You can do amazing things with those little bosses, I had one a couple of years ago, just when I was first playing with recording, and the learning curve is pretty steep, not as far as which buttons to push, but as to where to put which mic, what effects to add to what channel, and so on, and that's where I think you are right now. Try looking for some good guides on mic selection and placement and maybe a bit about effects and try again with the recording. You're not going to get absolutely top notch "REMY made this" recordings, but you'll get something listenable. It can be done.
Example : http://www.thenewprohibitionband.com.
These are the guys I'm playing with now, and their debut album the fiddle player put together on a Boss 900, scratch tracking, tracking over, mixing down onto the first two tracks when he ran out of tracks, and just generally using the damn thing fully. And it sounds pretty good! Not amazing, but not bad at all. It can be done with this machine - just takes a little bit of practice, as does everything. Do some research, play with mic placement a little bit, and then come back and tell us what you've got. Good luck,

Nathan

http://www.tweakheadz.com/guide.htm

I found this guide pretty useful. Some of the sections concepts are universal to Standalone as well as computer based recording.

RE: BR-1600

They're Junk, throw it in the garbage!

Start recording on your computer... Maybe.. Pro-tools, Cool Edit Pro is easy to use. Unfortunately this is going to cost you at least double the money + the sound card/mixer, that's if your computer isn't a dinosaur that can't handle recording at this level, then it's gonna cost you even more. But it's the only way your going to get the recordings you really want.

Best way to get all this lined up, with compatible equipment is to find someone local who has it all set up to help you. It'll save you time and money!

Your absolutely right about the volume difference, and thinness of the recorded material once transfered to your computer. The drum machine on it sucks too. Boss should stick to what their good at: effects. :cry:

You may be interested in selling the Boss, and looking at the Zoom HD16CD instead (if you don't have the money to shell out on an awesome computer system).

I have a Zoom HD8CD and a set of Yamaha MSP5's. I also use Cubase LE. The whole setup cost me just under £500 (i got a very good deal from a local supplier).

Anyway, you need to learn how to use your equipment, this is the only way to truely get what you need out of her :)

Nothing wrojng with that Boss. Great little unit. I would learn how to get more and better from that before I consider upgrading. You will learn a lot more that way. You are also going to find a steep learning curve when you get to DAW land, but at least you'll have some solid production chops to bring with you if you stick it out with your porta.

A friend of mine just did a blues album on one of those, and it sounds pretty cool, after mastering.

The quality you achieve is rarely symptomatic of the tools you use. Many peeps produce really good stuff on those machines, while people with full-on Profools systems produce garbage. It's about what's in your head, not what's in your hands.