I construction shall be connected to an AC outlet
with a protective grounding connection.
•• Batteries (battery pack or batteries installed) should not be exposed to
excessive heat such as sunshine, fire or the like.
•• Excessive sound pressure from earphones and headphones can cause hearing loss.
•• This product uses batteries. Misuse of batteries could cause a leak, rupture
or other trouble. Always abide by the following precautions when using
batteries.
•• Never recharge non-rechargeable batteries. The batteries could rupture or
leak, causing fire or injury.
•• When installing batteries, pay attention to the polarity indications (plus/minus
(+/–) orientation), and install them correctly in the battery case as indicated.
Putting them in backward could make the batteries rupture or leak, causing
fire, injury or stains around them.
•• When throwing used batteries away, follow the disposal instructions indicated on the batteries and the local disposal laws.
•• Do not use batteries other than those specified. Do not mix and use new
and old batteries or different types of batteries together. The batteries could
rupture or leak, causing fire, injury or stains around them.
•• Do not carry or store batteries together with small metal objects. The batteries could short, causing leak, rupture or other trouble.
•• Do not heat or disassemble batteries. Do not put them in fire or water.
Batteries could rupture or leak, causing fire, injury or stains around them.
•• If the battery fluid leaks, wipe away any fluid on the battery case before
inserting new batteries. If the battery fluid gets in an eye, it could cause loss
of eyesight. If fluid does enter an eye, wash it out thoroughly with clean water
without rubbing the eye and then consult a doctor immediately. If the fluid
gets on a person’s body or clothing, it could cause skin injuries or burns. If
this should happen, wash it off with clean water and then consult a doctor
immediately.
IMPORTANT SAFETY INSTRUCTIONS
•• The unit power should be off when you install and replace batteries.
•• Remove the batteries if you do not plan to use the unit for a long time.
Batteries could rupture or leak, causing fire, injury or stains around them. If
the battery fluid leaks, wipe away any fluid on the battery case before inserting new batteries.
FOR U.S.A.
TO THE USER
This equipment has been tested and found to comply with the limits for a
Class B digital device, pursuant to Part 15 of the FCC Rules. These limits
are designed to provide reasonable protection against harmful interference
in a residential installation. This equipment generates, uses, and can
radiate radio frequency energy and, if not installed and used in accordance
with the instruction manual, may cause harmful interference to radio
communications. However, there is no guarantee that interference will
not occur in a particular installation. If this equipment does cause harmful
interference to radio or television reception, which can be determined by
turning the equipment off and on, the user is encouraged to try to correct
the interference by one or more of the following measures.
a) Reorient or relocate the receiving antenna.
b) Increase the separation between the equipment and receiver.
c) Connect the equipment into an outlet on a circuit different from that to
which the receiver is connected.
d) Consult the dealer or an experienced radio/TV technician for help.
CAUTION
Changes or modifications to this equipment not expressly approved by
TEAC CORPORATION for compliance could void the user's authority to
operate this equipment.
Declaration of Conformity
Model Number
: DP-004
Trade Name: TASCAM
Responsible party
: TEAC AMERICA, INC.
Address
: 7733 Telegraph Road, Montebello,
California, U.S. A.
Telephone number
: 1-323-726-0303
This device complies with Part 15 of the FCC Rules. Operation is subject
to the following two conditions: (1) this device may not cause harmful
interference, and (2) this device must accept any interference recieved,
including interference that may cause undesired operation.
TASCAM DP-004 3
IMPORTANT SAFETY PRECAUTIONS
Information for Users on Collection and
Disposal of Old Equipment and used Batteries
Information on Disposal in other Countries
outside the European Union
These symbols on the products, packaging, and/or accompanying documents
mean that used electrical and electronic products and batteries should not
be mixed with general household waste. For proper treatment, recovery and
recycling of old products and used batteries, please take them to applicable
collection points, in accordance with your national legislation and the
Directives 2002/96/EC and 2006/66/EC.
These symbols are only valid in the European Union. If you wish to discard
these items, please contact your local authorities or dealer and ask for the
correct method of disposal.
By disposing of these products and batteries correctly, you will help to save
valuable resources and prevent any potential negative effects on human health
and the environment which could otherwise arise from inappropriate waste
handling.
This symbol might be used in combination with a chemical symbol. In this case
it complies with the requirement set by the Directive for the chemical involved.
Note for the battery symbol (bottom right two
symbol examples)
For more information about collection and recycling of old products and
batteries, please contact your local municipality, your waste disposal service or
the point of sale where you purchased the items.
Pb
4 TASCAM DP-004
Table of Contents
1–Introduction...................................................................... 8
Overview of this unit............................................................ 8
About this manual................................................................ 8
Manual conventions................................................................ 8
Product parts......................................................................... 9
Trademarks............................................................................ 9
About SD cards. .................................................................. 10
Precautions for use............................................................... 10
Beware of condensation.................................................... 10
Cleaning the unit. ............................................................... 10
2–Quick Start Guides......................................................11
QSG 1–Playback and mixing .............................................11
Preparing to listen to the demo song.....................................11
Playing and mixing the demo song........................................ 13
Shutting down the unit..........................................................15
QSG 2–Recording and mastering .....................................15
Connecting and setting the input sources..............................15
Loading a song file................................................................17
Setting the guitar as track 1 recording source....................... 18
Adjusting the input level and monitoring............................... 18
Recording guitar to track 1................................................... 19
Listening to your recording.................................................... 20
Adding another recording (1)—record guitar to track 2........ 21
Adding another recording (2)—record vocals on track 3....... 22
Mixing the tracks.................................................................. 24
Mastering the mix................................................................. 25
Shutting down the unit......................................................... 27
3–Names and Functions of Parts. ......................... 28
Top panel. ............................................................................ 28
Front panel. ......................................................................... 31
Rear panel............................................................................ 31
Right side panel. ................................................................. 32
Left side panel..................................................................... 32
Bottom. ................................................................................ 33
4–Preparations................................................................... 34
Preparing the power and SD card.................................... 34
Installing an SD card............................................................. 34
Preparing the power............................................................. 35
Installing batteries................................................................ 35
Connecting an AC adapter (sold separately).......................... 36
Start-up & shutdown.......................................................... 36
Starting up the unit............................................................... 36
Shutting down...................................................................... 37
Formatting SD cards........................................................... 38
Display screens.................................................................... 39
Home Screen........................................................................ 39
Screen Organization.............................................................. 40
Using the screens.................................................................. 41
Editing names...................................................................... 43
Recorder modes ................................................................. 44
Connecting with other equipment................................... 45
Rear panel connections......................................................... 45
Right side panel connections................................................ 45
Left side panel connections................................................... 46
Setting the contrast............................................................ 46
TASCAM DP-004 5
Table of Contents
5–Song Management.................................................... 47
Partitions and songs........................................................... 47
Selecting the active partition............................................ 47
Loading a saved song. ....................................................... 48
Creating a new song.......................................................... 49
Saving a song...................................................................... 49
Viewing song information ................................................ 50
Copying songs......................................................................51
Erasing songs. ..................................................................... 52
Protecting songs................................................................. 53
6–Basic Recording............................................................ 54
Selecting the input source................................................. 54
Monitoring the input signal. ............................................. 55
Setting the monitoring mode................................................ 55
About the OL indicators and meters................................ 56
Assigning input channels. ................................................. 57
Making the first recording. ............................................... 58
Overdubbing........................................................................ 60
Setting up to overdub........................................................... 61
Rehearsal ............................................................................ 61
Recording an overdub........................................................... 62
Mixdown.............................................................................. 62
Level and balance................................................................. 62
Stereo position (panning)...................................................... 62
Mastering............................................................................. 62
Setting the end point............................................................ 63
Recording the master track................................................... 64
Undoing operations (undo)............................................... 66
Undoing the last operation (single undo).............................. 66
6 TASCAM DP-004
Undoing a previous operation (multi-undo)........................... 66
Erasing the operation history................................................ 68
7–Recorder Functions.................................................... 69
Punching in and out........................................................... 69
Bouncing tracks. ................................................................. 69
Using the bounce function.................................................... 70
Confirming the result............................................................ 71
Locate and search functions. ............................................ 71
Direct locate function........................................................... 71
RTZ and LRP......................................................................... 72
Fast forward/rewind search.................................................. 73
Repeat playback.................................................................. 73
Setting IN and OUT points.................................................... 73
Editing IN/OUT points........................................................... 74
Using repeat playback.......................................................... 75
Setting the interval between repetitions............................... 75
8–Miscellaneous Functions....................................... 76
Metronome ......................................................................... 76
Tuner..................................................................................... 77
Turning the power off automatically. .............................. 78
Restoring the initial preference settings......................... 78
Viewing information. ......................................................... 79
9–SD Card Management............................................. 81
Overview of partitions....................................................... 81
Write-protected cards........................................................ 81
Formatting cards and setting partition sizes.................. 82
Reformatting MTR partitions............................................ 83
Reformatting the FAT partition......................................... 84
Initializing SD cards............................................................ 85
Table of Contents
10–Editing Tracks. ............................................................ 86
Overview of track editing.................................................. 86
Edit points............................................................................ 86
Basic editing procedures....................................................... 86
CLONE TRACK (track duplication).................................... 87
CLEAN OUT (track erase). ................................................. 88
SILENCE (part erase).......................................................... 88
CUT (remove part).............................................................. 89
OPEN (insert silence).......................................................... 90
Block diagram. .................................................................. 105
Messages........................................................................... 106
14–Commonly-used Functions............................. 109
11–Exchanging Data with a Computer............. 91
Supported operating systems........................................... 92
Connecting with a computer. ........................................... 92
Disconnecting....................................................................... 93
Song backup and restoration............................................ 94
Backing-up songs................................................................. 94
Restoring songs.................................................................... 96
Track import and export.................................................... 97
Importing tracks................................................................... 97
Exporting tracks................................................................... 99
Exporting a stereo master............................................... 100
12–Troubleshooting...................................................... 102
13–Specifications & Messages.............................. 103
Audio input/output ratings............................................. 103
Audio performance........................................................... 103
General............................................................................... 103
Optional accessories. ....................................................... 104
Computer requirements................................................... 104
Dimensions. ....................................................................... 104
TASCAM DP-004 7
1–Introduction
Thank you for your purchase of TASCAM’s
4-track digital Pocketstudio, the DP-004.
The DP-004 is designed to provide you with
great sound in an easy-to-use compact package,
allowing you to concentrate on the music, and not
on the recording process.
Overview of this unit
Using an SD card this unit can record two tracks
simultaneously and work with up to four tracks
in a multitrack project. Moreover, using its mixer
functions, you can mix down a multitrack to create
a stereo master.
This stereo master can then be transferred to
a computer connected by USB. In addition to
copying stereo masters from this unit to the
computer, various other data, including track and
song data can be transferred to a computer as
back-ups.
8 TASCAM DP-004
About this manual
Please read chapter 2, “Quick Start Guides,” first
and follow the instructions in it to learn about and
practice using this unit’s functions.
Chapter 3 explains the functions of the keys,
knobs, connectors and other features. Chapters 4
and 5 explain other things you should know before
you use this unit. Chapters 6 to 11 explains the
uses and functions of this unit in detail. Chapters
12 and 14 provide troubleshooting information and
a list of functions that you might want to use and
where you can find them in the manual. Chapter 13
includes the unit’s specifications and a list of error
messages.
Manual conventions
This manual often refers to the DP-004 as “the
unit” and the SD card as the “card.”
When we refer to DP-004 features such as keys
and connections, we display them like this: MENU.
When we show messages, for example, that appear
on the screen, we show them like this: SONG LOAD.
1–Introduction
The four keys beneath the LCD display are called
function keys, and are referred to as F1, F2, F3 and
F4 from left to right. The functions displayed at the
bottom of the screen above the keys are sometimes
shown after the key name in parentheses (e.g. F4 (¥)
key, F2 (EXEC) key).
TIP We give hints and tips on using the DP-004
when you see this icon.
NOTE A note provides additional explanations for
special situations.
CAUTION A caution shows that you may lose data
(recordings) if you do not follow the instructions.
WARNING Warnings should be taken seriously.
They describe situations which can cause injury or
damage to the equipment if you do not follow the
instructions.
This manual cannot begin to be a full guide to
multitrack recording techniques. However, if you
search the Internet or visit a library you should find
various documents on recording.
Product parts
You should find these items in the box:
•• Main unit.................................................................... 1
•• SD Card (in the unit).................................................. 1
•• USB Cable.................................................................. 1
•• AA alkaline batteries................................................. 4
•• Owner's Manual (this document)............................... 1
•• Warranty card. ........................................................... 1
If any of these items is missing, contact your
TASCAM supplier.
Trademarks
The SD Logo is a trademark.
Microsoft, Windows, Windows 2000, Windows XP,
and Windows Vista are either registered trademarks
or trademarks of Microsoft Corporation in the
United States and/or other countries.
TASCAM DP-004 9
1–Introduction
Macintosh, Mac OS and Mac OS X are trademarks
of Apple Inc.
Other company names and product names in
this document are the trademarks or registered
trademarks of their respective owners.
About SD cards
This unit uses SD cards for recording and playback.
SD and SDHC cards that are at least 512 MB in size
can be used. A list of SD cards that have been tested
with this unit can be found on the TASCAM web
site (www.tascam.com).
•• Do not put things on top of them or twist them.
•• Do not hit them.
Beware of condensation
If the unit is moved from a cold to a warm place,
or used after a sudden temperature change, there
is a danger of condensation; vapor in the air could
condense on the internal mechanism, making correct
operation impossible. To prevent this, or if this
occurs, let the Pocketstudio sit for one or two hours
at the new room temperature before using.
Precautions for use
Cleaning the unit
SD cards are delicate media. In order to avoid
damaging a card or the card slot, please take the
following precautions when handling them.
•• Do not leave them in extremely hot or cold places.
•• Do not leave them in extremely humid places.
•• Do not let them get wet.
To clean the unit, wipe gently with a soft dry cloth.
Do not use any benzene, paint thinner, ethyl alcohol
or other chemical agents to clean the unit as they
could damage the surface.
10 TASCAM DP-004
2–Quick Start Guides
QSG 1–Playback and mixing
First, we will play the demo song on the included
SD card. The SD card with the demo song is shipped
already installed in the battery compartment on the
bottom of the unit, but we will start by explaining
how to insert an SD card here.
Preparing to listen to the demo song
1 Open the battery compartment and insert the SD
Card into the slot.
CAUTION
• Do not insert the card backwards or apply unnecessary force. This could damage the slot or card.
• Do not remove the SD card when the unit’s power
is ON. Make sure the unit power is OFF before you
remove the card. If you remove the SD card while
the power is ON, all recordings and settings since
the last time the unit was shutdown or a song was
saved will be lost. Lost data cannot be recovered.
NOTE
To use a new SD card or card that has been used with
another device with this unit, it is necessary to format it
first. A screen prompting you to format it appears if you
insert such an SD card.
2 Insert four AA batteries into the compartment,
paying attention to the plus/minus (+/–) orientation. This unit can use alkaline or NiMH batteries.
TASCAM DP-004 11
2–Quick Start Guides
TIP
CAUTION
This unit can also be powered by a PS-P520 power
adapter (sold separately) (see “Connecting an AC
adapter” on page 36).
CAUTION
• Do not remove the batteries or disconnect the
power cable while the unit power is ON. If you
do so, the unit cannot shut down properly and all
unsaved settings and recorded data will be lost.
Lost data cannot be restored.
• The included alkaline batteries are for confirming
operation of the unit and might not last very long.
3 Close the battery compartment cover after installing the SD card and batteries.
4 Connect headphones to the
/LINE OUT
connector.
The volume adjustment dial is small and does not have
any indications. Before turning the power ON, always
turn it in the direction of the arrow until it stops to
minimize the volume. Sudden bursts of loud sounds
can cause hearing damage and speaker damage, for
example.
TIP
You can also attach an amplifier or speakers with built-in
amplification to monitor through speakers.
5 Press and hold the POWER key on the top panel
until TASCAM appears on screen (or the POWER key
indicator lights green).
After starting up the Home Screen appears on
the display.
POWER indicator
Headphones
12 TASCAM DP-004
2–Quick Start Guides
Playing and mixing the demo song
3 Rotate the DATA wheel to select LOAD, and press the
F4 (¥) key to open the SONG LOAD screen that shows a
list of songs.
