I guess I'm assuming the Tascam unit you guys are talking about is the US-224. If this is true, I am right, there is no phantom power, here's a quote from a review in electronic musician:
"Like the US-428,
the US-224 has no provision for phantom power. When I asked why it didn't, Tascam told me that phantom power might bog down the USB port and that “the basic US-224 user will probably use dynamic mics anyway.”"
Here's a link to the full review:
http://emusician.com/ar/emusic_tascam_us/
I see on the Tascam website that they now have a device called
the US-122 that has phantom powered mic inputs. I can't find a price on it anyplace, so I don't know if it should even be in the same category.
The Mobile Pre is selling for $149 by the way.
but anywho, still you can get the Midiman Revolution (24bit) and an Audio Buddy for ~ $169
Revolution may be 24 bit, but it is a gaming card. The converters are probably going to suck, so its probably not going to be an improvement in sound, especially when you consider that everything goes on a 16-bit CD anyway. Either way, this solution is still more expensive than the Mobile Pre and it doesn't have the advantage of being USB, which rules out using it with a laptop.
An Audio Buddy and an Audiophile for~$200........
This is almost $50 more than the mobile pre, and it is not laptop-friendly. In addition, you can't realistically get that combo for $200 unless you buy used. $230 is more realistic.
I guess the reason why I consider it the ultimate low-low-end solution, on top of the price and features, is that for that bottom-feeder segment of the market, you don't have to explain to them how to hook their preamp into their card, and their card into their computer. It's all integrated. You just plug it into your USB port like you would that fancy new digital camera you just bought. In addition, because it's USB, people with laptops can use this.