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Basic mixdown

So you have a recorded a track and then recorded a few more on top.

You have already started mixing.

Mixing simply refers to playing multiple sources at once and combining them into one sound.
In the case of Multitracking, we combine the output of multiple channels and combine them in to one Master channel. The output of which we have our headphones plugged in to.

The ART of mixing is a whole different ball game! I don't use the word 'ART' lightly. There are many factors to take into account and also whole books devoted to the subject (Try this book by Paul White for a good start). Some mixing techniques will be covered in other articles but such a big subject requires research from any source you can get. Google is your friend.

We will skip the various mixing options like EQ, send/return, panning and mastering effects for the sake of getting a finished product quickly.

so straight on to.... 

Mixdown
A mixdown, aka: final mix, is the process for combining the multiple channels into one stereo channel. The MRS8 has a dedicated Master Channel that includes 2 tracks just for the Mixdown.

From now on, our song (Rhythm track + Track1 + Track2) will be referred to collectively as the 'mix'

The first thing is to get the levels right (I can hear someone at the back groaning "Not levels again?")

  1. If you changed the Master Channel volume earlier; return it to '0'
  2. Adjust each Channels faders in turn while listening to the whole mix.
    • Get an even balance between the sounds.
    • Run through the whole thing.
    • Can you identify each instrument?
    • Is one instrument over powering the others?
  3. Now play the whole thing again but this time watching the bars on the right hand side of the screen marked 'L' & 'R'. This is the overall volume of your song. There a 2 bars because the output is stereo.
  4. We want the bar to just reach the '0' mark as before when setting the recording level
  5. Use the Master fader to make any adjustments.
  6. When you are happy, tap the [STATUS KEY] of the master channel until it is red.
  7. Press [ZERO] then [RECORD] then [PLAY] to begin the mixdown.
  8. You will hear the whole song again in real time.
    • Don't touch any of the faders, they will affect the Mixdown.
  9. When finished, hit [STOP].
  10. Tap the master channels [STATUS KEY] until it is lit green.
    • You will notice all the other channels mute.
  11. Tap [PLAY] to listen back to your final mix.

What you are hearing now is a new recording on the dedicated Master tracks. The original Tracks are still available, but only when you set the master tracks to mute ([status key] unlit)
You can only either play the Master Tracks or the regular tracks.

Where now?
Now your song is ready to transfer onto a different medium. Quickest way is to attach a tape recorder to the Master outputs on the back of the MRS and hit record on the tape player while playing the Master Tracks.

Many people like to transfer there work to PC to be converted to a .WAV.

My advice would be to do both of these and more. Get you song into any format you can and listen to it in as many players as possible. With each listen you will identify weaknesses and strengths of the mix and use the experience to improve the next one.

How to Save your Tracks
Go to the zoom web site and down load the file manager software available for free.

Then take the SD card from the MRS and plug it into a card reader attached to your PC. Opening the files with the file manager software requires to first select the folder containing your project on the SD card with the right side explorer that comes with the Card Manager.

For this, you need to
  1. Select the drive corresponding to your SD reader.
  2. Select one of the PROJxxx folders, where xxx is a number from 0 to 999, the same number assigned inthe Zoom MRS-8 unit for your project
  3. After selecting that project, you will see the buttons at the left changing from white to blue. These buttons are associated with drop downs. Each of these couples represent one of the 8 tracks of the unit. The blue button means that this track was selected while using the Zoom. The drop down allows you to select which one of your 10 virtual tracks to choose.
  4. Make sure that you have at least one track's button in blue, and that you have selected the right virtual track. If it is the master track that you want, it's the orange button at the bottom. It does not change color, it only gets depressed an raised.
  5. Click on the Export button. A "Save As" dialog will pop up, letting you save the wave file where you want, under the name that you want.
That's it. I recommend you to save your files one by one, so you'l be able to manage them to your liking.

Here's a Summary of the basic process.