More Compact Digital Recorders

Started by Zohn, October 22, 2009, 08:33:07 AM

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Hi Guys
I read with great interest the thread about the Zoom H2 VS H4, and discovered that the H4 comes in a "hot out the oven" H4n version as someone else noted. I also did some searching in that $300 price range, and found the Yamaha Pocketrak CX, Tascam DR-1 (actually looks like the best deal of the lot at about $70 less) and the Edirol R-09HR, and the Olympus LS-10 (golly that number sounds familiar...)
All these units have more or less the same functions, and all are almost of identical recording quality by their specs.
Any comments  on the other 4 please?
a Feature that I like about the Edirol, is it comes standard with a remote control, which is $70 extra on the Olympus, some come with standard AAA batteries, others with built-ins which are expensive to replace, H4n is sturdier with a slip/shock-free rubber casing, and two of them have built-in tuners etc...
Are these features nice-to-have or does one go for the recording quality only thus minimum price of say a Zoom H2 - I know Tuffy likes his.
In retrospect, it seems most respondents to the Zoom-thread have H2's.
"To me...music exists to elevate us as far as possible above everyday life." ~ Gabriel Faure

I have the Edirol - it is a really good sounding recorder, easy to use, accessories are a little pricey ( I got the cover/stand combo, so that I can set it on the kitchen counter and aim it at the general area we're playing in, plus it keeps it up out of the random marinara drips and wine stains ).

My only complaint is that it does not do the USB mic thing that the Zooms do. But I like the sound quality alot better, and the remote is very handy to create gaps between songs while playing so transcribing the files is alot easier -  I'm trying to find a broken clip-on tuner so I can attach the remote to my headstock for uber-convenience -

Tad
Bunch of Larrivees - all good -
and a wife that still puts up with me, which is the best -

How well would the Edirol work in a Pub situation?
2001 McIlroy A30 #75, Spruce/Rosewood
Martin OM-15M, all mahogany
Paddy Burgin Bouzouki, Redwood over Claro Walnut
Keith Newell mandolin, Spruce over Claro Walnut
1916 Gibson A mandolin
1927 Langestyle tenor banjo

Possibly too well - you may pick up every cough and laugh and f@rt in the place. I use it with auto gain control on, 'cause its like autopilot for idiots, and I want it all to work flawlessly without worrying about it while I'm playing. If we try to do a fade out, you can hear the exhaust fan in the kitchen get louder as we get quieter, but you only notice it on the recording. We keep trying to remember to turn it off before we start, but its so low you hardly notice it live -

It does have options that you can change that might minimize that, manually setting gain and such, but I have not played too extensively with it. It records cleanly, sounds great, uploads a really good .wav or .mp3 easily, and all I have to do is carry an extra set of AAs and hit the record button when I'm ready. Playing the guitar well is enough of a challenge for me most nights -

I'll look thru my files, if I have one that doesn't make us all sound too incompetent, I'll try to figure out how to put it up -

Tad
Bunch of Larrivees - all good -
and a wife that still puts up with me, which is the best -

 :+1: Thanks for the replies guys.
It seems (from other posts too) that the Zoom recorders are very popular. I still fancy the thought of the Edirol though Tad. I hope to get some more comments on the others too. It is some time until Christmas though.
"To me...music exists to elevate us as far as possible above everyday life." ~ Gabriel Faure

In my opinion, the zoom h2 is the perfect recorder. What it lacks in build quality, it makes up for in spades in simple useability and results. I would consider the others as a compromise between a proper recording setup and what the h2 does. Would any of the other features of the alternatives actually be of use? I love the fact that the h2 records straight to mp3 with a click of a button, and connects by USB as a stereo mic to record into audacity. What else do you want a portable recorder to do.

Audacity does convert to mp3 with a simple free add on.
Ben
2009 FIII LS-03RHB #5

http://www.youtube.com/user/1978BenF

Hi,

Just to put my 2 cents to this discussion. I have a Zoom H2 and a M-Audio Mictotrack (first generation). I made a small recording to compare the front and rear microphone of the H2 and compare it with the Microtrack with an AT825 mic.

You can hear it here : http://recit.cadre.qc.ca/~claudef/spip.php?article57

No EQ and no cut were used. H2 was place about 14 inchs pointing on the 12th fret. As it was tell in an other tread, mic position is crutial when using those devices (as it is with any mic recording).

Hope this will help.

Claude
Larrivée C-10 with iMix no cut
Laforest Classical #5
Godin Multiac Grand Concert SA nylon strings
Godin XTSA electric
Tacoma BM6C Baritone tuned ADGCEA with G and C one octave higher
Norman B20 HG

Awesome Claude!!!
Thanx very much..  :+1:
Are you from Canada? - if so, have you got links to a couple of dealers that you could share with me please? I have a contact in Calgary that could bring stuff out for me.
"To me...music exists to elevate us as far as possible above everyday life." ~ Gabriel Faure

I'm really leaning toward the Olympus LS-10 myself...it seems like a happy middle ground between the H2 and H4...I've read a lot of good reviews about it.  I think any of them would be great though...it amazes me how many options there are out there!

