UK Vintage Radio Repair and Restoration Discussion Forum - View Single Post - Akai 4000DB

TIMTAPE · 12th Nov 2019, 7:42 am

Michael, Paul is probably right: the levels are too high for your Berry converter.

Changing the internal playback reference levels is really a last resort. Much easier as Paul says to lower the signal level from after it exits the machine via a "pad".

Have you set the Berry switch to "line" rather than "phono"?

The little 202 converter is very inexpensive but should provide more than adequate results for what you are attempting. It should have a (self) noise floor well below that of your best pre recorded tapes.

The record meters in most digital recording software are not VU meters. They are peak reading. The maximum level really is absolute maximum. There is nothing above it but distortion. If that top bar is illuminating at all, even momentarily, we are recording too high. In practice we can record with peaks perhaps 10 db or more below that maximum.

12th Nov 2019, 7:42 am	#4
TIMTAPE Octode Join Date: Jul 2006 Location: Perth, Western Australia Posts: 1,969	Re: Akai 4000DB - Output level query Michael, Paul is probably right: the levels are too high for your Berry converter. Changing the internal playback reference levels is really a last resort. Much easier as Paul says to lower the signal level from after it exits the machine via a "pad". Have you set the Berry switch to "line" rather than "phono"? The little 202 converter is very inexpensive but should provide more than adequate results for what you are attempting. It should have a (self) noise floor well below that of your best pre recorded tapes. The record meters in most digital recording software are not VU meters. They are peak reading. The maximum level really is absolute maximum. There is nothing above it but distortion. If that top bar is illuminating at all, even momentarily, we are recording too high. In practice we can record with peaks perhaps 10 db or more below that maximum.