Zoom R16 VS R24

jolynyk · Post by **jolynyk** » 4 Mar 2014 7:18 pm

Can somebody enlighten me. If I buy an R16 I get 8 tracks of simultaneous recording. If I buy an R24 I still only get 8 tracks of recording at once. What am I gaining by buying an R24?? other than maybe more playback tracks, but both can only record 8 at one time.

Tony Prior · Post by **Tony Prior** » 5 Mar 2014 3:20 am

8 tracks recording

http://www.guitarcenter.com/Zoom-R24-Mu ... 7114648642

Greg Cutshaw · Post by **Greg Cutshaw** » 5 Mar 2014 5:27 am

jolynyk you pretty much nailed the difference. I like my R24 and the ability to playback 24 tracks at one time means I can listen to all or most of the entire song's tracks at one time without transferring it to the PC. Either unit can of course record 100's of tracks and store them locally but you are limited to the number of playback tracks. For $500 street I think the R24 should have 24 separate faders! I find my R24 useless as a control interface and useless as a mastering device. It is an awesome track grabber as long as you realize you will need a preamp with most mic's to get a decent signal to noise ratio on the inputs.

jolynyk · Post by **jolynyk** » 5 Mar 2014 5:37 am

Thanks Tony & Greg..That's what I suspected.I would have hoped the R24 should have been able to record on 10 or 12 tracks, & as you suggest Greg at least 24 faders.

Greg Cutshaw · Post by **Greg Cutshaw** » 5 Mar 2014 6:46 am

You can link two of these machines together to get more input tracks at the same time (16 tracks). It's not a good economic call as it would make more sense to use something like Reaper or Audacity with a control interface and record direct to a PC to get that.

Tony Prior · Post by **Tony Prior** » 6 Mar 2014 4:13 am

I would certainly agree with Greg, there are better options than two R16's or R24's . And I do happen to think they are great units for the money.

The dominant questions for me would be...

-How many recording tracks do you really need

-how many playback tracks do you really need

I use Pro Tools and previous to that Sonar, never used more than 2 tracks at a time to build a project which could end up with 8,10 or 12 tracks..or more..before that a 16 track Yamaha workstation with 8/time recording, still never used more than 2 at a time for recording.

Qualifier

I did buy an R16 which records each track in wav format and is simple as pie to transfer...ONE TIME I recorded a drum kit at the house and moved 4 or 5 tracks into the pro tools project.

simple solution, a DAW and an external source such as an R16 to handle more tracks at one time or for portability.

What is your purpose and goal of recording? That would determine your real needs.

I think Greg is the House expert here on Zoom machines, I haven't used mine in a year !

jolynyk · Post by **jolynyk** » 6 Mar 2014 1:08 pm

Thanks for the info.. I just build tracks in BIAB, then render them to individual wave files. Usually 6 to 8 tracks, because some are stereo& they render to 2 tracks.. Then I only need a couple tracks for vocals.. I don't have Sonar or Pro tools, but am a little familiar with Mixcraft & Audacity.. Tried Reaper, but get totally lost, especially if I load a midi track. I will try Mixcraft, & I have Presonus Audiobox USB,
Thanks again..

Rick Schacter · Post by **Rick Schacter** » 7 Mar 2014 12:14 pm

[quote="jolynyk"
I have Presonus Audiobox USB,
Thanks again..[/quote]

If you have the Presonus Audiobox, it should have come with a copy of Studio One Artist.
You might want to give that a try.

I've been using Studio One Professional and so far I'm happy with it.
It's pretty simple to install and use.

I own an R-16 too but haven't been using it lately.
They're great for recording out in the field.
Then you can transfer your tracks into a DAW for editting.

Rick

jolynyk · Post by **jolynyk** » 7 Mar 2014 1:14 pm

Thanks Rick, yes I have Studio One, but didn't install it since I already had the others installed. Maybe I'll load it & give it a try.