Simple rock solid standalone multitrack audio recorder

[Tubetec]

Im getting involved in a project to try and get a small studio set up for a community based organisation dedicated to welbeing and mindfullness.
Nothing fancy in terms of computers is required , in fact its undesirable .
Theres a few options out there ,
The Tascam/Zoom style more or less all digital boxes and then theres traditional analog front end mixer and multitrack recorder with SD or USB based storage built in.
In terms of usage the analog has the instant intuitive feel , anyone who ever used a mixer can use it , theres no F^&^ing around with computers needed for the basic functionality .
With the addition of a few mics there up and running , many are musicians themselves , so training up a few to opperate it should be easy enough .
I see UliBeh has a few mixers like this , there must be dozens of other makers doing the same now , what would the Mackie equivalent cost or does it even exist?

There is the bigger Tascam of course ,24 or 32 channels , I have some experience using those models , in fact a buddy who bought one , I trained how to use after I had familiarised myself with the machine , it sounds great , but its way more complicated than it needs to be for this application ,
One of the key points is they want to be able to walk away with a CD at the end of the session , Im not sure how the mixdown is handled on the mixer recorders , either way it doesnt have a CD burner , that means another man who opperates the computer is needed , I want to avoid that and make it well and truely fool proof ,
you record your session , you insert the track idents and maybe tidy up start/finish of the tracks a bit then press burn to disk .
Maybe theres such thing as a standalone CD burner now where a USB drive can be plugged in , a wav file selected and its automatically burnt to disk ,
the issue is song indents and maybe the need for editing .

Dualflips FFT Algo sprung to mind , could software be programmed to cut out periods of silence or tuning noises in a recording and correctly number the tracks ?
Again were back to a computer for the processing part , but if it was a fool proof one button wonder that would be like magic out of a hat ,
the other possibility is transfering the file to their smart phones, , which Im sure even many of the older people would like a lot .
Very interested to hear any intelligent suggestions as usual .

 

[Tubetec]

The U(li)FX1204 series seems to fit the bill perfectly ,
I see in the second review of the mixer on Behringers own website some guy claims all kinds of BSD crashes on WIN 10 , mostly likely old news now anyway.
There wont be any need to directly connect it to the computer , the usb memory stick can allow transfer without any syncing or drivers to anyone who needs to copy the material .
Its a bit hard to determine from the sales blurb if the mixer allows basic editing and time stamp/track start stop from the front panel , obviously its designed to work with whatever software they hand out ,but another guy reported even the basic transport controls werent mapped when he started it up .
I presume theres the equivalent of an autolocator on the transport panel , I might have to have RTFM FFS.


EDIT.
Just looking at the front panel again in close up ,DOH, they seem to have forgot to include a simple autolocate function , a spectacular near miss if they did , but how many times have we seen that from Uli?
The recorder is a one shot wonder in any case , fine for a live performance , no possibility of overdubbing without a computer , might not be a total deal breaker .
Presonus seem to have a few options along these lines and a fairly good reputation for quality ,good drivers etc .

 

[alphasnk]

Wouldn't it be time to look at what the late 90s / early 2000s offered us in that domain? Kind of like the Boss BR1180CD, hard drive recorders with cd burning capabilities.. Or the roland vs series if you want more inputs haha You're going to have fun, so have fun with everything!

 

[Tubetec]

Tascam model 12 is hitting all the right buttons , it appears to have a proper multitrack setup with per channel rec arm/mute/monitor ,a BlueTooth function I wouldnt have in the same room as recording gear myself ,but I have to accept it could be useful . I still prefer the simple wired transfer of USB memory to laptop/tablet or smart phone .
In terms of layout/functionality theres very little different between the Tascam tape based machines of the 1980's-2000's and this machine , only its solid state memory , The interface remains as intuitive and easy to learn as the original Tascam reel to reels , Im fairly certain Ive found the right tool for the job at hand , they have a serious pedgree in precisely this game . Ive nothing but good memories of anytime I used Tascam.

 

[cyrano]

If you're considering used equipment, you might want to consider Cymatic's 24 channel 1 rack unit box. The Cymatic Utrack 24.

https://cymaticaudio.com/utrack24-productpage/
It's Russian made and the company no longer exists.

I've been looking for one for ages and although they do appear on the 2nd-hand market, I'm too slow.

A friend owns one and I was lucky enough to borrow that one for a few weeks. Sounded perfect. Software isn't always user friendly, but the latest version was allright for my use.

I still have a very old ADAT HD recorder: the Fostex VR800. It's only 8 channels and not rackable. They are dirt cheap, if you can locate one.

 

[vintagelove]

One thing to potentially watch out for, many of those devices have limitations to how many tracks they can record at one time.

 

[Tubetec]

Thanks Cyrano , I had seen the Cymatic on Thomann when it was available ,
Its a great one shot recorder but doesnt do over dubs without software . I didnt know it was a Russian design ,
Its nice they managed to stuff a depth charge up Avids ass for a while and probably ended up rich men by the time they were bought out and shutdown
Vintage,
The beauty of the Tascam is it has the ability to overdub and a tried and tested control logic .
Track count on this job isnt much of a concern , the tascam is 12:2 on mixdown but probably has 8 inputs ,
For voice, a couple of acoustic instruments , simple percussion , electric guitar and bass recorded more or less live ,8 inputs is fine for me .

