For about the hundredth time in the past few years I’m amazed there is no good hardware multitrack recorder, once you discount the ones that exist but are incredibly annoying.
Zoom R20: a big huge dufus of an XLR idiot.
Tp7, costoso and does literally nothing but record, no editing screen nothing.
Bluebox, the usual 1010 hazards, minimal effects, no usb storage or audio, pretty wonky.
Push 3, huge and no fricking timeline.
Mpc 3.0 5 minute record limit.
Op1f only one stereo in and 6 min limit.
Tascam pocket studios, only one stereo in.
Any I’ve missed?
I’d love to be able to buy something…
Small ish
4 stereo in or more (ideally 3.5mm stereo but I understand the haters)
USB storage
Ideally usb audio
Midi or clock sync of some kind
Some effects
Ability to do basic editing, cut, loop sections, replace, copy paste etc
Am I total freak for wanting to buy such a thing?
Ideally it would have other exciting features that make it feel fun, like you were recording into something that’s creative rather than a dead end. Like, if the 4 track tape recording of torso S4 or mpc3.0 actually were usable, that would be amazing, to multitrack record into a thing where you can also play and shape. But I’ll settle for a good recorder!
Seriously tho, do you really think this is a niche ask? I guess that’s my question. I must be a tiny minority and the market is correct. But it feels so obviously sellable to me that I’m surprised it’s not sold by the big boring non boutique companies like Roland.
Am I really the freak here? If that is my crime, then so be it, my sentence is an internet telling off.
I guess that’s my backup, I have a tx6. But I like to avoid phones and computers for music because hardware interfaces are more fun and because phones and computers contain all work, all friends, and all human knowledge just one click or alert away.
Is there a good and really lightweight multitrack audio recorder app that people find works well on iPhone? I’ve only used loopy pro and groovebox apps, the daws always seem… very cramped.
Minus effects and editing there are a bunch of video-oriented audio recorders that will do just about everything you want, at prices that run from reasonable to “oh dear gods I could buy two Jupiter 8s for that”. The music firmware on the Sound Devices Mixpre 10-ii might get a little closer.
I think you can do much of what you specified on the Sonicware SmplTrek.
You said “recorder” but then you have not made a distinction to prioritise capture and you are asking for a lot of editing. You’ve probably got to draw a line somewhere between capture functions and production/editing functions, which is where you start needed to expect a bigger device.
It’s the old adage about desig optimizationn: Small, cheap, smart. Pick any two you like. Only two.
I can’t help you with any real examples, but maybe the next sp404 will be close. You can already record multiple tracks up to 16min and play them back synced, just needs more inputs and a way to record those inputs separately into different pads. And its second to none once it comes to hands-on effects in a hardware box
4 mono tracks (line-in) on the main unit, ships with a mic attachment that gives you 2x more (mic) tracks, and Zoom makes a line-in attachment for the legacy H6, not sure if it works with the new one, or if not, if they’re planning on releasing one that does (although I would assume that they would).
Doesn’t have everything you want, but it gets you closer than any of the stuff mentioned in the OP.