Tascam DR-40X 4-Channel Portable Audio Recorder and USB Interface With Adjustable Mic

TASCAM DRX40 - I needed a recording device due to noisy neighbours unfortunately (from within my home i might just add). This is perfect so music buffs and sound buffs no need to read on as this review is not for the technical minded so to speak. It has great sound. It is easy to set up. Using a power pack of 10,000 mah it has recorded over 30 hours of non stop footage/sound/noise and there was still power left in the pack. It does take 3 AA bateries that came with the product but I haven't used them yet so cannot comment. It is easy to set up, record and great for reviewing playback when you are specifically waiting for noise to happen. Just press the record button and leave it on all night. The display on ffwd (hold the ffwd button down) shows the peaks in the ... MoreTASCAM DRX40 - I needed a recording device due to noisy neighbours unfortunately (from within my home i might just add). This is perfect so music buffs and sound buffs no need to read on as this review is not for the technical minded so to speak. It has great sound. It is easy to set up. Using a power pack of 10,000 mah it has recorded over 30 hours of non stop footage/sound/noise and there was still power left in the pack. It does take 3 AA bateries that came with the product but I haven't used them yet so cannot comment. It is easy to set up, record and great for reviewing playback when you are specifically waiting for noise to happen. Just press the record button and leave it on all night. The display on ffwd (hold the ffwd button down) shows the peaks in the sounds and enables a quick review of any loud sounds when required. It is super sensitive, it even picked up my footsteps when walking in socks on a carpet and even my snoring when asleep in another room :0). Voice playback is very clear when i tested and I also now use it when zooming people. I will eventually use it on my DSLR when videoing family events and look forward to that. There is plenty of technical guidance on utube for these which are great. I am 50 something lady and not that technical minded but I HAD TO LEARN as I needed to capture noise. If I can use it I am sure others could too. After a few goes I am now used to finding the files and play back etc., utube a great help all beit a little too technical music / sound jargon, but good re the settings. Some of the music/sound buff reviews said the TASCAM was made of cheap plastic but I feel for the price it is of good strong quality and structure. It certainly feels strong to me and not that light weight. It is a great portable size and fits in my hand well. Now I have used it a few times it seems easy and I am able to easily find my way around the display and features etc. Well what more to say..... I am super pleased, it beats any dictaphone I have used in meetings in the past. Yes there is a little ambient noise (cannot remember the technical term) when you record but for its price and compared to other similar devices on the market, this one beat them all hands down for me. I did research and review perhaps 6 other devices before purchasing this one. I am very pleased with my TASCAM DR40X.

Best recorder in its price point!

Great quality recording options, PRO quality. Menu is easy to learn after a use or two. Compact, lightweight, and portable. About 20% cheaper than leading competitor (Zoom H4n) and has more functionality. Apples to Apples I more often prefer the Tascam audio with same settings/processing.It is less durable. More plastic. I purchased a separate 5.5? external HD hard shell case for around $10 or $11. And I?d recommend you invest in a dead kitten style furry windscreen. Any wind while recording outdoors will peak your audio.But Adorama had by far the best price online, I couldn?t pass it up. Definitely worth it!

Excellent device, insanely fast delivery

I enjoy playing jazz piano and purchased this in order to record both via mic and line inputs. For both requirements this unit performs admirably. It is well built and easy to navigate and use. I run Kubuntu Linux and upon connecting my Tascam DR-40X unit via its micro-USB socket to my PC, all the folders show up so it is easy to transfer files in either direction without having to remove the SD card. Sound quality is excellent when recording either via mic or line input (even with TS jacks from my piano noise level is unnoticeable, but XLR is an option). I ordered this on a Sunday evening and delivery was predicted to be the next day. Frankly I thought it must be a mistake, but the unit was in my hand by 11:30am! Fastest delivery I have ever had! I look forward to ... MoreI enjoy playing jazz piano and purchased this in order to record both via mic and line inputs. For both requirements this unit performs admirably. It is well built and easy to navigate and use. I run Kubuntu Linux and upon connecting my Tascam DR-40X unit via its micro-USB socket to my PC, all the folders show up so it is easy to transfer files in either direction without having to remove the SD card. Sound quality is excellent when recording either via mic or line input (even with TS jacks from my piano noise level is unnoticeable, but XLR is an option). I ordered this on a Sunday evening and delivery was predicted to be the next day. Frankly I thought it must be a mistake, but the unit was in my hand by 11:30am! Fastest delivery I have ever had! I look forward to many years of enjoyable use.

Excellent sound quality

The quality of the sound is what cane first when I bought this field recorder. I was not disappointed! It's quite amazing to get such a quality from such small and light machine. The interface is simple and all what is needed is there. It takes few seconds to discover the pages of the menu. Then it's easy to remember. There are features with the 4 tracks that I have not discovered yet. This machine does more than what I need. Conclusion, great portable recorder for a great price.