Before the unit is shipped, a demo song is stored on
its SD card. We are now going to use basic playback
and mixing features with this demo song.
1 Press the MENU key when the Home Screen is open.
The MENU screen is displayed.
4 Rotate the DATA wheel to select DEMOSONG, and press
the F2 (EXEC) key.
The demo song loads and the SONG screen reopens.
5 Press the HOME key to reopen the Home Screen.
2 Rotate the DATA wheel to select SONG, and press the
F4 (¥) key to open the SONG screen.
TASCAM DP-004 13
2–Quick Start Guides
6 To hear the demo song, press the ¥ key and use
the LEVEL knobs for tracks 1–4, the MASTER LEVEL
knob and the VOLUME dial.
The MASTER LEVEL knob adjusts the volume of all
four tracks at the same time. The standard position
is around 2–3 o'clock.
Use the LEVEL knobs to adjust the balance between
tracks 1–4.
Use the VOLUME dial to adjust the final monitoring
level.
14 TASCAM DP-004
7 Use the PAN knobs to adjust the stereo position of
tracks 1–4.
2–Quick Start Guides
Shutting down the unit
If you are finished, shut the unit down unless you
want to try the features in QSG 2 on the following
page now.
Press and hold the POWER key until “POCKETSTUDIO”
appears on the screen. The unit shuts down
automatically after completing a shutdown
procedure that saves various information.
mix the tracks down.
In this section, we assume that you have already
followed the instructions in “QSG 1–Playback
and mixing” to connect monitoring equipment and
install the SD card.
TIP
This example uses the built-in mic for recording vocals,
but you could also connect an external mic to the INPUT
A or INPUT B connector on the rear panel and record it.
CAUTION
Do not remove the batteries or disconnect the power
cable accidently while the unit is operating. If you
do so, the unit cannot shut down properly and
all unsaved data will be lost. Lost data cannot be
restored. We recommend that you also save the data
manually often.
QSG 2–Recording and mastering
Here, we will try multitrack recording. In the
following example, we will use an electric guitar
to record a rhythm guitar part on track 1 and a lead
guitar part on track 2. Then, we will use the built-in
mic to record a voice on track 3. Finally, we will
Connecting and setting the input sources
1 Connect an electric guitar to the INPUT A connector
on the rear panel.
2 Set the MIC/LINE-GUITAR switch on the left side
panel to GUITAR .
TIP
When connecting an electric-acoustic guitar with a
built-in preamp or an active electric guitar, as well as
when connecting an electric guitar with effect boxes
between it and this unit, set the MIC/LINE–GUITAR
switch to MIC/LINE.
3 Press the INPUT SETTING key to open the INPUT
SETTING screen.
TASCAM DP-004 15
2–Quick Start Guides
5 Press the F4 (¶) key to select the current input for
IN B (INPUT B channel).
The IN A and IN B items are used to set the input
sources for the INPUT A and INPUT B channels.
6. Use the DATA wheel to set the IN B input source to
INT.MIC B-Low, INT.MIC B-Mid or INT.MIC B-High.
At first, the input source for IN
is already selected.
This sets MIC B , which is the built-in mic on the
right side of the front panel as the input source
for INPUT B.
A (INPUT A
4 Use the DATA wheel to change the IN
to GUITAR/LINE.
16 TASCAM DP-004
channel)
A input
source
2–Quick Start Guides
NOTE
open, press the MENU key to open the MENU screen.
INT.MIC B-Low, INT.MIC B-Mid, INT.MIC B-High change
the sensitivity of the built-in mics. Set it according to the
loudness of the subject being recorded.
If you are not sure which setting to use, choose INT.
MIC B-Low. If the input level is too low after adjusting it
later, return to this screen and change the setting to INT.
MIC B-Mid. If the input level is still too low, change this
setting to INT.MIC B-High.
7 After changing the setting, press the HOME key to
return to the Home Screen.
2 Use the DATA wheel to select SONG and press F4 (¥)
to open the SONG menu screen.
NOTE
The MODE item on the INPUT SETTING screen is used
to set the input monitoring mode. Set to STEREO, input
signals from INPUT A and INPUT B channels are output
separately on the L and R channels, respectively. Set to
MONOx2, input signals from both INPUT A and INPUT
B channels are output as a combined mono signal from
both the left and right channels.
3 Use the DATA wheel to select LOAD and press F4 (¥)
to open the SONG LOAD screen. A list of the songs
appears.
Loading a song file
After listening to the demo song, follow these
procedures to load SONG001 to record your song.
1 With the transport stopped and the Home Screen
TASCAM DP-004 17
2–Quick Start Guides
4 Use the DATA wheel keys to select SONG001 and press
F2 (EXEC) to load this song that does not have any
recordings in it yet.
The SONG menu screen reopens.
5 Press the HOME key to return to the Home Screen.
Setting the guitar as track 1 recording source
The default settings are for the INPUT A channel to be
the recording source for tracks 1 and 3 and for the
INPUT B channel to be the recording source for tracks
2 and 4.
In “Connecting and setting the input sources” above,
we made a guitar the input source for the INPUT A
channel and a built-in mic (MIC B) the input source
for the INPUT B channel. Therefore, the guitar is
already set to record to tracks 1 and 3 and MIC B is
ready to record to tracks 2 and 4.
As a result, there is no need to change the input
channel assignments to record the guitar to track 1
in this example. See “Adding another recording (1)”
on page 21 and “Adding another recording (2)” on
page 22 for how to change track recording sources.
18 TASCAM DP-004
Adjusting the input level and monitoring
Use the INPUT A channel LEVEL knob to adjust the
guitar input level.
Set the LEVEL knob so that the INPUT A channel OL
indicator does not light even when the loudest sound
to be recorded is input. If the indicator continues to
light even when the LEVEL knob is turned down, the
guitar signal itself is too loud. In this case, lower the
output level on the guitar.
OL indicator
When you play the guitar, its input level is shown by
the A meter on the screen.
2–Quick Start Guides
If you turn up the MASTER LEVEL knob and the
VOLUME dial, you can hear the guitar on the left
channel of your headphones, and the L meter on the
screen moves.
NOTE
If you change the MODE item on the INPUT SETTING
screen to mono mode (MONOx2), you will be able to hear
the guitar sound on both left and right channels and
both the L and R meters on the screen will move (see
“Monitoring the input signal” on page 55).
NOTE
When the input source is a built-in mic, the signal from
the built-in mic cannot be monitored if the REC indicator
of the track that it is assigned to is not lit.
Recording guitar to track 1
1 Press the TRACK 1 REC key. The key blinks showing
that the track is in record standby.
TASCAM DP-004 19
2–Quick Start Guides
4 Press the TRACK 1 REC key again. Its light turns off.
Listening to your recording
2 Press the playback (Á) key while pressing and
holding the record (–) key to start recording.
The track 1 REC key stops blinking and stays lit
constantly.
1 To go to the beginning of the song, press the Ô
key while pressing and holding the stop (ª) key.
(This is the Return To Zero (RTZ) function)
You are recording. Play your guitar!
2 Press the playback (Á) key to play the recorded
track.
3 When you are finished, press the stop (ª) key to
stop recording.
3 Use the track 1 LEVEL knob and the MASTER LEVEL
knob to adjust the playback level. Use the VOLUME
dial to adjust the final monitoring volume.
20 TASCAM DP-004
2–Quick Start Guides
TIP
• Use the track 1 PAN knob to set the stereo position of
the track signal.
• If you are not satisfied with the recorded sound,
follow the procedures above again from the
beginning. If you are satisfied with this recording
continue to the next section.
Adding another recording (1)—record guitar
to track 2
Now, you will record lead guitar on track 2 while
listening to the rhythm guitar on track 1. This time,
you will need to change the track 2 record source.
1 Press the ASSIGN key to open the INPUT
screen.
The input channels (INPUT A or INPUT B) that are the
recording sources for each track are shown. In the
initial setting, INPUT A is assigned as the recording
source for tracks 1 and 3, and INPUT B is assigned
as the recording source for tracks 2 and 4.
2 Press the F4 (¶) key to select TRACK 2 to change its
current input channel from the default of IN B.
ASSIGN
3 Turn the DATA wheel to set the input to IN A.
TASCAM DP-004 21
2–Quick Start Guides
NOTE
You are recording again. Play your guitar!
You do not need to change the input if you want to
record the lead guitar on track 3.
9 When you are finished, press the stop (ª) key to
stop recording.
4 Press the HOME key to return to the Home Screen.
10Press the TRACK 2 REC key again. Its light turns off.
5 Press the TRACK 2 REC key. The key blinks showing
that the track is in record standby.
Adding another recording (2)—record vocals
on track 3
1 Press ASSIGN to open the INPUT
ASSIGN screen.
6 Press the Ô key while pressing and holding the
stop (ª) key to return to the beginning of the song.
Press the playback (Á) key to listen to the rhythm
guitar track while you practice the lead part. Both
guitar parts can be heard through the headphones.
7 Use the track LEVEL knobs, MASTER LEVEL knob and
VOLUME dial to adjust the output volume and the
balance between the tracks.
8 Return to the start of the track again and press the
playback (Á) key while pressing and holding the
record (–) key to start recording. The TRACK 2 REC
key stops blinking and stays lit constantly.
22 TASCAM DP-004
2 Press the F4 (¶) key to select TRACK 3 to change its
current input channel from the default of IN A.
2–Quick Start Guides
NOTE
3 Turn the DATA wheel to set the input to IN B.
If the OL indicator continues to light even when the
LEVEL knob is turned down, the mic signal itself is
too loud. In this case, if the input setting is INT.MIC
B-High, change it to INT.MIC B-Mid or INT.MIC B-Low. If
the input setting is INT.MIC B-Mid, change it to INT.
MIC B-Low. If the OL indicator continues to light even
when set to INT.MIC B-Low, move the sound source
away from the mic or lower the volume at the sound
source.
NOTE
By default, INPUT B is set as the recording source for
tracks 2 and 4, so you do not need to change the input if
you want to record the vocal on track 4.
4 Press the HOME key to return to the Home Screen.
5 Press the TRACK 3 REC key. The key blinks showing
that the track is in record standby.
The input level of built-in MIC B is shown by the B
meter on the screen.
6 Use the INPUT B channel LEVEL knob to adjust the
mic input level. Set the LEVEL knob so that the
INPUT B channel OL indicator does not light even
when the loudest sound to be recorded is input.
TASCAM DP-004 23
2–Quick Start Guides
Raise the MASTER LEVEL knob and VOLUME dial as
necessary to hear the mic input through the vocals.
Both guitar parts and your singing can be heard
through the headphones.
8 Use the track LEVEL knobs, MASTER LEVEL knob and
VOLUME dial to adjust the output volume and the
balance between the tracks.
9 Return to the start of the track again and press the
playback (Á) key while pressing and holding the
record (–) key to start recording. The TRACK 3 REC
key stops blinking and stays lit constantly.
You are recording again. Sing!
10When you are finished, press the stop (ª) key to
stop recording.
CAUTION
Always monitor through headphones when using a
mic. If you monitor through speakers, feedback could
occur and the recorded sound might not be right.
NOTE
When the input source is one of the built-in mics, the
input cannot be heard when the REC indicator is not lit.
7 Press the Ô key while pressing and holding the
stop (ª) key to return to the beginning of the song.
Press the playback (Á) key to play the recorded
guitar tracks while you practice the vocal part.
24 TASCAM DP-004
11Press the TRACK 3 REC key again. Its light turns off.
Mixing the tracks
After you finish recording, the next step is to make
a stereo mix. This unit allows you to make a stereo
mix for every song.
1 Use the LEVEL knobs for tracks 1, 2 and 3, to adjust
the levels of the tracks and the balance between
them. Use the MASTER LEVEL knob to adjust the
overall level.
2–Quick Start Guides
2 Use the track PAN knobs to adjust the stereo
positioning of the tracks.
1 Press the IN/OUT key to open the I/O
SETTING screen.
Watch the L and R meters at the right side of the
display as you adjust levels and panning.
2 Play the song back, and press the F4 (OUT) key at
the position where you want the stereo master end
point. “SET OUT !” appears and this position is set
Mastering the mix
Now we will record your stereo mix. We call this
process mastering.
The time between the song’s beginning
(00:00:00:00) and the OUT point will be recorded
as the stereo master. So, first we must set the OUT
(end) point.
as the OUT point, which will be the end point of
the master.
TASCAM DP-004 25
2–Quick Start Guides
TIP
You can also set the OUT point when playback is
stopped by pressing the F4 (OUT) key.
3 Press the IN/OUT key (or HOME key) to return to the
Home Screen.
4 Press the REC MODE key to open the RECORDER
screen.
MODE
7 Press the playback (Á) key while pressing
and holding the record (–) key to start master
recording. Recording automatically ends when the
recorder position reaches the OUT point.
NOTE
You can use the LEVEL knobs to adjust the track and
overall levels as you record.
8 Press the REC MODE key to open the RECORDER
screen.
5 Turn the DATA wheel to select MASTER
REC.
6 Press the F4 (EXEC) key to put the unit into master
recording mode and return to the Home Screen.
26 TASCAM DP-004
9 Turn the DATA wheel to select MASTER
MODE
PLAY.
10Press the F4 (EXEC) key to put this unit into master
playback mode and return to the Home Screen.
2–Quick Start Guides
11Press the playback (Á) key to play the stereo
master that you created.
Shutting down the unit
Shutdown the unit when you are finished.
1 Press and hold the POWER key until POCKETSTUDIO
appears on the screen.
2 The power turns off after the unit completes
its shutdown process, including saving various
information from your session.
CAUTION
Always follow the above procedures to shut the unit
down. Do not remove the card or batteries when the
unit is turned on. Failure to power off properly first
will cause any recordings and settings made since
the last power off and song save to be lost. This data
cannot be recovered.
TASCAM DP-004 27
3–Names and Functions of Parts
Top panel
2 REPEAT key
Turns the repeat playback mode on and off. (See
“Repeat playback” on page 73.)
3 IN/OUT key
Press this key to open the I/O SETTING screen to
set IN and OUT points for repeat playback and track
editing functions. (See “Setting IN and OUT points”
on page 73.) The OUT point also determines the end
point when mastering.
4 REC MODE key
Use this key to open the RECORD MODE screen to set
the record mode. Select between MULTI TRACK, BOUNCE,
MASTER REC and MASTER PLAY. (See “Recorder modes”
on page 44.)
NOTE
1 POWER key and indicator
Press and hold this key to turn the unit ON and OFF.
(See “Start-up & shutdown” on page 36.)
The indicator lights when the power is on.
28 TASCAM DP-004
Multitrack is the standard mode and the unit defaults to
this mode every time it is turned on. Various functions do
not work in other modes.
3–Names and Functions of Parts
5 UN/REDO key and indicator
Press this to undo the last action. Press again to redo
it. (See “Undoing operations (undo)” on page 66.)
Press this key while pressing and holding the STOP
( ·) key to open the HISTORY screen where you can
undo multiple steps.
This indicator lights when one or more operations
that have been undone can still be redone.
6
LCD Display
This shows the Home Screen and various other
screens. (See “Display screens” on page 39.)
The display contrast can be changed using the
PREFERENCE screen. (See “Setting the contrast” on
page 46.)
7 INPUT SETTING key
Press this key to open the INPUT SETTING screen
where you can select the input source. (See “Selecting
the input source” on page 54.)
8 INPUT A and INPUT B LEVEL knobs and OL indicators
Use these knobs to adjust the input levels for INPUT
A and INPUT B. (See “Making the first recording” on
page 58.)
If the input source level is too high its OL (overload)
indicator lights. Moreover, even if the input level is
suitable, the OL indicator might light if the LEVEL
knob is turned past 2 or 3 o’clock.
9
ASSIGN key
Press this key to open the INPUT ASSIGN screen where
you can assign the A and B input channels to tracks.
An assigned channel becomes the recording signal
source for its track. (See “Assigning input channels”
on page 57.)
0 MASTER LEVEL knob
Adjusts the monitoring level of the stereo output
signal.
This knob also adjusts the recording level when
performing a bounce or mix down.
q Track PAN knobs
Use these knobs to adjust the panning of each track
in the stereo mix. (See “Stereo position (panning)” on
page 62.)
w Track LEVEL knobs
Use these knobs to adjust the playback levels of each
track. (See “Level and balance” on page 62.)
e Track REC keys and indicators
Press a REC key to put a track in recording standby
mode (the key flashes). Pressing the key again
cancels recording standby mode. If you press the
PLAY (¥) key while holding down the RECORD (–)
key, recording will begin on every track in recording
standby mode (the REC indicator lights).