 

[cyrano]

I don't know if they are rich now. Afaict, it's not a buy-out, but rather internal disagreements that turned their initial success into some sort of failure. I don't even know when exactly it happened, so maybe it was COVID that ended it all?

 

[Tubetec]

That is a shame , seems like they had the genesis of a great company going .
I remember looking at the Utrack 24 and thinking why didnt they make the 24 leds on the front panel into rec arm/monitor/mute switches .

 

[Spiritworks]

I have an Alesis HD24 that I can sell. Been stored away in a closet since I got my Radar24. Still have original packaging, manual and extra drive caddies

 

[Tubetec]

Thanks for the offer Spirit ,
I think the 12 channels of the Tascam model 12 is enough for this side project , I have my own Akai DPS24 x2 for bigger projects in any case , there over 20 years old now but work the same as they did day one , best money I ever spent . The main thing Im aiming for on this job is ease of use , not just by me but by anyone else involved who wants to try and learn about recording .

Im looking at standalone CDR burners , I dont really want or need 1-1 copies of a pre-existing disk ,but the abillity to plug in USB memory ,select a wave file and burn directly without any computer involved would be great . Of course burning red book standard audio CD's will inevitably be a little more involved , any ideas welcome , its gotta be 'KISS' though , 'keep it simple stupid' .

 

[Andybb]

Im getting involved in a project to try and get a small studio set up for a community based organisation dedicated to welbeing and mindfullness.
Nothing fancy in terms of computers is required , in fact its undesirable .
Theres a few options out there ,
The Tascam/Zoom style more or less all digital boxes and then theres traditional analog front end mixer and multitrack recorder with SD or USB based storage built in.
In terms of usage the analog has the instant intuitive feel , anyone who ever used a mixer can use it , theres no F^&^ing around with computers needed for the basic functionality .
With the addition of a few mics there up and running , many are musicians themselves , so training up a few to opperate it should be easy enough .
I see UliBeh has a few mixers like this , there must be dozens of other makers doing the same now , what would the Mackie equivalent cost or does it even exist?

There is the bigger Tascam of course ,24 or 32 channels , I have some experience using those models , in fact a buddy who bought one , I trained how to use after I had familiarised myself with the machine , it sounds great , but its way more complicated than it needs to be for this application ,
One of the key points is they want to be able to walk away with a CD at the end of the session , Im not sure how the mixdown is handled on the mixer recorders , either way it doesnt have a CD burner , that means another man who opperates the computer is needed , I want to avoid that and make it well and truely fool proof ,
you record your session , you insert the track idents and maybe tidy up start/finish of the tracks a bit then press burn to disk .
Maybe theres such thing as a standalone CD burner now where a USB drive can be plugged in , a wav file selected and its automatically burnt to disk ,
the issue is song indents and maybe the need for editing .

Dualflips FFT Algo sprung to mind , could software be programmed to cut out periods of silence or tuning noises in a recording and correctly number the tracks ?
Again were back to a computer for the processing part , but if it was a fool proof one button wonder that would be like magic out of a hat ,
the other possibility is transfering the file to their smart phones, , which Im sure even many of the older people would like a lot .
Very interested to hear any intelligent suggestions as usual .

Have you looked at JoeCo?
this particular version has 8 mic/line inputs and 16 line inputs and an audio interface.. It acts as a storage system for a daw. You could record your tracks on it, connected to a laptop with a daw of your choice, and burn a cd right from your daw when your done recording with little effort and also have a 24 track recording saved on the JoeCo.
https://joeco.co.uk/bbwr08mp-joeco-workstation-interface-audio-recorder/

 

[kags]

I have used JoeCo stuff for playback and recording - mostly for live events. Very pricey, but foolproof. Not extremely user-friendly as far as transport control (no rewind or ff) and track labeling is awkward (at least for playing back pre-recorded files).

For mission-critical recordings, I use SoundDevices MixPre recorders. Almost impossible to screw things up and excellent sound. Plus the recording winds up on an SD card that can be transferred to a computer over USB or by plugging the SD card into the computer. These will run on rechargeable batteries, AAA batteries, or wall power. These are not expensive and come in sizes from stereo inputs up to 10 (or even more) inputs. Used they go for well under $1k USD. Most movie and TV sets use these and they never fail.

 

[johnsonic]

I've been working with a band who just wants to hit record when I'm not around, and they have a Model 12. The routing flexibility is awesome, preamps are what you would expect seeing that you get 10 of them for the pricepoint, and hooking into protools was super easy. Can't really evaluate what it sounds like since we're using the mics they have on hand and I don't have a reference point, but sounds decent. Recording to a card and the bluetooth is a bonus. Can route to outboard gear as well.

Couldn't help but think how much quicker I would have made things 20 years ago if that was available instead of my VS-880, and even before that with the cassette multitracks. It really is amazing what folks can get a hold of now.