TASCAM Portacapture X6 32-bit Float Portable Audio Recorder, Field Recorder for Video, Music, Podcast, Voice, Podcasting
$289.00
Price: $289.00
(as of Sep 29, 2024 15:59:15 UTC – Details)
Never miss a moment. Capture audio anywhere with the Portacapture X6. The intuitive app-like operations on its large color screen make it easy to record or sweeten up your audio in post. Record using the X6’s dual built-in microphones or plug in your own mics to its 2 XLR inputs. The recording quality on the Portacapture X6 will be your secret weapon. Its 96 kHz/32-bit float recording technology means that you can capture audio softer or louder than ideal, assuring that you will never miss that moment.
Enjoy intuitive app-like controls on the X6, all using the large 2.4-inch touchscreen. Easy-to-use recording, pre-production and postproduction capabilities are just a touch away
Capture using up to 96 kHz, 32-bit float recording
Record 6 tracks (4 track + 2 mix) simultaneously
Easy-to-use recording pre-sets: Select from music, podcast, interviews, field recording and 6-track multi-track for the ideal recording setup for your needs
2 XLR inputs and dual built-in mics with switchable AB/true-XY patterns
Customers say
Customers like the sound quality, ease of use, and build quality of the voice recorder. They mention it has great sound, is the lowest noise audio recorder for the price, and the Bluetooth control eliminates handling noise. Some appreciate the responsiveness. However, some customers disagree on the functionality, audio quality, and touchscreen.
AI-generated from the text of customer reviews
9 reviews for TASCAM Portacapture X6 32-bit Float Portable Audio Recorder, Field Recorder for Video, Music, Podcast, Voice, Podcasting
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FL –
Best Audio Recorder for the Cost – Competes with Recorders that are Twice the Cost
I have had the Tascam X8 for about a year and I would like to correct some false criticisms in the reviews.1. The X8 is very quiet. You will not hear ANY noise from the unit in your recordings. Reviews that state otherwise are not accurate.2. The touchscreen works flawlessly. I have never had it “freeze up,” nor are there “lines in the display.” Now it’s not going to have as great a display as a Galaxy S23 Ultra – that’s a silly expectation. However, it does have good resolution and color. It is sharp, clear and easy to see.3. The touchscreen is very quick and responsive. I own a Samsung Galaxy S22 Ultra, which is a very powerful smartphone, and I have been pleasantly surprised at how quick and responsive the touchscreen is. It is very quick and it never slows you down. It’s not quite smartphone quick, but it’s damn close.4. The Bluetooth control is freaking amazing. You have access to ALL of the recorder’s controls using wireless Bluetooth. When connected to my S22 Ultra, the response is nearly instantaneous – there are no delays. Keep in mind that no other audio recorder in this ranges offers you full control of the recorder wirelessly (to my knowledge). It is very convenient to be able to mount the recorder where I am going to play guitar and record my songs and then control the recorder with my phone. Also having Bluetooth control of the recorder eliminates handling noise that accompanies all handheld recorders. Definitely spend the $50.00 on the optional Bluetooth module.5. The audio quality of the recordings I have made has bee excellent. The X8 has been compared to the MixPre 6II audio recorder which costs twice as much. I don’t own the MixPre 6II, but according to one review by a professional, the MixPre 6II has slightly better dynamic range, meaning it supposedly records more of the sound spectrum. However, I am not sure if you played a recording made by the X8 side by side with the same recording made on the MixPre 6II that you would able to hear an actual difference. However, considering that the X8 costs half the price as the MixPre 6II, and it has an excellent touchscreen interface, and it has superb Bluetooth control, there really is no comparison. The UI on the MixPre 6II is knobs – which is practically caveman in comparison. Professionals who review audio recorders are now saying that even $150.00 recorders produce high fidelity recordings, and that there is very little difference, if any, between a $5000 recorder and a $500 recorder.6. I just updated the unit to the latest firmware version V1.32 and I had no problems. Tascam provides step by step directions. If you follow the directions, it is easy to do firmware updates. I had some apprehensions about this because updating firmware on a device like this can brick the device if it is done wrong. But Tascam’s instructions worked the first time.7. Tascam provides new features on the X8 for free with its firmware updates. This is just