Topic: Recommendations for a musician please!

[psychedelic cowboy]

Howdy tapers,

It's time for me to upgrade my recording system and I'd love any insight or advice that you'd care to share.   

I've been using a Creative Labs Nomad C for the last several years to record my gigs.   I've been using a Behringer mixer to get the signal level from an AT 822 mic into the Nomad and I keep the internal gain bypassed.    My mixer has gone the way of the dodo but I still have the Nomad and the mic.   

The one big complaint that I've had with this system has been the setup time required.   Between the disc powering up and all the cabling required it's sometimes too much of a hassle to record myself, so I've been looking at some of the newer units that have built-in mics.   I'd still like to use the AT 822 on occasions when I can afford a longer setup time.   I've also considered just buying another sort of preamp to go with what I have now.   

I've been checking out the Zoom H2, the Korg MR-1, and R-09 and I just noticed the new Marantz PMD 620.   I'm curious about the built-in mics and preamps of these and any others that you can recommend.    I can spend up to about $500, although cheaper is always nice     I'm always plugging in my guitar so battery power and battery life don't make much difference to me.   

The Korg looks kind of sweet but I'm not sure how I feel about the file type that it uses.   The Zoom looks great, especially because of the price...I figure even if I end up upgrading soon $200 doesn't hurt much.   

What I'd really like is something that has built-in mics and will sound decent and be easy and quick to set up when I'm in a hurry and will also sound great with an AT 822 when I'm not in a hurry.

Thanks,

John

[TNJazz]

I don't know about the Zoom H2, but a musician friend of mine with a very discriminating ear uses the Zoom H4 for this exact purpose and he's been reasonably pleased with it so far.

Another local musician has been recording jam sessions with an R-09 on a chair a few feet in front of the band and is quite happy with the results he's hearing.

I'd say the H4 or the Edirol would do pretty well.  The specs on the internal mics of the R-09 may not look that great, but they sound surprisingly good.  I don't know about the Zoom mics but I would imagine they're similar.

I have not used the Zoom myself, but I have used the R-09.  Setup would definitely be quick and easy.

[Kindguy]

Looks cool on a small stand. Doesnt get any easier to setup. I also have a musician friend who uses a H4. haven't heard anything from it but he's happy with the results.

[stevetoney]

I can't speak for the other units because I haven't owned them, but when I had the R-09 I also thought that the sound of music recorded with the internal mics was pretty darn nice sounding for on-board mics.  I know I was really surprised.

[psychedelic cowboy]

Thanks for the replies...that's helpful.