meadeam

Thanks for the recommendation on the H4, I will look into it. I did take more than a cursory glance at the 004; my inexperience in this area is why I am asking questions. I realize it has built in mics, but I didn't know if they would be appropriate for close micing a guitar amp, or if I even need to do that. I have never recorded anything other than band practice with a single-track hand held recorder. Thanks for your help everyone.

Cool, thanks. So is it correct that dynamic mics do not need a preamp to work correctly? I have a dynmic mic (not a 57) that I would like to start out with.

First, if this has been covered, feel free to refer mt to another post. I'm new here, and did a quick search, then got lazy and decided to just post I am looking into a pocket studio type solution that will allow me to mic a guitar amp with reasonably good results. Doesn't have to be perfect, as I only have an el Cheapo dynamic mic at this point anyway. The Tascam DP-004 is just about what I want, but I think I would have to buy a mic pre-amp as well. Please correct me if I am wrong, I do not know much about this. Is there another pocket studio type device I can look at that is similarily priced, and would handle external mics? I know the Tascam 8-track version of the pocket studio does what I want, but it is rougly twice the price. I'm really sold on the pocket studio solution. I love the idea of a stand alone device that can multi track and I can take it anywhere. I just want to be able to close mic my guitar amp when I am at home. Thanks!

Thanks for the replies. I've got some things to consider now. Tom , the drums sound really good on that sample track. That is encouraging.

Do any of you have examples of songs you've written and recorded using a drum machine such as one of the Alesis or Boss products? Did you use canned beats, or make your own? I realize there are plenty of professional recordings on which drum machines were used, but I'm interested in hearing some examples of having used consumer level equipment. I'd also like to hear your impressions on composing and arranging that way. I'll be taking the plunge myself, but I'm curious. Thanks!