It sound amazing. Just make sure that you use the M24 mode, to get uncompressed audio tracks. This will give you only 16 tracks to work with, but you'll know you'll get unpresidented quality. Actually the normal mode isn't that bad. With a good A/D/A converter unit connect to the Roland, the quality is the same as a Protools Mix System, Digital Performer 3 (or lower), Neundo, Sonar, etc.

The software upgradable feature is the best feature in the 2480. Now with the latest software, you can use the 2480 as a control surface for your Protools, Digital Performer, Nuendo, etc!!! It's an "all in one" box for the semi-pro to pro users.

It a great workhorse! I've used it for 8 hours one time, and It never gave me problems. Be sure that you format the hard drive after every big "project," or format every two to three months. This will lessen the problems, which is very very rare. This is what I like about this system. Unlike Protools or Digital Performer, you can expect to have rock hard reliability. Well Protools and DP3 are very stable, but compared to the 2480 it "not as" stable...my opinion

The best Value on the Market.

The support team is amazing. The best in the business, I promise.

It makes me want to drowl. It's big and clean.

Rock, Country, Spoken Words, Prog Rock, Metal, Classical, Techno, Jungle, Oldies, Trash, Punk, Funk, Mexican, Latin, Bossa Nova,

The sound of my recordings are better than what I hear from pro studio made CDs. I can't figure that one out!

It is very powerful but a bit slow. If you want to speed a song up or down you have to let it process all night long. I do that just before I leave the studio. The mastering room is great. I bought protools just to master but I have yet to use it. I just wish it had more processing power (memory and speed for certain apps).

Very easy and quick to use. There is a steeper learning curve on anything that has alot of options and power. It would be nice to have more memory for effects. I have two boards synced so I can have more effects. If you use more powerful plugins they really eat up the memory. Also it's useful to have another eight XLR inputs. I use the heck out of it!

No problems yet. very reliable. Just a high quality dependable tool!Too big to easily take it on the road although you could.

It is more than twice the price of other 24 track boards. I could not say if it is two times better because I've never used a comperable board. I went from a 16 track Fostex, which was good to get started with but does not compare at all in power and quality.

Could not be better. Try calling protools tech support. You will wait two hours. I have never waited at all with Roland. There people know their stuff!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Great looking board but bring back the meter bridge. The meter bridge is usefull when working in the mastering room. Plus the cool factor if nothing else!

Active musician / Recording hobbiest

Rock, Jazz, Bluegrass

I am totally blown away wih this product and satisfied with it in every way so far.The sound is absolutely outstandingly crystal clear. I am able to get every sound I could possibly want. I have found this product to be so very versatile. I record a number of different styles of music for myself and others. I also record jingles on the side for fun and it captures all the sounds I had hoped it would. This product is by all means PROFESSIONAL. I have heard projects from Pro-Tools sytems with all the very expensive plug-ins and such for a studio valued in the hundreds of thousands of dollars and to be very honest I cannot justify spending all that money to get a product which in the end to me does not sound very much different if at all. I am told that the pre-amps could be better and that it is expensive to have the unit fully featured with all the available effects processors maxing it out with 8 stereo effects processors, but I think that the Roland VS2480CD is very reasonably priced and very compact ,affordable and world class.

The product I bought did not include any accessories. The most useful feature to me so far is the built in effects and CD-Burning. I am not what the least useful feature is at this point. I wish it had the variphrase -9000 built-in and also a full-blown midi sequencer. I also wish it had a USB connection. The guitar effects are outstanding when directly plugged in.

Yes this product is made very well so far as best as I can tell. I will be taking this product on the road on a regular basis and it will need to be road worthy. I am recording my new CD on this unit and I am so confident of the job it will do.

Yes this product is very well priced compared to others.

Yes I have dealt with Roland Canada and so far have been very satisfied with their service.

I Rate this product a " 10 " for its Sex Appeal. It is appealing both aesthetically and technically. I have worked very long and hard to get this product because it meets all my requirements and it is my first choice. It is very practical choice.

Gospel , Country and Blues

I have owned many other home recording medias and this is the best I can find! It's easy to use, great for the home recording studio.

The features are great, espesially for the beginner. It's very easy to learn, and easy to upgrade as you are more experienced with recording.

There is a "telephone book" included with this thing! It is easy to use, but to master all of its functions, can take time. The manual does take you step by step though.

I've had mine for a year and no probs. My studio is in my basement which is very damp, dusty, and all around a mess, but everything still works properly!

This thing has alot of individual pieces built in to one package! To buy all separate rack mount pieces would cost much much more than this and be a nightmare to figure out how to connect everything, espesially for the home recorder or unschooled in the field of music recording.

