Zoom Gear & Home Recording Forum

My sentiments exactly. I thought the sound quality was good too but I only want them for something to play against for a sketch. I can't get a feel playing against a metronome. Even if I make wav loops/patterns and copy to my R16 I'm still going to use EZD to tweak what I want or as you and Armin mentioned just get a real drummer.

zoom, if you're reading this,

I'm still holding out for an "r4"

take the functionality from the r24, cut it down to as many tracks as you want but 2 banks of 4 tracks is enough (or 2/3 banks of 4 tracks that are selectable as the r24 is), give me a drum machine w/ sampler, 24-bit multitrack recording (1 or two tracks at a time is ok for me, as the old ps-04/mrs8/h4 do), two mics (like the h4), and insert, send and mastering effects, editing ability on the device. Sliders would be nice too. Should be as small or smaller than h4, should have decent battery life, standard AA or whatever, using SDHC.
I guarantee if you come out with something like this (really would be the first real pocket studio since the PS-04)
it will sell, most likely better than the r24 (because you can charge less). Most of the people out there who do music in their home would prefer a pocketable solution to something larger. Especially us busy dads, we want something we can take to work/the park and add drums/mix/master in our lunchbreak WITHOUT using a computer. And most people (like myself) don't need 24 actual tracks, we prefer a smaller device size to more tracks.

Please come out with the h4n replacement in this configuration. I guarantee if you do you will see decent sales on this item.
You lost a lot of people when you failed to come out with a good replacement for the PS-04, at a time when you could have come out with better sound quality due to the great size capacity of the SD card.
A lot of people jumped overboard for the boss micro-br ship (not nearly as good as zoom in effects etc IMO).

If you came out with a solid pocket studio this time, it would bring a lot of people back.
The h4/h4n are cool but NOT a pocket studio and thus not a good replacement for a pocket studio for many people in this forum and elsewhere who just want to be able to make music in a handheld, in their spare time, without touching a computer (because a lot of us are computer professionals who hate sitting in front of a computer ad nauseum in our free time).

ok i'm done ranting, but please come out with this.

Posting the exact same text in multiple threads isn't the most conducive to making one popular... Especially on a pair of threads specific to two products when what you posted was a "wishlist" -- might have fit better as a stand-alone (new) thread.

Oh, BTW, I don't recall ever reading that a proper Zoom rep ever reads these messages; closest are some of the beta testers who, while privileged with advance information/products, are not employees of Zoom or its distributors.

Hi Wulfraed,

there are actually some folks from Zoom who I'm told read this forum. But you're right about the posts, i posted on the wrong device (r16, which I'll remove) the first time.

Those are some pretty bold statements, presented as fact. Are there any actual numbers to back them up?

I've been working professionally with computers since 1977, and enjoy few things more than sitting at my PC and nurturing a song to life with Sonar. Maybe I'm the exception, but I never cease to be amazed by what great tools computers can be.

To be honest, I have no interest in a pocket-sized recorder. I would much rather have the quality of a good multi-track recorder for home studio applications than something that allows me to record the noises I encounter in a park or a bus. If I ever decide to go forth into nature and record the sounds there, my R16 fits quite nicely into a backpack and will handle the job adequately. And the tedium of editing songs, applying effects, etc. on a portable device sounds more annoying than pleasurable to me. The large screen, full keyboard, and mouse on a computer allow me to focus more on the "what" of what I'm doing than the "how".

But that's just me. I don't claim to speak for everybody.

I have to agree with Beck that I also don't like sitting in front of a computer when it comes to music.

As for the "wish list" thing, I have to disagree with Baron. I think they would use ideas from any and every communication medium that voices potential consumers' desires. There are notable features of both the R16 and 24 that I've only first heard up here in the form of wish list threads (specifically directed at Zoom) from years ago.

In the interest of this being an R24 info thread: I'll update the thread I have going as a working review. I just got it a few days back and haven't been loving life since. (...or at least while tinkering with it)

Oh I don't doubt that... But why bury it in a thread titled "R24 information"? Rather than creating a new thread, say: "Wishlist: My ideal multi-track recorder" (Which might attract others to add descriptions of what they'd like in a NEW device, and why, rather than the somewhat more negative form of "why didn't they do this" found in so many threads about released products).





