Hey guys, you all have made my day with your requests from your kids hehe. Rick good luck with your request for a Micro BR you might hint that I've seen them sell regularly on ebay for 175.00 all the way down to 135.00 daily, I guess my son got lucky.
John good luck with your U47 I seen one on eBay for 100.00 bucks "NOT" just having fun with ya. I'm guessing that your daughter is a Doctor or Lawyer or maybe a "session player" if you're asking for a U47
Now for a report on the Micro BR so far. I can't say enough on it's behalf as a quick plug and play recorder with 32 available tracks to use for ideas as well as the starting point for a complete song. The COSM effects are very good they aren't perfect in my mind but they are better than most any modeling software that is used on other small 4 and 8 track recorders. I'm not sure if they come from the GT-6, GT-8 or a mix from both but they sound very good.
The effects are way above average for those of you that don't use modeling software and still use a Mic and an Amp then go into the Micro BR. There are a few limitations on what effect can be used with another but not many and they seem to have all of the algorithms setup in a normal order. I like the fact that you can monitor wet and record dry that's a pretty big plus for such a small unit. The compression is not bad but it could use a few more parameters but it does a good job. The EQ seems a bit sterile at times to me or it could be my head phones but normally they sound great I use Sennheiser HD280's and most agree they are pretty flat with a good bass response.
The slow down "learn a lick" feature is like most maybe a little better with fewer artifacts and the same could be said for the center cancel feature. What little bit I have played with the mastering feature seems to be quite a bit above average for a small unit like this. The reverb is pretty darn good and sounds to be some of Roland's better algorithms but still I wouldn't call the reverb "master quality".
The drums lend themselves towards rock styles much more than country and although they are very high quality samples the rule with the drums are what you hear is what you get with out a lot of editing.
I am a long way from digging completely to the bottom of the Micro BR but so far I would say if you are on the fence about purchasing a good small 16 bit recorder with multiple tracks and great features go ahead and jump off of the fence and buy this slick little recorder. One last word, if you intend on recording live bands and want a fat stereo mix spend some cash on a goo stereo Mic such as the one they recommend from Boss or the Blue Mikey or even some of the other good small portable stereo Mics available on the web. I have a long way to go before I learn all of the functions so hang in there for a complete report!
I did forget to say one last thing about the Micro BR as with all things that a person owns he wants the item to be of the best quality and to be able to brag about the wonderful capabilities of his purchase so please let me say this and I promise you I'll stop here
Along with all of the great things I have said about the Micro BR I have probably found almost 25% more negative points about the Micro BR. I hope to post my negative findings a little later on when I feel that I've found most of the good and bad. God Bless
Big Bob
That sure beats a new shirt and a pair of socks. I've got my hints scattered around for a Micro BR too. Keep us imformed on how it works out.