I haven't had any probs yet so I can't really say how the support is. The manuel will tell you just about everything.

active musician

hardcore, metal

The sound quality of the Roland VS 2480 is supurb, period. It records crystal clear and is very powerful, yet easy to use with the VGA monitor and mouse, which can drag and drop, cut and paste. This is an extremely good product for the money. Eq gragpic displays on the 19'' Samsung Syncmaster 906bw LCD wide screen monitor

EQ color gragpic displays (and all controlls on graphic display) on the 19'' Samsung Syncmaster 906bw LCD wide screen monitor(monitor purchased separately) are spectacular, and a great visual aid if you are having trouble seeing data on other digital equipment having small data entry screens. The stock LCD is also larger than most other, and easily readable. All the channel routing, recording, faders, is easy to see and route by drag and drop mouse. WOW! The motorised faders move when you adjust faders with the mouse. The R-Bus AES/EBU and ADAT,SMPTE, and other available interfacing lets you connect to other gear. Good connectibility and compatability with other professional equipment.

No other studio in a box has the drag and drop GUI mouse, and this really gets you through the recording process visually,on screen, for the most part, not needing the manual to research every button. The patch bay on the LCD 19'' monitor lets you drag the channel fader "virtual patch cord" to wherever you want to patch it. All effects and functions are available on the LDC with the mouse. WOW! The new software is awesome and powerful.

An just for the record, you do not have all this mouse power or quality on the AKAI DPS24 MKII, (which I returned to a different dealer, DEFECTIVE HARD DRIVE AND CRASHING, and of poor quality,cheap plastics, poor fit and finish, and made in China Not) The Roland has quality feel,quality fit and finish, and audio quality on the VS 2480CD gets a 10 for the money. Again, The GUI Mouse interface combined with a large 19'' widescreen LCD,and new Roland's new software make the Roland VS 2480CD a truely excellent recording machine.

There isn't a better value. With a large LCD monitor on this unit you will easily master this machine, save alot of time, frustration, and make top quality pro recordings. Get all the optional effects cards if you have the money. Stuff it full. Keep it, and use it till it just wears out. I love it.

I called Roland when I was familiarizing myself with the unit and the Roland rep walked me step by step to troubleshoot the problem, and it was a different connected device, not the VS 2480CD. Good, immediate support. Pro Tools Plug ins and other third party plug ins shows Roland's and third party's support the VS2480CD format. Rock Solid.

Seeing the unit in a catalog doesn't cut it. When you see and hear this recorder with the Graphic LCD and mouse functionality, you will want this unit. I guarantee you will love it and keep it. The sex appeal of seeing this unit with a good LCD and good Studio Reference Monitor speakers will blow you and your friends away.

Musician/Recording Engineer- live recording service

Classic Rock /Metal/Country/Motown/ Blues

STUDIO PRODUCER

HIP HOP , R&B

Great sounding machine. Pretty nice preamps for an all-in-one unit, and of course Roland's effects are really nice.

An awesome package of features that are literally second to none. Only one problem, and it's a big one. No USB or firewire port. If it had a USB port, this would be the perfect all-in-one. Without the USB port, it is almost impossible to transfer files to a computer based program. Literally takes hours to transfer the smallest files.

If you've ever used a Roland unit, it's just as easy, only better. I bought it one day, and recorded a live gig the next day with not much problem.

Solid as a rock, well built.

It's definitely the most expensive of all brands, but it offers hands down more than the competition. It's pricey, but I would pay it again.

I had to call for a replacement manual and the service was exceptional. Got a quick call back, they were very helpful, and I got a new manual plus some extras in just days.

Looks great! I always get some oohs and aahs when I show up to a gig with it.

Engineer

Country, Rock

The sound is top notch, its my first 24 track system so I can't really compare it with others,what I can say is that I'm producing pro sounding CD's.

I really like how each track has its own EQ,compression along with other cool features, I'm learning more and more each week, its GREAT! The fact that I can add more tracks and protools is a definite plus! I own the 2480CD, I'm going to add a external burner to burn mixes quickly,Its kind of a slow process with the built in burner cause you have to master first, but thats ok, I will use it when I'm ready for the final mixes.

Nothing looks or feels cheap,its a sound unit. I havn't taken it on the road yet but time will tell, so far so good.

For what you get it's a good buy.

The BEST!!

