TASCAM DP-004 Portable 4 Track Digital Recorder Ltd Edition Blue 

Comments about TASCAM DP-004 Portable 4 Track Digital Recorder Ltd Edition Blue:

Still learning...I like it.

Comments about TASCAM DP-004 Portable 4 Track Digital Recorder Ltd Edition Blue:

This Tascam DP-004 recorder was a real bargain as Stupid Deal of the Day. It has good sound quality, is compact, attractive and well built. I am amazed at the multichannel recording clarity for such a low price. The only reason it is not five stars is the instruction manual is not as explicit as I would prefer.

Comments about TASCAM DP-004 Portable 4 Track Digital Recorder Ltd Edition Blue:

Great

Comments about TASCAM DP-004 Portable 4 Track Digital Recorder Ltd Edition Blue:

The device is smaller than you might think, and that was a pleasant surprise. We keep it handy for impromptu recording of song ideas. Because of its size and ease of use, it's unobtrusive in our living room area and thus easily accessible when inspiration hits.

Comments about TASCAM DP-004 Portable 4 Track Digital Recorder Ltd Edition Blue:

The recorder shipped quickly, was a deal of the day (yay),& was delivered promptly. I recorded back in the 80's & early 90's with a 4 track Tascam cassette recorder, using it to capture my song ideas. I play acoustic/electric/bass/keyboards for over 30 yrs now. My old cassette recorder was good for capturing demos. This little unit is great, easier,quieter,faster & about 1/6th the size. Very good sound quality, fairly easy to use, & for the price- you can't go wrong. I still have my old Tascam (& it still works well) but wanted to upgrade to the digital age to capture my new song ideas & parts. I have not loaded any music onto my computer from this unit yet or used the built in mics, but that's coming soon.I've only had it for a few weeks so I can't speak to its longevity. I'll do a follow up review somewhere down the road when this little guy has some miles on it & I have used all the features. So far, I'm very impressed. Yes, the screen could be backlit & easier to read but it does what it is designed to do, it's not a deal breaker by any means.

Comments about TASCAM DP-004 Portable 4 Track Digital Recorder Ltd Edition Blue:

I have Acid on my laptop and have a problem with latency recording directly into the laptop. This little recorder has zero delay and I can lay down guitar/bass etc directly into it with no hiss, then transfer it to Acid on my laptop. Even vocals aren't bad. Throw some compression and a bit of reverb and you can get a decent recording. Batteries lasted me 3 days of constant recording. I'd prefer the power adapter but I got it deal of the day and it's way worth it. I had a Tascam 4 track back in the day with a cassette tape etc and this works almost the same way. Bounce tracks, etc without the hiss the tapes had. Get it!

Comments about TASCAM DP-004 Portable 4 Track Digital Recorder Ltd Edition Blue:

I love this little box. It gives me a decent portable digital recorder at a really good price. If anyone is looking for something similar, I would highly recommend the Tascam DP-004.

Comments about TASCAM DP-004 Portable 4 Track Digital Recorder Ltd Edition Blue:

I fail to see why certain reveiwers have made such a point to negatively criticize this machine. Thou dost protesteth too much, perhaps?

The DP-004 got my attention for several reasons. I was looking for a simple, compact, straightforward and capable 4track. I like to be able to record at a moment's notice wherever I am, and the DP-004 best fit the bill for me. I am able to fit it and a few other studio basics (mics, small mixer w/phantom power, power supply, extra batts, some percussion elements, etc.) into a small briefcase, and carry the whole shebang wherever I go and record in whatever spaces I find inspiring.

I also started years ago on Tascam, Fostex and Clarion cassette four tracks (some of which I still use for creation now and then), and wanted to get back to that self-imposed limitation of 4 tracks. I have access to all the tracks I might want, via other DAWs and computer software, but having an actual self-contained unit to record on now and then has gotten me back to paying more attention to details and thinking ahead and more critically about what I am doing musically and engineering-wise. I really think limitations many times can force us to find more creative solutions sometimes, and this is a way of imposing some of that on my own creative process.

If needed, you can bounce to your hearts content to get more space on the unit to record more parts, though again sometimes the limitation in tracks has simply made me more aware of making each part and track count rather than luxuriously using up a bunch of tracks for no really good reason except laziness and indecision. Have some guts, basically, and trust your intuition a little more.

The DP-004 really is very easy and very intuitive to use. It is nowhere as "complicated" as one reviewer in particular wrote. Basically, turn the machine on, set your inputs (mic/line, etc.), set levels, position your mics with care (integral mics or external), hit record, title and save your work. That's really about it!

If you wish to make more room, you can bounce down to one or two tracks as you wish, or you could even simply do an analog mono or stereo transfer (meaning thru cables) to another multi-track (4 or 8 or 16 or whatever...), and continue adding tracks if desired.

THEN, you can download your tracks and mixes to your computer for further editing/mixing/mastering by first sending your recorded data to the FAT partition, then out via USB to your computer.

This is basic recording stuff folks, always has been. Learn it, get used to it, and enjoy yourselves. Its not that complicated, and can lead to hours, even years of creativity and pleasure. Enjoy the learning curve too while you're at it!

I am sure the other small units out there work similarly and quite satisfactorily. For me, the DP-004 has been a pleasure to work with. I look forward to using it for years to come.

Comments about TASCAM DP-004 Portable 4 Track Digital Recorder Ltd Edition Blue:

It's a great way to get started. You can produce high quality songs while honing your skills for more advanced(and expensive and complicated) units

Comments about TASCAM DP-004 Portable 4 Track Digital Recorder Ltd Edition Blue:

Buying my Tascam DP-004 was a great move. Right out of the box I laid down one of my original tunes (4 tracks) with ease. I was able to tweak all the levels as often as I wanted to, and able to pan any track right, left, or center. Love it!