Re: portable hand field recorders

["Krispen Hartung" <khartung@cableone.net>]

Travis has offered a decent analysis here, so I'll only add my two cents 
and 
recommend the M-Audio MicroTrack 24/96.
http://www.m-audio.com/products/en_us/MicroTrack2496-main.html

I've been using it for over a year now with astounding results. In fact, 
I've used it for many of my recent CD tracks.  The cool thing is that it 
records to MP3 and wav, and at different sample and bit rates. Plus the 
1/4 
inch inputs are balanced...and it has phantom power. You can get a 
balanced 
XLR to 1/4 inch adpator to go directly out of a mixer board's XLR outputs. 
I 
bought a 2GB flashcard for mine, so I can load it up with 4 hours of wav 
recordings. I really can't say anything bad about this unit, given the 
price 
and features, and size.

Kris



----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Travis Hartnett" <travishartnett@gmail.com>
To: <Loopers-Delight@loopers-delight.com>
Sent: Monday, April 23, 2007 8:07 AM
Subject: Re: portable hand field recorders


> Just recently I was discussing this with a friend of mine.  He uses
> the Zoom, and here's what he had to say about it:
>
> "i got one of those zoom H4 recorders that looks like a tazer. its
> pretty useful. but not for incapacitating attackers.
>
> i really like it. its replaced my minidisc. i bought it cause [a
> mutual friend] got one and he's really picky about gear and does a ton
> of research. for the price, which is less than the roland or m-audio
> units, it can't be beat.
>
> it has the usual zoom drawbacks: its not very sturdy and sort of
> poorly designed in general, the menu navigation is really bad. i can't
> imagine using it as a 4-track, which it does with various amp modeling
> and stuff. but for regular stereo recording, it seems fine; just push
> the record button once to put it in standby and check levels, then
> push it again to start.
>
> if you aren't in a rush, i'd wait for the H2 to come out this summer.
> it does away with the 4 track mode and records in surround sound and
> its $100 less.
> 
>http://createdigitalmusic.com/2007/01/26/namm-zooms-199-usb-h2-mobile-micrecorder-found-in-the-wild/#more-1850
>
> [in answer to a question regarding how easily levels can be set when 
> recording]
> the zoom has  dedicated L/M/H switches on the side (for both the built
> in mics and the inputs, which are combo XLR 1/4 inch) those levels are
> user adjustable, which involes wading thru the menus. but once you
> have them set, you can just use the switch to select between the 3
> settings.
>
> also it has a built in limiter that i think does a "look ahead" thing.
> that function can be turned on or off as you choose. kirk thought this
> was one of the real selling points for the zoom, i guess the roland
> and m-audio don't do this. there's also a built in compressor.
>
> both the M-audio and roland are just under $400, the zoom is under
> $300, i think you can find it for as low as $279, but it's typically
> $299.
> the m-audio has no built in mic, but i think it comes with a plug in
> thing. the roland mics point out to the sides, while the zoom mics are
> in an x-y sort of configuration which i think gives a better stereo
> image. and its the only one with XLR inputs which can be phantom
> powered.
>
> on top of all that, when you hook it up to your computer, it will work
> as a bus-powered audio interface, and it comes with a copy of cubase.
>
> things about it that stink:
> clunky design- looks like a tazer, might get you shot.
> does not feel especially sturdy.
> battery/SD card cover opens in an awkward way. and the SD card is
> really hard to get out unless you have fingernails.
> menu navigation is awful. really, really bad.
> the display is tiny
> the unit seems much larger than it should be. it won't fit in your
> pocket (comfortably). the roland and m-audio are much smaller.
> it has no clock, so the files don't have a useful date on them.
>
> hopefully some of this stuff will be fixed on the H2. i know it looks
> to be smaller and does have a time stamp function. i also know it
> won't do multi-track recording, but that's probably not a big deal."
>
> Hope this helps.
>
> TravisH
>
>
> On 4/23/07, L.A. Angulo <labaloops@yahoo.com> wrote:
>>
>> i need something really portable and easy to operat
>> like the old portable tape recorders(too bad i got rid
>> of my old one) that fits in my hand but digital with
>> mic and 1/4" inputs usb options and all the new
>> goodies with a good sound without the need of
>> connecting x-tra micros or xpensive xtra battery
>> charge device to record sounds, rehearsals,speeches
>> etc.
>>
>
>