Tascam 2488neo 24-Track Recording Workstation

You're full of ideas; ideas that are bigger than just lyrics and a chord progression. You hear drums, three guitars, lush organs, violins, harmonica, maybe even a zither or two, and no simple field recorder or four track is going to be enough to get your composition down. If you want to capture your biggest ideas before they flitter away back into the aether, never to be reclaimed, there's no tool more capable and efficient than the Tascam 2488neo 24-track Recording Workstation.

When Tascam introduced the first Portastudio in 1979 they jump-started the home recording revolution. Suddenly, every musician could commit complex musical ideas to tape, layering multiple parts all by themselves. It put a power once reserved for select few artists in to the hands of the masses. Capable of producing far more than just demo recordings, The 2488neo represents the most sophisticated evolution of the Portastudio to date, giving you all the tools you'll need to go from moment of inspiration to holding that finished CD in your hand. Yet this flagship Portastudio is still as simple to operate as the first cassette-based machines.

24 Tracks Let You Keep Your Options Open
Don't let track limitations keep you from doubling guitars, stereo-tracking piano or dubbing four-more vocal harmonies to your songs. With four-, eight- and even sixteen-track machines, you'd often find yourself having to bounce what's already been recorded to a stereo sub-mix to make room for more overdubs. Not only does this add time to the recording process, it also commits you to a mix before you've tracked an entire song, and as any engineer knows, each new element can alter the overall sonic balance of an entire project. With the 2488neo you'll be able to keep more tracks separate when going into your final mix, so feel free to add those extra cellos, accordions and Tibetan singing bowls. Because the 2488 is a digital recorder, an additional 256 virtual tracks are available for recording multiple takes on each track. No longer do you have to commit to a "take it or trash it" decision after every take like you did on your old cassette recorder. And don't worry about running out of storage; the Tascam 2488neo has an 80GB internal hard drive. The huge track count, massive storage memory, and convenience of digital let you concentrate on the performance you're recording, not the logistics of the recording process.

Digital Effects And Editing
Recording on a Digital Portastudio has other benefits as well. Thanks to its comprehensive editing tools and effects, the 2488neo lets you sculpt, shape and rearrange your audio with the ease only the digital realm can afford. Audio editing is clear and simple on the 2488's large, backlit LCD screen. View waveforms the same way you would on dedicated computer audio editing software, and splice, cut, copy and delete selections quickly with the top-mounted cursor buttons, marking controls, and jog wheel. If the edit functions on the 2488neo are like its toolbox, the digital effects are like an artist's paint and paintbrush collection. High-resolution ambient effects like reverb, delay and chorus add depth and color to tracks, while indispensable utilities like panning, compression and EQ help to highlight and arrange select elements within your mix-composition. Multiple effects can be applied to individual tracks for precision sound-sculpting.

Beyond Demos: Mastering And Burning CDs
Every aspect of production, right through the final steps, is available with the Tascam 2488neo. No production is ready for duplication or dissemination without first going through the mastering process. The 2488neo provides a suite of mastering tools, including a multi-band stereo compressor / limiter and mastering EQ that will help bring your final mix into sharp focus. Once you have your stereo master track, finish the production process by burning a CD master using the 2488's built-in optical drive. Now you're ready for distribution, success, fame. . . and you've done it all yourself with the Tascam 2488neo.

Advantages Over Computer-Based Recording
While many musicians praise the virtues of computer-based recording solutions, the process of actually setting up and tracking onto your PC or Mac is fraught with obstacles. Is your interface compatible with your operating system? Is your RAM sufficient for your target track count? Is your motherboard optimized for your recording software? Have you partitioned your hard drive, calibrated your input level, organized your project folders, and suppressed any programs that might be running in the background? ARRGGH!!! Who needs the hassle when the 2488neo is ready to record straight out of the box? While studio owners will pony up thousands of dollars for a computer recording workstation that's reliably stable, Tascam's proven and perfectly matched hardware and operating system are virtually free of latency, processing lag, and crashes, and for a fraction of the price. When you consider all the money you'd have to spend on plugins, recording software, outboard processors. and interfaces to get the same functionality that the 2488neo offers, there's just no comparison.

Start Tracking Right Away With The Optional Tascam LaunchPad Starter Pack
All the features of the 2488neo got you primed to start recording ASAP? We don't blame you. Add the LaunchPad Starter Pack and outfit your new home studio with a high quality pair of monitoring headphones and multi-purpose dynamic mic, both from Tascam. Even if you've already got a mic and a pair of headphones, any studio buff knows you can never have enough of either; at this special bundle price, the LaunchPad is an unbeatable bargain on some integral recording gear.

For well under a thousand dollars, the Tascam 2488neo is a complete music production solution. Full-band tracking, mixing and mastering are all at your command, and all in CD-quality 24-bit 44.1kHz fidelity. For the D.I.Y. musician with the talent, the songs, and the will, the 2488neo is the final piece that will transform you into a true recording artist.

The 2488neo is Tascam's latest take on its 24-track, 24-bit recorder. Sporting eight mic inputs, it's one of the few recorders able to record and mix a full band. A new batch of mastering effects joins the reverb, amp simulation, compression and EQ processing to create and burn finished-sounding CDs in a stand-alone unit. With Tascam's simple interface, great-sounding preamps and chart-ready effects the 2488neo is the ultimate 24-track production machine.

Features
New mastering effects include multiband compression, EQ and noise shaping for pro-sounding CD mixes

3-band EQ on 24 channels, 8-inputs and stereo bus with high and low sweepable shelving bands and full parametric mid band

Three aux sends on all channels except the effects return

Loop effect provides reverb, delay, chorus and more on an aux send and return

Assignable Guitar multi-effects processor for overdrive, distortion, chorus, delay, flange and more

Up to eight assignable dynamics processors for compression during recording or mixdown

Dedicated Stereo Compressor on the stereo output

Tascam LaunchPad Starter Pack information (optional)
LaunchPad - The Tascam recording kit includes headphones, cables and a microphone to help musicians start recording at an affordable price. Since revolutionizing home recording 25 years ago with the Portastudio, the name TASCAM has become synonymous with creative home recording. The LaunchPad is the ideal accessory for musicians to start recording with their TASCAM DP01 Digital Portastudio, cassette Portastudio or USB computer interface.

Included in the LaunchPad are a pair of TASCAM HPVT1 studio-quality headphones and a TASCAM microphone designed by MXL, whose mics have found their way into a number of studios and hit songs. It also includes a mic clip, mic pouch and cable so you're ready to record right out of the box. The TASCAM LaunchPad is the ultimate mic & headphone kit for passionate musicians.

Technical Info

Eight inputs: 4 XLR with phantom power double as 1/4 in. mic/line inputs, plus four more 1/4 in. mic/line inputs

Nineteen 45mm faders including master fader

LCD display for viewing meters and edit parameters

250 Virtual tracks

CD-RW drive to record Audio CDs, import/export WAV files and backup hard drive

High-speed USB 2.0 jack connects to PC or Mac(R) for data backup and SMF/WAV file

Recording resolution: 44.1kHz, 16-bit or 24-bit

If you need an all-in-one recording solution, look no further! The 2488neo has 8 analog inputs (4 XLR) for simultaneous recording, plus 3-band EQ and 3 Aux sends on every channel. Add some color with the 8 assignable dynamics processors, guitar effects, and MIDI sound module, then mix and master with the all-new multi-band compressor, stereo EQ, and noise shaping. Burn straight to CD when you're finished, or offload via USB 2.0 for further tweaking. Everything is easily accessible, so you can focus on making music!