TASCAM DP-004 29
3–Names and Functions of Parts
r Function keys
The functions of these keys are shown at the bottom
of the screen and depend on the current screen.
NOTE
In this manual, the four function keys are referred to as
F1, F2, F3 and F4 in order from left and right. Sometimes,
the name of the function is also shown in parentheses
(e.g. F4 (¥) key, F2 (EXEC) key).
t DATA wheel
Use this to change parameter values when using
menus. When the unit is stopped and the Home
Screen is open, turn to change the record/playback
position. (See “Direct locate function” on page 71.)
y HOME key
Press this key to open the Home Screen.
u Ô/RTZ key
Press this key when the transport is stopped or
playing to fast rewind. Press it again to change the
speed from 10x to 50x, again for 100x and 1000x.
If you press this key while holding down the STOP
( ·) key, the transport will locate to the head of the
song (RTZ). (See “RTZ and LRP” on page 72.)
i STOP ( ·) key
Press this key alone to stop recording, playback,
fast forward and fast rewind. If you press the Ô
30 TASCAM DP-004
or  key at the same time, the transport will
also locate to the head of the song (RTZ) or the last
recording start position (LRP). (See “RTZ and LRP”
on page 72.)
o /LRP key
Press this key when the transport is stopped or
playing to fast forward. Press it again to change the
speed from 10x to 50x, again for 100x and 1000x.
If you press this key while holding down the
STOP ( ·) key, the transport will locate to the last
recording start position (LRP). (See “RTZ and LRP”
on page 72.)
p MENU key
Press this key to open the MENU screen.
a PLAY (¥) key
Press this key to start playback. While pressing the
RECORD (–) key, press this key to start recording.
Press this key again when recording to stop recording
and start playback (punch out).
s RECORD (–) key and indicator
Press the PLAY (¥) key while pressing this key to start
recording. The indicator lights when recording. If you
press this key when any of the track REC indicators is
lit, or during playback, recording will begin (punch
in). (See “Punching in and out” on page 69.)
3–Names and Functions of Parts
Front panel
Rear panel
d MIC A
This is a built-in omnidirectional mic that can be
selected as the INPUT A channel input (INT.MIC A-Low,
INT.MIC A-Mid, INT.MIC A-High).
g INPUT B connector
This becomes an input source for the INPUT B channel
when LINE or MIC (external mic) is chosen on the
INPUT SETTING screen. Unbalanced line and mic
signals can be input.
f MIC B
This is a built-in omnidirectional mic that can be
selected as the INPUT B channel input (INT.MIC B-Low,
INT.MIC B-Mid, INT.MIC B-High).
h INPUT A connector
This becomes an input source for the INPUT A channel
when GUITAR/LINE or MIC (external mic) is chosen on
the INPUT SETTING screen. Unbalanced guitar, line
and mic signals can be input.
Set the MIC/LINE-GUITAR switch on the left side panel
to match the input.
TASCAM DP-004 31
3–Names and Functions of Parts
Right side panel
Left side panel
j USB connector
Connect the unit to a computer using the included
USB cable. This allows to sharing, importing and
exporting files between the unit and the computer,
including backup of the song data. (See “Connecting
with a computer” on page 92.)
l MIC/LINE-GUITAR switch
Set this switch to match the input signal to the INPUT
A jack on the rear panel. For mic or line signals, set it
to MIC/LINE. For electric guitars and basses that are
connected directly, set it to GUITAR.
k DC IN 5V connector
Connect a dedicated power adaptor (PS-P520, sold
separately).
;
/LINE OUT connector
This stereo minijack connector can be used to
connect headphones or an amplification and
monitoring system to allow the stereo bus signal
to be monitored. When the metronome is on, the
metronome can also be heard.
z VOLUME dial
Use this to adjust the volume output from the
OUT connector.
32 TASCAM DP-004
/LINE
3–Names and Functions of Parts
CAUTION
c
v
The volume adjustment dial is small and does not have
any indications. Before turning the power ON, always
turn it in the direction of the arrow until it stops to
minimize the volume. Sudden bursts of loud sounds
can cause hearing damage and speaker damage, for
example.
Bottom
c Battery compartment
The batteries (four AA) that power the unit are
inserted here.
The SD card slot is in the back of the compartment.
v SD card slot
Insert the SD card into the slot.
x Battery cover
TASCAM DP-004 33
4–Preparations
Preparing the power and SD card
Installing an SD card
An SD card is used as recording media for recording
and playback.
•• Cards that comply with SD and SDHC standards
can be used.
•• Cards should be at least 512 MB in size.
•• A list of SD cards that have been tested with this
unit can be found on the TASCAM web site
(www.tascam.com).
Insert the SD card into the SD card slot inside the
battery compartment on the bottom of the unit.
1 Make sure the unit power is OFF. Open the battery
compartment and remove the batteries if they are
inside.
2 Insert the SD Card into the slot as shown in the
following illustration until it clicks into place.
34 TASCAM DP-004
3 Replace the batteries if you are using them and
close the cover.
Ejecting the card
Push an inserted card in further to eject it.
4–Preparations
CAUTION
Do not remove the card or batteries when the unit
is turned on. Failure to power off properly first will
cause and recordings and settings made since the last
power off and song save to be lost. This data cannot
be recovered.
NOTE
Installing batteries
Open the battery compartment on the bottom of
the unit as described in the previous “Installing an
SD card” section. Insert 4 AA batteries in the box
according to the + and - indications.
If a protected SD card is inserted, playback is possible,
but you will not be able to record or edit files.
Unprotected
Protected
Preparing the power
This unit can be powered either by AA batteries or a
power adapter (sold separately). Alkaline or NiMH
batteries can be used with this unit.
CAUTION
The included alkaline batteries are for confirming the
operation of the unit and might not last very long.
TASCAM DP-004 35
4–Preparations
Connecting an AC adapter (sold separately)
Start-up & shutdown
To use the PS-P520 AC adapter (sold separately),
connect the adapter to the unit and the adapter to the
power cord before plugging it into an outlet.
Starting up the unit
TASCAM
PS-P520
(sold separately)
Press and hold the POWER key on the top panel until
“TASCAM” appears (or the POWER key indicator lights
green). After the start-up screen, the Home Screen
appears.
AC outlet
DC plug
Start-up screen
NOTE
The adapter powers the unit if the adapter is connected
even if batteries are installed.
Home Screen
36 TASCAM DP-004
4–Preparations
When the unit starts up it defaults to the multitrack
recorder mode regardless of the mode used last
before shutting down. (See “Recorder modes” on
page 44.)
WARNING
When switching the unit on and off, we suggest
that you turn down the volume of any speakers or
amplifiers connected to the unit. Also, do not wear
headphones connected to the unit when switching
power on or off. This will avoid damage to speakers
and possible harm to your hearing.
Shutting down
Make the following preparations before shutting
down the unit.
•• Stop the recorder. (The unit cannot be shut down
during recording, playback, fast forward, etc.)
•• Return to the Home Screen.
•• If the unit is connected to computer, disconnect the
USB cable after conducting the necessary procedures on the computer to unmount the unit.
After making these preparations, press and hold the
POWER key until the following screen appears (or the
key indicator light begins to blink).
The power turns off after the unit completes
its shutdown process, including saving various
information from your session.
NOTE
You can shut down the unit regardless of the recorder
mode, but when the unit starts up it always starts up in
the MULTI TRACK recorder mode. (See “Recorder modes”
on page 44.)
CAUTION
• Do not remove the batteries or disconnect the
power cable accidently while the unit is operating.
If you do so, the unit cannot shut down properly
and all unsaved data will be lost. Lost data cannot
be restored. We recommend that you also save the
data manually often.
• When the power is turned off, the operation
history of the currently loaded song will be erased
(cleared). You will not be able to undo or redo
operations on the song when you turn the power
back on.
TASCAM DP-004 37
4–Preparations
Formatting SD cards
To use a new SD card with this unit, it is necessary
to format it first. SD cards formatted by the unit are
divided into MTR partitions and FAT partitions. SD
cards with high capacities can be formatted with
multiple partitions.
For more information about partitions see “9–SD
Card Management” on page 81.
NOTE
The included SD card is already formatted so formatting
is not necessary. If you format this card the demo song
on it will be erased.
The first time you put a new SD card in this unit, a
screen prompting you to format it appears.
38 TASCAM DP-004
NOTE
The screen prompting you to format it also appears if
you put in an SD card that has been formatted by any
device other than this unit.
CAUTION
If you format it, all data saved by the other device will
be erased and you will not be able to recover it.
1 Press the F3 (YES) key to format the card including
creating the standard number of partitions for the
card capacity.
2 The Home Screen appears after the format
completes correctly.
NOTE
• To cancel formatting press the F4 (NO) key.
• Depending on the card capacity, the partition setting
can be changed in some cases. To do so, set the
partition size in the FORMAT item in the CARD menu
before formatting (see “9–SD Card Management” on
page 81).
4–Preparations
Display screens
This display shows various screens for making
settings and using functions and the Home Screen,
which shows the status of the recorder.
Home Screen
The Home Screen is the basic screen that appears
on the display. This is the screen that is used for
recording and playback.
When you turn the power ON, the Home Screen
appears when it finishes starting up.
The unit always starts up in the multitrack recorder
mode. (See “Recorder modes” on page 44.)
Press the HOME key when any other screen is open to
return to the Home Screen.
1 Recorder mode
Shows the current recorder mode.
2 SD card protected indication
This appears when the inserted SD card is protected.
3 SD card insertion status
If an SD card is inserted appears. If not, appears.
4 Battery status
When a battery is being used, a battery icon shows
the amount of power remaining in bars ( , , ).
The battery is almost dead and the power will soon
turn off if the icon has no bars . When using the
AC adapter (sold separately)
appears.
TASCAM DP-004 39
4–Preparations
5 Recorder transport state
When playing ¥ appears. When stopped ·appears.
When recording – appears.
6 Repeat playback mode indicator
When repeat playback is active
appears.
7 Recorder time counter
Shows the elapsed time from the start of the song.
8 Cursor key that shows the time increment being edited
Turning the DATA wheel changes the value of the
selected time increment.
9 Shows the F1 key function
When the Home Screen is open, press the F1 key to
move the increment affected by the DATA wheel.
0 Level meter for input channels A and B
Shows the signal level for input sources A and B.
q Level meters for tracks 1–4
Shows the input level when recording and the
playback signal level when playing back.
w Level meter for stereo outputs (L, R)
Shows the output signal level from the /LINE OUT
connector.
40 TASCAM DP-004
Screen Organization
The display provides information and allow various
settings to be made and functions to be used.
Most operation screens are accessed by pressing the
MENU key to open the MENU screen from the Home
Screen, but some have dedicated keys.
Screens accessed from the MENU screen
•• INFORMATION
•• SONG menu
•• CARD menu
•• TRACK EDIT menu
•• WAVE menu
•• DATA BACKUP menu
•• TUNER
•• METRONOME
•• PREFERENCE
Screens accessed using dedicated keys
•• INPUT SETTING (use INPUT SETTING key)
•• INPUT ASSIGN (use ASSIGN key)
•• I/O SETTING (use IN/OUT key)
•• RECORDER MODE (use REC MODE key)
•• HISTORY screen (use STOP + UN/REDO keys)
4–Preparations
Using the screens
When the Home Screen is open, use the MENU key
or a dedicated key to open a screen. Then, use the
DATA wheel or the four function keys below the
display to make changes on the screen.
Note that during playback and while recording,
screens that might access the SD card cannot be
opened. If you try to open such a screen, a “Not
Stopped” pop-up warning appears.
At the bottom of the screen the current functions
of the function keys are shown. For the sake of
convenience, the function keys are referred to as the
F1, F2 , F3 and F4 keys in this Owner’s Manual.
•• On the MENU screen and other screens where values
are not set, use the DATA wheel to select items
(selected items appear as light letters on a dark
background).
•• A ¥ appears to the right side of items with submenu screens. To open the sub-menu screen,
press the function key that corresponds to the ¥
displayed at the bottom of the screen. (In the MENU
screen above, F4 opens the sub-menu screen.)
•• If the currently displayed list has more items above
and/or below, § and/or ¶ appear at the bottom
right of the screen.
(In the MENU screen above, ¶ appears to show that
there are more items below TRACK EDIT.)
•• On screens where values are set, turn the DATA
wheel to set values.
•• To return to the previous screen, press the function key that corresponds to BACK at the bottom of the
screen. (In the TUNER screen above, press the F1 key
to return to the previous screen.)
•• On screens where there are multiple items with
values that can be set, use the function keys that
correspond to § and ¶ at the bottom of the screen
TASCAM DP-004 41
4–Preparations
to select items and turn the DATA wheel to set
values.
•• To continue to the next operation, press the function
key that corresponds to NEXT at the bottom of the
screen.
•• To execute the function, press the function key that
corresponds to EXEC.
•• To return to the Home Screen from a menu screen
immediately, press the HOME key. Always return
to the Home Screen after you are finished using a
menu.
The example below is the SONG menu screen.
To open the SONG menu select SONG from the main
menu shown above and press the F4 (¥) key.
•• To leave a screen accessed by a dedicated key press
the function key that corresponds to EXIT.
•• Turn the DATA wheel to select the item that you want
from the menu.
In the example below, LOAD is selected. The ¶ that
appears at the bottom right of the screen shows that
42 TASCAM DP-004
4–Preparations
there are other items below the COPY item.
Editing names
The names (titles) of song and files for export, for
example, can be edited. In the following cases,
screens where names can be edited appear.
•• Press the F4 (¥) key to open the LOAD screen. In the
LOAD screen example below, the songs saved on the
SD card appear in a list.
NOTE
When saving, creating or editing the name of a
song
From the SONG menu, select SAVE, CREATE or NAME
EDIT item and press the F4 (¥) key (See “5-Song
Management” on page 47).
To return to the previous screen, press the F1 (BACK) key.
•• To load a song, turn the DATA wheel to select the
desired song and press the F2 (EXEC) key.
When exporting a master track as a WAV file
Select EXPORT MASTER item from the WAVE menu
and press the F4 (¥) key (see “Exporting a stereo
master” on page 100).
When backing up a song
NOTE
The position where “EXEC” appears on the display
depends on the screen.
Select the SONG BACKUP item from the DATA BACKUP
menu and press the F4 (¥) key to open the SONG
BACKUP screen. On this screen, select a song and press
the F4 (NEXT) key (see “Backing-up songs” on page
94).
TASCAM DP-004 43
4–Preparations
You can edit the name as follows.
•• Use the Ô/ keys to move the cursor
(underline) position. The cursor position is where
editing occurs.
•• Turn the DATA wheel to change the characters at
the cursor (underline) position. Ordinary symbols,
numerals and English upper and lower case letters
can be selected.
•• To insert a blank at the cursor position while editing
a song name, press the F3 (INS) key. Press it to insert
an “A” while editing a file name.
•• Press the F4 (DEL) key to delete the character at the
cursor position.
•• When finished editing, press the F2 (EXEC) key to save
the new name.
44 TASCAM DP-004
Recorder modes
This unit has four recorder modes.
The ordinary mode is Multitrack mode. In this
mode, this unit functions as a multitrack recorder.
The other modes are Bounce, Master Rec and
Master Play. These modes are for bouncing tracks,
recording master tracks and playing master tracks,
respectively. For more information, see “Bouncing
tracks” on page 69 and “Mastering” on page 62.
When the power is turned ON, the unit always starts
in Multitrack mode.
When in modes other than Multitrack mode, some
screen operations do not function.
In this Owner’s Manual, unless otherwise noted,
the recorder mode explained is assumed to be the
Multitrack mode.
4–Preparations
Connecting with other equipment
Rear panel connections
Right side panel connections
TASCAM
PS-P520
AC outlet
(sold separately)
DC plug
Connect mics to
INPUT A or INPUT B
Connect guitars and
basses to INPUT A
Computer
Connect keyboards to
INPUT A or INPUT B
USB
NOTE
Recorder functions cannot be used when connected to a
computer by USB
TASCAM DP-004 45
4–Preparations
Left side panel connections
Setting the contrast
The LCD display contrast can be adjusted.
Use the following procedures to adjust the contrast.
