Zoom Gear & Home Recording Forum

I am so danged frustrated. I had a pretty good open mic show and I even did my first cover song ("Indian Girl" Jagger-Richards). But when I got home to download the recording from the PS04, it only recorded 4:22 seconds and then said "card full". That's the first time that's happened. Now I can't trust the trusty old PS04.

Dang, I just tested the PS at home by recording the T.A.M.I Show off of the public TV station. I turned it off at 6 minutes and counting. The open mic PA system was outstanding tonight. I wonder if the high quality of that filled the smart card faster. I am totally confused. I've taped entire open mic performances (usually three songs, under 15 minutes) many times before tonight.

Check the card capacity on your PC first? I used to have a PS-02 and it only could take a 32mb SmartMedia card. So I bought 2 extras over the years. Only seventeen minutes of stereo audio can be stored on a 32MB SmartMedia card at the HiFi setting (32kHz). 32 minutes in long mode, which is what I would use when recording in the "studio", as I never did live recordings with it. Pretty sure the 04 has the same specs. Surprised you are still using and 04 though Cracks. I bought a used MRS-08 almost 2 yrs ago off Ebay for $150 and it's just so much more versatile. ZOOM still has the thing in production next to the R16(the only two digital recorders/studios in production now) so they must feel it is a great unit.

Thanks, sufer. I have used the PS for recording open mics in the past and I've always been able to capture the entire performance. I am going to chalk this problem up to user error. Maybe I didn't set it up right or something.

The PS04 does everthing I need for open mic recordings. What little I did capture from Saturday's performance was really nice sounding. Between the PA system and the PS recording, I probably would not have had to do much mixing. It was play and go.

If it really stopped recording by itself after four minutes then it was probably a card error.

Remember that the PS-04 when running out of card memory will forget the entire recording and you are left with nothing. If you risk running out of card memory, you need to stop and restart once in a while to keep it all.

And isn't it time for you to upgrade to an H2 with a good 8GB card? Perhaps we should run a forum-wide money collection to support you?

Hej, Guys! Don't put down the old -04! I'm still using mine and the only real complaints I have is 1. The set-up for a new project sometimes takes too long but, i see this as a trade-off for the extreme portability of the unit. 2. The SM Card. Hard to find a compatible card, and when you do.... Oh! Those prices!

Otherwise, I still haven't found such a portable unit (Pocket Size) packed with as many functions and features as the -04.

So, until I wear out my Cards, it's my preferred recording equipment.

Not sure how the functions stack up against the PS-04 but the BOSS MICRO BR has caught my eye for a while now. I used to have the PS-02 and it was pretty cool using such a small unit w/sooo many functions. Seems like the MICRO BR would be the unit of choice if you are looking for a small powerhouse. And it takes standard low cost SD cards...up to 1GB.

http://www.bosscorp.co.jp/products/en/MICRO_BR/

Hmmm. Interesting. The best part is, of course, not being limited to 128M. I'll have to consider putting it on my Wish List. But, reading through the Micro BR Manual, it seems that the PS-04 does have some advantages. 1. I can't see that you can program your own Rythm and Base patterns. Does it even have Base patterns? 2. There's also no mention of being able to create your own effect patches. These are two(three) more of the qualities I value on the PS-04.

I know... I'm an old die-hard.

I think it only has drum patterns...no MIDI bass. You can always program the 04 and swap it over to the Micro (if you need the bass track). For those who don't play/own a bass I can see the advantage of having programmable bass...although I rarely use it on my MRS-8.

Check page 61 of the manual. Looks as though you can change/tweak effects. Then save as user patch.
http://lib.roland.co.jp/manual/en/dl_06 ... -BR_e3.pdf
I can't believe ZOOM doesn't produce/market a mini/micro recorder anymore. Seems like they would do ok w/a similar unit. I sooo want this unit just for it's portability and coolness factor. Just another electronic gadget toy that I have had to stop myself from buying!

So, you do your best to tempt me, like, misery loves company?

Well...aren't we all tempted by new gadgets/toys. Seems that if you are happy w/the 04 you should stick w/it. I did use my 02 for like 10 yrs. Finally bought a used MRS-8 off Ebay for $150 w/shipping included. Like under 1/2 the cost of a new one. It was sooo worth it to me to upgrade. If you shop the BOSS MICRO BR on bay for a bit I'll bet you can get one for $100...tops. I feel it's worth it just for ease of file use. When I started doing PC mixes w/the 02 I had to convert EVERY audio track's sampling rate to play/work correctly in my DAWs. And the minimal data storage was always an issue.
Did I talk you into it yet Mr. old die-hard crakkenmyer?
No?...how bout the MICRO BR's ability to slow down MP3 tracks w/out pitch change for studying/learning songs? That is a cool feature. I mean, you can do it w/audio editing software easily but just being able to do it on the fly is sooo cool.
Holy great deal...here's on going for under $75 in about an hour! First one on the page! Reserve not met though. Woder what he really wants for it?
http://cgi.ebay.com/Boss-MICRO-BR-Porta ... 2307445023

I think that is it, sufer. Thanks. When I put on lo quality, I get more time.

I'm heading out to an open mic right now. I'll report back later. I did a test run and got 10 good minutes of recording time.

Break a leg...and fill a card(wellalmost full) Cracky.

Thanks sufer. That did the trick. I don't notice any difference between high and low (as they both record fairly crappy performances fairly well).