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Glossary
MT8XII—Owner’s Manual
MIDI
—An acronym for Musical Instrument Digital Interface. An internationally agreed stan-
dard that allows electronic musical instruments and audio equipment to communicate.
Mixdown
—The process of mixing the individual track signals into a well-balanced stereo mix.
Mixdown is the final stage of the multitrack recording process.
Multitracker
—An all-in-one recording and mixing device, such as the MT8XII, usually with
four or eight tracks.
Nominal Level
—See Operating Level.
One-Take Recording
—A recording technique in which all sounds are recorded in one go
(i.e., no overdubs). This is used for live recording.
Operating Level
—This is the signal level at which a piece of audio equipment is designed to
operate. The two most common operating levels are –10 dBV (316 mV), which is used for semi-
professional equipment, and +4 dBu (1.23 V), which is used for professional equipment.
Overdub Recording
—The process of recording additional sounds while listening to previ-
ously recorded sounds. It allows songs to built up track-by-track.
Panning
—A technique used to position sounds in a stereo mix.
Phone Jack
—A 1/4-inch socket commonly used on audio equipment.
Phono Jack
—Also know as an RCA jack, this type of connector is often used on semiprofes-
sional audio and video equipment.
Pinch Roller
—The small rubber wheel that pinches the tape between itself and the capstan to
drive the tape.
Ping-Pong
—A recording technique used to transfer (i.e., mix and rerecord) one or more
tracks to other tracks to free up those tracks for further recording.
Pre-Roll Point
—This is the point before the actual punch in point at which the Auto Punch
In/Out sequence starts. When the Auto Punch In/Out sequence is complete, MT8XII rewinds
automatically to the pre-roll point.
Post Fader
—A point in the signal path after a fader. The signals for the MT8XII AUX controls
are sourced post-fader. So as well as turn up the AUX control, you must also raise the fader. This
has the advantage that the level of the processed signal from the external effects processor is con-
trolled in unison with the unprocessed signal that is controlled by the fader.
Post-Roll Point
—This is the point five seconds after the actual punch out point at which the
Auto Punch In/Out sequence ends, and MT8XII rewinds automatically to the pre-roll point.
Punch In/Out
—A recording technique that allows you to rerecord specific sections of an exist-
ing track. MT8XII provides both manual and automatic punch in/out operations.
RTZ
—An abbreviation for Return To Zero. Pressing the [RTZ] button on the MT8XII rewinds
automatically to the 00:00 tape position.
Signal
—Sounds travel through audio equipment as electrical signals.
Signal to Noise Ratio (S/N)
—In an audio system, the difference between the nominal sig-
nal level and the residual noise floor, usually expressed as a ratio in decibels. It’s used as a measure
of an audio system’s noise performance.
SMPTE Timecode
—Pronounced “simpty”, SMPTE timecode is the timecode format used for
television tape recorders by the SMPTE (Society of Motion Pictures and Television Engineers)
in the United States and the EBU (European Broadcast Union) in Europe. Unlike FSK that con-
sists of simple clock information, SMPTE timecode contains clock and position information.
So playback can be started at any position on the tape. SMPTE timecode can be recorded on
Track 8 of the MT8XII. During playback, the SMPTE timecode is converted to MIDI Clock sig-
nals to control a MIDI sequencer. An optional SMPTE/MIDI converter is required for this.