1 When the Home Screen is open, press the MENU key
to open the MENU screen.
2 Turn the DATA wheel to select PREFERENCE and press
the F4 (¥) key to open the PREFERENCE screen.
Headphones
3 Use the F3 (§) and F4 (¶) keys to select the
CONTRAST value, and turn the DATA wheel to adjust
the display contrast.
Speakers with built-in
amplification or audio system
The selection range is from 1–10. Lower values
make the display lighter while higher values make it
darker. The display appears different depending on
the angle from which you view it, so adjust it while
the unit is in the actual position that you plan to use
it in. Adjusting the contrast might make it easier to
read.
46 TASCAM DP-004
5–Song Management
This unit manages data in song files. Ordinarily,
every song is given its own file. The first step is
to load the song that you want to manage (load an
existing song or create a new song).
In a song, in addition to saving the audio data for
the recorded multitrack (tracks 1–4), stereo master
mixes that have been created are also saved.
This chapter, starts with an explanation of SD
card partitions, and then covers basic operations,
including procedures for loading songs and creating
new song, as well as various song management
functions.
For more about SD card management, see “9–SD
card Management” on page 81.
Partitions and songs
This unit uses SD cards to record songs. SD cards
formatted by the unit are divided into partitions.
“MTR partitions” are for the recording of data
and “FAT partitions” can be read by a personal
computer. SD cards with high capacities are
formatted with multiple MTR partitions.
When you want to record, playback or edit a song,
select an MTR partition to make it the active
partition and load a song on it or create a new song.
Selecting the active partition
If you want to use a file that is on a partition other
than the currently active partition in order to load an
existing song or create a new song on it, you must
change the partition.
Follow these steps to select a partition on an SD
card that has multiple MTR partitions.
1 With the transport stopped and the Home Screen
open, press the MENU key to open the MENU screen.
2 Use the DATA wheel to select CARD and press the F4
(¥) key to open the CARD menu screen.
3 Use the DATA wheel to select PARTITION and press
the F4 (¥) key to open the PARTITION screen . The
display shows the MTR partition list.
TASCAM DP-004 47
5–Song Management
song before changing partitions. It then loads the
last used song on that partition.
Loading a saved song
SD card with one partition
Follow these procedures to load a song from the
active partition.
1 With the transport stopped and the Home Screen
open, press the MENU key to open the MENU screen.
2 Use the DATA wheel to select SONG and press F4 (¥)
to open the SONG menu screen.
SD card with multiple partitions
An asterisk (Ú) shows the active partition. The sizes
of the partitions are shown (not available space).
4 Rotate the DATA wheel to select the partition and
press F2 (EXEC). A confirmation message appears.
5 Press F3 (YES) to select. The unit saves the current
48 TASCAM DP-004
3 Use the DATA wheel to select LOAD and press F4 (¥)
to open the SONG LOAD screen. A list of the songs on
the active partition appears with an asterisk (Ú)
next to the current song.
4 Use the DATA wheel keys to select the song to load
and press F2 (EXEC). The current song is saved, and
the selected song is loaded.
5–Song Management
Creating a new song
Follow these procedures to create a new song in the
active partition
1 With the transport stopped and the Home Screen
open, press the MENU key to open the MENU screen.
2 Use the DATA wheel to select SONG and press F4 (¥)
to open the SONG menu screen.
3 Use the DATA wheel to select CREATE and press F4 (¥)
to open the SONG CREATE screen.
A default song name like SONG*** is given to the
new song. The asterisks indicate a number. In the
example above the name is SONG002.
4 Change the song name as necessary (see “Editing
names” on page 43).
TIP
You can rename a song later by selecting NAME EDIT
from the SONG menu. You can also edit the song name
when saving it.
5 Press F2 (EXEC) to save the currently loaded song and
create the new song.
Saving a song
This unit automatically saves the current song
during shutdown and when loading another song, for
example. You can also save a song at any time using
the following procedures.
1 When the transport is stopped and the Home
Screen is open, press the MENU key to open the
MENU screen.
2 Turn the DATA wheel to select SONG, and press the
F4 (¥) key to open the SONG menu screen.
3 Turn the DATA wheel to select SAVE, and press the
F4 (¥) key.
TASCAM DP-004 49
5–Song Management
1. When the Home Screen is open, press the MENU key
to open the MENU screen.
2. Turn the DATA wheel to select INFORMATION and press
the F4 (¥) key.
The SONG SAVE screen appears.
4 Change the song name if you want and then press
the F2 (EXEC) key (see “Editing names” on page 43).
This opens the SONG page of the INFORMATION screen,
which shows the name and remaining recording
time of the current song.
“Storing Song” appears while the song is being saved
and “Save Complete” appears when it is done. Then
the SONG menu screen reopens.
Viewing song information
You can check the name, partition and remaining
recording time of the currently loaded song.
50 TASCAM DP-004
NOTE
The INFORMATION screen has four pages, including SONG,
CARD, SYSTEM and F/W. Use the F3 (PREV) and F4 (NEXT)
keys to change the page (see “Viewing information” on
page 79).
5–Song Management
Copying songs
4 Turn the DATA wheel to select a song that you want
to copy, and press the F4 (✔) key.
Songs in the currently active partition can be copied
to the same and different MTR partitions. Multiple
songs can also be copied at once.
The song is selected as a copy source and a check
appears in the checkbox.
1 When the transport is stopped and the Home
Screen is open, press MENU to open the MENU screen.
2 Turn the DATA wheel to select SONG, and press the
F4 (¥) key to open the SONG menu screen.
3 Turn the DATA wheel to select COPY, and press the
F4 (¥) key.
NOTE
To remove the check from the checkbox (deselect the
song), press the F4 (✔) key while the song is selected.
5 To copy multiple songs, repeat step 4.
This opens the SONG COPY screen, which shows a list
of songs in the active partition.
6 After selecting all the songs that you want to copy,
press the F2 (NEXT) key to open a screen where you
can select the partition that you want to be the copy
destination.
7 Turn the DATA wheel to select the copy destination
partition and press the F4 (EXEC) key.
TASCAM DP-004 51
5–Song Management
When copying completes, the SONG menu screen
reopens.
This opens the SONG ERASE screen, which shows a
list of songs in the active partition.
•• To cancel copying a song, press the F1 (BACK) key
instead of the F4 (EXEC) key.
Erasing songs
Songs can be erased. You can also erase multiple
songs at once. You might want to erase unneeded
songs if the SD card starts to run out of open space.
4 Turn the DATA wheel to select a song that you want
to erase and press the F4 (✔) key.
A check appears in the checkbox.
1 When the transport is stopped and the Home
Screen is open, press MENU to open the MENU screen.
2 Turn the DATA wheel to select SONG, and press the F4
(¥) key to open the SONG menu screen.
3 Turn the DATA wheel to select ERASE and press the F4
(¥) key.
NOTE
To remove the check from the checkbox (deselect the
song), press the F4 (✔) key while the song is selected.
5 To erase multiple songs, repeat step 4.
6 After selecting all songs that you want to erase,
press the F2 (EXEC) key.
A confirmation screen opens.
52 TASCAM DP-004
5–Song Management
7 Press the F3 (YES) key. After the songs are erased,
the SONG menu screen reopens.
•• To cancel erasing a song, press the F4 (NO) key
instead of the F3 (YES) key.
•• Every MTR partition must always have at least one
song, so if you erase all the songs on a partition, a
new song is created automatically.
Protecting songs
If you protect a song, editing, recording, and erasing
of that song is prohibited.
1 When the transport is stopped and the Home
Screen is open, press the MENU key to open the
MENU screen.
2 Turn the DATA wheel to select SONG, and press the F4
(¥) key to open the SONG menu screen.
3 Turn the DATA wheel to select PROTECT, and press the
F4 (¥) key.
The SONG PROTECT screen that allows you to turn
protection of a song ON and OFF appears.
4 Turn the DATA wheel to turn PROTECT “ON,” and
press the F2 (EXEC) key.
After protection is turned ON, the SONG menu
screen reopens.
•• When the song list used to copy, erase and conduct
other functions is open, a lock icon appears next to
protected songs.
•• If you try to execute a prohibited operation
(edit, record, erase) on a protected song, “Song
Protected” appears and the operation is prevented.
•• To remove protection from a song, follow the above
procedures but set PROTECT to “OFF” in step 4.
TASCAM DP-004 53
6–Basic Recording
Selecting the input source
This unit has two input channels (INPUT A and INPUT
B) that can be selected separately as input sources.
The built-in microphones (front panel MIC A and
MIC B) and external input signals (input through
the rear panel INPUT A and INPUT B connectors) can
be selected as input sources. Mic, line and guitar
signals can be input through the INPUT A channel.
The MIC/LINE–GUITAR switch on the left side panel
must be set accordingly. Moreover, the sensitivity
can be set when using the built-in mics.
1 When the transport is stopped and the Home
Screen is open, press the INPUT SETTING key to open
the INPUT SETTING screen.
Use the IN A and IN B items to set the input sources
for the INPUT A and INPUT B channels.
2 Use the F3 (§) and F4 (¶) keys to select the IN A or
IN B setting, and turn the DATA wheel to select the
input source.
IN A selection
choices
OFF: input OFF
INT.MIC A-Low: built-in MIC A (low sensitivity)
INT.MIC A-Mid: built-in MIC A (middle sensitivity)
INT.MIC A-High: built-in MIC A (high sensitivity)
GUITAR/LINE: guitar or line signal (through INPUT A
connector)
MIC: external mic (through INPUT A connector)
IN B selection choices
OFF: input OFF
INT.MIC B-Low: built-in MIC B (low sensitivity)
INT.MIC B-Mid: built-in MIC B (middle sensitivity)
INT.MIC B-High: built-in MIC B (high sensitivity)
LINE: line (through INPUT B connector)
MIC: external mic (through INPUT B connector)
3 After changing the setting, press the HOME key to
return to the Home Screen.
4 If a source that uses the INPUT A connector is
54 TASCAM DP-004
6–Basic Recording
selected as the INPUT A input source in step 2 above,
set the MIC/LINE–GUITAR switch on the left side
panel appropriately. Set it to GUITAR when connecting an electric guitar or electric bass directly. Set it
to MIC/LINE when inputting a mic or line signal.
TIP
When connecting an electric-acoustic guitar with a
built-in preamp or an active electric guitar, as well as
when connecting an electric guitar with effect boxes
between it and this unit, set the MIC/LINE–GUITAR
switch to MIC/LINE.
Monitoring the input signal
When an input source is set as the INPUT A or INPUT
B connector on the rear panel, regardless of the REC
key setting, the input signal is always sent to the
stereo bus, so you can always monitor the input
signal.
When an input source is set to a front panel built-in
mic, the input signal is sent to the stereo bus and
can be monitored only when the REC indicator light
for the track that is set to record the built-in mic
is blinking (during record standby) or lit (while
recording). You cannot monitor the built-in mic
input when the REC indicator is not lit.
NOTE
When an input source is set as the INPUT A or INPUT B
connector, during playback, the sounds of the playback
signal and the input source are mixed and can be heard
through headphones or a monitoring system connected
to the /LINE OUT connector.
Setting the monitoring mode
The monitoring mode can be set for the signals input
on the INPUT A and INPUT B channels.
1 When the transport is stopped and the Home
Screen is open, press the INPUT SETTING key to open
the INPUT SETTING screen.
2 Use the F3 (§) and F4 (¶) keys to select the MODE
item value, and turn the DATA wheel to select the
TASCAM DP-004 55
6–Basic Recording
input monitor mode.
MONOx2:
input signals from both INPUT A and INPUT
channels are output as a combined mono signal
from both the left and right channels.
B
STEREO:
input signals from INPUT A and INPUT B
channels are output separately on the left and
right channels, respectively.
3 After making the setting, press the HOME key to
return to the Home Screen.
About the OL indicators and meters
The audio levels of this unit can be checked using
the OL indicators in the input section and the meters
on the Home Screen.
The meters allow the signal levels to be checked,
and they can also be used to confirm whether signals
are being input into the unit. For example, if the
input meters are moving a signal is being input into
the unit even if you cannot hear anything when you
are monitoring.
As shown below, if a “–” appears at the top of a
56 TASCAM DP-004
meter, the level is too high (when a “–” appears, it
will stay on screen for a while before automatically
disappearing). If the level is too high and a “–”
appears, the sound might be distorted, so lower the
level until a “–” stops appearing.
If an OL indicator lights, the signal from the input
source could be too loud or the LEVEL knob too high.
If the OL indicator lights even if the LEVEL knob is set
at 2–3 o’clock or less, the input signal is too high, so
turn down the volume on the input source.
Overload
warning bar
Input meters (A, B)
The two meters on the left side of this unit show the
input levels of the INPUT A and INPUT B channels.
Adjust these levels using the INPUT A and INPUT B
LEVEL knobs, or the output volume controls on the
sound sources.
6–Basic Recording
NOTE
If an OL indicator in the input section is lighting even
though the input meter is showing a suitable level, the
input signal is too strong and the sound is distorted.
Lower the volume output on the input source.
Track meters (1–4)
These meters show either the playback signal level
or the input signal level for each track. The signal
levels shown by the track meters depend on the
operating conditions as shown below.
•• REC indicator not lit during playback: track playback signal
•• REC indicator blinking (record standby) during
playback: track playback signal
•• REC indicator blinking (record standby) when the
transport is stopped: track input signal
•• REC indicator lit (during recording): track input
signal
NOTE
When the playback signal is shown, the level of the
recorded signal of the track is shown, so the level shown
by the meters cannot be changed. When the input signal
is being shown, the input levels, and thus the meters,
can be changed using the LEVEL knobs for INPUT A and
INPUT B.
Stereo meters (L, R)
These show the stereo bus output level of this unit.
Adjust the output level with the MASTER LEVEL knob.
NOTE
When an input source is a built-in mic, if the REC indicator is not lit on the track that is set to record the built-in
mic, no signal is sent to the stereo bus, so the meters do
not move.
Assigning input channels
In this unit, assigning an input channels allows you
to assign the signal input from INPUT A or INPUT
B as the source for recording on a track.
This unit can simultaneously record a maximum of
two tracks. You can also record one input channel to
two tracks simultaneously (in this case, you cannot
use the other input channel). You cannot assign two
input channels to the same track.
TASCAM DP-004 57
6–Basic Recording
1 Press ASSIGN to open the INPUT
ASSIGN screen.
4 When finished making settings, press the HOME
key to return to the Home Screen.
Making the first recording
As shown above, the input channel that is the
recording source for each track (1–4) is shown.
In the initial setting, INPUT A is assigned as the
recording source for tracks 1 and 3, and INPUT B is
assigned as the recording source for tracks 2 and 4.
2 Use the F3 (§) and F4 (¶) keys to select a track to
change its current input channel.
3 Turn the DATA wheel to set the input to IN
58 TASCAM DP-004
A or IN B.
Before following recording procedures below,
confirm that the source that you want to record is
connected, and that the input channel is assigned a
recording source for a track. Monitoring headphones
should also be connected.
1 Press the REC key of the track to record on. The
REC indicator blinks red (that status is called
“record standby”). A maximum of two tracks can
be recorded simultaneously. If you press a different
REC key when the REC indicators of two tracks are
already blinking, the track that was put into record
standby first will become inactive and the REC
indicator will turn off.
6–Basic Recording
For example, if you press the REC keys for track 1,
track 2 and track 3 in that order, track 1, which
was pressed first, will no longer be in record
standby, but track 2 and track 3, which were
pressed afterwards, will be in record standby.
2 Set the recording level. Turn the (INPUT A or INPUT
B) LEVEL knob to adjust the input level of the input
channel. Watch the display meters and the OL
indicator above and to the left of the LEVEL knob
while setting the level suitably. At the same time,
confirm that sound heard from the headphones is
not distorted.
NOTE
The meter for the track that the input signal is assigned
to moves simultaneously with the corresponding input
meter (A or B).
OL indicator
the OL indicator stays lit even when you lower the
LEVEL knob, lower the output level on the signal
source connected to the input.
Overload
warning bar
3 Press the playback (Á) key while pressing and
holding the record (–) key. Recording starts and
the record (–) key indicator lights red. The track
REC indicator changes from blinking to lit.
4 Press the stop (ª) key to stop recording.
5 To return to the starting point of the recording,
press the  key while pressing and holding the
stop (ª) key. (This is the Last Recording Point
(LRP) function.)
