Newbie needs gear selection help

Reilley

Reilley

New member
I'm brand new at this, and technologically challenged, so to speak.

I need a 4-track analogue recorder, capable of recording 3 or 4 voices, and doing some basic dubbing/mixing. I'm not looking for sophistication, but would like a good quality tape when finished. We have to capture some harmonies. Used or new is OK. It can be as small as a toaster or big as a smallish suitcase.
Any suggestions would be much appreciated.
Reilley
 
Well, that's a pretty narrow definition.

For new equipment, you're pretty much looking at the Tascam 424mkIII, for best overall features and sound quality. May be found new at www.musiciansfriend.com for $329, also at most Guitar Centers/same.

There's also the NEW Tascam 414mkII Portastudio, which is a capable recorder, and a little smaller and lower-tech than the 424mkIII, but for about $249/new.

For used equipment, I'd say try to find:
-the mint Tascam 246, for best overall feature package and hifi in a vintage format analog Portastudio, full-mixer/4-track recorder, 2x-speed hifi recording.

-Second choice, a mint Tascam 244 Portastudio, full-mixer/4-track recorder, 2x-speed hifi recording.

-Third choice, a mint Tascam 234 Syncaset, can accept 4-Mic inputs directly & records 4-simultaneously, with limited onboard stereo mixdown capability, only. 2x-speed hifi recording. [No full mixer like a Portastudio]. This option leaves the choice open in the future to integrate it with a more capable outboard mixer, f/i the Tascam M30.

-Fourth choice, a mint Tascam Porta One, especially good for remote field recording, with battery op and strap buttons, but is a less complex & smaller unit, with 1x-single speed recording only, [more lofi than 2x-speed recording].

Remember, to search out one of these used units ABOVE to be in mint condition, as they are 15-20 year old machines, but still may be found as mint used equipment, if you shop hard enough.;)

I JUST REMEMBERED ANOTHER WINNER!

GO FIND the barely used, almost new, a couple years old...

-TASCAM 424mkII Portastudio, which as USED is less $ than the new 424mkIII, AND yet, you're dealing with a fairly new & capable 4-track Portastudio full-mixer/4-track recorder, w/2x-speed hifi recording. Issued and sold as new until 1997, and therefore, you're not up against some of the possible maintenance issues of 20-year old gear.

EDIT: Make the 424mkII my FIRST choice recommendation of USED gear, and the others [246/244/234/PortOne] after that.

Okay?

Which of the above 4-track recorders do I have and use?

All of them!;)
 
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Which of the above 4-track recorders do I have and use? All of them!
Click to expand...


What a showoff!:D

Hey, ARP, I've been looking at the 424mkii for my brother as he wants to bust in to recording and I started with the original 424 and loved it.

Why do you think the other models you listed would be better in a mint condition compared to the 424? I'm just curious. Thanks.
 
Sure. Maybe I wasn't clear. The 424mkII was an afterthought,...

but I'd place it at the top of the USED gear list, specifically because of features, price, and the fact that it's just a few-year-old machine, and therefore is easier to find as mint, and will just be newer overall.

I can't say enough of the 424mkII, as it's one of my favorite machines. I especially like the topmouned XLR and patch connectors, flatter no-nonsense design, excellent & bright LED/flourescent meter. Love especially the flat grey color! Plus, it's a truly self-contained Portastudio unit, where the new 424mkIII and 414mkII have external power supplies, technically making them 2-piece units. I know, that's picking!

Anyway, I like the 424mkII especially as much as the others I've mentioned, and would place it on the top of the USED gear list. I'd assume most people would be more comfortable with bidding on used gear that was 5 years old, more than they'd be with 20 year old gear, but it's all relative.

The 246, 244 and 234, IMO, are superior units, that should not be overlooked simply because they're 15-20 years old. Design aspect of the 246, alone, dwarfs any 4-track Portastudio it's compared to, even the 424mkII/III. But, it's a 15-20 year old machine, that's a little harder to find as mint.

1) 424mkII
2) 246
3) 244
4) 234

Used units worth having. The 424mkII hits the top of the list, simply because it's newest. The 246 surely kicks it's butt, feature for feature, but is an older machine. There's a relative choice there, eh?

Thanx for asking.;)
 
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PS: I actually don't have or use the 414mkII,...

but I'd consider getting one just for fun, if the price was right.

