I got a 688 In October 1990 and I still have one. Best machine, ever!

For those seeing this video for the first time, some important information: The Tascam 688 and 238 are the ONLY 8 track cassette machines besides a TOA machine that can record ALL 8 tracks at once simultaneously. All others, from Yamaha, Fostex etc.. cannot record all 8. They have 8 tracks but it buses the record ins to two separate 4 track groups.

Man this was awesome to find, I found this unit and could find much info, and stoked for you detailed videos. Great work man. Glad to find you, keep it up. Onward.

I have the smaller brother (644), a fantastic unit, I use it all the time, once I figured out the scene display lol.. Its great for songwriting as all the distractions are out of the way :)

That 688 is a beast of a analog recorder ! Wish I had mine back for that smooth tape compression. I sold mine for computer head Ugh!!

Combined w the roland w30 w 8 outs....it was a win. Loved it....moved to Logic Audio from there EMAGIC Logic

I used to crank the speed all the way up on the tape. The quality would be better, love this machine.

I bought this when it first came out. It was reliable and sounded great. Had to use one track (8) for SMPTE striping to allow my vocals/guitars to sync with my MIDI tracks recorded on my Atari ST using Hybrid Arts SMPTETRK MIDI "DAW". It was reliable and was hard to sell it after I got married. Highly recommended.....

I like what you do

Everyone serious about recording their own songs should spend a lot of time using 4 and 8 track cassette machines to learn how to record creatively, given the restrictions imposed by multi-trackers: having to get performances arranged before recording, having to bounce tracks, not relying of a 'fix in the mix' approach. It forces you to think differently. Not relying on infinite tracks and 'editing' creates boundaries to work with, which focuses musical performance(s) and recording technique. All artists are bound by the limits of their medium and tools-take those boundaries away and a work loses something of its authenticity, integrity and artistry. Having the experience of working with restrictive analogue tools and equipment is liberating in an infinite, often soulless, digital world. There's a purity in 4 and 8 track cassette recording that DAW cannot offer. Try it and see for yourself.

Does your capstan motor run constantly when it is on ? Is the motor louder when it's in high speed ?

Hi! Thanks for making this video. I'm 💯 getting one! Question though, about the midi. I'm looking to send all my MPC outputs to the 688 for live mixing and record all 8 tracks at once. Will the midi sync come in handy or would it even matter for my setup since I'm recording it one take? Thanks!

Thanks for your vid! I have one and I'll dust it off and revive it!

Are you familiar with the other tascams like the 424 or 464 or 644? How does this compare in the SOUND department? I'm looking for the best sounding cassette recorder

man i've been trying to get stereo monitoring but nothing works. I'm using the scene number 12 and stuff but the panning knob just woulnd't work. if its hard panned, you get a full sound coming out of of both sides. if it's in the center, it sounds quiter still on both sides. same happens on the cue monitor and dual pan knobs. would you know what is that about? thank you !

Can you use the inserts during mixdown or tracking only?

Can you do a video .on how to sync up to a DAW there is nothing around in video format

Wonder how this compares to the Yamaha MT8X which can also do 8 tracks on one cassette?

How it sounds vs Fostex R8? Your opinion?

I have got one of these (impecable state) and would like to know how much would be an appropriate value to offer it. Any thoughts? Thanks!

Landon - I have a question. I have a bunch of music that I recorded from the 90’s on to a Tascam 488 (I believe it was just onto 4 tracks at the time, not the MKii which was Tascam’s first 8 Track). I recently came across a 688 locally that I am considering purchasing but I need to know if the 688 is backwards compatible before I take that plunge. Because, obviously, I’d like to recover all that old music 😊 So, can the 688 read 4 track tapes recorded on a 488? Thanks for any information you can provide.

What if you use one of those with one of those mp3 cassette adapters?

Wow chucking 8 tracks onto that thin strip of tape hey?

Hi! I recently rummaged through my dads old tech from back in the day and stumbled across this beast. I’d love to record live music onto the tape and then send them to my DAW however I don’t know what cables to use and how to use them. If anyone could help me out with this I’d appreciate it majorly!

Was this track recorded on it?

It'd be even cooler if I could afford one lol

Anyone know if you can simply record and creat music from scratch using analog dawless machines and no need for a computer for this? Simply plug into the tascam and start recording sound onto cassette tape or is all multitrack cassette recording consoles require computers and softwares? Please help

when you dump the 8 tracks to logic how are you synced up....so when you add more tracks all is aligned

I've got one for sale if anyone is looking. I got it from the former home studio of Richard Marx.

is multitrack in fl studio?

So I just received one of these that was unfortunately not packed well. Most of the functions seem to work as advertised except for a major one- I can't seem to get the thing to record anything to tape? The meters are working, I get sound in the head phones, monitors, etc. The tape runs, FF, rewinds, all of those functions, etc. However, when I go to play back what I supposedly recorded nothing? I followed the manual, pages 18-19, word for word and still nothing? I even tested my new cassette tapes just to make sure those weren't bad, but that wasn't it? I'm at a loss and may need to return the item? But I thought that I would try these 688 comment sections first, just in case I was totally missing/not trying something, etc. Anyone on here who may have some words of wisdom, know these units well, and might know what is going on, I would sure appreciate it- Thanks.

whats the price for one of those

If you could only own 1 tascam, would the 688 do it for you?

0:20 Duuuuuuude WTF Watch your levels, man xD

what strange if h0w they have that many tracks then putt it 0n cassette t0 us after master s0 why cant it all be d0ne 0n daw then fr0m daw t0 tape deck.

I had this machine. The tape recorder would never work.

the Tascam 238 kills this machine

ok if your recording synths but try classical guitar forget it tape is just for collectors i have a multitrack tape recorder and would never think of recording on it. it's just old tech would you buy a penny farthing if your looking for a bike.

To me 688 is waste of 900-1000.00! It's to big! It's too heavy! Just get tascam 424 You can link sync 2 of the units together. Only thing is 424 has no xlr mic inputs Take tascam 488mkii It's expensive like 900.00-1200.00!! It only has 2 xlr mic inputs! Only 2! Tascam 424 perfect size without being too big too heavy like tascam 488 mkii , tascam 688, tascam 644(also too big too heavy ,again 644 only has 2 xlr mic inputs!)

People want a 8 track analogue sound you need 1/2 tape running at proper speed.. What you get with these is the same has dropping your recording to 22lhz and 12 bits. Try it.. youll get the warm you looking for... Cut most hight by 3 db above 16khz. There ya go.. And put a tape plugin emulation Cost me 20$

Millenials discovering and playing with analog sound. What a waste of time