To go to the beginning of the song (00:00:00:00),
press the Ô key while pressing and holding the
stop (ª) key. (This is the Return To Zero (RTZ)
function)
The OL indicator lights if the input is too loud. If
6 Press the playback (Á) key to play the recorded
TASCAM DP-004 59
6–Basic Recording
track. Use the track LEVEL knob and the MASTER
LEVEL knob to adjust the playback level. Use the
VOLUME dial or the volume on your monitoring
system to adjust the final monitoring volume.
NOTE
• Track PAN and LEVEL knobs control the playback
output signal on already recorded tracks. They do not
control the input signals.
• Use the PAN knobs, to set the positions of each track
signal between the left and right speakers. There is an
indent at the center positions of the PAN knobs.
• If you are not satisfied with the recorded sound,
follow the procedures above again from the
beginning.
• Press the Ô/ keys to rewind/fast forward (like
a tape recorder). Press and hold these keys to increase
the rewind/fast forward speed. Press the stop (ª) key
to stop (like a tape recorder).
Overdubbing
Recording a new sound on a different track in time
with the playback signal of the already recorded
track is called overdubbing. In other words,
recording after the first recording is overdubbing.
This is a basic function of multitrack recording.
60 TASCAM DP-004
6–Basic Recording
Setting up to overdub
To prepare for overdubbing, set the unit according to
the following guidelines.
REC indicator settings
•• Turn OFF the REC indicators of already recorded
tracks.
•• Press the REC key on the track that you want to
overdub to put it into record standby (REC indicator
blinking).
With these settings, if you put the unit into record
mode, the already recorded track begins playing
back as recording starts on the overdub track.
Track pan and level settings
Use the LEVEL and PAN knobs of already recorded
tracks to adjust their level and stereo positions for
monitoring during overdubbing.
Input settings
Use the procedures described earlier in this chapter
to assign input sources to tracks for recording.
Rehearsal
When finished making settings, press the playback
(Á) key to start playback.
Just as though you were recording, you can monitor
the sound of already recorded tracks playing back
and the input source on the track for recording,
allowing you to check the monitor balance and
volume.
TASCAM DP-004 61
6–Basic Recording
Recording an overdub
Press the playback (Á) key while pressing and
holding the record (–) key to start recording on the
record track. You can listen to the playback sound
while overdubbing.
Mixdown
Adjusting the volumes and stereo positions of the
recorded tracks to create a well-balance stereo mix
is called mixdown.
Level and balance
Use the track 1–4 LEVEL knobs to adjust the relative
balance between tracks. Use the MASTER LEVEL knob
to adjust the overall level. Watching the L/R meters
at the right of the display, adjust the level until it is
suitable. If the volume is too loud, the sound will be
distorted.
62 TASCAM DP-004
NOTE
The track meters on the Home Screen show the recorded
signal levels on the tracks. Therefore, these meters do
not change even when the LEVEL knobs are adjusted.
TIP
You do not need to keep the entire song at the same
volume. For example, you could gradually increase the
volume during a guitar solo.
Stereo position (panning)
Using the PAN knob for a track, you can adjust the
track signal’s left-right position in the stereo mix.
Mastering
When you are satisfied with your mix, this unit can
record and create a stereo master internally. We call
this process mastering. A stereo master recorded
by this unit is saved as part of the song, and can
be recorded by an external stereo recorder. It can
also be converted by the unit into a WAV file and
exported to a computer where the sound can be
6–Basic Recording
processed further or combined with other recordings
(see “Exporting a stereo master” on page 100).
NOTE
Only one stereo master can be made in a song at a time.
Setting the end point
Before you start mastering, set the mastering end
point. The time between the song’s zero point (00:
00: 00: 00) and the OUT point will be recorded as
the stereo master. Ordinarily, the end point of the
song is set as the OUT point. In this case, the time
at the OUT point is the length of the song. Use the
following procedures to set the OUT (end) point.
1 Press the IN/OUT key to open the I/O
screen.
SETTING
2 Play the song back, and press the F4 (OUT) key at
the position where you want the stereo master end
point. “SET OUT!” appears and this position is set as
the OUT point.
TIP
You can also set the OUT point when playback is
stopped by pressing the F4 (OUT) key.
3 Press the HOME key to return to the Home Screen.
NOTE
For how to adjust the OUT point and for other functions,
see “Setting IN and OUT points” on page 73.
TASCAM DP-004 63
6–Basic Recording
Recording the master track
NOTE
Set the OUT point before you start mastering.
1 Press the REC MODE key to open the RECORDER
screen.
MODE
When this unit is in master recording mode, some playback functions and other functions do not work. If you
try to use these functions, the “In Master Mode” pop-up
message appears.
4 Press the playback (Á) key while pressing
and holding the record (–) key to start master
recording.
The record (–) key indicator lights. Regardless of
the prior recorder position, recording starts from
the 00:00:00:00 point (start of song).
Use the LEVEL and PAN knobs as necessary to
control the mix. These adjustments do affect the
sound of the recorded stereo master.
Recording automatically ends when the recorder
position reaches the OUT point.
2 Turn the DATA wheel to select MASTER
REC.
3 Press the F4 (EXEC) key to put the unit into master
recording mode and return to the Home Screen.
In this mode, the track mix signal (which will be
recorded) is heard through headphones or a monitoring system during playback and recording.
64 TASCAM DP-004
After it ends, do the following to listen to the
master track that you created.
5 Press the REC MODE key to open the RECORDER
screen.
MODE
6–Basic Recording
NOTE
To listen to the recorded stereo master in a saved song,
load the song, set the recorder mode to MASTER PLAY
and press the playback (Á) key to start playback.
TIP
6 Turn the DATA wheel to select MASTER
PLAY.
7 Press the F4 (EXEC) key to put this unit into master
playback mode and return to the Home Screen.
8 Press the playback (Á) key to play the stereo
master that you created. The stereo master sound is
output through the /LINE OUT connector, so it can
also be dubbed to an external stereo recorder.
9 If you are satisfied with this stereo master, press
the REC MODE key to open the RECORDER MODE screen.
Turn the DATA wheel to select MULTI TRACK and press
the F4 (EXEC) key to put the unit into multitrack
mode (ordinary mode) again and return to the
Home Screen.
• When making a master recording, you can play along,
for example, with the mixdown signal and input that
sound through INPUT A or B to mix it with prerecorded tracks when creating a stereo master.
• If you want to turn the unit OFF after mastering,
you do not need to return to MULTI TRACK mode in
procedure 9 above. Regardless of the mode when
shutdown, the next time the power is turned ON, it
will start in MULTI TRACK mode.
• You can transfer the master mix created on this unit
as a file that can be played back on a computer (see
“Exporting a stereo master” on page 100).
• A stereo master can be copied to any track pair
among tracks 1–4 by creating a “clone” track (see
“CLONE TRACK (track duplication)” on page 87).
If you do not like the stereo master you made,
follow the above procedures to make a master
recording again. The new stereo master replaces
the previous stereo master.
TASCAM DP-004 65
6–Basic Recording
Undoing operations (undo)
This unit allows you to undo an operation or
recording that did not work as planned or was
otherwise unsatisfactory. Undo can be used on many
ordinary operations, including editing and recording
operations. This unit has two types of undo
functions. Single undo can be used with a simple
key press, while multi-undo allows you to return to
and undo a specific past operation.
Undoing the last operation (single undo)
Press the UN/REDO key to return to the state before
the last operation was conducted. After doing this,
the UN/REDO indicator lights, showing that redo (see
below) is possible.
state of the last operation. The UN/REDO indicator
turns OFF.
NOTE
If single undo is used when multi-undo (described below)
has already been used to return the unit to a previous
state, it will go one more step backward. If you press the
UN/REDO key again to redo the step, the single undo
operation is cancelled, and the previous multi-undo state
is restored. In this case, the unit is not restored to the
most recently conducted operation, so the UN/REDO
indicator remains lit because further redo operations
are possible.
Undoing a previous operation (multi-undo)
1 Press the UN/REDO key while pressing and holding
the stop (ª) key to open the HISTORY screen.
NOTE
The UN/REDO indicator lights when the unit state is
not the last editing or recording operation conducted
(when undo has been used).
Cancelling an undo operation (redo)
This screen shows the operation history as a list.
Press the UN/REDO key when it is lit to return to the
Each operation in the list is called an “event.” The
66 TASCAM DP-004
6–Basic Recording
event list starts at the bottom with event number “0”
(-START UP-). The top event is the most recent and
has “*” next to it.
All events that occurred after a selected event can
be undone at once. This operation is called “multiundo” because it allows you to undo multiple events
and return to an earlier state.
2 Turn the DATA wheel to select the event that you
want to return to (all events after the selected event
will be undone).
3 Press the F2 (EXEC) key to execute the multi-undo
and restore the song state to just after the selected
event was conducted. In this state, the UN/REDO
indicator lights.
The unit has been returned to a previous state, but
the event information undone through the above
operation is not erased. On the HISTORY screen,
a * appears next to the current event after undoing.
If you make a new recording or new edits after
using multi-undo (UN/REDO indicator lit), the event
history after the current event is cleared and the
last operation conducted becomes the most recent
event.
NOTE
When the HISTORY screen is open, the UN/REDO key
does not function, so single undo and redo cannot be
used.
CAUTION
• When undo has been used and there are one or
more undone operations, the UN/REDO indicator
lights. If there are no undone operations, the UN/
REDO indicator does not light. When the UN/REDO
indicator is lit (because there are undone events) if
you make a new recording or conduct new editing,
the last operation conducted becomes the most
recent event, and you will no longer be able to
redo previously undone operations.
• When saving a song, a maximum of 500 items can
be saved in the operation history as song data. If
the operation history exceeds 500 items, the oldest
events in the history are erased when the song is
saved. Erased events cannot be restored.
• When the power is turned OFF the operation
history is completely erased. The operation history
is not restored when the power is turned ON
again.
TASCAM DP-004 67
6–Basic Recording
Erasing the operation history
When the power is turned OFF, the operation history
of the currently loaded song is erased (cleared). The
operation history is not restored, so past operations
cannot be undone or redone when the power is
turned ON again.
NOTE
The operation histories of songs that are not loaded are
not erased when the power is turned OFF.
You can also erase (clear) the operation history
of the currently loaded song without turning the
power OFF.
1 Press the UN/REDO key while pressing and holding
the stop (ª) key to open the HISTORY screen.
2 Press the F4 (CLEAR) key. A confirmation message
appears.
3 Press the F3 (YES) key. A confirmation message
appears again.
4 Press the F3 (YES) key to clear the operation history
and erase unused data. The Home Screen reopens
when this operation completes.
68 TASCAM DP-004
•• To cancel erasing the operation history, press the F4
(NO) key instead of the F3 (YES) key.
TIP
• If you open the HISTORY screen immediately after
erasing the operation history, the event (operation)
that appears is “0” (START UP), showing that the
operation history has been cleared.
• If you want to keep the operation history even when
you power OFF, turn song protect ON before turning
the power OFF (see “Protecting songs” on page 53).
CAUTION
You cannot undo erasing the operation history! Only
do it if you are certain about it.
7–Recorder Functions
Punching in and out
Punching in/out is a technique to replace a part of an
already recorded track.
Start playback and when you reach the part that you
want to replace, switch to record (punch in), then
switch back to playback (or stop) when you finish
the part that you want to replace (punch out).
1 Decide what part of the track you plan to replace
and choose a point to begin where the new
recording can sit well with the existing recording.
2 Press the REC key of the track that you plan to
replace part of to start record standby (REC
indicator blinks).
3 Start playback before the part of the track that you
want to replace.
4 Press the record (–) key to start recording (punch
in) when you reach the part. Play or sing what you
want to record.
5 Press the playback (Á) key to switch to playback
(punch out) when you finish the replacement
recording.
TIP
You can also press the stop (ª) key to punch out at the
end of the replacement recording.
Bouncing tracks
Use this unit’s bounce function to mix already
recorded tracks (1–4) down to one or two tracks.
Multitrack tape recorders can only bounce to an
open track (in other words, they can not record to a
track that is also a source of the mix). For example,
tracks 1–3 could be bounced to track 4, but tracks
1–4 could not be bounced to track 1. This unit,
however, does not have this limitation. You can
bounce tracks 1–4 as a stereo mix to tracks 1 and 2
(stereo bounce), or bounce tracks 1–4 as a mono mix
to track 1 (mono bounce).
NOTE
Inside this unit, a mixdown is made to create a mix
master that is recorded to the designated tracks.
TASCAM DP-004 69
7–Recorder Functions
2 Turn the DATA wheel to select BOUNCE.
3 Press the F4 (EXEC) key to put the unit in bounce
mode and return to the Home Screen.
Can be
overwritten
Can be
overwritten
Source tracks are erased when they are bounce
destinations. (In the illustration above the drum parts
are overwritten by the stereo mix). However, you
can use the unit’s (undo) function to return to the
previous state if you make a mistake (see “Undoing
the last operation (single undo)” on page 66).
Using the bounce function
1 Press REC MODE to open the RECORDER
70 TASCAM DP-004
MODE screen.
4 Press the REC keys for the bounce destination
tracks (the indicators light).
For a stereo bounce, press the REC keys for tracks
1 and 2 or tracks 3 and 4. For a mono bounce
(bouncing the mix to a single track) press the REC
key for any one track.
5 Adjust the LEVEL and PAN knobs for the bounce
source tracks.
For mono bounces all sounds will be panned all
7–Recorder Functions
the way left (bounced to track 1 or 3) or all the way
right (track 2 or 4). Use the MASTER LEVEL knob to
adjust the overall level.
6 After returning to the start of the song, press the
playback (Á) key while pressing and holding the
record (–) key to start the bounce.
Confirming the result
Raise the bounce destination track LEVEL knob (turn
other track LEVEL knobs all the way down) and
the MASTER LEVEL knob, and start playback from
the beginning of the song. If you are not satisfied
with the result because, for example, the balance
between instruments is poor, or the pan settings are
wrong, use the undo function (see “Undoing the last
operation (single undo)” on page 66).
If you are satisfied with the result, press the REC
MODE key to open the RECORDER MODE screen and
select MULTI TRACK, then press the HOME key to return
to the Home Screen.
After bouncing tracks, you can make new recordings
over the other tracks.
TIP
If it is possible that you might need the original tracks at
some later time, back-up the track data to a computer or
copy the song before bouncing (see “Backing-up songs”
on page 94 and “Connecting with a computer” on page
92).
Locate and search functions
Direct locate function
This is the way to locate a specific position in a
song. The current recorder position is shown at
the top of the display as “hours: minutes: seconds:
frames” (there are 30 frames per second). You can
move the transport location to a specific time by
inputting it here.
1 Use the F1 (DIGIT) key to move the cursor (underline)
between the time divisions. You can edit the value
at the cursor positions. The seconds are selected in
the following figure.
TASCAM DP-004 71
7–Recorder Functions
RTZ and LRP
Use simple key operations to return to the top of a
song or to the position where recording last started.
2 Turn the DATA wheel to change the value above
the cursor. When adjusting, the value will carry
over automatically when it reaches the highest or
lowest value in a field. For example, when turning
the DATA wheel to increase the value in the seconds
field, the number will change from 59 to 0 and
the minutes value will increase by one. The time
display blinks when using the DATA wheel. The
blinking stops about two seconds after moving to
the new position.
3 Press the F1 (DIGIT) key to move to a different
time division and turn the DATA wheel to change
the value.
4 After setting the desired time value, press the
playback (Á) key to start playback from that
position.
Return To Zero (song beginning at 00:00:00:00)
Press the Ô key while pressing and holding the
stop (ª) key.
Last Recording Position (the position recording
last started)
Press the  key while pressing and holding the
stop (ª) key.
This function is useful when you want to record the
same passage again.
TIP
RTZ and LRP below the Ô and  keys are abbreviations for Return To Zero and Last Recording Position,
respectively.
72 TASCAM DP-004
7–Recorder Functions
Fast forward/rewind search
Press the Ô or  key when stopped or during
playback to rewind or fast forward, respectively.
the OUT point is used as the end point of the master
track when mastering.
Capturing IN and OUT points
IN and OUT points can be captured when stopped,
during playback or while recording.
1 Press the IN/OUT key to open the I/O
SETTING screen.
Each time you press one of these keys, the speed
increases from 10x to 50x, 100x and 1000x.
