Hi, Sarah:

I have a four track Fostex (pretty old) and a four track Tascam (new.)
The Fostex stood me in good stead for many years, and is still fine for home recording in the way that you're talking about using it. The four track Tascam I bought only runs at high speed, which uses a lot of tape, so when I found another one used that had the regular cassette speed as a second option, I picked it up. Now, if I'm recording for my own pleasure, I use the regular speed. I'm recording my gospel quartet for a CD, and for that, I'm using he high spped and the top quality casettes. Fostex has improved a great deal since I bought my model, and I looked at both of them. I went with the Tascam on reputation, as much as anything, as the prices were comparable to the Fostex models. I've very happy with the Tascam, and find it very easy to us. You probably cna't go wrong with either one, but if you can buy a machine that has two speeds, you'll probably appreciate it.

Jerry