It looks COOL! especially when the VGA monitor,mouse and keyboard is connected.

most styles of rock

worldwide Singer

Blues Rock

The Vs2480 is what i would chose over antything for anawesome rock sound. The vs2480 is powerful and so amazingly cheap for wht is has. It can work well in both live situtions and in the studio is destroys all other units. It is also small enough to travel with and very very durable. I love the vs2480 for your standard rock sound that i enjoy and the versatlilty and all the built in EQ Dynamics Preamps and FX. This unit is difinetly the greatest one i have bought. WOW

i find that the EQ is amazing sounding and very accurate.

this is the strongest unit ever. I have smashed it in frustration and yes it has fallen a few times i bet in the plane.

IT IS SOOO WORTH IT!!!!!!

Roland is very dependble nd lif you have any problems or questions they will be happy to answer them.

this is now a part of me. It looks cool and its like you can feel the power of it. I love the VGA feature w/ mouse.

HARD ROCK

20YEARS

COUNTRY; CHRISTIAN; ROCK; REGGAE

The sound? It really comes down to one's engineering skills. Use your ears as tools. I have played with this unit several times while visiting the music stores. I actually did some demo recording on it while at one particular store, did some tweakings and mixing, and BAM!! I was actually happy with the result. I used some of the optional plug-ins which, luckily for me, they were there for demos. With 24-bit of uncompressed recording I was able to put details into my music. I am actually happy with the audio quality this unit reproduces. Like I said earlier, it's all about skills.

Well, as some of the fellas pointed out earlier, adding a USB or Firwire port to this unit to be able to transfer data back and forth would be a plus. The built-in mic pres, I wish Roland would put a little more quality into them.

Mmmm, definately the manual is not highly recommended by me. I would suggest you buy the DVD manual instead. It takes a bit more learning curve before you can get a hang of some of the features on this unit.

Hardware design, the finish, are not super exceptional, but they do earn some points. The flying faders' knobs don't look too reliable. I think they're made out of some sort of cheap plastics. I wish Roland would have used a more reliable type of plastic, or something that could withstand time and abuse of the faders.

Well, like I said, I was at a store borrowing this product for my own review. So I would assume the customers support at Roland is exceptional. I have not a clue.

The unit does have some appeal to it, not quite what I envision in my crazy head. But overall design, I am satisfied with it.

Hobbyist, active musician, recording engineer

all kinds

I found the pre-amps cheap and noisy and the FX cards are nothing to brag about.

It has alot of features but you spend too much time trying to remember how to use them!

I was very upset with the quality of this unit, My inputs started pulling out of the sockets and became loose, The buttons and slides are very cheezy. The old VS880 series was made better.

This unit is not even close to being worth $3799.00! For $1000.00 less you can get a DPS24 and it is far better!

If you can get them on the phone there ok but good luck!

I had it and i would never want another one! I sold it and got a DPS24 and have finally entered PRO quality recording in every way possible! I suggest you do the same!

Hard rock/Dance/Soft rock

it's all right the pres sound a little squared off

they're cool but not really ideal for what is going on now in days, u cant use with other programs ,, i think it's outdated

too expensive

Latin, Rock, Jazz, Hip hop

It really depends on the experience of the user, I've been using this mixing board for 5 years and I've only gotten better at it. The mastering room and sound manipulation are excellent. But as I stated you must do your homework. It is very simple when you just want to record your voice and out it on a CD, but if you want to make professional sounding music you really must play with the equalizers. Still this product is awesome!

Well if this mixer came with more innner processors (reverb and delay) it would be much better, then again it would probably be way more expensive, still its great.

Im only rating this section a 7 because you have to read the manual and get experience before you can even attempt to say you know what you're doing.

Absolutely unprecedented in quality! I bought mine off of EBAY (NEW) and it still was the most beautiful thing I've ever seen in my life!

Absolutely no support if you dont have a warranty.

Using the Roland monitor, optical cable, Rode microphones. Amazingly transparent. Pretty impressed. Been using it for over a year on several different projects.

I bought the pitch correction card. Not too impressed with it though. It's ok if mixing within a big mix, but for quiet, accoustic applications, not so good. I prefer Yamaha's pitch correcting algorithm. All the other feastures are great. The more i use it, the more versatility it provides. Only thing that is annoying is transferring to the computer. Very time consuming. BTW, the Song Vault is a very nice addition if you can afford it for backups.

If you've got some old school recording background it will really help, but it's nice to be able to use the console or use the mouse. Quite a steep learning curve.

So far so good. Very happy.

Hell, they're all expensive, and this one isn't as expensive as some.

Every time I've contacted Roland they've been very helpful.

Yes, I'm about to get another one fro live work on the road.

Active Musician, Recording Engineer

All types