Repeat playback
Use the repeat playback function to play the same
part again and again. The repeated passage is time
between the IN and OUT points.
Setting IN and OUT points
2 Press the F3 (IN) key or F4 (OUT) key at desired
position (regardless of whether the unit is stopped,
playing or recording). “SET IN !” or “SET OUT !”
and the captured time appear.
TIP
You can also use the F3 and F4 keys to capture IN and
OUT points when the Home Screen is open.
In addition to using them for setting the repeat
playback passage, the IN and OUT points are also
used for interval setting for track editing. Moreover,
TASCAM DP-004 73
7–Recorder Functions
SET IN
SET OUT
Editing IN/OUT points
1 When the I/O SETTING screen is open (see the first
screen figure in the previous section), press the F2
(EDIT) key to open the edit screen.
74 TASCAM DP-004
2 Edit the values of IN and OUT points using the
following guidelines.
•• Use the F3 (§) and F4 (¶) keys to move the cursor
(underline) between the IN and OUT points.
•• Use the Ô/ keys to move the cursor
(underline) between time fields.
•• Turn the DATA wheel to change the value at the
cursor (underline) position.
3 When finished editing, press the HOME key to
return to the Home Screen.
NOTE
In the following cases, IN and OUT points cannot be
captured or edited.
• During repeat playback
• When the recorder mode is MASTER REC or
MASTER PLAY
7–Recorder Functions
Using repeat playback
1 Set the starting (IN) and ending (OUT) points for
the time that you want to repeat, and then return
to the Home Screen.
2 Press the REPEAT key to start repeat playback.
3 Press the REPEAT key again to stop repeat
playback. The repeat icon on the Home Screen
disappears.
The next section explains how to set the repeat
interval that determines the amount of time until
playback starts again after the OUT point is reached.
Setting the interval between repetitions
The interval can be set from 0.5 to 9.9 seconds.
1 Press the MENU key to open the MENU screen.
The repeat icon on the Home Screen appears.
2 Turn the DATA wheel to select PREFERENCE, and press
the F4 (¥) key to open the PREFERENCE screen.
Repeat icon
Playback starts from the IN point. When the OUT
point is reached, after the repeat interval elapses,
playback starts again from the IN point. Playback
continues to repeat between the IN and OUT
points.
3 Use the F3 (§) and F4 (¶) keys to select the setting
value for the Repeat Int item. Turn the DATA wheel
to set the value from 0.5 to 9.9 sec. in 0.1-sec. units.
4 When finished making settings, press the HOME
key to return to the Home Screen.
TASCAM DP-004 75
8–Miscellaneous Functions
Metronome
This unit has a built-in metronome function that can
be used when the recorder is operating. You can set
it to function during both playback and recording or
only during recording.
TEMPO
Set speed from 20 to 250 beats per minute (BPM).
BEAT
Set the frequency of the accent from 1 to 12 for
different time signatures.
1 When the Home Screen is open, press the MENU key
to open the MENU screen.
LEVEL
2 Turn the DATA wheel to select METRONOME and press
the F4 (¥) key to open the METRONOME screen.
4 When finished making settings, press the HOME
key to return to the Home Screen. The metronome
should now function according to the MODE setting
set in step 3. Set to REC&PLAY, it will function both
during playback and recording. Set to REC ONLY, it
will function only during recording. Set to OFF, the
metronome does not function. Note that even if the
metronome is on during recording, the metronome
signal is not recorded, but can only be heard when
monitoring.
3 Set the following items. Use the F3 (§) and F4 (¶)
keys to select each item, and turn the DATA wheel to
change the value.
MODE
Select OFF (metronome OFF), REC&PLAY (functions
both during recording and playback) or REC ONLY
(functions only during recording).
76 TASCAM DP-004
Set the metronome volume from 0 to 127.
NOTE
• The metronome volume is not affected by the
MASTER LEVEL knob. Use the LEVEL item on the
METRONOME screen to adjust it.
8–Miscellaneous Functions
• When the metronome is operating, you can adjust the
LEVEL, but other items on the METRONOME screen
cannot be changed.
TIP
4 Turn the DATA wheel to select TUNER and press the F4
(¥) key to open the TUNER screen.
The value of the Calibration item (standard
frequency) is selected.
• You can use the metronome like a click track to help
keep time when recording the first tracks (rhythm
guitar, bass, etc.) in a song.
• If you want to use the metronome when practicing,
you can either turn the MASTER LEVEL knob all the
way down during playback or play a song that does
not have any recordings.
5 Turn the DATA wheel to set the standard frequency
of the A note between 435 and 445 Hz. The default
setting is 440 Hz.
Tuner
Use the built-in guitar/bass tuner to tune your
instruments.
1 Connect a guitar or bass to INPUT A .
INPUT B
cannot be used for tuning.
2 On the INPUT SETTING screen, set the INPUT A input
source to GUITAR/LINE (see “Selecting the input
source” on page 54).
3 When the transport is stopped and the Home
Screen is open, press MENU to open the MENU screen.
6 Play a guitar or bass string. The pitch name closest
to the string appears above the meters. Tune the
string roughly until the sound name that you
want appears. Then, fine tune the string until
the rectangle at the middle of the meter darkens,
showing that the string is in tune. If the pitch is
too low, a bar extends to the left of the middle and
if it is too high it extends to the right. The longer
the bar is the more out of tune the string is. For
example, in the following screen, the desired tuning
is D but the string pitch is too low.
TASCAM DP-004 77
8–Miscellaneous Functions
2 Select PREFERENCE and press the F4 (¥) key to open
the PREFERENCE screen.
The rectangle at the middle of the meter darkens
when the string is in tune.
3 Use the F3 (§) and F4 (¶) keys to select the Auto
Off setting value, and turn the DATA wheel to
choose from these options: OFF (initial setting, Auto
Off does not occur), 3min, 5min, 10min, 30min
7 When finished tuning, press the HOME key to
return to the Home Screen.
Turning the power off automatically
You can set the time until the power automatically
turns OFF after the last use when using the batteries.
1 When the Home Screen is open, press the MENU key
to open the MENU screen.
78 TASCAM DP-004
4 When finished making settings, press the HOME
key to return to the Home Screen.
Restoring the initial preference
settings
You can restore the PREFERENCE screen settings to
their initial values (the values that they had when the
unit was shipped from the factory). This operation is
called initialization.
8–Miscellaneous Functions
1 When the Home Screen is open, press the MENU key
to open the MENU screen.
2 Turn the DATA wheel to select PREFERENCE, and press
the F4 (¥) key to open the PREFERENCE screen.
Press F3 (YES) to initialize the unit. The PREFERENCE
screen reopens when the process finishes.
NOTE
Press the F4 (NO) key to cancel initialization.
3 Use the F3 (§) and F4 (¶) keys to select Exec next to
the Initialize item.
5 When finished, press the HOME key to return to the
Home Screen.
Viewing information
4 Press F2 (EXEC) to open a confirmation screen.
You can view information about the current song,
the SD card, the system and the firmware.
1 When the Home Screen is open, press the MENU key
to open the MENU screen.
2 Turn the DATA wheel to select INFORMATION and press
the F4 (¥) key.
TASCAM DP-004 79
8–Miscellaneous Functions
CARD page:
MTR partitions and capacities, FAT
partition capacity
The INFORMATION screen SONG page appears.
SYSTEM page: Repeat Interval, Auto Off and Contrast
settings
The INFORMATION screen has four pages including
this one.
3 Use the F3 (PREV) and F4 (NEXT) keys to change the
page. The pages contain the following information.
SONG page:
name and partition of currently loaded
song, remaining recording time on partition
80 TASCAM DP-004
F/W page:
system firmware version
9–SD Card Management
Overview of partitions
As described in “Partitions and songs” (page 47),
SD cards formatted by this unit are divided into
partitions. MTR partitions are for recording data
while the FAT partition can be accessed with a
personal computer. High-capacity cards can have
multiple MTR partitions. In this case, you can use
the MTR partitions for different songs, for example,
or copy songs to a different MTR partitions to save
their information. The FAT partition is FAT32 format
and can be accessed by a computer connected to
this unit by USB. This FAT partition is used to
save songs and export stereo masters to computers,
as well as to allow this unit to import audio files
into songs, for example. For this reason, two steps
are necessary to copy from a MTR partition and
a computer. You can also format an entire card or
individual partition as well as change the divisions
between partitions (repartition) as necessary.
CAUTION
Formatting and repartition operations cannot
be undone!
NOTE
• The FAT (File Allocation Table) format is a disk format
that can be read by a computer.
• This unit can use both SD (512 MB – 2 GB) and SDHC
(4–32 GB) cards.
• See “Selecting the active partition” on page 47 for
how to change the active partition.
Write-protected cards
SD cards have write-protect (lock) switches.
Unprotected
Protected
Files cannot be recorded or edited on a card if you
slide its switch down.
Slide the switch down if you want to prevent the
contents of the card from being changed or erased.
TASCAM DP-004 81
9–SD Card Management
Formatting cards and setting partition
sizes
This operation formats the entire card and allows
you set MTR partition sizes for high-capacity cards.
CAUTION
This operation erases all the data on the card and
cannot be undone! Confirm that you will not lose
important data before formatting a card.
1 When the transport is stopped and the Home
Screen is open, press MENU to open the MENU screen.
2 Turn the DATA wheel to select CARD, and press the
F4 (¥) key to open the CARD menu screen.
3 Turn the DATA wheel to select FORMAT and press
the F4 (¥) key.
The FORMAT screen opens.
82 TASCAM DP-004
MTR partition size
FAT partition size
Total card size
The following table shows the FAT and MTR
partition sizes for different SD card capacities. The
FAT partition size is set automatically according
to card capacity. The size of the MTR partition on
cards 4 GB or smaller is also fixed, but cards that
are 8 GB or larger have multiple MTR partitions and
their sizes can be chosen. However, the last MTR
partition is set to fill the remaining space on the card
automatically, so its size cannot be chosen.
9–SD Card Management
Card capacity and partition size
Card capacity
FAT partition size
MTR partition size
32 GB
4 GB
2 GB, 4 GB, 8 GB or
16 GB
16 GB
4 GB
2 GB, 4 GB or 8 GB
8 GB
2 GB
2 GB or 4 GB
4 GB
2 GB
2 GB fixed
2 GB
1 GB
1 GB fixed
1 GB
512 MB
512MB fixed
512 MB
256 MB
256MB fixed
4 If the card capacity is 8 GB or more, turn the DATA
wheel to select the MTR partition size, and press
the F2 (EXEC) key. A message warning that all songs
will be erased appears.
5 Press the F3 (YES) key to format the card.
For example, if you format a 16 GB card with 4GB
MTR partitions, 12 GB are left for MTR partitions
after 4 GB is used for the FAT partition. Three
partitions are created. Two are 4 GB and the last one
is 3 GB. (Since 1GB is actually 1024 MB, the total
size of the partitions does not always match the card
size.)
•• When formatting finishes the CARD menu screen
reopens.
•• After formatting, one song is automatically created
in each MTR partition.
•• To cancel formatting, press the F4 (NO) key instead of
the F3 (YES) key.
Reformatting MTR partitions
You can reformat an MTR partition if you want. Use
this function when you just want to format a specific
partition without changing its size.
CAUTION
You cannot undo this operation! All the data on the
selected partition will be erased, so be certain that you
will not lose anything important when reformatting.
1 When the transport is stopped and the Home
Screen is open, press the MENU key to open the MENU
screen.
2 Use the DATA wheel to select CARD, and press the F4
(¥) key to open the CARD menu screen.
3 Turn the DATA wheel to select REFORMAT.
TASCAM DP-004 83
9–SD Card Management
Press the F4 (¥) key to open the REFORMAT screen.
5 Press the F3 (YES) key to reformat the partition.
•• When reformatting finishes the CARD menu reopens.
•• After reformatting, one song is automatically created in the MTR partition.
•• To cancel reformatting, press the F4 (NO) key instead
of the F3 (YES) key.
A list of the MTR partitions and their sizes (not
open capacities) appear.
A * marks the active partition.
4 Turn the DATA wheel to select the partition that you
want to reformat and press the F2 (EXEC) key.
A pop-up message warning that all data on the
partition will be erased appears.
Reformatting the FAT partition
You can also reformat just the FAT partition. The
size of the FAT partition cannot be changed.
CAUTION
You cannot undo this operation! All data on the FAT
partition will be erased, so be certain that you will not
lose anything important when reformatting.
1 With the transport stopped and the Home Screen
open, press the MENU key to open the MENU screen.
2 Turn the DATA wheel to select CARD, and press the F4
84 TASCAM DP-004
9–SD Card Management
formatted as FAT32.
(¥) key to open the CARD menu screen.
3 Turn the DATA wheel to select FAT
press the F4 (¥) key.
REFORMAT,
and
A pop-up message warning that all data on the
FAT partition will be erased appears.
1 With the transport stopped and the Home Screen
open, press the MENU key to open the MENU screen.
2 Turn the DATA wheel to select CARD, and press the F4
(¥) key to open the CARD menu screen.
3 Turn the DATA wheel to select the SD
item and press the F4 (¥) key.
INITIALIZE
A pop-up message warning that all data on the
card will be erased appears.
4 Press the F3 (YES) key to reformat the FAT partition.
•• When reformatting finishes the CARD menu screen
reopens.
•• To cancel reformatting, press the F4 (NO) key instead
of the F3 (YES) key.
Initializing SD cards
If you want to use an SD card that was used with
this unit, we recommend that you initialize it.
When you initialize an SD card, the entire card is
4 Press the F3 (YES) key to initialize the entire card
and format it as FAT32.
•• To cancel initialization, press the F4 (NO) key instead
of the F3 (YES) key.
CAUTION
If you want to use the card with a DP-004 again you
will need to format it (see “Formatting SD cards” on
page 38).
TASCAM DP-004 85
10–Editing Tracks
Editing on a conventional tape recorder in the past
required advanced techniques, but with this unit
editing tracks is easy and accurate. Moreover, with a
tape recorder, an editing error could not be undone,
but this unit uses nondestructive editing, allowing
you to edit without altering the original data. This
means that the undo function can be used to correct
an edit easily (see “Undoing the last operation
(single undo)” on page 66).
Overview of track editing
are the same IN and OUT points used for repeat
playback. See “Setting IN and OUT points” (on
page 73) for instructions about how to do this.
•• The IN point marks the beginning of the section
that is subject to the track editing function.
•• The OUT point marks the end of the section that is
subject to the track editing function.
Basic editing procedures
1 When the transport is stopped and the Home
Screen is open, press the MENU key to open the MENU
screen.
This unit has the following track editing functions.
•• CLONE TRACK (duplicate a track)
•• CLEAN OUT (erase a track)
•• SILENCE (erase part of a track)
•• CUT (remove part of a track)
•• OPEN (insert a silent section)
2 Turn the DATA wheel to select TRACK EDIT, and press
the F4 (¥) key to open the TRACK EDIT menu.
Edit points
3 Turn the DATA wheel to select the desired track
editing function, and press the F4 (¥) key to open
that editing function’s screen.
Among track editing functions, SILENT, CUT and
OPEN use the IN and OUT points for editing. These
86 TASCAM DP-004
10–Editing Tracks
4 Select the setting item value. If there are multiple
setting items, use the F3 (§) and F4 (¶) keys to
select an item. Turn the DATA wheel to select a
value.
The different settings are explained in the
following sections for each function.
5 Press the F2 (EXEC) key to execute the function.
•• Press the F1 (BACK) key to return to the TRACKEDIT menu
screen without executing the function.
CLONE TRACK (track duplication)
Using CLONE TRACK you can create copies
of single tracks, a track pair or a master track on
different tracks. This copies the entire track, so the
IN and OUT points have no effect.
The two parameters are as follows.
SOURCE TRK
Select the track or tracks to duplicate. The choices
are 1 to 4 (single track), 1/2, 3/4 (track pairs) and
MST (master stereo track).
DESTINATION TRK
Select the track or tracks that you want to put the
clone tracks on. The choices depend on the SOURCE
TRK item setting.
If you chose a single track as the SOURCE TRK, the
DESTINATION TRK choices are 1 to 4 (single track). If
you chose a track pair (for example, 1/2) or MASTER as
the SOURCE TRK, the DESTINATION TRK choices are 1/2 or
3/4 (pair track).
