I would like to buy a portable digital recorder, ideally but not necessarily of the multi-track kind.
The Korg D4 cannot be battery-operated, which limits its usefulness –at times I know I will be making recording on the street (I am planning to do “sound collages”)
The Korg PXR4 seems OK too but it uses MPEG2, and I have read devastating users’ reviews on zZounds: “In the time since it was introduced, MPEG has moved forward a generation and this box is stuck in MPEG2 land, which was never a good format… You will have to convert everything you record on it and what's worse, if you sample something elsewhere and want take this on the road to work on it, you can't – Nothing records in mp2 anymore and nobody in their right mind converts from mp3 to mp2.”
I have thought of buying a Zoom MRS4 but since it has no USB out, a Smart Media card reader is essential… That would add one more component to the system, and I want the simplicity of USB in/out lines. It’s the best alternative I have so far, though it isn’t a totally convincing one.
Alternatives, suggestions? I have a limited budget (U$ 100 – U$ 200) and would like something portable, battery-operated, to use whenever a fellow musician can’t come to my house; I will probably make recordings through dynamic or condenser microphones. Then I would add those tracks I record outside my house to whatever it is I’m working on. I need something that I can plug into my PC through a USB port, or something similarly easy to use, since I am just a beginner.
Thanks to everybody, especially to those that are more experienced than us rookies yet take the time to answer to our questions.
I have the little M-Audio MicroTrack. It's main limitation is the built-in battery. I workaround that with a little external pack with a USB plug. It has a SPDIF in if you want to get really fancy and use an external AD converter and preamp. The onboard pres and ADC are respectable, though.
The Fostex FR2LE has worked well for me but it costs a bit more and is a bit larger than a VHS tape. It uses high capacity rc-car batteries which is great, 5hrs or so, also has phantom power, usb, etc. Sound quality is just fine, very clear no hiss hum crackle, etc, the quality of the noise floor is unobtrusive so you can capture quiet details.
Originally posted by Tubedriver: not sure on price, but these new zoom units have gotten good reviews
H4 - multitrack
I have heard recordings done with just the built in condensors and was very suprised. Its closer to 400.00 though. Supports a pair of external phantom power mics as well. I want one.