{BTW: "Baron" is a title, not a name -- I've been using Wulfraed as an online persona for over 15 years, starting on the old GEnie service; Baron Wulfaed is an Imperial Vargr, detached from the Imperial Interstellar Scout Service}

Hi Wulfraed,

if you look at the original R16 posts you'll see comments and wishlists embedded in-line as well. As Lee noted, many of those features that were requested have been incorporated in (notably drum features which some users "don't care" about).

TLS,

you probably weren't here in the early days, but this forum used to be primarily about small devices and recording (as well as mixing and mastering) using those devices. Many people didn't use all the features of the PS-02/PS-04 but it was nice to have them. I personally always found the mastering tools and the drum kits very helpful. The reason why people flocked around these small devices is 3-fold i think:

1) they're cool because they're small
2) With a pocket studio, you can take them anywhere and work on songs when you have free time (which some of us don't have us much of, size makes a difference in where you can bring a device. Why not just bring a laptop with you if you want to work on recordings, rather than an r16, especially since you like the computer as a recording and mixing tool ;-) )
3) small devices cost less than big devices, making them more affordable to the masses (like myself, who don't feel like forking out $500 for yet another device)

24-bit multitrack recording on a pocket-sized device could easily be a reality now. Why wouldn't zoom produce a small device that's essentially an enhanced h4n with more tracks possibly, and drum machine?
Boss did well with the micro-br even though it wasn't that great compared to what the ps-04 offered, except for sound quality and possibly the time-stretch and overlay features.

OK, I get those points, but just wanted to point out that there are some of us for whom small isn't necessarily better. In my case I'm "on site" (at my buddy's house) recording stereo piano (from one to three separate parts), drums (four tracks: kick, snare, overhead left and right), vocals (one to three separate parts), multiple guitar tracks, and the odd synthesizer tossed in. Internal microphones won't get the job done in terms of quality or number of inputs, and the sixteen tracks available on the R16 provides a comfortable fit. The R24 may at some point be kind of nice for the extra tracks, but patterns, drum machines, etc. hold no interest for me. I was happy to shell out for the R16 (found a deal for $345 plus free shipping for a new unit) and have no regrets.

After those remote recording session when I get home, I'm not in a situation where I find myself trying to squeeze in a few minutes here or there to work on songs. My kids are getting older now and I have plenty of time to lose myself in this stuff. I have my environment set up with a swivel chair so I can easily reach the circle that's comprised of my computer, my Yamaha keyboard, and guitar stands that have electric, acoustic, and bass guitars within easy reach.

As far as selling more units because they're cheaper, it's safe to say that McDonald's sells more cheeseburgers than Microsoft sells copies of Windows, but they both seem to be able to make a buck.

Anyway, I just wanted to express the opposing viewpoint because some of us are pleased that Zoom is focusing on more than just hand-held units. I don't refute the usefulness of those units and acknowledge that they're the best solution for some people. But some of us have different needs and Zoom is smart enough to recognize that.

Hi,
Pretty new to digital recording and lookin for some advice please.
Im looking for a standalone recorder and was initially eyeing up the tascam DP008. It ticks boxes for me in terms of apparent ease of use (I once had a cassette 4track) and, as I record and build up tracks alone, I like the editing functionality of being able to copy and paste afew bars of a track throughout the remainder of that track at will. Thats a big plus for how I like to record...
However...
Ive been lured in to the R24 by the sampler functionality and the ability to create loops. Reading the manual online it looks like I'd be able to record, for example, a guitar riff, trim this, say over a couple of bars, and then use the step by step track sequencer function to loop those two bars to build up a track...
It also reads as though I would have to use a seperate new track if I had a 2nd guitar riff (for example if the riff in the verse was different in the chorus). If so, I could record my guitar parts over 2 or 3 tracks and then bounce them down to one. Have I assumed all that correctly????

That would give me similar ability to the Tascam DP008 in tersm of editing (albeit a slightly long way round) but would give me the extra functionality of the R24 (effects, phantom power, etc).

Given that I like a really simple way of recording, would anyone be kind enough to share their views on the useability of R24's sampler/looping functionality and whether I should buy the DP008 for its simplicity, or fork out the extra £180 for the R24...? Many thanks folks...

MRD, you're correct in your logic. I'd opt for the editing approach or buy ACID.
Unless you want to buy my R24 for $450 (excludes shipping)?