Portable Voice Recorder

I have used a Sony MZ-R30 with an Audio Technica AT804 mic for interviews only in all sorts of locations in different countries (with mic lead as supplied by Alice).  Results were reasonably good for broadcasting when edited with CEP and AA.

However the main problem was the fragility of the MZ-R30.  The ribbon connector that attached to the lid is a weak spot.  A friend of mine who did some freelance work for the Beeb went through 2 of these machines in a year.

As Steve G mentioned you really need to use a Mini Disc with a Pass Reporter Kit, which of course puts up the costs.

I would love to get a really reliable robust Mini Disc Recorder without all the bulk of the Pass Reporter kits.

Charlie Brown  

As Steve G mentioned you really need to use a Mini Disc with a Pass Reporter Kit, which of course puts up the costs.

I have to say in fairness that PASS kits aren't entirely trouble-free either. But at least you can get spare parts for them, and they are (just about) repairable in the field. I've changed the recharging socket on one on a kitchen sink...

And with that rather chunky battery in them, they aren't exactly the lightest things to lug around, either.

, since digital is digital is digital, only bitrates and microphone range differ.

Woah there - that one kinda jumped out at me. You're leaving out one of the biggest factors in the extremely diverse spectrum of "quality" from one digital recorder to another: the convertors. Not to mention whether or not there are onboard pres, what quality *they* are and whether or not you can bypass them altogether if you want to use your own.

I mean, my current Delta card is "digital", so was the Fostex 4-track I was using before it. So is the Mackie hard disk recorder my buddy uses in his studio. But the sound quality of all three is worlds apart. The difference? The convertors.

Chris

I listened to the 24-bit guitar recording, and if this really is made with the internal mic, then the quality of it isn't a serious issue

I'm hearing hiss in those demos, I admit to being a little disappointed by that. I can deal with a little hiss, but I didn't expect it.

As Steve knows, I have a very clear idea of the recorder that I want to see. It is in a die-cast box and looks just like a Red Rover without the knobs. It has an XLR mic input and records direct to an internal 1gig flash 'disk'. It charges off the usb cable, which is used to download the uncompressed wave files. The RR's 3 knobs would be replaced by a recessed On/Off switch and an auto/manual recording level control. Most of the rest of the RR's controls/display would stay as-is.

Who can put me in touch with the smiling oriental skilled craftsman looking for a project to make his and my fortune from radio stations around the world?

It might be a bit early to see 1gig flash in 'pro' chasis . . . if only because it might be a bit early to know for sure how the read/write life of flash survives with streaming data . . . with continuous throughput what constitutes a read write cycle (been contemplating buying one of the cheap digital video camera's and just letting it run until a card comes to the end of its write ability just to see how much of an issue this might be . . . )

I also have issues with recording to any of the compressed formats when any extensive editting might be required . . . it is undoubtedly old school but MP3 kind of begs the question of broadcast quality as a bench mark for anything.

MP3 kind of begs the question of broadcast quality as a bench mark for anything.

Isn't it a bit late for that, since so many radio stations are already using 192Kbps MP3s now for actual playout? I deliver 99% of the commercials I produce as 320Kbps MP3s myself. I must admit to also being surprised at this cool and calm acceptance of MP3 for broadcast. I can certainly tell the difference in audio quality between an MP3 and a Wave, but it seems that so many people have just hopped onto the MP3 bandwaggon (using other issues as priority) without giving it much thought. I suppose that at the end of the day, had the radio listeners themselves complained about the audio quality, the MP3 would not be used by broadcasters.

Ross, in the UK we use the term broadcast quality to distinguish between equipment that can record sharp and clear recordings, and cheap equipment that produces a quality of recording not up to the broadcast standard. You either know the difference or you don't.

I hate to say it but that's pompous British bollocks. If you'd had to deal with the kind of crap I was asked to broadcast for the BBC recorded on so-called 'broadcast quality' equipment you'd realise why I say that!  

Most reporters don't know one end of a microphone from another, haven't the first clue about setting levels and never, ever listen to what their recording to check it's going down OK. You might as well send them out with a Fisher Price toy. Super-duper broadcast quality is fine in principle, but at the end of the day it's getting the interview that's most important - so keep the damn think foolproof!  

[OK, rant over - you'd think I'd be over it by now...!]

That said, if you're setting out to buy kit then don't buy rubbish - and clearly unlike most of my former broadcast journalist colleagues, you do have an idea about what you want and what you're doing or you wouldn't be here all the time!

My advice is simple: go with the flow. Don't go staking your money on new or untested, unfamiliar gear. Let someone else find out what's wrong with it first! Make sure it's not obsolete or discontinued by next Thursday...

As such I'd stick with MiniDisc - cheap as chips, you come back with a solid piece of media you can transfer then stick in a drawer and revisit in two years time. Make sure it'll take batteries you can buy in any shop on any street corner for the day you've travelled halfway up the country only to find the full battery indicator is flashing after 2 minutes cos it can't read the level of rechargeables accurately.

As far as recording quality is concerned you'll be exceeding the quality of analogue broadcasting (and probably digital as well). Spend the money on a decent microphone, beware the 'End Search' trap, never use LP2 or LP4, and go get those interviews!

(Worked fine for me recording interviews with the Prime Minister, not to mention many other current and former UK political leaders...)

What do you guys think of this? :

RipFlash™ PLUS 128MB MP3/WMA Player and MP3 Recorder

A Full Featured MP3/WMA Player with MP3 Direct Recording and Advanced Voice Recording Features.

The RipFlash PLUS is not only a full featured MP3/WMA Player with fast USB connectivity, but also records MP3 files using the on board microphone for voice and live recording or directly from any audio source, such as a CD player, through its line-in connector.

Create MP3 files without a PC!

http://www.pogoproducts.com/ripflash_plus.html



I think a decent mic can be plugged into it.

$100 or £77 including shipping to UK

Or you could go for the Mustek PVR-A1 which can encode video too.  I suspect in a couple of years time we will view the devices of this type currently available as rather primitive.[/url]

I agree with Ozpeter - we're in a stage of rapid change - by all means go out and buy these toys but expect rapid obsolescence, poor A/D conversion and crappy mic amp stage...

...mind you it will therefore be 'broadcast standard!"

HahaHahaHahaHahaHahaHah
 .. my God I can't stop laughing  

This is the one I'm getting:

http://www.sony.co.uk/ShowProduct.do?site=odw_en_GB&category=PAW+MiniDisc+%26+Net+MD+Walkman&product=MZ-NH700



At my local Sony shop it's £169, but £40 cheaper on Amazon.com! Guess where I'm buying it from.

Now where's Santa when you need him? Oh bugger - that's my job this year...

This is the one I'm getting:

BFM,

Santa got me one of these too...I'm playing with it now infact.  I also got a Behringer XM8500 (not terribly expensive but a decent quality mic for in the field) and it sure records quality audio when properly set.

Now if I could just remember what end of the mic to speak into....

Jon Ramer

That's cool Jon   I remembered the other day that I still have my Sennheiser e815S mic (which looks about the same size as your Behringer) it already has an XLR to small jack lead on it, and I'm hoping it'll work with the Sony MD. Otherwise the Behringer XM8500 looks very affordable. It's an odd situation when the mic is twice as big as the recorder LOL, but I'd rather stick a big pro-looking mic under someone's nose than a pithy-looking pencil size mic.

Happy recordings, and post a review or let us know of any quirkies. One I am expecting to have to get to grips with is the auto rec-level verses the manual rec-level thingy.