TASCAM DP-004 Portable 4-track Digital Multi-track Recorder  

The Tascam DP-004 Pocketstudio 4 Track Digital Recorder was delivered in a couple of days and after a little playing with it, was pretty easy to operate. Coupled with a editing software, some pretty good recordings can be done with this, especially considering the price.

For the money, none better. Heck, even for more money, it would be worth it.

Very light and small, but don't let that fool you. The Tascam is sturdy. I dropped it during my first recording session, and it kept right on. Tough little guy. The knobs and buttons have that "thick" feeling....no cheap and fragile.

For this money, you literally have a recording studio in your home...or wherever.

I've been recording longer than most...through reel to reel, tape cassette, early digital, and up to the present, and I've never had a better sound with less work than with this recorder. As soon as you master your first song, take out the phones, plug in a monitor or your pa system, and be prepared for the magic. The only problem I have found, which has been mentioned, is the LED display. It's not lit, and, for any eyes over 30, you may need a magnifier. I bet they fix this on the next one. If this was lit, and bigger, it would, for sure and certain, be a 10 plus.

My unit started glitching while it was still under warranty, and when I called they suggested a hard reset.  I did this, and it didn't glitch again for a few months.  When I called back they said it was out of warranty, and suggested a firmware update.  Did that, and it still glitched.  Finally it crashed to where it won't turn on anymore.  Called back, and they would not fix it under warranty.  Ran around in circles with them, and they agreed to warranty the parts, but not the labor.  Refused to pay $40 to have it inspected, and postage both ways.  So, now it's a glorified paper weight.

TASCAM would not stand behind their product, and for that I will never by another one of they products again.  Don't waste your money.

Four track deck with the ability to record two tracks at a time.  RTZ is a nice addition.  Takes Smart Cards, which are getting cheaper all the time.  Built-in stereo mics.  Guitar/Line select on Input A.  Mics have three levels of sensitivity; guitar has two.  Knobs for both input and track levels.

Seems well built.  I wouldn't expect old-school recording deck reliability, but I think it could fall off the back of a table and keep on going.  The knobs are small, but have a quality feel to them.

I bought mine on a Stupid Deal of the Day!  That's just ridiculous, considering all the features this thing has!

Even at the price, I think it's a good deal.

This little box is perfect for quick recording tasks -- not the ones that take all day, but the little 1-2 hour sessions that might not even happen because of the hassle of setting up mics, dealing with a laptop, etc.  My drummer has been bugging us to record our rehearsals for months now, but they've never happened.  He'll be surprised this week!

The two built-in condenser mics are surprisingly good, and on the low setting can tolerate sitting in the same room as a band.  It can take up to 32GB Smart Cards, which is plenty of room for recording an outdoor gig with multiple bands.  The user interface is pretty straightforward and 'tape-like.'  (I bought mine in a Stupid Deal of the Day, and it only came with a 1GB card, but the new ones seem to have 2GB.)

What don't I like?  1) The display is great for bright lighting, but impossible to read in low light or a dark room.  I wish there was a backlight.  2) The AC adapter is optional, and the box goes through batteries at a pretty good clip.

One caution:  The Smart Card is dual-formatted, with FAT32 and Tascam's on private format.  This means that you only have part of the card to record.  At smaller sizes (1-2GB), the partitioning is 50:50, so figure that you only have 1/2 the memory available for tracks.  From 8GB on up, this isn't a problem.  On the good side, this makes it almost impossible to accidentally delete tracks when the card is in your computer.

I was extremely disappointed with this unit , I read the reviews and bought it for quick recording of my band and jam sessions and figured the multi-track would be great for recording away from my PC,

First off it does not come with a AC adapter so add another $25 to buy one, it eats batteries like crazy.

Some reveiws said there were a ton o steps to record tracks and they were not kidding, also the angle to view the small screen (with no light ) is so bad that you have to move the unit toward you to see what you are doing ,

After a couple uses I started getting a I/F error and a message to power off which made me lose everything I was working on !!

I tried to record again and master a great recording and boom same error and lost tracks

Unit is being returned

bad