I have all the others I mentioned, though, FWIW.;)
 
Hey!

How about the TASCAM 22-4?

That was/is a compact 4 track reel to reel that ran at 15 ips on 1/4" tape and had the same fidelity as the 34 only smaller and more compact! It could only fit 7.5 inch reels, which made it smaller.

That would be about the size of a small suitcase and offer professional level fidelity over the Portastudio cassette stuff which I would term as home stereo fidelity at best.

Team it up with a TASCAM M106 Mixer and you've got some serious recording quality there as long as your microphones don't require phantom power. The M106 was a very clean and compact mixer and had great sound clarity and quality to the build construction. I know. I used to own one when I had my A3340S back in the 80's.
 
-AHEM- That's two suitcases!

I mean, no offense, of course, but I thought of that. The 22-4 is indeed small, 4-track and hifi, but requires an external mixer,... a second small suitcase.

The question seemed to be about a single, small, self contained unit, that was no larger than to fit in a small suitcase, so the above references are my answer, all single, self-contained units, incl. the 234 which funtions with or without a mixer/optional.

If you're looking at lugging more gear, then the door is wide open. F/I, the 22-4/M106, the 34B, the 34/M30, etc. The 388 is a super-nice 8-track Portastudio-like unit, but is best if carried by two people, or in a flight case with rolling casters would be ideal.

Anyway, for however much gear you want to lug & carry, there's gear for you!;)
 
Ahem II

Ok!

Scrap the M106 and get a Soundcraft Notepad mixer. It's just as clean as the M106 and is 1/4 the size and weight.

Put the the 22-4 into the suitcase and strap the mixer to your chest like a bomb and walk into a crowded room for fun to see how many people freak out and run screaming that the next Uni-bomber has arrived on scene.

Cheers! :)
 
Now that you've mentioned it,... I want to get a 22-4.

I had even scored one at a super-low $130, that appeared mint, but due to some other irregularities on the auction, I bailed on the bid, post auction.

Yeah, the mint 22-4 has been on my radar for a while now! I like it a lot, like GFM said, because it's 15ips/4-track on a smaller 7" reel format, smaller, highly capable unit.

I can't wait to land one, AAMOF!;)
 
FWIW, I've actually travelled with a 424mkII in a small backpack, [daypack/bookbag].

It travels really well. I carried the 4-track, mics and accessories very easily in a small backpack, [daypack, not the huge hiking/camping backpack!]

Beyond that, I used to travel with my 244 in a padded flight case, back in the day.

I even took my 38 & M30 mixer out for site-field recording, in two large padded flight cases,... but those were some suitcases to lug! You know it!
 
I'm.... glad I asked.

Thanks for all this. info.

So, uh, where would I find these critters besides eh-Bay?
(That's the Canadian ebay...chuckle) Music (ie guitar) stores ?
 
I'm curious as to why the 246 kicks the 424 when it comes to features. I looked at the 246 and couldn't tell how it was better (if both were in mint condition.)

Thanks for the answers. It's very nice to have you around here having owned both and actually making good comparisons. :D
 
Reilley said:
77 minutes west of Toronto, by car.
Click to expand...

There's an excellent store just north of Toronto called Tele-Tech, in Markham Ontario.

They specialize in used professional studio gear and have a great selection of stuff there as well as a great service department that can fix almost anything under the sun if it's analog.

I will get all the contact info and add it to this post as soon as I can find the info for you.

Cheers! :)
 
Yes, please do, FM, and thanks.

Thanks to all. This is concise info.

Reel Person, is it possible for you to briefly describe the difference between the MK II and the MK III,
Tascam 424? Thanks again.
 
The 246 kicks ass, first of all, because it's a 4-buss mixer matrix.

So, any of 246's 6-input channels, with full EQ, Aux and channel strip, can be routed to any of 4 output busses, and thus, to any 4 tape tracks.

A 4-buss design [246] is a lot more advanced than a 2-buss design, [L/R-Stereo], like on the 424, [8x2 mixer] but the 424 gets added utility with the DIRECT-to-4 recording mode. Still, direct-to-4 as in the 424std/II/III is not as high an engineering feauture as true 6x4, 4-buss mixer, [246].