superb. After I updated to the latest version, the device boots in about 5 seconds, which is much faster than before the update. The X8 turns on very quickly with a slider switch and boots quickly.8. You can connect the X8 directly to your laptop and your audio “DAW” (digital audio workstation) via a USB cable.9. The X8 can be used as an SD card reader. So after you have made audio recordings, instead of having to remove the micro SD card, you can simply plug the unit into your laptop and select the card reader function. The X8 will show up in Windows Explorer as a separate drive (it’s Drive F: on my laptop). Then you can open up the file with your audio recordings and drag and drop them onto your laptop. This is simple and easy. You can also rename the Wave files whatever you want after you transfer them to your laptop. I record original songs and then transfer to my laptop and rename them.10. The X8 is pretty much bug free. Everything works as it is designed to work. Functions are very fast and work quickly.11. The touchscreen UI on the X8 is FAR easier to learn and use than the the UIs on the Zoom H6 and Zoom H8.12. For long recording sessions, you can plug the X8 into a rechargeable portable battery pack. I have a small 26 Amp hour Anker battery pack that is compact and will run the X8 for days.13. The X8 will provide phantom power for condenser mics. I have a Rode NT1 condenser mic (which is an excellent mic BTW) and the X8 powers it with no problems. The X8 also works well with dynamic mics.14. The X8 has very good sensitivity – better than the Zoom recorders I have owned. The unit will pick up sound much better than Zoom recorders I have owned.15. The X8 is FAR easier to set up for recording than the Zoom recorders I have owned. It is easy to set the gain and the mix settings for your recordings.16. The X8 allows you to add digital effects like reverb for vocal recordings. This is excellent. You can add this enhancements in your DAW, but for recording songs and vocals, it is much more convenient to add them into the original recording. Either way, it is a great feature to have.17. There are several presets on the X8 for various recording modes. For example, there is a music setting for recording instrumentals and vocals. This is very convenient and for most applications, it has enough features. If you have a more complicated recording like recording two instruments and two vocalists in a band, you can use the Manual app on the unit.18. The portable X-Y mics that come with the unit make excellent recordings. They can be set in A-B configuration if you need to create a more narrow soundstage. The only downside of the included mics is that they are made out of plastic.19. The X8 has a headphone out jack that powers studio headphones. I have not purchased headphones yet, but different reviews state that the headphone jack powers headphones very well. It has a separate chip on the motherboard dedicated to powering the headphones.20. The onboard speaker does not work well, but you will never use it anyway. You will either use headphones or connect it to your computer to play it on your sound system. It records in Wave files which are easy to transfer and play.21. The guitar tune feature did not work for me. I am not sure why, possibly I don’t know how to use it. Regardless, I would never use it to tune my guitar anyway. Most guitarists and musicians have specialized tuners for their instruments. Again, let me emphasize that it probably works and I don’t know how to use it. I did not spend much time trying to learn how to use it.22. You can record at 24 Bit, 96 Htz and get excellent recordings, that don’t take up as much storage as 32 Bit recordings. Also, the gain is very easy to set on 24 Bit recordings. You can guess at the gain settings and you probably won’t have any problems. For very difficult recordings with very “high” sounds or notes and very low sounds, you can use 32 Bit recordings. My original songs have a very wide dynamic range and I can easily record them in 24 Bit, 96 Htz settings.23. You can power this unit with a plug-in power brick you can buy from Tascam. The Zoom power bricks will also power this unit.24. It has four XLR inputs that work very well. It also has three 3.5 mm plug in inputs for lavalier mics (one is plugs into your camera).For the money, I believe this is the best audio recorder available. The MixPre recorders MAY have a little better audio quality, but they cost twice as much. I doubt if most people would be able to notice the difference between the X8 and the MixPre recorders, but keep in mind, I don’t own a MixPre recorder.This unit is easy to learn and use by beginners and it has the quality and features that advanced audio recorders will want. I highly recommend it. Nothing in the $500 – $1200 price range competes with it.
