Boss Micro BR

Roysterdoyster

Anyone have experience of these. Any good for a first dabble at home recording?  Or is some software like Cubase or whatever a better way to go? 

duotone

Seems to get a good review from SOS: https://www.soundonsound.com/reviews/boss-micro-br

Looks like its from 2007 though, I'm sure you would be better with something like Reaper, although you will need an interface to use it such as https://www.guitarguitar.co.uk/search/?Query=audio+interface&searchoverride=

stickyfiddle

I’d be surprised if you wouldn’t be better off with a half decent interface plus your phone or tablet these days 

Heartfeltdawn

Roysterdoyster said:

Anyone have experience of these. Any good for a first dabble at home recording?  Or is some software like Cubase or whatever a better way to go? 

If you're dabbling with home recording, then go computer and interface. 

andy_k

i like it, has a lot of uses, onboard stereo mics are pretty good, and it works as an interface too, worth getting one if you can find a cheap one.

Funkfingers

My musical collaborator has a BR800. He found it handy for laying down rough song demonstration recordings. When I had a quick go, the experience reminded me of my four-track cassette days. 

The onboard drum machine and COSM effects processor algorithms help with getting ideas down quickly. Unfortunately, even by 2007 standards, the amp models are pretty cheesy. Editing is possible but fiddly. 

andy_k said:

onboard stereo mics are pretty good

Agreed. The mics are acceptable for a stripped down drum box, acoustic guitar, vocal melody demo. 

andy_k said:

it works as an interface too

Indeed. Some of my collaborator's rough sketches got transferred as real time audio to Apple Logic Pro. (These have since been used as guide tracks for fully arranged joint Projects.) It is also possible to export BR audio files to a computer DAW via a software utility app. 

Heartfeltdawn said:

If you're dabbling with home recording, go computer and interface. 

If I recall correctly, my collaborator ceased using his BR800 once he got Garageband 10 for iOS. Projects that he begins in GB can be opened, edited and completed in Logic. He keeps the BOSS BR out of a combination of nostalgia and the thought that there might still be a few worthwhile song beginnings lurking on the memory card.

andy_k said:

worth getting one, if you can find a cheap one.

+1. It needs to be cheap.

Bottom line. The BR800 has long since been outclassed by even modest tablet computing devices. 

Strangefan

They are dinosaurs in today's works, clunky and a pain to use, I owned one for 2 days, never again. 

blobb

I've got one of the original MicroBR. I used it as a rehearsal recording device and, at the time, it was brilliant. Problem now is that it doesn't support HD SD cards so it's basically obsolete. I don't know if the newer one changed this?

andy_k

The ones I am talking about are the MicroBR, and the newer version, I agree they are fiddly, and it is horses for courses, great little gadgets if you just want to plug a guitar in one end and headphones in the other to have a practice to some drum or backing tracks. I still go back to multitracks I recorded on mine, (imported into pro-tools, Logic and Reaper ) and the sound is surprisingly good quality.
I never filled a SD card, so, by no means obsolete , but I never got into recording on my I pad either, if it records at 48k 24 bit, which i think it does, its great for getting an idea down quickly.
I wouldn't waste my time trying to do serious editing on anything other than a DAW these days, but for capturing sounds they are cool.

stratman3142

I've got an old Micro BR which I use with an old BA-CS10 Stereo Microphone. A very portable and useful piece of kit for recording rehearsals and gigs at reasonable quality. 

But fiddly to use for home recording and not something I'd use for that purpose. A computer, audio interface and DAW, such as Reaper, is the better way to go.

TheBigDipper

In the days before inexpensive DAWs, tablets, etc., I owned a MicroBR. In its era, I liked it. It's totally outclassed now. If I need a quick stereo mic recording, I use a Focusrite iTrack Pocket stereo mic straight into my iPhone with Music Memos or Mutitrack DAW or GarageBand as the app. Easy to move the file into other DAWs. Everything else I want to do is much easier for me on an iPad or PC/Mac.

But an EP recorded on just a MicroBR might be an interesting exercise and something unusual to market. Like 'bedroom recordings' used to be in the days of mega studios... 

newi123

I have one and actually quite like it. I personally find that I get more done on a stand alone recorder for jamming / playing / writing than on a pc based system.

The BR80 is fairly straightforward to use and there are drums than aren`t too difficult to work with, a `guitar to bass` function and an inbuilt vocal mic that sounds ok. So you literally need a guitar, a lead and some headphones.

If you`re going to want to be importing backing tracks or drum tracks then possibly look at the zoom r8 instead. Zoom allows drag and drop of files to the R8 as an external hard dive as they use standard .wav files - Boss like tascam use their own file type, so you have to use their software converter to import and export files. 

Roysterdoyster

Cheers all. So the message seems to be, technology has moved on, but I’d you can pick one up cheap, it has its uses?

Funkfingers

newi123 said:

a guitar to bass function

Don't believe the hype. The pitch shifting technology is slow to track and the sound is unconvincing. It is only fit for extremely basic guide bass lines.

joetele

I had one when they came out - I just found the menus inside menus fiddly and frustrating, much preferring the old cassette 4 tracks I had - I actually carried on using those for years instead, running the final recordings via the PC's mic input and tidying up on Audacity. I sold the Micro BR on Ebay after limited use.  YMMV of course - some people aren't fazed by menus 

For the past few years (probably at least 8 in fact) I've been using a Zoom R8 which combines digital recording with the hands-on dials and faders of an old cassette multitrack.  I think there are better options, even for just a cheap second hand purchase - a lot of the digital multitrackers can be found quite cheaply nowadays. 

skullfunkerry

I had one and I managed to record a few decent demos with it... these days I use Reaper and my PC, and find it much more intuitive. The Micro-BR had a few good guitar sounds in it though, and if you can get one cheap it's worth it - you'll need the manual though: you can download it online if you don't get one with the unit.

I tried the follow-up unit too, the BR-80 (not the BR-800), and it was awful. Couldn't find a single guitar sound in it that I liked.

Modellista

I’ve no experience with the unit in question. But I have been experimenting with old Boss units recently and finding I really like them. They’re such a relief from constant waiting, clicking and faffing around with settings that PCs have always meant for me.

The sheer pleasure of instant switch-on, hardware controls for everything, a tiny unit which can be run on batteries and taken room-to-room or even on location is a joy compared to fiddling with a recalcitrant computer. 

My latest acquisition is a BR600, which does have proper faders and lots of controls. The menu-diving in the smaller units would probably annoy me a bit, but the 600 is just like a good old tape Portastudio - in fact, compared to one of those it’s state-of-the-art. 

Bear in mind the above is regarding making demos and rough sketches. I wouldn’t want to make anything overly complex, although having said that it sounds like a challenge to self!  

Probably the best compromise between the two is having a portable recorder around for tracking when inspiration strikes, and bring the files into a DAW for post-production.