Whether you're a podcasting wonder-kid, professional musician, or member of a garage-band (with secret aspirations of fame and fortune), Belkin’s TuneStudio might be the single best investment you make as an audiophile.

Belkin's TuneStudio for iPod lets you create and record high-quality digital recordings directly to your iPod, with instant playback. The 4-channel mixer allows for the input of up to four different instruments or audio sources and records at 16-bit, 44kHz quality in uncompressed WAV format, which translates as “crystal clear!”

TuneStudio’s compact and durable design is perfect for portability. Podcasters, musicians (professional and garage band alike) can record shows and sessions directly to their iPods anywhere they go.

In spite of the 29 different dials, this basic design is also surprisingly user-friendly:

* LEDs indicate master audio level, power status, peak indications, and compressor
* Compression is controlled by a single knob. And, audio is streamed though the built-in USB interface to and from a PC or Mac
* TuneStudio functions as an external sound card, allowing input and output of audio to a PC from its connectors

TuneStudio is currently compatible with:

* iPod classic (6th generation--80 GB and 160 GB);
* iPod nano (3rd generation--4 GB and 8 GB; 2nd generation--2 GB, 4 GB, and 8 GB)
* iPod video (5th generation--30 GB, 60 GB, and 80 GB)

Special discounted price: $249 at Belkin.com

Price: $299.99 at Amazon.