After setting the parameters, press the F2 (EXEC) key
to execute the edit. Press the F1 (BACK) key to return to
the TRACK EDIT menu screen without editing.
TASCAM DP-004 87
10–Editing Tracks
NOTE
If you choose the same track for both the SOURCE TRK
and the DESTINATION TRK and press the F2 (EXEC) key,
the “Same Track” message appears and the operation is
cancelled.
CLEAN OUT (track erase)
CLEAN OUT TRK
Select the track or tracks to erase. The choices are
1 to 4 (single track), 1/2, 3/4 (track pairs) and 1–4 (all
tracks).
After setting the parameter, press the F2 (EXEC) key
to execute the edit. Press the F1 (BACK) key to return
to the TRACK EDIT menu screen without editing.
SILENCE (part erase)
This completely erases the selected track. This
erases the entire track, so the IN and OUT points
have no effect.
This erases the selected track between the IN and
OUT points. This has the same effect as recording a
silent signal between the IN and OUT points. This
operation does not change the track length.
There is only one parameter.
88 TASCAM DP-004
10–Editing Tracks
CUT (remove part)
There is only one parameter. The IN and OUT points
appear on the screen, but they cannot be changed
here.
SILENCE TRK
Select the track or tracks that you want to silence
parts of. The choices are 1 to 4 (single track), 1/2,
3/4 (track pairs) and 1–4 (all tracks).
After setting the parameter, press the F2 (EXEC) key
to execute the edit. Press the F1 (BACK) key to return
to the TRACK EDIT menu screen without editing.
The segment between the IN and OUT points on a
selected track is CUT (erased), and the rest of the
track after the OUT point is moved forward to the
IN point. As a result, the length of the track becomes
shorter.
TIP
This function can be used to remove short noises,
for example.
There is only one parameter. The IN and OUT points
appear on the screen, but they cannot be changed
here.
TASCAM DP-004 89
10–Editing Tracks
CUT TRK
Select the track or tracks that you want to silence
parts of. The choices are 1 to 4 (single track), 1/2,
3/4 (track pairs), 1– 4 (all tracks) and ALL (tracks 1 to
4 and the master track).
After setting the parameter, press the F2 (EXEC) key
to execute the edit. Press the F1 (BACK) key to return
to the TRACK EDIT menu screen without editing.
There is only one parameter. The IN and OUT points
appear on the screen, but they cannot be changed
here.
OPEN TRK
OPEN (insert silence)
Select the track or tracks that you want to silence
parts of. The choices are 1 to 4 (single track), 1/2,
3/4 (track pairs), 1–4 (all tracks) and ALL (tracks 1 to
4 and the master track).
After setting the parameter, press the F2 (EXEC) key
to execute the edit. Press the F1 (BACK) key to return
to the TRACK EDIT menu screen without editing.
A silent passage is inserted between the IN and OUT
points on a selected track.
This operation splits a track at the IN point and the
beginning of the part after the IN point is shifted to
the OUT point. As a result, the length of the track
becomes longer.
90 TASCAM DP-004
11–Exchanging Data with a Computer
You can backup song data on this unit to a computer
and restore backed-up song data later. Moreover,
you can export track files and master files from a
song to a computer and import audio files on the
computer to the unit.
Data transfer always occurs between the unit’s FAT
partition and a computer connected by USB to this
unit, so a two-step process is necessary.
NOTE
• The MTR partitions where song files are stored cannot
be directly accessed from a computer.
• In this chapter, “computer” refers to a Windows
or Macintosh computer connected to this unit (see
“Supported operating systems” on page 92).
• In this Owner’s Manual, we sometimes refer to the
SD card installed in this unit simply as “this unit” (for
example, “this unit’s FAT partition”).
In the same way, we refer to the hard disks and other
devices that a computer is equipped with collectively
just as a “computer” (for example, “transfer to the
computer”).
The FAT partition has three directories (folders):
BACKUP, WAVE and UTILITY.
NOTE
• Do not erase or change the names of these directories. The functions explained in this chapter will not
work if you do so.
• The UTILITY directory is used to, for example, update
the system software used by the unit. Please see the
instructions included with the software update for
how to update.
The following types of data can be transferred from
this unit to a computer.
Entire songs
You can transfer the data for an entire song from
the unit’s BACKUP directory on the FAT partition
to a computer. This operation is called “backup.”
In addition, data backed-up on a computer can
be transferred to the BACKUP directory on the
FAT partition, and then restored as song data. This
operation is called “restore.”
WAV format tracks
One or more tracks can be converted to WAV files
and exported to a computer, and WAV files (one at
a time) on a computer can be imported to this unit.
These WAV files are stored on the WAVE directory
of this unit’s FAT partition.
TASCAM DP-004 91
11–Exchanging Data with a Computer
Stereo master mix
A stereo master mix made on this unit can be
transferred to a computer as a stereo WAV file from
the WAVE directory on the FAT partition. Only
export is possible.
Supported operating systems
You can connect this unit to computers with the
following operating systems.
Microsoft OS
Windows 2000 (SP4 or later), Windows XP,
Windows Vista
Apple Computer OS
Mac OS X 10.2 or later
When this unit is connected to a computer, the
computer recognizes it as a removable disk. There is
no need for a special driver.
CAUTION
When disconnecting this unit from the computer,
follow the correct procedures for your computer OS. If
92 TASCAM DP-004
these procedures are not followed correctly, data on
the FAT partition could be damaged (see “Connecting
with a computer” below).
NOTE
Data transfer between this unit and a computer occurs at
USB 2.0 speed (maximum). Data can still be transferred if
the computer connection is USB1.1, but it will be slower.
In addition, to assure USB 2.0 speed, use the included
cable or a cable that meets USB 2.0 standards.
Connecting with a computer
To use the FAT partition of this unit, the unit must be
connected to a computer by USB. When connected
by USB, this unit’s record, playback and other
recorder operations cannot be used.
To connect with a computer, connect the USB port
on the right side panel of the unit with a USB port
on the computer using the included USB cable. It
does not matter whether you turn the unit’s power
ON before or after the USB connection is made.
If the USB connection is made while the unit’s
power is ON, the currently loaded song is saved
11–Exchanging Data with a Computer
before the USB connection becomes effective.
When connected, the following screen appears on
the display.
Disconnecting
Use the following procedures to disconnect the USB
connection correctly.
NOTE
When disconnecting from a computer, the procedure on
the computer might be called “eject” or “unmount.”
CAUTION
If you turn the unit’s power ON after making the
USB connection, the screen above appears right
away.
The unit appears as an external drive named
“DP-004” on the computer’s display.
CAUTION
• Do not make a USB connection when the remaining battery level is low.
• If the power turns OFF during data transfer, all the
data will be lost. This lost data cannot be restored.
When transferring data, do not disconnect the unit or
remove the USB cable. Doing so could cause data on
the computer or this unit to be damaged.
Disconnecting from Windows 2000 (SP4 or later)/
Windows XP/Windows Vista systems
Follow the procedures below to disconnect
computers that use Windows 2000 (SP4 or later),
Windows XP or Windows Vista operating systems.
A PC card icon and arrow appear in the taskbar
(usually at the bottom right of the screen).
NOTE
Confirm that you have copied all the files that you want
to transfer to a computer to the FAT partition before
connecting the unit and the computer by USB.
TASCAM DP-004 93
11–Exchanging Data with a Computer
1 Left-click on this icon to open a pop-up bar. Click
this pop-up bar to disconnect this unit from the
computer.
2 After a message appears on the computer screen
saying that this unit can be disconnected, remove
the USB cable.
This unit restarts and the Home Screen appears on
the display.
•• If a message appears on the computer screen saying
that this unit cannot be disconnected safely, do not
disconnect the USB cable. Close all the computer
programs and windows that are accessing files on
this unit, and then try the operation again.
Disconnecting from Macintosh systems
1 Drag the “DP-004” icon that represents this unit to
the Trash, or type Command-E to eject the DP-004.
TIP
Depending on the OS version or OS settings you might
also be able to eject the “DP-004” icon by clicking an
eject button next to it in the Finder window or by using
a control key.
2 After the icon disappears from the desktop, remove
the USB cable.
94 TASCAM DP-004
This unit restarts and the Home Screen appears on
the display.
Song backup and restoration
Song backup saves not only audio tracks, but also
backs up editing data and other song data. Song
restoration is the reverse of this process. In short,
song data is transferred from the computer to the
FAT partition of the unit and then used to restore
the song.
Backing-up songs
Before starting a backup, check that the MTR
partition that has the song that you want to backup is
selected (see “Selecting the active partition” on page
47).
1 With the transport stopped and the Home Screen
open, press the MENU key to open the MENU screen,
and turn the DATA wheel to select DATA BACKUP. Press
the F4 (¥) key to open the DATA BACKUP menu.
11–Exchanging Data with a Computer
4 Use the Ô/ keys, the DATA wheel and the F3
and F4 keys, to name the song (maximum of 8 characters) (see “Editing names” on page 43).
5 After setting the name, press the F2 (EXEC) key.
2 Use the DATA wheel to select SONG BACKUP, and press
the F4 (¥) key to open a song list.
A backup copy of the song on the active partition
is made on the FAT partition (“.001” is added as an
extension).
“Writing
3 Turn the DATA wheel to select the song that you
want to backup, and press the F4 (NEXT) key.
A screen appears that allows you to set the file
name for the song being backed up.
File”
and an icon appear on the display.
When the backup copy is complete, the DATA
menu reopens.
BACKUP
NOTE
If the open space necessary to back-up a songs is not
available in the FAT partition, an error message appears.
In this case, connect this unit and a computer, and erase
unnecessary files on the partition using the computer to
make enough open space.
TASCAM DP-004 95
11–Exchanging Data with a Computer
6 Connect this unit to a computer using the USB
cable (see “Connecting with a computer” on page
92).
7 Use the computer to copy backup files from the
BACKUP directory on the FAT partition of the
unit to the computer.
8 After copying finishes, disconnect the unit from
the computer using the proper procedures and then
remove the USB cable (see “Disconnecting” on page
93).
CAUTION
• If you change the song file name on the computer,
you might have trouble when you restore the file
to this unit later.
• If you do change the file name of the backed-up
song file, do not use more than eight characters in
the new name.
TIP
• You can make further backup copies of the song
file by copying it from the computer to a CD-R, for
example.
• You can also restore a backed-up song file to a different DP-004 unit. Since files can be shared freely
between DP-004 units, you can easily conduct overdubbing or mixdown at different locations.
96 TASCAM DP-004
Restoring songs
Basically, restoring is the reverse of backing up. In
short, transfer a backup file on a computer to this
unit to restore a song.
1 Connect this unit to a computer using the USB
cable (see “Connecting with a computer” on page
92).
2 Use the computer to copy backup files from the
computer to the BACKUP directory on the FAT
partition of the unit.
3. When copying finishes, disconnect the unit from
the computer using the proper procedures and then
remove the USB cable (see “Disconnecting” on page
93).
4 After this unit restarts automatically, press MENU
to open the MENU screen. Turn the DATA wheel to
select DATA BACKUP and press the F4 (¥) key.
5 Turn the DATA wheel to select SONG
press the F4 (¥) key.
RESTORE,
and
The screen shows the backup files on the FAT
partition.
11–Exchanging Data with a Computer
Track import and export
NOTE
An error message appears if there are no files on the FAT
partition.
6 Turn the DATA wheel to select the file that you want
to restore, and press the F2 (EXEC) key.
The actual song name and a confirmation message
(“Are you sure?”) appear.
NOTE
If the file name is short, spaces appear after the file
name on the FAT partition, but those spaces are not
included in the actual file name.
7 Press the F3 (YES) key.
After the currently loaded song is saved, the song
selected in step 6 is restored and loaded.
NOTE
If the open space on the card is insufficient, an error
message appears.
You can import and export individual tracks
between a computer and this unit’s FAT partition.
Files that can be imported and exported as tracks
must be 16-bit, 44.1-kHz, mono WAV files (with
the “.wav” extension). If you want to import audio
into this unit that is of a different format, you must
convert it to a 16-bit, 44.1-kHz mono WAV file first.
Importing tracks
Before importing a track, first select the partition
with the song that you want to import it into as the
active partition. Then, load the song that you want to
import tracks into.
1 Connect this unit to a computer using the USB
cable (see “Connecting with a computer” on page
92).
2 Use the computer to copy WAV files on its drive to
the WAVE directory in this unit’s FAT partition.
3 Disconnect the unit from the computer using the
proper procedures and then remove the USB cable
(see “Disconnecting” on page 93).
TASCAM DP-004 97
11–Exchanging Data with a Computer
4 After this unit restarts automatically, press the
MENU key to open the MENU screen. Turn the DATA
wheel to select WAVE, and press the F4 (¥) key to
open the WAVE menu.
5 Turn the DATA wheel to select IMPORT
press the F4 (¥) key.
TRACK,
and
want to import, and press the F2 (NEXT) key.
The amount of open space on the currently active
partition and the size of the selected WAV file
appear on the display.
WAV files on the FAT partition are shown.
7 Turn the DATA wheel to select the track that you
want to import the WAV file to, and press the F4
(EXEC) key.
NOTE
• This unit cannot use stereo WAV files or those that are
a sampling frequency other than 44.1 kHz. Such files
are not displayed even if they have been imported.
If no files that can be imported are on the FAT
partition, a pop-up saying “Import File Not Found”
appears.
• If the file name is short, spaces appear after the file
name on the FAT partition, but those spaces are not
included in the actual file name.
6 Turn the DATA wheel to select the WAV file that you
98 TASCAM DP-004
NOTE
• If there is not enough open space or the file format is
wrong, an error message appears.
• The track that is the destination for the import must
be empty.
This unit reads the file from the FAT partition, and
imports it to the designated track. The beginning of
the file is set at the start of the song (00:00:00:00).
In the same way as other recording tracks, you can
edit the track that has received the imported file (see
“10-Editing tracks” on page 86).
11–Exchanging Data with a Computer
Exporting tracks
You can export tracks as 16-bit, 44.1-kHz mono
WAV files.
1 With the transport stopped and the Home Screen
open, press the MENU key to open the MENU screen.
Turn the DATA wheel to select WAVE, and press the F4
(¥) key to open the WAVE menu.
2 Turn the DATA wheel to select the EXPORT TRACK
item, and press the F4 (¥) key. Song tracks that
have audio recordings are displayed in a list. The
file name makes the source track number clear.
By checking multiple checkboxes, you can export
more than one track at once. Select a track and
press the F4 (✔) key again to remove the check
from its checkbox.
4 When you finish putting checks next to the tracks
that you want to export, press the F2 (NEXT) key. The
amount or open space on the FAT partition (which
is the destination for the exported tracks) and the
total number of tracks to be exported is shown.
NOTE
Song tracks that do have audio recordings are not
displayed in the file list.
3 Turn the DATA wheel, to select a track for export,
and press the F4 (✔) key to put a check in the
checkbox.
TIP
In step 3 above, if you press the F2 (NEXT) key after
selecting a track but before putting a checkmark next to
any track, the selected track is exported alone.
TASCAM DP-004 99
11–Exchanging Data with a Computer
5 Press the F4 (EXEC) key. The selected track is
exported to the FAT partition with the edited file
name with the “.WAV” extension added as the
track file name. If you have previously exported
a track file with the same name, a confirmation message (“Duplicate name – Are you sure?”)
appears. Press the F3 (YES) key to overwrite the
older track.
6 Connect this unit to a computer (see “Connecting
with a computer” on page 92).
7 Use the computer to copy track files from the
WAVE directory on the FAT partition to the
computer.
8 After exporting track files to the computer, disconnect the unit from the computer using the proper
procedures and then remove the USB cable (see
“Disconnecting” on page 93).
•• You can make further backup copies of an exported
track file by copying it from the computer to a
CD-R, for example.
•• You can change the name of an exported track file
on the computer. If you do so, use no more than
eight characters and always follow them with the
“.WAV” extension. Furthermore, do not use special
100 TASCAM DP-004
symbols, for example.
•• You can import the tracks that you exported to the
computer to this unit or another DP-004.
Exporting a stereo master
You can export a stereo master that you have made
on the unit (see “Mastering” on page 62) to a
computer. When you create a new stereo master for
a song, the existing stereo master is overwritten, so
if you want to keep multiple different stereo masters,
you might want to save them to a computer.
Before starting the following export procedures,
make sure that the song that you want to export a
stereo master for is currently loaded and that you
have already created a stereo master for it.