Also, the 246's dark brown motif, with real VU meters [6], and wildly bright colored knobs, makes the 246 an example of vintage 4-track Portastudio engineering excellence.

The 246's design features go well beyond the 424's. On the other hand, a 424mkII is still a fine machine, and it's relatively a lot newer, to say nothing of the still-available-as-new 424mkIII, which IMO is the best analog new 4-track out there.

Vintage equipment, as in the 246, is a whole other level of engineering, when you get down to it, on several choice Tascam units, starting but not ending with the 246.

That being said, I do have the 424mkII and 424mkIII, and they're fine recorders that I like very much. I produced a whole album's worth of cover material on the 424mkII, the [Dave's] Ramones Tribute Album [cd] that was part of my 'Davemania' 4-cd set.

But, stacking up the 246 & the likes of the 424, the 246 wins, and I have a 246, also. [two, acutally]./DA

- We were talking about self-contained 4-track analog recorders, eh?

From notebook sized to moderate-suitcase-sized analog 4-trackers, means nothing to me, except "Tascam Portastudio", with the exception of the "Tascam 234 Syncaset", which is an overdubbing 4-tracker, with cue/stereo mixer, but not a full mixer, and therefore is a "Syncaset" and not a "Portastudio".

Maybe I should sign off, before I repeat myself any more.

I'll admit, that I'm a 4-track analog fanatic, as well a a vintage analog fanatic of all track numbers and formats, and it's a tough decision, based on what's out there.

You want top of the line in brand new equipment, 4-track analog, then go GC or musiciansfriend, and get the brand new 424mkIII.

If you're into the used/vintage scene, then there's a LOT of equipment out there, and you just have to shop and bid on a truly mint item, which I assure you, people are dragging out of their closets from time to time, in Like-New-in-box condition, and selling them on EBAY. I assure you, it's possible still to find absolutely mint items that are 15-20 years old, right now and until further notice.

Case in point, among many other things, I have two very mint 246's, that look new-in-box, and function perfectly. Got them for an appreciably good deal, too. That's just an example, but the deals are out there. Enough about me.

GOSH, forgot to mention, that the 246 has 2-band SWEEPABLE EQ, and the 424mk2/3 has 3-band EQ w/2-FIXED and 1-SWEEPABLE, so there's a relative difference there. It's a fine hair to split, but I think the 2-band sweepable [246-EQ] is better. YMMV.

Good luck! C'ya;)
 
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Well, the 424mkII and 424mkIII are very similar, with certain stark differences.

The 424mkIII is still available as new, and the 424mkII is only available as used.

The 424mkIII has 6-full input-channel mixer strips, complete with Aux and EQ on every channel, and the 424mkII only has 4-full mixer strips. Both the mk2 and mk3 have 8 inputs, total, but the mk3 gives you two extra full channel strips. The remaining [4] and [2] inputs are line-inputs only, on the mk3 and mk2, respectively.

The 424mkIII requires a SEPARATE power module, [included], and the 424mkII has a simple AC line cord, and an INTERNAL power supply. Don't ask me why, but I think that's a significant differnce, worth noting.

The 424mkIII is a curved shape and BLUE, while the 424mkII is a flat shape and GRAY.

The 424mkIII's connectors are all on the BACK, and the 424mkII's connectors are mounted on the TOP. Another significant difference.

The 424mkIII's tape door cover is a simple swinging manual design, and the 424mkII's tape door cover is a spring-loaded-release door, that springs up on it's own when depressed.

The 424mk3 and mk2 BOTH run DUAL tape speeds, being NORMAL and HIGH, [switchable].

The 424mk3 and mk2 BOTH HAVE the SAME LED/Flourescent meter display.

The 424mk3 and mk2 BOTH have 4-XLR Input connectors, for XLR-connecting mic cables.

The 424mk3 and mk2 BOTH have Aux-Send and Rcv, for effects loops,... a moderate-to-advanced technique of adding effects to your tracks. "Effects-loops",... remember that for future use.

So, there are some differences, but the 424mk3 and 424mk2 both have basically the same mixer, same tape & track format, same switch-matrixing tape assignment, [BUSS-MODE & DIRECT-MODE recording].

There's a pretty thorough rundown of features and differences between the 424mk3 and 424mk2.

Thanx for asking!

I'll try to post pics, to follow!

SEE: TASCAM 246




;)
 

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