Great recorder for the price

Adrorama had by far the best price on this Tascam recorder, I had to get it. It was more than $100 less than the competitor brand (Zoom H4n), with actually MORE functionality. Though, less durability.This recorder works great, pretty easy to get used to the menu after a couple uses. If you move the microphone positions from XY to AB, it notices and asks if you?d like to change modes. And offers high quality pro recordings, or smaller file sizes with really good but lower bitrate settings.Because it is plastic and does feel like it would only hold up to so much of a beating, I do wish it came with some kind of case, and you definitely need a deadcat style mic guard for outdoor recording, the wind will peak all of your recordings, despite how low you put your ... MoreAdrorama had by far the best price on this Tascam recorder, I had to get it. It was more than $100 less than the competitor brand (Zoom H4n), with actually MORE functionality. Though, less durability.This recorder works great, pretty easy to get used to the menu after a couple uses. If you move the microphone positions from XY to AB, it notices and asks if you?d like to change modes. And offers high quality pro recordings, or smaller file sizes with really good but lower bitrate settings.Because it is plastic and does feel like it would only hold up to so much of a beating, I do wish it came with some kind of case, and you definitely need a deadcat style mic guard for outdoor recording, the wind will peak all of your recordings, despite how low you put your levels. However this is not a valid complaint due to the low low cost of this particular deal (mine was a sub $200 recorder plus lav mic bundle). Though the lav mic is on back order.I?m sure if I wanted to spend more I could?ve found a case and deadcat bundle. And besides if you see my included photo, I bought a case for around $10 (a hard shell hard drive case). And I have a dead kitty windscreen that may fit and if not, they can be found inexpensively online.Yes, this recorder is a great solution for high quality field audio, with a small footprint (compact).

Loads Of Features & Won't Break The Bank

I got this mainly to provide an audio track when filming with my drone. However, this is proving itself to be a far more versatile machine than I would have expected for the money!For openers, The sound recording quality with the built-in mics is fantastic. I was expecting to hear something on the tinny side, but the fidelity of the built-in mics is really impressive. It's right up there with any good quality stage mic. If you're in an acoustically good room, you can get some near studio quality recordings.The flexibility of the recording format quality is another great feature. You can readily adapt between times when maximum quality of the recording is paramount, & those times when quality isn't as important as recording time length.The non-destructive ... MoreI got this mainly to provide an audio track when filming with my drone. However, this is proving itself to be a far more versatile machine than I would have expected for the money!For openers, The sound recording quality with the built-in mics is fantastic. I was expecting to hear something on the tinny side, but the fidelity of the built-in mics is really impressive. It's right up there with any good quality stage mic. If you're in an acoustically good room, you can get some near studio quality recordings.The flexibility of the recording format quality is another great feature. You can readily adapt between times when maximum quality of the recording is paramount, & those times when quality isn't as important as recording time length.The non-destructive overdubbing is another wonderful feature. If you're playing with song arrangements, this is a great little tool to create all your synced tracks. The DR-40X will create multiple files that can be uploaded to a computer & then mixed down with a multi-track program.Right now, my favorite feature is the DR-40X's ability to record a second audio track at a different (user determined) recording level. That way, if sound levels exceed the main track's peak & go into clipping, there's a safety track that can be dubbed in. For example, I just filmed a musket volley for some Civil War Reenactors with my drone, using the DR-40X for audio. The vocals on the main audio track were fine, but the musket volley totally overdrove it & was heavily distorted. On the secondary track, being recorded at almost the lowest possible setting, the vocals were virtually inaudible, but the musket volley was clean, with no distortion. All it took was 30 seconds with the sound editing software to replace the distorted section of the track with the clean section.As of this writing, I've only had the machine a little over 2 weeks, so I've barely even scratched to surface of what it can do. But every time I play with a new feature, it's like opening up another birthday present. It's really a pleasure to use this recorder!Two things you will DEFINITELY want to get for this: A wind screen & a shock mount! These are just two must have items for any mic.

Never leave home without one!

