The Bottom Line

First of all, keep in mind that while the list prices for these machines differ, both of them consistently sell at street prices of $350 to $400.

If you are looking for a cheap piece of gear that can do a decent job of making original, if bare-bones, tracks, the Zoom SampleTrak ST-224 is probably the one to check out. The sequencer allows more complex song creation, and songs can utilize all three banks of eight samples -- the Yamaha plays only one bank of eight at a time in Loop Track Play mode. With Zoom's sequencer you can use quantization to record loops as songs and then resample them to a pad. On the Yamaha, if you want to record your own loop you can, but without quantization your timing must be perfect. The ST-224 also has a more comprehensive set of effects, applicable to more than one sample at a time, and you get tuning and panning setting for each sample; with the SU200 you do not.

Eeny, meeny, miney, mo?

The Zoom can mimic the SU200's loop track play by auto syncing the BPM of samples as they loop. And you can loop samples from different banks on the ST-224, instead of being limited to one bank on the Yamaha. Both have vinyl scratch simulations, but neither really comes close to the real thing. To top it off, the Zoom provides two extra samples of polyphony, and other features such as auto stop sampling. So why would anyone go with the SU200?

Well, the SU200 has a few advantages that make it better for a live situation. First off, every key setting except for pad volume has a front panel button dedicated to it and a corresponding icon on the backlit LCD display. This is helpful for beginners who may not be comfortable with too much menu editing, but it is mainly a plus for performers who want to switch settings of multiple pads on the fly. Almost all functions -- sampling and setting loop points, for instance -- require fewer button presses on the SU200. The Zoom is by no means difficult, but the Yamaha tends to be simpler and more intuitive.

The effects on the SU200, while fewer, are more geared toward live performance. The Loop Remix and Slice effects create new rhythms on the spot, and the effects automatically sync to BPM -- a perennial demand for dance music mavens. Nine of the 22 effects on the ST-224 can sync to BPM. But to get that happening takes slightly more attention than it does on the SU200, and there's no knob to control the timing resolution of the BPM sync.

Don't forget that the Yamaha can run on battery power, which makes it hyper-portable and eliminates the need for an extra outlet onstage or at the club. When I tested it, the SU200 ran for more than five hours on some cheapo generic batteries. Too bad it's not bundled with either batteries or an AC adaptor … ouch!

Simply stated, the extra options on the Zoom ST-224 will attract some, but others who want absolute ease-of-use will gravitate to the Yamaha SU200.

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