Simple multitrack recording on the cheap, without computer

Chris_J

My niece (who lives in France) loves to play songs on her uke and sing along. She's really enjoying recording herself at the mo, and is also collaborating with a friend who is sending her guitar parts to play along to.

What's the easiest way for her to play along with her friends part, record it, record hers, sing along, maybe add backing vocals and have them all as separate tracks?

She doesn't have a pc or mac

Would something like a Tascam DP006 be the best bet?

goldtop

Yes, although... The main question on these tiny-LCDed devices is the nitty gritty detail of editing. Digital multi-trackers vary according to how easy it is to cut/slice/paste/nudge. For some types of performer, that's almost irrelevant. Like in the old Tascam multi-tracker days, as long as you can punch in and out, you can fix stuff.

But... the correct answer is an iPad with Garageband. Even with no interface - see Dan Baker's channel, where he gets decent results with a pair of headphones and the built-in iPad mic. Even an old iPad Air 2 will easily handle a dozen or so tracks.

Chris_J

I should add, she's only 14 and there are no iPads in the house.

Musicwolf

How is her friend sending guitar parts (format)?

goldtop

No PC, no Mac, no iPad? Someone call Les Social Services!

A little multitracker will definitely work for pure standalone, and they are cheap, but as @Musicwolf says, how is she receiving parts to play along to? What's she playing them on?

Chris_J

There's a cheap 5 year old Android tablet in the house, and a Chromebook. I presume the guitar parts are being emailed and being picked up on the tablet. Probably MP3 format. 

My brother in law has a handheld stereo tascam recorder which is what my niece is using to record her vocals and uke playing, probably with the guitar part played through a Bluetooth speaker so she can play along.

This is all for fun and so needs to stay quite simple. It also doesn't need to be a studio quality recording, but, I'd like to encourage her creativity and provide a new tool which will help her home recording.

She really enjoyed the day in my home studio last summer. She wrote a song and we recorded it, with me adding guitar, drums and bass. 

Chris_J

If they had a pc I would probably have gotten her one of those interface bundles, with a mic, cable and stand. However the learning curve is steep with most DAW and I don't want that to be a barrier to creativity.

Musicwolf

Zoom R8.  Can act as standalone or as a USB interface and comes bundled with Cubase LE.  I haven't used the 8 but a friend has the 16 and I have the Livetrak.  You can copy wav files to the SD card.

Chris_J

Thanks for the suggestions so far guys!

steamabacus

The iZotope Spire would seem a good choice (assuming the tablet isn't TOO old for it)

https://www.thomann.de/gb/izotope_spire_studio.htm?offid=1&affid=288