Evan –
great sounding portable mic
Things I wish I knew before buying: it requires an external memory card to store anything. It requires a USB-C cable to connect to your computer. Neither of those are included, and I don’t recall reading anything about those relatively cheap items being necessary for full function of the device. One further thing: you will need to fully remove the microphones from the top in order to convert it from an X to a Y configuration, they do not bend at what looks like the joint (I think Zoom mics bend at the joint and don’t require you to unplug them but I cannot confirm that).On to the positive: it sounds great. I use it plugged directly into my PC to stream live ASMR. I bought a couple different kinds of pop filters to scratch and rub sold by another company. The screen is very nice, large, and responsive, I’ve found the interface easy to use and it was easy downloading the program to run it on my PC. I know there are other mics I can get in the future that I could replace the original mics with, but so far I’m happy with them (besides having to completely remove them and replace them to change configurations).
MYas –
Works as advertised
Great product for on location recordings. Well made, great features
bug. –
For me, it’s just about perfect…
Update May 2, 2022: Tascam did indeed release new firmware that addresses my biggest gripe below. Kudos, Tascam!————-I’ve seen all kinds of reviews about the Portacapture X8, so I wanted to put in a few words having owned and used it now for about a month and a half…I like it a bunch.It definitely has a few quirks, and my #1 biggest gripe is this scenario:I’m recording in Manual mode, which I mostly do. I turn off all inputs except #3, where my condenser is plugged in with phantom power. Then I record a bit, turn it off, grab a snack and come back to continue. When I power up, now all inputs are active again and if I forget to turn off all except #3, it’ll record blank audio tracks for each until I remember to turn them off.This drives me mad, and it would be such a simple fix. That’s why I often check the Tascam website for firmware upgrades. I’m sure it’s in the works. I can’t be the only one complaining about this.There are a few other quirks like this here and there, but nothing quite as irritating as that.Otherwise… This thing is fantastic. It powers my Earthworks Ethos just fine with 48v phantom, and it works very well with a Rode Podmic as well as an SM7b with no activator.I won’t talk about 32-bit float recording since there are 9000 videos about it on YouTube. Just know it’s a huge selling point for this device, and it works great on the X8.The on-board field recording mics are both amazing and awful. They sound amazing. They’re very sensitive, and they record field as well as foley extremely well, in my opinion. For anything outside, the dead cat absolutely required. Don’t even bother without it. The awful part is the build quality. These mics feel like cheap toys, for real. They feel like they have zero quality. I wouldn’t want to drop one.Overall, though, the build quality of the actual device is solid. Yes, it’s plastic, but I don’t find it at all cheap-feeling. It feels like it weighs what it should. The touch screen is pretty nice for what it is, though I have experienced some touch-sensing issues (one of the quirks of this thing).I’ve seen reports of a thin noise band in the upper frequencies (above the audible range for humans) and I can say I’ve also seen this in my testing. It has zero effect on my recordings, but could be an issue if those high frequencies make it into your post production edits, ie you’re lowering the pitch of the recording and now those high frequencies enter into the audible range… Not an issue for me but worth thinking about for pro foley artists and such.I bought this fully intending on returning it if any of the issues I read about were issues for me. In reality, outside of that track resetting issue that drives me bonks, I have no serious complaints. In fact, it’s the opposite. I’ve grown to love this device and use it a lot indoors. Now that the weather is getting nicer, I’m hoping to use this alongside my Sony ZV-1 to create a whole bunch of quality content.Your mileage may vary, and the Zoom F3 is certainly an attractive option in the 32-bit float world, but for me, this is sorta the machine I would have designed for myself if I, you know, did that sort of thing.Oh, one note. The bluetooth adapter… It’s really sort of fantastic. It should not cost 40 bucks, but it does. It might fit a little loose. But it really is quite fantastic. It lets you monitor (in real time, no discernible latency) your audio levels visually (there’s no audio passthrough to your smart device, beware) and adjust all the settings right on your phone/tablet, thereby eliminating any sensitivity issues the built-in touchscreen may pose. It’s not a must-have, but it’s slick and makes the overall experience of using the X8 that much more fun.I definitely recommend giving the X8 a shot. Might not be your cup of tea but it is mine. If Tascam ever releases higher (build) quality onboard mics, I’ll be the first in line. But I suspect the included cheapo plastic ones will do the job until they break/melt/evaporate/whatever cheap plastic does….Tascam, if you’re listening? Be awesome and keep pushing firmware updates. You can own this space if you continue to innovate on the products that are already in peoples’ hands.
