So I'm after a portable multitrack recorder so I can record band rehearsals and gigs to get some decent quality promo stuff. I need at least 8 XLR inputs but most of what I see on the market now are little 2-in 8 trackers. I've been looking and all I can seem to find is the Zoom R16/R24 and the Tascam DP24SD/DP32SD. These units appear to be extremely old - has there been nothing since? The Zoom appeals more than the Tascam as it seems to have been geared more towards working with a DAW to edit. I'm relatively handy in a DAW for video mixing/mastering so I don't mind that but I don't want to have to bring a laptop down to rehearsal, plus I only have a Scarlett 2i2 and my laptop is pretty old.
Is there anything else out there that would allow me to record 8 XLR inputs simultaneously? In a totally ideal world I'd want a rack mountable recorder with at least 8 ins that will just let me record the signal and then put it in a DAW but as far as I'm aware nothing exists in rack form? My experience is video so i naturally looked at field recorders but to get the number of inputs I need they're nearly £1000...
Are portable multitracks still a thing? Are there any other solutions? Are people just using computers now?
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https://zoom.co.jp/products/production-recording/live-sound-recording/livetrak-l-12
Edit: The livetrak l20r does everything I want, is rackmountable but is £650 and I'm only really wanting to record a few rehearsals... Zoom r16 perhaps!
People tend to use other solutions now. I would say if something inexpensive does a job for you and at least allows some interaction with a DAW go for it. I have used both a Zoom and a Tascam fairly recently for recording 'live' rehearsals and both were fine and easy to use.
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Just because you're paranoid, don't mean they're not after youWith 5 aux mixes / headphone amps it’s also great for making ‘proper’ recordings with each band member having their own mix.
Minimum 8 inputs, preferably all with the option of phantom
Ability to function as interface
Ability to adjust mix for headphones without affecting level recorded in DAW so I can send guitar heavy feed to IEMs (I know I can do this in the DAW but my latency will likely be quite high when recording as my macbook is coming up 8 years old. This feature isn't a deal breaker)
Ability to record stereo on unit itself without laptop (for gigs I'd probably just take a stereo feed from the desk and record that)
Preferably rack form factor but not a deal breaker
Everything points to the Zoom Livetrak L20 as it ticks every box but I can't justify the price. I was really looking for a solution at £150 but I appreciate there are no options at that price range.
Spec wise the R16 still seems a logical choice but apparently the pre-amps are poor and there are only 2 phantom channels and I potentially need 3. The Behringer UMC1820 seems like a decent option if I forgo it having the ability to record to the unit itself. I don't really want to bring a laptop to a gig to record though but other than that it seems a sensible choice and I can continue just feeding my IEMs directly from my Kemper.
For a one off session, I would use it as an interface, and record into Reaper on a laptop, but for a regular repeat session I would record into the R16, and dump files into DAW later. I have tried out the surface control with my sessions, but dont really have the working environment to use it much, but it is an option.
Think Zoom did an updated version a few years back, even this cut out a few features from the R16, if you see one for £150 it should be a no brainer really, like having a swiss army knife.
I've used the R16 (my old bass player had one), I own an L-12 and I also have a Tascam 16x08 + laptop set up. No experience of the XR18 but I've read the specs.
If you already have a laptop / DAW then I wouldn't bother with the R16. The pre-amps aren't so great and it's more expensive than the Tascam (but, of course, you need to already have the laptop). The monitoring capabilities of the R16 are very basic (single mix)
The L-12 is great for unobtrusive recording. you can set up 5 monitor mixes and it's all configured so that you just hit play + record and then stop and everything is saved to folders.
That said, if I didn't already own the L-12 I'd be looking very seriously at the Behringer as it has the most flexibility and seems to offer extremely good value for money
My only reservation is how difficult it would be to hook things up to the R16 as well as the FOH - presumably I'd need powered splitters for the vocals etc? With this in mind the XR18/L12 makes more sense because it would be the main mixer, although I'm unsure how happy venues would be about this, especially if we weren't the only band. I think in gig instances I'd probably settle for a stereo out from FOH - the main purpose of recording is just to get some stuff to put on facebook and for us to be able to evaluate.
If you are using the house PA then it's not so straight forward, not to say totally impractical, to make a multitrack recording unless the house PA has a built in facility (i.e. they are already using something like the Behringer).
You maybe better off looking at something like this;
https://www.zoom-uk.com/products/field-video-recording/field-recording/zoom-h4n-handy-recorder