pete12string
New member
I'm looking to replace my Fostex VF-80. It served me well for many years but some control buttons are starting to give me trouble. Time to move on...
I do home recordings as a hobby for my own pleasure. Recordings consist of a variety of music types, but mostly "blues" - acoustic and electric. I mic my acoustic guitars and for electrics, I mic the amp. I will sometimes use a Boss DR-660 drum machine. I also use various percussion (bongos, tambourine, shakers, washboard, etc). One or two Vocal tracks. So far, I've been putting electric bass direct in. I use Rode NT1A mics and a Shure SM57. For the most part, recording 2 tracks simultaneously has been sufficient for me.
I like the idea of recording on a separate unit as opposed to directly onto computer. I have a laptop that's a few years old and I don't think it has the power to do recording very well. However, I do like the idea of being able to import my music into something like Reaper or Audacity for tweaking. I also need to have XLR and 1/4" inputs and be able to record at least 2 tracks simultaneously.
All that being said, I narrowed my search to these. The TASCAM does not look like it has the ability to operate as an "audio interface". Not sure what that means or how big a deal it is. I can still export files to computer and import them into the software I suppose. I'm not very savvy on the computer recording world... Help me out here.
What are the advantages/disadvantages of these? Which one will serve me best? I'm thinking one of the the Zoom units but am not sure. Will the TASCAM do all I need?
TASCAM DP-008EX ($200) or TASCAM DP-008 (can get one used at $150)?
Zoom R8 ($300) or is the R16 ($400) worth the extra cost?
Zoom: What's the advantage of "audio interface"? What can I do with that that I couldn't do with the TASCAM?
If there are other, better options, I'd like to know that too. $400 is the max I'd like to spend...
HELP!
Thanks,
Pete
I do home recordings as a hobby for my own pleasure. Recordings consist of a variety of music types, but mostly "blues" - acoustic and electric. I mic my acoustic guitars and for electrics, I mic the amp. I will sometimes use a Boss DR-660 drum machine. I also use various percussion (bongos, tambourine, shakers, washboard, etc). One or two Vocal tracks. So far, I've been putting electric bass direct in. I use Rode NT1A mics and a Shure SM57. For the most part, recording 2 tracks simultaneously has been sufficient for me.
I like the idea of recording on a separate unit as opposed to directly onto computer. I have a laptop that's a few years old and I don't think it has the power to do recording very well. However, I do like the idea of being able to import my music into something like Reaper or Audacity for tweaking. I also need to have XLR and 1/4" inputs and be able to record at least 2 tracks simultaneously.
All that being said, I narrowed my search to these. The TASCAM does not look like it has the ability to operate as an "audio interface". Not sure what that means or how big a deal it is. I can still export files to computer and import them into the software I suppose. I'm not very savvy on the computer recording world... Help me out here.
What are the advantages/disadvantages of these? Which one will serve me best? I'm thinking one of the the Zoom units but am not sure. Will the TASCAM do all I need?
TASCAM DP-008EX ($200) or TASCAM DP-008 (can get one used at $150)?
Zoom R8 ($300) or is the R16 ($400) worth the extra cost?
Zoom: What's the advantage of "audio interface"? What can I do with that that I couldn't do with the TASCAM?
If there are other, better options, I'd like to know that too. $400 is the max I'd like to spend...
HELP!
Thanks,
Pete