Well, I've owned the Tascam US428 for well over a year now and love it very much! It's perfect if you only need a couple of ins for audio, one or two Midi ins and just listen thru powered monitors or the like there of...
The 224 is the little brother to the 428 and is very much the same in most aspects..the differences being two vs 4 inputs, USB powered vs needing a power supply, 4 faders vs 8 faders, etc etc
It truly almost sells itself! It has Midi, audio and control surface all in one package...you cant beat that man!
The only product that even comes close to it is the Event EZ Bus but from whai I have heard only certain features work "ok"...the 224 or the 428 work great all around...
Hope that helps
Opus

What Opus said. :D The US-224 has a more limited control surface than the 428, and half as much MIDI and audio I/O, but if you're typically working alone and don't need to record more than two tracks at a time, it's a great solution. It's got a very small footprint and is USB bus powered, so it's a great solution for a laptop, for example.

It comes bundled with a 'lite' version of Cubasis, but works with almost all the currently-available DAW apps, as well as some virtual synths.

Even though I'm not with Tascam anymore, all the docs I created are still up on their website. You can get lots more info, even download the manuals....that should give you a pretty good idea what it's all about. Start with the US-224 page: http://www.tascam.com/products/computer_recording/us224/downloads224.php
You can also have a look at the US-428 page, since much of the documentation applies to both boxes: http://www.tascam.com/products/us428/downloads.php

Hope this helps.

DK

Opus and Dan, Thanks for your very helpful responses. Today, a dealer advised that the Omni/Delta bundle was better than the Tascam US 224 because Omni does not use USB and is "shaky". Does the connector make that much of a difference? I note that the DUO has preamps. How significant is this feature for the hobbyist who only wishes to plug in a keyboard and a mic for vocals? Thanks.

Lesson one: Dealers are not always your best source of information.

I do not mean to imply by this that dealers are less than honest (most are quite reputable), but particularly in the case of salespersons working the mega-stores, there are sometimes other factors motivating them, like what's on special this week, what they read last week, etc.

Bottom line...YOU are responsible for educating yourself. Consider the dealer's input, but also (as you're doing here) ask for other input...get a second, third, fourth etc opinion. It's your money, and it's ultimately you who will have to live with what you buy. Do your own homework, and don't take any one person's word for it, whether it be your dealer, me, Opus, or anyone else. You've got plenty of resources at your disposal....use them wisely.

USB definitely has limited bandwidth. It is not capable of the kind of throughput that a PCI card is. But it is =certainly= quite sufficient for your purposes if you're not planning on recording more than four inputs at a time. (Ask your sales brainiac to explain in technical terms why USB is "shaky"....watch him tap dance around the question.) Tascam has sold tens of thousands of US-428's in the past two years (not to mention the thousands of other USB interfaces from other companies).....if it was that "shaky" would so many people be using them?

The Delta is a fine piece of gear. So is the Tascam. They are two different solutions. Both will give you audio and MIDI I/O. The US-224 will also give you a control surface which, once you've tried, you'll wonder how you ever did without.

Go to the Tascam BBS and ask other users what they think. Go to other music stores, in person and on line. If you choose the Delta, that's fine, but make an informed decision. Good luck.

Dear Dan: Thanks, again, for your words. I am doing just what you said to do. Hence, my confusion, although, my research is ironing out the issues. And the salespeople by and large do need a grain of salt.
What about the need for a preamp if I am micing a vocal and using the US 224? I have a mic input on my Yamaha cassette mixer. Does this remedy this issue? If not, can you suggest a decent reasonably priced preamp that will plug into the 224?

Sax,

If you're using a dynamic mic, no need for a separate pre....the US-224 has two XLR inputs with preamps; you can plug a mic directly into it. If you're using a condenser mic you'll need a separate power supply or preamp, but you can get those relatively cheaply, and I'd recommend that over using the pre in your cassette deck.