Please help! Trying to record from Tyros to Focusrite, sound is awful!

[Toril S]

Hello friends!
When I use my S970 I connect it to my focusrite using the line out jacks, and the sound is great. Tried with my T5 now. I must be doing something wrong, for the sound is awful! And I can't regulate it with the master volume like on the S970. What am I doing wrong? I have the Tyros speakers connected also.

[EileenL]

Check on the back of the keyboard that you are not plugging into AUX sockets

[tyrosaurus]

Hi Toril,

The Main Line Outs on a Tyros (all models) are controlled by the Master Volume control.

However the Aux Outs are not, and are at a fixed level.

Previous Tyros models had a separate dedicated socket for the TRS speaker system, which meant that you could still use the Main Line Outs for recording, or a mixer, or another speaker system. However Yamaha changed the connection for it's TRS-MS05 speaker system on the Tyros5 so that it used the Main Line Outs.

I assume that you are using the Aux Outs to feed the Focusrite interface and the signal from the T5 Aux Outs are likely to be overloading the inputs on the interface and distorting.

I don't know which Focusrite model you have, but on most audio interfaces there are Gain (or level) controls on the inputs.

So you should be able to adjust these (presumably lowering them in your case) to reduce the signal level. 

There is also usually a switch on the inputs to select for use with the very low levels from a guitar or microphone, or the higher levels (line levels) from a keyboard or similar device.  So you should also check for such a switch and set it to the appropriate setting.   You may well have been able to use the S970 on the more sensitive setting since you can turn down the Master Volume control on the keyboard to reduce the level of the signal going to the Focusrite.


Regards

Ian

[Toril S]

Thanks Ian. I am not satisfied with the sound from the fixed aux! But if I disconnect the external speakers I cannot hear what I am playing! My solution for now was to record the song on the audio recorder of the T5 and then import it into Audacity and convert to MP3.

[EileenL]

If you disconnect the speakers you can still listen to what you are playing through the head phones.

[Toril S]

Thanks Eileen!

[jlcorona]

How about connecting the focusrite to the headphones output?  Would it improve the recording sound?

[Toril S]

I have ordered a splitter so that I can have both the speakers and the Focusrite connected at the same time. It should work.

[andyg]

I have ordered a splitter so that I can have both the speakers and the Focusrite connected at the same time. It should work.

That's not guaranteed to work. Often you'll find that input and output impedances etc will be mismatched and you may get one output that's loud and one soft, so you'd be back to square one. A small, inexpensive mixer would be a better bet. See how the splitter goes first, though.

[Toril S]

Thanks Andrew. I was also thinking along these lines, but I will try it and see Or rather, hear