This is my second DR-40 recorder - I recently sold my first one to a friend, thinking that, in retirement, I probably had no more use for it. Little did I know! Sure enough, as soon as I got rid of it, I had reason to buy a new one. The same things which originally made it a good buy are still true in the 40X new and improved version. The price is still reasonable (especially on sale), and the performance is still outstanding. I am glad the 40X still has my favorite feature from the original (missing on the more expensive DR-100), which is the ability to simultaneously record a second pair of tracks at a lower level. In that some of my use of the recorder was/is live vocal recitals and instrumental performances without the ability to do a run-through, having the ... MoreThis is my second DR-40 recorder - I recently sold my first one to a friend, thinking that, in retirement, I probably had no more use for it. Little did I know! Sure enough, as soon as I got rid of it, I had reason to buy a new one. The same things which originally made it a good buy are still true in the 40X new and improved version. The price is still reasonable (especially on sale), and the performance is still outstanding. I am glad the 40X still has my favorite feature from the original (missing on the more expensive DR-100), which is the ability to simultaneously record a second pair of tracks at a lower level. In that some of my use of the recorder was/is live vocal recitals and instrumental performances without the ability to do a run-through, having the lower level insurance tracks is a life-saver. Even when multi-mic set-up and sound check is possible, and I feed the output of my Mackie mixer into the line inputs, the lower level tracks are still very worthwhile. Bottom line: the Tascam DR-40X is a great-sounding, reliable little recorder. I used my first one for several years without a hitch and I expect this one to be just as reliable. I never leave home without one!

TASCAM DR-40X 4 Track Recorder with USB Audio Interface

Of course these little digital recorders that record on SD cards have been around for over a decade.But the DR-40x is unique because it can also function as a USB interface, allowing you to record into Reaper, Protools or whatever recording software you use.Note that although the unit can record 4 tracks at once internally, as a USB interface, you can only record 2 tracks at a time.You can of course also just grab all the tracks you recorded internally, and then drop them into your recording software, so it's pretty versatile.Things to pay attention to:1. You need to update the firmware as soon as you get it. The factory firmware has a major bug.Get the current code at Tascam's website (I was not allowed to post the link).Get the USB driver while you ... MoreOf course these little digital recorders that record on SD cards have been around for over a decade.But the DR-40x is unique because it can also function as a USB interface, allowing you to record into Reaper, Protools or whatever recording software you use.Note that although the unit can record 4 tracks at once internally, as a USB interface, you can only record 2 tracks at a time.You can of course also just grab all the tracks you recorded internally, and then drop them into your recording software, so it's pretty versatile.Things to pay attention to:1. You need to update the firmware as soon as you get it. The factory firmware has a major bug.Get the current code at Tascam's website (I was not allowed to post the link).Get the USB driver while you are on the download page, too.2. The built in mics are great. When using external mics, you should choose Condenser mics (they use batteries or the built-in Phantom Power) Non powered mics are a little noisy through the DR40's preamps.3. The unit is large, probably the size and weight of 4 cell phones stacked.4. The metallic red color will make sure you don't leave it behind in a tangle of black cables.5. The little rubber foot has a space inside the battery compartment for storage.6. The unit knows if you change the built in microphones from X-Y to A-B configuration.7. Pressing REC does not start the recording. That first press arms the unit (red light flashing), the second press of REC actually starts the recording.This is a really great piece of tech. It has really got my creative juices flowing during the Pandemic!

Unusable!

The floor noise is insane!!!! It's impossible to use this device, unless you are planning on recording a loud and noisy environment like a club. Even the tests on the street were shocking. The white noise is distributed across the ENTIRE SPECTRUM, a noise cancellation software revealed!It's a crying shame on Tascam. How on earth could they jeopardise their brand so frivolously?

Zero latency overdub is great!

I bought this to collaborate with band mates when we couldn't meet up. After fighting pc audio latency issues, I bought this for the zero latency overdub feature. I love it! It can mount on a tripod. It has many recording options so it takes some time to learn, but a few minutes into the instructions and I was able to set it up for overdub. You can record a new track separately from the original and they are perfectly in sync when you import back to the pc.Lots of options for internal and external mics. I've tried a few things like external audio mic, recording a practice session with the internal mics, plugging guitar multi effects directly. All worked well. You have to check recording levels but there is a simple way to adjust sensitivity.The one negative is ... MoreI bought this to collaborate with band mates when we couldn't meet up. After fighting pc audio latency issues, I bought this for the zero latency overdub feature. I love it! It can mount on a tripod. It has many recording options so it takes some time to learn, but a few minutes into the instructions and I was able to set it up for overdub. You can record a new track separately from the original and they are perfectly in sync when you import back to the pc.Lots of options for internal and external mics. I've tried a few things like external audio mic, recording a practice session with the internal mics, plugging guitar multi effects directly. All worked well. You have to check recording levels but there is a simple way to adjust sensitivity.The one negative is that you need to transfer audio files back and forth to the pc. But that's a small issue in exchange for all my overdubs having zero latency.For a versatile home studio recorder, this is pretty great. If you need to make professional quality recordings, maybe it's worth investing in more gear, but for the amateur who needs to make some recordings, this is a great device. Buy this over an audio interface.