Blue
OM-05MT "Mary Helen"
Silvercreek T-170
Harmony Herd (1203, 162, 165, 6362)

The Edirol HR09 has held up well for me, and it has been tossed about a bit too. The remote is something I don't think I could go without again. Good range and great sound.
08 Larrivee L05-12
02 Larrivee DV-09
73 Granada Custom
Kids got the others  :)

http://www.soundclick.com/bands/default.cfm?bandID=797065


Quote from: tadol on October 22, 2009, 01:11:07 PM
I have the Edirol - it is a really good sounding recorder, easy to use, accessories are a little pricey
My only complaint is that it does not do the USB mic thing that the Zooms do. But I like the sound quality alot better, and the remote is very handy to create gaps between songs while playing so transcribing the files is alot easier
Tad

Quote from: Michael T on October 26, 2009, 11:53:15 AM
The Edirol HR09 has held up well for me, and it has been tossed about a bit too. The remote is something I don't think I could go without again. Good range and great sound.

Quote from: Blue in VT on October 26, 2009, 08:31:54 AM
I'm really leaning toward the Olympus LS-10 myself...it seems like a happy middle ground between the H2 and H4...I've read a lot of good reviews about it.  I think any of them would be great though...it amazes me how many options there are out there!
Blue

:+1: Thanks guys, I narrowed my shortlist down to the Edirol, H4n and the Olympus. There's a Sony as well worth mentioning - the PCM-M10...
Thank you for your constructive and most useful info.
"To me...music exists to elevate us as far as possible above everyday life." ~ Gabriel Faure

I am also browsing this market and am wondering if anyone has looked at the Tascam dr-07?  The specs look good and it's about the same price as an H-2.  The Tascam gt-r1 also looks interesting for an extra $75 or so.
Greg

Wow . . . no one's played around with a Tascam dr-07 yet?  I was hoping someone could report on it's worthiness.

Greg

Greg, I seriously considered the Tascam products, but in my research I found the Mics were not the rating that the H4 or Edirol could achieve so I concentrated on those. I chose the Edirol because at the time it had a very high evaluation from several sources with reviewers and the remote was a hot button for me. I'm sure the Tascam is a good piece, I just chose based on my own comfort level and the features offered.
08 Larrivee L05-12
02 Larrivee DV-09
73 Granada Custom
Kids got the others  :)

http://www.soundclick.com/bands/default.cfm?bandID=797065


I'm very impressed with the specs and features of the Edirol, H4n, and other ~$300 devices, but can't convince myself that they're worth double the money.  I'm also not in a position to A-B any of the recorders, so pretty much have to depend on the impressions of others.

Greg

Quote from: gdeiss on December 02, 2009, 12:38:17 AM
Wow . . . no one's played around with a Tascam dr-07 yet?  I was hoping someone could report on it's worthiness.

Greg
Greg
Just like Michael T I compared the $300 models, which are all in the 24-Bit 96kHz recording resolution or "studio quality" category which according to the description surpasses audio CD-quality (whatever that means)
The DR-07 is in the 16-Bit 44.1kHz slot. What does the "inferior" result sound like to the human ear then? I'm afraid I simply don't have the answer (both categories are seemingly capable of producing mp3 files, which to my ears, are quite acceptable...
I know I don't make much sense - mainly because none of these machines are available where I stay so I can't compare, that's the very reason why I cast my line out initially, since I (at the time of writing the Thread) had to resort to buy on-line, based upon reviews and recommendations from others.
:donut
"To me...music exists to elevate us as far as possible above everyday life." ~ Gabriel Faure

What would y'all suggest for a newbie to home recording? Something inexpensive and user friendly. All I really want to do is capture new Ideas and create recordings to copy wriite my originals. Quality is always desired too. I'll just be recording Guitar, vocals, and sometimes a drum loop. My price range is approx. $300 - $500. I posted a thread about this but failed to look far enough down the forum to see this thread. haha. Oh well! Thanks!
Sincerely,
-The Hickman

     You have made known to me the path of life; you will fill me with joy in your presence, with eternal pleasures at your right hand.
                                                       -Psalm 16:17

The main difference in 16 vs 24 bit recording is in headroom - if you play dynamically, lots of quiet parts and then loud parts, you get better results with 24 bits. The 44.1 vs 96 khz is less obvious a difference. So for capturing, say, solo fingerstyle guitar, 24 bit recording capability is a plus.

Quote from: frankhond on December 29, 2009, 05:43:15 PM
The main difference in 16 vs 24 bit recording is in headroom - if you play dynamically, lots of quiet parts and then loud parts, you get better results with 24 bits. The 44.1 vs 96 khz is less obvious a difference. So for capturing, say, solo fingerstyle guitar, 24 bit recording capability is a plus.

Cool. I've always wondered what the difference was. I do A LOT of finger style and high dynamic, so I think that's what I'll go with. What about hardware? What brands would you suggest?
Sincerely,
-The Hickman

     You have made known to me the path of life; you will fill me with joy in your presence, with eternal pleasures at your right hand.
                                                       -Psalm 16:17

Following this discussion with interest. I have typically recorded straight into ACID on my PC. But my designated recording PC is proving to be pretty temperamental, and the idea of a recording platform that is not going to do stuff like catch viruses is appealing.

What I am wondering is how many of these handhelds can import external audio so I can drop guitar parts into a piece I am generating on other platforms like ACID -- or drop solos or guitar into a piece somebody else started and sent to me.

??

And can I export multitrack files for mixing on other platforms?

Any insights?
"Soulshine is better than sunshine, better than moonshine, damn sure better than rain."

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