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dmtaspanky
New member
Does any1 know if there's a digital recorder with 4 or more XLR inputs that can record 4 or more tracks simultaneously, and costs less than £400?
coloradojay
New member
A used Roland VS 880 can be had in that price range. I used an 880ex for a while and it worked pretty well. The 880 has 4, 1/4" inputs, and the 880ex has 6. You can get 2 more channels into them with SPDIF digital.
If you want to use condensor mics, you'll also need phantom power.
If you want to use condensor mics, you'll also need phantom power.
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dmtaspanky
New member
Thanks Coloradojay, but wud i have to buy loads of XLR-1/4 converters for that recorder? (all my mics are XLR phantom power i think!) I was thinking about getting a cheap mixer that i cud plug them all into, which wud then have 1/4 inch outputs that i cud route to a dig. recorder? (im a 1st time recorder so i have no idea!) All i have is a set of audio technica drum mics, but i want to record acoustic guitar (maybe some electric), prob some sax, and my drums. Wud my drum mics do for all that? Sorry for all the Qs but i really am clueless!
Bottom line is: I have bout £500 and a set of drum mics, want to have some fun recording my guitar, sax and drums, (which i can then transfer to my computer), and want to use more than two mics on the drums. Can i do it?!
Bottom line is: I have bout £500 and a set of drum mics, want to have some fun recording my guitar, sax and drums, (which i can then transfer to my computer), and want to use more than two mics on the drums. Can i do it?!
coloradojay
New member
Well, the AT drum mics should all be dynamics (as far as I know), so you don't need phantom power yet. If you want to plug them directly into an 880 then you are correct, the inputs are 1/4, not XLR. When I first got my 880, I was using the XLR to 1/4 in transformers (still do sometimes when I just want a simple recording of a jam).
If you shop around there are be some other brands that make HD recorders with build in preamps that will take an XLR cables, but I'm not sure if any are in your pricerange.
I have a cheap Behringer mixer, and I can take the output from each mic (before EX and effects) out 1/4 in, so I was doing that for a while before I had any preamps.
As for guitar, the drum mics are not ideal. You might want to surf around the Mic forum a bit. A lot of people like the Oktava 012s or the Marshall 603s on guitar. I haven't used either of them yet. I think my good ole SM57 sounds decent on guitar and sax (I play a little alto too), but I'm still a newbie to recording!
As for transferring to the computer the 880 really can only do it 2 tracks at a time (although, you can have a project with however many tracks and send them all in to editing software 2 at a time). That is the main reason I am in the process of switching to a computer-based setup, to eliminate that extra step. I just got a Tascam 428 on ebay for $310. It's a bit more complicated to setup, but I think I'm going to like it a lot better in the long run.
If you shop around there are be some other brands that make HD recorders with build in preamps that will take an XLR cables, but I'm not sure if any are in your pricerange.
I have a cheap Behringer mixer, and I can take the output from each mic (before EX and effects) out 1/4 in, so I was doing that for a while before I had any preamps.
As for guitar, the drum mics are not ideal. You might want to surf around the Mic forum a bit. A lot of people like the Oktava 012s or the Marshall 603s on guitar. I haven't used either of them yet. I think my good ole SM57 sounds decent on guitar and sax (I play a little alto too), but I'm still a newbie to recording!
As for transferring to the computer the 880 really can only do it 2 tracks at a time (although, you can have a project with however many tracks and send them all in to editing software 2 at a time). That is the main reason I am in the process of switching to a computer-based setup, to eliminate that extra step. I just got a Tascam 428 on ebay for $310. It's a bit more complicated to setup, but I think I'm going to like it a lot better in the long run.