1 When the transport is stopped and the Home
Screen is open, press the MENU key to open the
MENU screen. Turn the DATA wheel to select WAVE, and
press the F4 (¥) key to open the WAVE menu.
2 Turn the DATA wheel to select EXPORT MASTER, and
press the F4 (¥) key. The default file name is
displayed and can be edited.
11–Exchanging Data with a Computer
6 Use the computer to copy the stereo master file
from the WAVE directory on the FAT partition of
the unit to the computer.
NOTE
If there is no stereo master, an error message appears.
7 After copying finishes, disconnect the unit from
the computer using the proper procedures and then
remove the USB cable (see “Disconnecting” on
page 93).
3 Use the Ô/ keys, the DATA wheel and the F3
and F4 keys to edit the name of the stereo master
file being exported (See “Editing names” on page
43).
4 After setting the name, press the F2 (EXEC) key. A
stereo master file is exported as a 16-bit, 44.1-kHz,
stereo WAV file to the FAT partition. The file name
of the exported file is the name set in step 3 above
plus the “.WAV” extension.
NOTE
To cancel exporting, press the F1 (BACK) key.
5 Connect this unit to a computer using the USB
cable (see “Connecting with a computer” on page
92).
TASCAM DP-004 101
12–Troubleshooting
When working with any new piece of equipment
like the unit, it’s sometimes difficult to work out
whey something isn’t happening the way you
expect. The main thing is to take your time—after
all, you’re not paying hourly studio rates! Stop and
think. Ask yourself questions, like the ones below,
and you can usually find the answer.
Also, see the “Messages” section on page 106 for
the meaning of messages that may pop up on the
display. Consult this table when a message appears
when an operation cannot be completed by the unit.
Why can’t I hear any sound when I play back?
•• Are the LEVEL knobs of the tracks set to high
enough?
•• Is the MASTER LEVEL knob set to high enough?
•• Have you connected the /LINE OUT jack to your
monitoring system properly, and is your monitoring
system set up correctly?
•• Is the VOLUME control set to high enough?
102 TASCAM DP-004
Why does the sound I'm recording sound
distorted?
•• Are the LEVEL knobs of the INPUT A or INPUT B on
the top panel of the unit set too high? Is the input
source too loud?
•• Isn’t the monitor system distorted as the monitor
level is too high?
Why can’t I record?
•• You must have at least one track armed (REC indicator flashing) before you start recording by pressing
the PLAY (¥) key while pressing the RECORD (–)key.
•• Are inputs assigned to tracks (see “Assigning input
channels” on page 57)?
Why can’t my computer “see” the unit files?
•• Is the unit connected to the computer via the USB
terminal (see “Connecting with a computer” on
page 92)?
•• Before making the USB connection, songs, tracks,
or stereo masters are backed up or exported to the
FAT partition? (Files on the MTR partition cannot
directly be read.)
13–Specifications & Messages
Audio input/output ratings
Audio performance
INPUT A
Frequency response
Terminal: Standard phone jack, Unbalanced
Input impedance:
10kΩ min. (with INPUT A selectable switch set to MIC/LINE)
1MΩ (with INPUT A selectable switch set to GUITAR)
Standard input level: –10 dBV
Maximum input level: +6 dBV
Headroom: 16 dB
INPUT (MIC/LINE) → LINE OUT: 20 Hz to 20 kHz
INPUT B
Terminal: Standard phone jack, Unbalanced
Input impedance: 10kΩ min.
Standard input level: –10 dBV
Maximum input level: +6 dBV
Headroom: 16dB
/LINE OUT output
Terminal: 3.5 mm mini-phone jack (stereo)
• When line is connected
Standard output level: –16 dBV
Maximum output level: 0 dBV
• When headphone is connected
Maximum output level: 15 mW + 15 mW (when 32Ω headphone is
connected)
Distortion
INPUT (LINE) → LINE OUT: 0.05% max.
S/N ratio
INPUT (MIC/LINE) → LINE OUT: 81 dB min.
General
Recording media
SD card (512 MB - 2 GB) or SDHC card (4 GB - 32 GB)
File system
MTR partition: TASCAM original
FAT partition: FAT32
Battery life
About 8 hours (Record mode)
About 8.5 hours (Music playback mode)
(when measured with alkaline batteries. Battery life may vary
depending on the operating conditions)
TASCAM DP-004 103
13–Specifications & Messages
Operating temperature range
Recommended USB host controller
5 - 35°C
Intel chipset
Power consumption
Supported OS
1W
Windows
Windows 2000 SP4 or later, Windows XP and Windows Vista
Macintosh
Mac OS X 10.2 or later
Dimensions
155.0 (W) x 33.5 (H) x 107.0 (D) mm (w/o projections)
Weight
360 g (w/o batteries)
Optional accessories
AC adapter
PS-P520
Computer requirements
Windows
Pentium 300 MHz or faster
128 MB or more memory
USB (USB 2.0 recommended)
Macintosh
Power PC, iMac, G3, G4 266 MHz or faster
64 MB or more memory
USB port (USB 2.0 recommended)
104 TASCAM DP-004
Dimensions
13–Specifications & Messages
��������������������
������������
������������
����
���
��
����������
����������
������������
Block diagram
���������
�����
�����
���������
������
�����������
��
���
�����
��
�������
������
�����
������
�����
������
�����
������
�������������������
������������
������������������
����
���
��
������������������
����������
�����
���������
������
��������
��������
����
�������
������
�������������������
���������������������
�������������������
����������������
����������������������
�����
���
�������
�������
��������
��������
��
�����
�
�����
���
�����
���
�����
���
�����
���
��
�����
���
�������
�������
��������
��������
��
�����
�
��
�����
���
�������
�������
��������
��������
��
�����
�
��
�����
���
�������
�������
��������
��������
��������������������
��
�����
��
��
�����������
TASCAM DP-004 105
13–Specifications & Messages
Messages
The following popup messages alert you to conditions that may arise while you are using the unit. Consult
this table if you see something you do not understand.
Messages
Meaning and remedy
Empty Export Track
You are trying to export a track ("Track import and export" on page 97) which does not have anythng
recorded on it. Pick another tarck to eport.
File Not Found
You are trying to restore a song when there are no backed-up songs on the FAT partition ("Song backup and
restoration" on page 94).
I/O Too Short
You are trying to enter repeat mode, but the time between the IN and OUT points is too short. Make the time
longer.
Import File Not Found
You are trying to import a WAV file from the FAT partition when there are no WAV files there ("Importing tracks"
on page 97). Connect the unit to a PC and transfer some files to the FAT partition for import.
Import File Too Large
You are trying to import a WAV file from the FAT partition that is too large for the remaining space on the
partition. Free up some space on the (native) partion and try again.
In Bounce Mode
You tried to perform an action that cannot be done while in Bounce mode.
In Master Mode
You tried to perform an action that cannot be done while in Master mode.
In Repeat Mode
You tried to perform an action that cannot be done while in Repeat mode.
Master Track Not Found
You have tried to export a mastered mix track ("Exporting a stereo master" on page 100) when the song does
not have one. Master the song and then export the mix.
Master Track Too Large
You tried to export a master track which was too large for the remaining space on fthe FAT partition
("Exporting a stereo master" on page 100) . Connect the unit to a computer and free up some space on the
FAT partition.
106 TASCAM DP-004
13–Specifications & Messages
Messages
Meaning and remedy
No Disk Space
You tried to create a song, but there is not enough space on the partition to create a song ("Creating a new
song" on page 49). Free up some space and try again.
No Master Trk
You have tried to use a non-existent master track as the source in a track cloning operation ("CLONE
TRACK" on page 87). Select another source or master the song and try again.
No Song
You are trying to load a song from a partition that has no songs on it ("Loading a saved song" on page 48).
Change partitions ("Selecting the active partition" on page 47).
No Undo History
There are no actions to be undone. See "Undoing operations" on page 66.
Not Stopped
The transport is moving (not stopped, but playing back, recording, etc.) and you have pressed a key such as
the UN/REDO key which cannot be used until you press STOP.
Now Recording
You are trying to perform an action which cannot be done while recording.
Same Track
You cannot clone a track to itself. ("CLONE TRACK" on page 87.)
Song Protected
The song is protected ("Protecting songs" on page 53) and you are trying to change it (record or edit, etc.).
Unprotect the song.
Too Many songs
You have 250 songs on one partition. You must delete some before you can create another song.
Track Full
You are trying to import a file from the FAT partition to a track that has already been recorded to ("Importing
tracks" on page 97). You can only import to a blank track.
Trk Too Short
You are trying to master with the OUT point at the zero position ("Mixdown" and "Mastering" on page 62). Set
the OUT point ("Setting IN and OUT points" on page 73) and try again.
No SD Card
Insert an SD card after turning off the unit.
Invalid Card
Insert another SD card after turning off the unit, or format the card by MENU ® CARD ® FORMAT.
Protected Card
To record or edit, turn off the unit and un-protect the SD card.
Card Full
The SD card is full during recording.
Trk Edit Fail
Save the song and turn the unit off and then on, and perform track edit again.
Battery Empty
Replace the batteries with new ones or use a PS-P520 AC adapter (sold separately).
TASCAM DP-004 107
13–Specifications & Messages
Messages
Meaning and remedy
Battery Low
Replace the batteries with new ones or use a PS-P520 AC adapter (sold separately).
SD Size Error
Use an SD card larger than 512 MB.
Work Memory Full
Even if the card has enough remaining memory space, this error may occur when you record a long song or
edit a lot.
You may be able to continue the work if you clear the history ("Erasing the operation history" on page 68.)
which may increase the open work memory.
You may also be able to continue work by turning the unit off and then on again,which may increas the open
work memory.
SD Not Found
If any of these errors occur, turn the the unit power OFF and restart it.
If these error message continue to appear, please contact a TEAC Repair Center.
SD Read Busy
SD Write Busy
I/F Error
FileErr
Audio Rst Fail
SaveParam Fail
Mount Error
SD-Card Error!
108 TASCAM DP-004
14–Commonly-used Functions
This section is a brief guide to some operations on the
DP-004 which may not be immediately obvious from
looking at the panel controls.
Menu items are written like this: MENU ® CARD ®
FORMAT, meaning “press the MENU key, select the CARD
menu, and then the FORMAT action.
Key sequences are written like this: STOP + Ô means
“press and hold the STOP key and press Ô.”
The list of popup messages and their meaning
(“Messages” on page 106) may also be useful to you.
How to
Keys, etc. TO press
Description
Format the FAT partition
MENU ® CARD ® FAT REFORMAT
See "Reformat the FAT partition" on page 84.
Set the IN and OUT points
"IN/OUT, F3, F4"
See "Setting IN and OUT points" on page 73.
Edit or trim the IN and OUT points
"IN/OUT, F2"
See "Setting IN and OUT points" on page 73.
Use the USB connection
Connect the unit and a PC with the USB
cable.
See "Connecting with a computer" on page 92.
Remove the USB connection
Disconnect the unit from a PC
See "Disconnecting" on page 93.
Import a WAVfile to a track
MENU ® WAVE ® IMPORT TRACK
See "Importing tracks" on page 97.
Choose another partition as the active
partition
MENU ® CARD ® PARTITION
See "Selecting active partition" on page 47.
Tune a guitar or bass
MENU ® TUNER
See "Tuner" on page 77.
Find out the current partition
MENU ® INFORMATION
See "Viewing information" on page 79.
Make all of an SD card usable by a PC
MENU ® CARD ® SD INITIALIZE
See "Initializing SD cards" on page 85.
Format an SD card
MENU ® CARD ® FORMAT
See "Formatting cards and setting partition sizes" on
page 82.
Create a new song
MENU ® SONG ® CREATE
See "Creating a new song" on page 49.
TASCAM DP-004 109
14–Commonly-used Functions
How to
Keys, etc. TO press
Description
Create a stereo master track
REC MODE ® MASTER
See "Mastering" on page 62.
Export a stereo master to a PC
MENU ® WAVE ® EXPORT MASTER
See "Exporting a stereo master" on page 100.
Redo one operation
UNDO/REDO
See "Undoing operations" on page 66.
Undo one operation
UNDO/REDO
See "Undoing operations" on page 66.
Name a song
MENU ® SONG ® NAME EDIT
See "Editing names" on page 43.
Un-protect a song
MENU ® SONG ® PROTECT
See "Protecting songs" on page 53.
Display the song name
MENU ® INFORMATION
See "Viewing information" on page 50.
Copy a song
MENU ® SONG ® COPY
See "Copying songs" on page 51.
Delete a song
MENU ® SONG ® ERASE
See "Erasing songs" on page 52.
Back up a song to a PC
MENU ® BACKUP ® SONG BACKUP
See "Backing-up songs" on page 94.
Protect a song
MENU ® SONG ® PROTECT
See "Protecting songs" on page 53.
Save a song
MENU ® SONG ® SAVE
See "Saving a song" on page 49.
Load a song
MENU ® SONG ® LOAD
See "Loading a saved song" on page 48.
Delete the whole of a track
TRACK EDIT ® CLEAN OUT
See "CLEAN OUT" on page 88.
Insert silence at a point in a track
TRACK EDIT ® OPEN
See "OPEN" on page 90.
Cut and close up part a track
TRACK EDIT ® CUT
See "CUT" on page 89.
Remove a section of a track and
replace it with silence
TRACK EDIT ® SILENCE
See "SILENCE" on page 88.
Make an exact copy of (clone) a track
TRACK EDIT ® CLONE TRACK
See "CLONE TRACK" on page 87.
110 TASCAM DP-004
14–Commonly-used Functions
How to
Keys, etc. TO press
Description
Export a track's contents to PC
MENU ® WAVE ® EXPORT TRACK
See "Exporting tracks" on page 99.
Bounce tracks
REC MODE ® BOUNCE
See "Bouncing tracks" on page 69.
Format one partition
MENU ® CARD ® REFORMAT
See "Reformatting MTR partitions" on page 83.
Restore a song from a PC
MENU ® DATA BACKUP ® SONG
See "Restoring songs" on page 96.
RESTORE
Ping-pong (bounce) to ohter tracks
REC MODE ® BOUNCE
See "Bouncing tracks" on page 69.
Metronome settings
MENU ® METRONOME
See "Metronome" on page 76.
Use the metronome
MENU ® METRONOME
See "Metronome" on page 76.
Find out how much time is left for
recording
MENU ® INFORMATION
See "Viewing song information" on page 50.
Playback a created stereo master track
REC MODE ® MASTER PLAY
See "Mastering" on page 62.
Use the built-in mic
INPUT SETTING
See "Selecting the input source" on page 54.
Record a guitar
INPUT SETTING
See "Selecting the input source" on page 54.
Monitor the input signal in mono (or
stereo)
INPUT SETTING
See "Setting the monitoring mode" on page 55.
Change the track to which INPUT A/B
is assigned
ASSIGN
See "Assigning input channels" on page 57.
Change the interval time during repeat
MENU ® PREFERENCE
See "Setting interval between repetitions" on page 75.
Use the auto off function
MENU ® PREFERENCE
See "Turning the power off automatically" on page 78.
Change the screen contrast
MENU ® PREFERENCE
See "Setting the contrast" on page 46.
TASCAM DP-004 111
DP-004
TEAC CORPORATION
Phone: +81-42-356-9143
1-47 Ochiai, Tama-shi, Tokyo 206-8530 Japan
www.tascam.jp
TEAC AMERICA, INC.
Phone: +1-323-726-0303
7733 Telegraph Road, Montebello, California 90640, USA
www.tascam.com
TEAC CANADA LTD.
Phone: +1905-890-8008 Facsimile: +1905-890-9888
5939 Wallace Street, Mississauga, Ontario L4Z 1Z8, Canada
www.tascam.com
TEAC MEXICO, S.A. de C.V.
Phone: +52-55-5010-6000
Río Churubusco 364, Colonia Del Carmen, Delegación Coyoacán, CP 04100, México DF, México
TEAC UK LIMITED
Phone: +44-8451-302511
Suites 19 & 20, Building 6, Croxley Green Business Park, Hatters Lane, Watford, Hertfordshire. WD18 8TE, U.K.
TEAC EUROPE GmbH
Phone: +49-611-71580
Bahnstrasse 12, 65205 Wiesbaden-Erbenheim, Germany
www.teacmexico.net
www.tascam.co.uk
www.tascam.de
Printed in China