Cassette 4-tracking was a considerable micro-culture during the 80s and early 90s. While a cassette doesn’t have the sonic range seen in digital equipment or in high-end tape machines, it does have a certain quality that’s hard to replicate. The pinnacle of cassette multi-tracking was the Tascam Midistudio 688. No slouch, this workhorse has produced hit songs and is well-regarded by those who can harness its power.
The power of the Tascam 688 was also its curse. A quick look at the control panel gave the immediate urge to grab a manual. Nevertheless, once the muscle memory kicked in, the ability to work miracles with the 688 kicked in, too.
The most recognizable song recorded with the 688 was White Town’s “Your Woman” (in fact, the entire record Women In Technology was done on the machine).
If you’ve got your hands on one of these machines, chances are it’s second hand (they were first produced in 1990) and you’ll need to check the manual. It’s your lucky day, because I have a zipped up copy for you. Enjoy!
you are the best !!!! your doin it for the people cheers man!!
thank you very much for taking the time to do this. much appreciated. best of luck with everything you do.
Hey Thank you so so much for the manual muchly appreciate it. Not sure how well my Tascam is it has been in garage many yrs & was given to me. Let the fun begin.
cheers…Gemma
thanks man i have been looking for this manual for very long time thanks to you i now have it
Most detailed coverage of this machine ive seen. Thanks!
so the manual would suggest i could synch grooveboxes / drum machines to the MIDI out tempo -
does this actually work in real life?
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Yes, you should be able to. I’ve used a Roland D2 GrooveBox with it – I’ll see if I can make some better instructions on how to do the syncing when I get some spare time.
Congratulations for your sense of sharing ! It is precious.
I have bought one (50€) that needs some repairs but i just wonder if it’s worth doing it. I love vintage sound but the sound of the track “White Town’s – Your Woman” does not fit my ears (not precise) !
My first motivation to repair it is to use its preamps and route the signal to a “8 in” audio interface to a PC (Linux) directly thru the 8 analog outputs of the Tascam … without using the tape recorder.
I wonder :
1 – is it technically possible ? (seems yes as i’ve seen on your manual)
2 – Does the pre-amps still sound warm and clearer than the sound of “White Town’s”. I guess yes as i will just use the “transistor” warmth.
Once again : Thanks, you’re the man !!!
Jerome
I actually bought one of these beauties new. Mine has been in storage for the last few years and I now intend to take it out and get it fully cleaned, serviced and hopefully brought back up to spec. It was / is a fantastic sounding machine and undoubtedly the pinnacle of multitrack cassette recording and gave some of the open reel multitracks a run for their money too (the Fostex, Tascams etc.). It really was a joy to use and no expense was spared in it’s construction and it really does feel like a substantial piece of equipment when using it. By the way, it would be helpful if you could perhaps put contact details of recommended service / repair up too. Well done for keeping the love going on these impressive machines.
I saw one of these Tascam 688 MidiStudios at a Pawn Shop for $150. I just would like to use it to mic a big drum set with 8 mics and send it to a PA system. I assume this baby could handle that, right?
That sounds like a good deal.
Hi!
Thanks a lot I’ve found this page….I really need a copy of Tascam 688 manual…your generosity is highly appreciated,please send me a copy..[ed email redacted]…thank you,thank you!
alvin:)
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It’s depressing to me how many people have commented about just using it as a mixer… If one of you have a 688 that you strictly want to use as a mixer, I would happily trade you my Alesis Studio 32 board for it, or some other similar newer board if you’d prefer. I would love to have a 688 to record on!! ian at soundhole dot org…
The PDF is on the site – I had to zip it to save on bandwidth :-)
I can understand why people would want to use it as a mixer – Tascam isn’t making any new cassette 8-track tape heads anymore, so depending on the wear of the unit, the mixer may be the only salvageable part of it. Mind, a wise producer once told me that “rewind time is thinking time.”
Thankyou so much for your thoughtfulness & kindness.
That manual is a necessity!
May you be happy & well & inspired Paul
I bought mine in feb this year , cost just under £300 and with it i got original manual and original box! The mixer was mainly used to record drums, but the tape recorder was switched off by use of a modifide switched made and fitted right hand side under the ledge level with the cassette lid. So the heads and transport are like new. The channels sound great but got some static .The machine takes time to get used to cos the way its routes it self. Hey great beast!
I bought one of these new (around $3,500.00 US) in the late eighties and have never been disappointed in it. A few years ago I thought I might be better off to upgrade to a digital storage format, so it has been in storage since I purchased a Mac-Book Pro and started experimenting with Garage-Band about 4 years ago.
Just for giggles, I retrieved the 688 from storage a few days ago and it still works great. Once I used it again, I suddenly remembered why I fell in love with it 20 years ago. It has a rich, unmatched sound, that’s hard to get with any other recording equipment.
Hey! Love the sound on my 688 but I’m unable to record individual tracks in DUAL mode… (that is, plugging synths / drum machines directly in with 1/4″ cables…) Anyone know how to do this?
Hey Jordan. If I recall, Dual mode is just a separate mixer to create a stereo mix…I think if you are talking about using the XLR or 1/4 inch jacks you need to select the correct input for a given channel and assign them (up to 8) to individual busses for recording to individual channels.
hello, i have a tascam 688 midistudio. i want to sync it up to my powerboox mac laptop computer. i use garageband mostly, can use logic. has this been tried before? what do i need to make this happen? thanks, johnny
Hey Thanks for the manual. I have a 688 and my son was just given one for free. He could really use a manual. I have just pulled mine out of mothballs for a on location demo. The 688 performed great except that I cannot rout anything to group 6 for some reason. It will play back through track 6 and channel 6 works fine when routed to any other group. Last time I used it it was fine. If I take a line out of group 6 direct out there is nothing, so the problem seems to be between the output of whatever channel is being used and the output of group 6. The vu meter works on playback but shows nothing from an input, dual or main.
Hope someone can help.
Baz
Several tracks that ended up on Morphine albums were done at Mark Sandman’s Hi-N-Dry studio on a 688 with just a couple of mics.. Sound great.
ps – any one know any other notable albums/tracks that were done on the 688?
Hi im trying to download your tascam 688 manual but wont work
any suggestions?? And thanks for posting that free manual i just bought one of these beast but need a manual lots to learn about i
Thanks Pierre