I believe that Busman has confirmed that the pres on the R-4 Pro are the same as the stock R-4, and need to be modded under any circumstances if you are considering running mic>deck. That being said, I have to recommend the 744. I had an R-4 Pro, and am now running a 722 (waiting for the $ for a 744). There is no comparison in the quality of the units. The SD is built like a brick, and the R-4 felt somewhat flimsy by comparison. The R-4 is also substantially larger. There are a lot of alternate power options for both decks, so that really should not be a decision point. Yes the 744 is costly by comparison, but buy one, and you are done slutting in the deck department. I have looked at the info on the upcoming Sonosax four channel, and for all of the bitching about the 7xx series meters (which are by leaps and bounds better than the R-4) I have no idea how Sonosax is going to show four channel metering, and time, etc. on that teeny little display. You will need a magnifying glass to read your levels. With the 7xx, you can read your levels from across the room.