Tascam interface Last Straw (bye bye Tascam - hello MOTU)

[spantini]

Ya lost me at gophers

Yes. That was from The Hitchhiker's Guide to HomeRecording.com

Both I and my son in France have the bigger M4 but all else is I think the same? The interface/drivers are indeed very stable* I have never used the power switch on mine but then I don't have it set up all the time and just plug the USB cable into my W10 laptop as needed. Yes, the control panel comes up and shows sample rate, sample size etc. Close that and good to go. I also have an old W7 lappy and the M4 does not behave quite the same way as on ten but still delivers perfect audio.

I 'think' the combo jacks are balanced line inputs when you insert a TRS but HZ guitar inputs for TS.

*The M4 superseded a Native Instruments KA6 Mk1 and that had equally stable drivers and low latency.

Dave.

Mine's set up all the time, so the ON/OFF switch is handy. You must be correct on the combo jacks because there's no switching for inputs (Mic/Line/Inst).

 

[TalismanRich]

I've had the Tascam 16x08 for years, and once they released the current driver version, all issues with the interface vanished. It doesn't matter if the interface is on or off when I boot up, WIndows updates haven't caused any problems. The 3.x drivers were tempermental, sometimes it would glitch, but a power cycle usually fixed it. I think the current driver is 4.0. It's been out for about 3 years and is solid.

I thought about picking up something like a Motu to use with my laptop, but I really don't need it. I just end up using my Zoom recorders for portable units.

 

[Random dude]

I have the TASCAM US-1800. The last driver is from something like 2016, but it works perfectly, even on my new laptop. I actually think I traded my 8-input TASCAM interface (can't remember the model umber) with Chili a few years ago, to get this one.

I've had problems with this interface, but it was never the interface's fault. It just seemed like it was because the symptoms would make me think it was...stuttering, freezing, glitching. Turns out it was my USB hub. Other times, it was my PC trying to install an update it wasn't able to.

If you already got the MOTU, great. But I can almost guarantee that there's nothing wrong with your TASCAM. It could be as simple as a bad USB cable. Of course, I don't know for sure. It might very well be your TASCAM. But previous experience leads me to giving it the benefit of the doubt. In other words, you could probably sell it and the buyer will have no problem....I think.

 

[DM60]

My TASCAM 1800 has been rock solid. On the USB front, I have always had it connected to the USB port on the MB, never a hub. Latest driver as stated, 2016, it just works. I even upgraded my computer and had no issues. It performs even better now I have added more memory and a better CPU. Pretty good interface that I have used for at least 10 years.

 

[Random dude]

My TASCAM 1800 has been rock solid. On the USB front, I have always had it connected to the USB port on the MB, never a hub. Latest driver as stated, 2016, it just works. I even upgraded my computer and had no issues. It performs even better now I have added more memory and a better CPU. Pretty good interface that I have used for at least 10 years.

Yeah, same here. About 10 years, too. I also have it plugged straight in, no hub. But my USB hub that was being used for other things is what caused havoc at one point in time. I love this interface, and it happens to give me the exact amount of inputs I need without ever having to un-plug or swap anything out.

 

[spantini]

I've had my US-2x2 for 7 years, and for the past 5 years it's been always on as my PC was always on - mostly sleeping. It's always had the factory USB cable and was only disconnected when I moved to a new location 5 years ago, then back on 24/7 again.

It's always performed very well, aside from the driver being kicked off with each Windows update. Then a while back, after a power outage and reboot, the interface lights were very dim and it would not function. I unplugged the wall wart, plugged it back in, then the power light returned at full brightness and the interface worked again. I always suspected something happened internally at this point - damage of some kind - but it continued to perform well with no further indications until about 4 weeks ago when it shut off in the middle of a Reaper session, taking the session with it (cleared the screen to desktop). When I got the interface back up again, everything was in MONO at lower output, even when I panned tracks it stayed MONO and output diminished further. While playing with that, without listening to any playback, all of a sudden I heard crackling and clicking and then it just fizzled to dead silence.

 

[spantini]

I've had the Tascam 16x08 for years, and once they released the current driver version, all issues with the interface vanished. It doesn't matter if the interface is on or off when I boot up, WIndows updates haven't caused any problems. The 3.x drivers were tempermental, sometimes it would glitch, but a power cycle usually fixed it. I think the current driver is 4.0. It's been out for about 3 years and is solid.

I thought about picking up something like a Motu to use with my laptop, but I really don't need it. I just end up using my Zoom recorders for portable units.

I went straight from the 2.x drivers to 4.0. There seemed to be a slight improvement, but I'm not sure I could attribute that to 4.0.

 

[Chili]

I have the TASCAM US-1800. The last driver is from something like 2016, but it works perfectly, even on my new laptop. I actually think I traded my 8-input TASCAM interface (can't remember the model umber) with Chili a few years ago, to get this one.

Good to see you again, hope you're doing well. Glad to hear you're still getting some miles out of that tascam.

 

[Random dude]

Good to see you again, hope you're doing well. Glad to hear you're still getting some miles out of that tascam.

Yes, I thought it died about 3 years ago, but I changed the USB cable and it's still working fine. Nice to hear from you.