Tascam DP-02 Digital Portastudio - 8 Track Review

Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)This is an outstanding system for demo recording and I am sure it would also be useful for live recordings with some added components.
After much research, I purchased the Tascam DP02 Portastudio instead of the Boss BR900CD. I had previously used the BR900 with much success and had my mind set on it for quiet some time. I kept my options open and the DP02 seemed to be the most comparable system. Despite some reviews stating the DP02 did not allow you to hear the effects while recording, I decided on it due to the on-board high, low, and reverb adjustment options. (I did not want to transfer to a computer for mastering) I was going to add an effects processor and pre-amp for the mic, but found all effects do play through recording.
The system has a lot of built in guitar (acoustic and electric), drum, bass, and vocal effects. It took me only a few hours to record several tracks, master them, and burn them to disk. Only being able to record to 2 tracks at once is a small drawback, but if you are doing all of your own recording shouldn't be a problem.
READ THE MANUAL!
Although it is not the easiest to follow page to page, if you know how to find what your looking for it's in the manual. For those of you that want to sit down, push record, and be on your way, you may want to look for a simpler system. Once you get it down, the DP02 is quite easy to use, but not something you can just turn on and go without some instruction. The trickiest part would would be mastering, but it is by no means difficult if you follow the directions.
All around this is a great system for a home studio and possibly more.
P.S. Thanks to Amazon for having the lowest price, and quick delivery.Just a quick update. May 29, 2010. I have put many hours onto this Portastudio and can say it has absolutely been worth it. The volume on the final track can be a little tricky, but nothing some time and patience cannot overcome. It has not given me any trouble and has never locked up as some people have said. Great piece of equipment for a very fair price.

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With a classic, well-known interface that's easy to pick up by new users, the 8-track Tascam DP-02 Digital Portastudio sports dedicated controls for level, pan, effects send and EQ instead of the menu-cursor interface found on most other recorders. You can make music with two hands with the DP-02--just reach and twist a knob when your creativity strikes. The DP-02 records to a 40 GB hard drive, and it includes a multi-effect processor, stereo reverb and CD burner for CD masters and song backup.
A pair of CD-quality XLR mic inputs includes phantom power for condenser mics and a direct guitar input. High and low EQ controls for level and frequency are provided for every channel. It also includes a multi-effects processor, stereo reverb, even a dedicated stereo channel for recording your mix. You can transfer tracks and mixes to a computer using USB 2.0, or burn a master disc in the CD drive.

Key Features
Two XLR mic/line inputs with phantom power for condenser microphones
Eight-track recording at uncompressed 44.1k/16-bit audio quality
Portastudio-based interface with volume fader, pan, effect send, high and low EQ controls per channel
EQ frequency button to access high and low EQ shelf frequencies
USB 2.0 interface for transferring tracks, mixes and backup files to a computer
Dedicated stereo master track for mixdown
Internal metronome and bar/beat display for song position
Headphone output
Stereo line outputs on RCA analog and S/PDIF optical digital connectors
40GB internal hard drive
Multi-effects processor with guitar, bass, vocal and drum programs
Stereo reverb processor with send/return controls for multichannel mixing
Built-in chromatic tuner
Built -in CD-RW burner for CD mastering and song backup

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TASCAM DP-008 8-Track Digital Portastudio Review

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(More customer reviews)After wanting a digital multi-track for a long time, I finally decided on this model, and I'm glad I did.
One thing that is not included in a list of specs is the usability factor. I've purchased my share of electronic devices for making and recording music over the years. Just looking at a dry list of specs has often been my method of deciding on what to buy. Well, on paper the DP-008 looks good, but it's not until you use this to cut a few tracks that you realize how well it is designed. I'm SOOOO glad I didn't buy the DP-004, as this model is clearly the results of Tascam eliminating the weaker aspects of the 4 track model just in time for the 8 track version.
I have seen a lot of digital multi-tracks that look good on paper, but to use them is a real pain. The fact that the DP-008 has all the individual track knobs means that you don't have to go flipping through pages on a menu or choosing the "hot track" in some other way. Here it's all laid out logically and makes tweaking the final stereo mix a piece of cake. Sure it would be nice if there were level sliders rather than dials, but these work just fine.
I use this model to record myself playing guitar and bass, run a Boss drum machine into it, and I record vocals with an external mic though a small mixer that has some helpful effects on it. You don't need a mixer, though, as the included mics are quite good. I am able to record several tracks, "bounce" them if I want to, and then write them to a stereo master mix. Then, I export that mix on the unit itself (sounds weird, but basically you're just creating a wav file that can be seen by a computer). The final step is connecting the DP-008 to a computer and merely dragging the song files over to the computer. I then use Audacity to convert it to an ogg file or mp3.
I use Linux and the process of transferring songs to the computer is very simple. In the past you would have received a useless cd-rom with a crappy "song transfer" program and maybe some crapware to go along with it. I'm glad that Tascam has decided to treat the customer right and state it clearly: There is no need for special software. Once you export the song, it will show up as an external storage device and you can simply transfer the files over to your computer, whether it's a PC running Windows or Linux, or a Mac.

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Tascam PT-7 Chromatic Tuner/Recorder Review

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(More customer reviews)I ordered this on the basis of positive reviews in the music press and websites, sadly, I'll be returning it.
All the things it does, it does well, with reasonable controls, a good size display, nice backlighting etc .Build quality was good, display and controls were intuitive enough.
However...
Neither the tech specs, nor any of the reviews I found mentioned that this 'recorder' has no monitoring capability. The fact that there is no record monitoring to speaker or headset makes it useless to me; I can't find any way to enable monitoring. I rather suspect that Tascam left out monitoring on purpose, so this would not compete with their vocal trainers, which cost twice what this does and generally have fewer features.
It's a real shame, the unit is quite nice, but even the cheesiest digital recorders all have a headset monitor feature, Tascam/Teac knows better.

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