Greg Hodowansky –
Recording made simple. 2 live microphones and 4 lines from the console. It brings your mix to life with the live built in mics. The 4 lines define your mix, than add your live mics to give the taste of live energy coming from the crowd.
Daniel Matus Ruiz –
Lo malo de esta grabadora es la colocación de las BaterÃas, con el tiempo genera desgasté, las cláusulas de audio son muy frágiles.En la parte positiva puedo decir que lo mejor es que graba en automático y en 32 bits y eso me ayudado bastante a no tener que estas monitoreando el audio cuando estoy grabando una boda.
Patrice –
Je l’utilise sur un trépied, la qualité du son capturé est bluffante. C’est mon 2eme achat de micro de ce type (mon 1er étant un ZOOM H3-VR que j’ai renvoyé car il ne marchait pas sur mac).J’utilise ce micro pour des concerts en vidéo conférence via zoom et pour des déplacements. Les fonctions reverb et l’équalizeur intégrés sont justes indispensables et permettent de faire des lives sans trop d’équipement audio. La prise en main est d’une facilité déconcertante.
Roberto –
Grabadora algo cara pero que merece la pena. Lo tiene todo. La versatilidad es increÃble.Quizá no haga nada de 9.5/10 o de 10/10 (que hacen equipos de +1200â¬) pero, para mÃ, hace muchas cosas o todo de 8.5/10.ASMR, grabación de voz, grabación de campo, podcast…buena resolución de sonido, cuerpo, matices…4 entradas auxiliares XLR, una pantalla a color (lo tÃpico que hasta que no lo pruebas en una grabadora no lo agradeces), ruido de fondo bastante controlado.Muy contento.
0815Dude –
Ich habe den Tascam Portacapture X8 nun seit einigen Monaten in meinem Studio im Einsatz und bin in vielerlei Hinsicht von diesem Audio-Interface beeindruckt. Es bietet zahlreiche Funktionen, die sowohl für Einsteiger als auch für professionelle Musiker und Tontechniker attraktiv sind.Eines der auffälligsten Merkmale des Tascam Portacapture X8 ist zweifellos die herausragende Audioqualität. Die Aufnahmequalität ist kristallklar und liefert saubere und hochauflösende Aufnahmen, die selbst den anspruchsvollsten Audioprojekten gerecht werden. Die acht XLR/Klinke-Combo-Eingänge ermöglichen es mir, mehrere Instrumente oder Mikrofone gleichzeitig anzuschlieÃen, was meine Aufnahmesessions erheblich effizienter macht.Die Bedienung des Portacapture X8 ist relativ einfach, und die Benutzeroberfläche ist gut durchdacht und intuitiv. Dies ermöglicht es mir, mich auf das Wesentliche zu konzentrieren â die Musikproduktion â ohne mich mit komplizierten technischen Details herumschlagen zu müssen.Leider gibt es jedoch einen kleinen Haken, der mir in den letzten Monaten aufgefallen ist â der hohe Batterieverbrauch. Das Portacapture X8 kann auch über Batterien betrieben werden, was seine Mobilität und Portabilität steigert. Allerdings verschlingt es die Batterien regelrecht. Wenn Sie vorhaben, das Gerät unterwegs zu verwenden oder an Orten, an denen keine Steckdose in der Nähe ist, sollten Sie sich auf einen ziemlich hohen Verbrauch einstellen. Es ist ratsam, immer Ersatzbatterien zur Hand zu haben oder besser noch, eine externe Stromversorgung zu verwenden, um diesem Problem zu begegnen.Insgesamt bin ich mit dem Tascam Portacapture X8 zufrieden, insbesondere mit seiner herausragenden Audioqualität und seiner Benutzerfreundlichkeit. Der hohe Batterieverbrauch ist sicherlich ein Nachteil, den man berücksichtigen sollte, aber wenn Sie in der Lage sind, dieses Problem zu umgehen, erhalten Sie ein leistungsstarkes Audio-Interface, das Ihre Aufnahmen auf ein neues Niveau heben wird.