The last time I was in a studio it was 16 track reel to reel. In the market today, this was about as "prosumer" as could be found. TASCAM was (and still seems to be) top of the line for the high-end amateur. The features on this seem stacked to the ceiling. But sometimes "less is more."

UNLESS you are extremely computer-music savvy (and I thought I was, being a wanna-be MCSE computer geek generally), this unit is a bit touchy to get from point A to point B. My solution was to contact the local high school vo-tech computer science teacher, and she sent me a couple of teenagers to help decipher the menu wheel. Laying down individual tracks was easy enough, but you really gotta hit every button in exactly the correct sequence to do the mastering. Once you have some teenaged assistance (someone familiar with Twitters & advanced cell phones), and you do it a few times, it gets easier. But if you are over 40, this is a real challenge.

I'm really only using it at the moment to create backing tracks (doing solo-guitar work). I'd do more originals, but another digital nightmare (the learning curve appending things together on a drum machine - Alesis SR-18) is dragging it all to a crawl. Maybe I'm trying to learn too much too quickly, but as they say we either gotta adapt or we get lost in this new technology.

I'm trying, but again -- if you are over 40 and just digging into this, prepare to find some localized helpers, read the manual about 10x, and plan strategies for what you really want to do with it. It is easier (for me at least) to have an outboard mixing console, with outboard rack mount effects, than to "menu wheel" the built-in stuff into these mixes.

I'd like to make design suggestions for future models. In a nutshell -- for the love of God make things LOOK more like outboard effects -- put "FX1 IN" and similar buttons right on each channel. (Maybe a "mastering" button that would tell the software "now do this, this and this" --like a software macro, for the geeks out there in TASCAM design team.)

Don't force people to spin a wheel 45 minutes to find what we need. In recording, you like to PUNCH things in and out (especially if you are trying to play a guitar, or sing, while being the ONLY operator of the gear)!

Go ahead and make the unit larger, with more buttons, rather than go for compact with everything buried in a rather rigid menu system accessed by a spinning wheel.

The sound quality is great for the finished product, but the learning curve before you get there is roughly the same as studying for the TCP-IP component of the computer system engineer credential.

I like the unit, but would gladly have paid $500 more for a finely adjusted and much more "user-friendly" console. I haven't tried burning a CD on it yet -- but I do export the .wav files over to the PC via USB, then import them to "Goldwave" software for conversion into .mp3 format. From there, Windows Media Player can assemble the songs quickly into "playlists" that I then export over to an I-Pod for playback.

If this sounds like driving from Maine to Florida via Alaska, you are right. (Wanna provide us a "BIOS flash" with a bit better menu & file manipulation system? That alone would be a HUGE improvement.)

Honestly, 8 track cassette units were MUCH simpler. Is that not the goal of technology advances, to make things easier? Yes, you can shove 1000 devices into something the size of a thumb nail now -- but what good are they if you cannot EASILY access, assign, and drop them where needed?

I'm a singer/songwriter who records his own stuff. This machine is a great value. It's vastly easier than reel to reel machines of the past. Digital rocks; it's great to just hit a button to go back to the start. Most of the features (virtual tracks, auto punch,editing, etc..) are very helpful. Absolutely buy the DVD that goes along with this. The manual is good, but when a machine has this many features, it's hard to convey it all perfectly. The support department is good. Wait time is usually about 10 - 25 minutes. Between the manual, DVD, and support you will be able to learn most of the stuff. In 6 mo's I have had nothing break. 24 tracks is misleading. It's really 18 tracks with 6 of them able to split into two, which doesn't always help (I've yet to fully figure this function out). Now for the sound. excellent for the money, but still seems to lack a touch of some of the hard to describe characteristics (spaciallity? tonal realness? depth?) of more expensive machines. I used it entirely (including mastering) for a cd I made.

1) This is not a professional DAW. It is clearly entry level and not well made. 2) It will crash on you. Even if you keep it in the box, and handle it like a case of eggs.

I owned a Fostex 8 track digital for 3 years before moving to this one. My band required real time inputs for all the mics and guitars. The 2488 Neo has it with 8 simultaneous inputs. However, you need to really read the manual and practice using this recorder. It does pretty much record what you put in, and good mics and pre-amps are essential. Going from my Fostex 8 track, was a giant learning curve, although it was easier to lay nice sounding tracks on the Fostex, you will need to work a little harder on the 2488 to get those nice sounding tracks. Files for uploading and downloading does take long, but if you burn a CD from this machine you can rip it onto your computer much quicker; or you can upload the wave file which will take longer and will be a large file. I feel the 2488 Neo is worth what you pay for it, but if you plan on using your computer in conjunction, it will slow things up and will also create some frustration. There are many good features on this recorder: effects, mix down, mastering, EQ, faders, and editing controls. Learning them will be the challenge. I recommend you buy the 2488 video which is concise, and easy to follow. I have owned it now for two weeks; have laid down some nice tracks with the band. Once you start using it on a regular basis, it will become pretty easy and gratifying to work with. By the way: The manual that comes with it is not as bad as been reported, but the DVD will move you much faster and explain some of the function where the manual leaves off.

I have owned this unit for a few months now. The sound quality of this unit depends on how you use it, and what other equipment you have. With a good mic, quality increases. If you treat your room, learn proper recording techniques, etc, then get a good preamp and mics, you can make almost pro quality recordings. This unit captures what you put in. The effects sound pretty good, which surprised me, but the way you assign them is a real pain. And it seems that you can only use the multi effect on 1 channel, which is ridiculous. This unit would be worth way more money if it had the ability to transfer tracks to the computer more easily, and then back to the unit, without timing issues. If you do everything onboard this unit, you will be dissapointed in how difficult it is to edit audio, punch in and out, etc...If you are transferring to the computer, you will find that this unit just acts like a recording interface, without the abilities of a recording interface. Transferring tracks takes forever, and you have to do 1 at a time. Overall this isn't a bad unit, but honestly, if you are going to spend this kind of money, I would go with a computer based system. If I could do it again I would.