Alternative to interface and hauling gear...

[hudsonsaul]

Hi there,

I've been successfully recording the two bands I'm in (three piece & two piece) using a TASCAM US800, great simple device I purchased a while back thanks to this forum. I tend to use minimum of 4 tracks, all the way up to the available 8 depending on gear, room, etc. Its been heaps of fun experienting with mic placement, DAWs, basic mixing etc.

Sadly, the situation has changed, and we're in dire need to get some demo recordings and I can no longer haul all the mics, mic stands, interface, laptop, etc to these sessions and setup/packup. So I'm looking for an alternative simpler option, such as Zoom H4n, Tascam DR-40, or maybe even something a bit more pricey such as Zoom R16 (ideally not though).

Most likely the H4N seems the pick of the bunch. However could someone please explain to me the bare basics of this thing, it says 4 tracks, but does that mean I can simultaneously record 4 individual tracks, then export these to my DAW and mix each track accordingly? Or is it actually only able to record 2 unique tracks simultaneously? I'm hoping the former, but can't for the life of me find the answer.

Outside of the H4N, any other recommendations on how to capture as many individual tracks simultaneously as possible (played live - demo quality) without carrying & setting up all my gear constantly?

Much appreciated,
Hudson.

[Garf Richards]

Hey,

I was wondering, why not just get an interface that has multiple I/O, and just record directly into your DAW on your laptop?

You're a band so you'll to drag mics to location, unless mics are provided.

[Mr Clean]

I was wondering, why not just get an interface that has multiple I/O, and just record directly into your DAW on your laptop?

He already has an interface with the US800 - He's looking to ease up the carrying of gear and set up.

There is a discussion about the H4n HERE - You might like to read.

The R16 would probably be the better option with the 8 XLR/line inputs for more control over what you record.

I have the same set up as you for mobile recording, US800 and a laptop. It does a good job. I was fortunate with my old band that we had our own room with all our gear set up and mic'd up ready to go when we did record. You could look into hiring a room somewhere for a couple of days, leaving stuff set up to use your current set up.

I've never done the hand held recording route so I can't give an opinion on the results you'd get.

[ecc83]

The handheld recorders are basically a co-incident pair (I don't see how the other 2 tracks enter into the picture if you want to avoid extra mics and stands etc?) so you could easily do a test with the present AI and a pair of mics to see if you can get acceptable results. If the band has a good internal balance and you have a fair to decent room, a co-i pair stood where the sound is good should to the bizz.
I have such a recording done in the early 80's of a band using a Sony TC-153SD "pro" cassette machine and some dynamic mics that I have long forgotten the name of! I could wish for a spot mic on the lead singer but overall it is not a bad effort.

Dave.

[Justsomeguy]

You could look into hiring a room somewhere for a couple of days, leaving stuff set up to use your current set up.

^^^This^^^ would be my vote. You've already got all the gear, you're already happy with it how it works and what it can do, the issue seems to be purely logistical.

In the long run, and in an ideal world, rather than carting all the gear around, you could look at getting a permanent space where you can leave everything set up exactly how you want (or, at least, set up to some extent). it'd also give you much control over the room if it were your space. Where do you practice/record at the moment? is there any way of leaving some gear there when you're not practicing/recording? (even if it's just the mic stands and XLR cables)

Also, as this may be a bit too personal so please feel free not to answer, but when you say the "situation has changed", what do you mean? For example, and i'll try not to bore you, but i've had long term back problems for years which 3 years ago got considerably worse and put a stop to the vast majority of my musical activities. However, over the past three years i have managed to do some mobile recording and the only way i was able to do that was simply to ask somebody to help me lug stuff about. If the problem is transport based, is there no one who can help you with that? I know it can suck having to rely on others for help but it's sometimes the easiest solution to what would otherwise be almost impossible situations (if none of the above is relevant, please ignore; i was probably misreading stuff)