Field Recorders - Pt 4

Last time we looked at a recorder that was listed at around $1000. The next step up is:

Above $1800.

In the highest price range is the Sound Devices 7 series.



From their website I quote the following:

7-Series Family of Digital Audio Recorders

The high-resolution 7-Series family of digital audio recorders shatter the size, performance, and feature-set paradigms of all previous generations of audio recorders. They are the next generation - replacing digital and analog tape-based portable recorders with far more powerful file-based digital recording devices. The two-track (702, 702T, 722), four-track (744T), and eight-track (788T) recorders write and play audio files with either 16 or 24-bit depth at all professional sampling rates, up to 192 kHz (48.048 kHz on the 788T). Multple storage mediums, analog/digital I/O, and high-speed computer connectivity make all 7-Series recorders stand out as world-class products.

This series of recorders from Sound Devices has taken the industry by storm and is acknowledged as being an excellent field recorder.

There are five models available depending on how many channels you desire and whether it comes with Time Code and hard drive included.

702 - $1,875 - 2 channel - CompactFlash only
702T - $2,495 - 2 channel - CompactFlash, with Time Code
722 - $2495 - 2 channel - CompactFlash, internal hard drive
744T - $4095 - 4 channel - CompactFlash, internal hard drive
788T - $5995 - 8 channel - CompactFlash, internal hard drive

The manufacturers website:

Sound Devices 7 series

The user's manuals can be found at:

702 Users Manual
702T Users Manual
722 Users Manual
744T Users Manual
788T Users Manual

Excellent reviews can be read at:

The Transom Tools Column

F7 sound and vision

Pro Audio Review

Forums discussing this recorder are:

Sound Devices Forum

The Taperssection Forums

Recording media - uses 3 types of recording media
- Compact Flash - currently 32GB is the largest available
- Internal Hard drive - I had a 160GB installed
- External Hard drive - firewire connection to external hard drive

Maximum recordable time -

FlashCard - Using a A-DATA 32GB Speedy CompactFlash card the record time in .wav at 44.1kHz 16bit CD quality mode is 12 hours 27 min.

Internal hard drive - record time in .wav at 44.1kHz 16bit CD quality mode on a 160 gig hard drive is 252 hours 21 min.

External hard drive - unlimited

Batteries - uses Sony NPF970 L Series Camcorder Battery - about 8 hrs record time, I use an external battery supply

Recordings -

Black-billed Magpie

Cassins Finch

Green-Tailed Towhee

Hermit Thrush

Microphones - the best omnidirectional microphone made today for field recording is the Sennheiser MKH-20 - Omnidirectional Condenser Microphone listed at $1,395.95.

Conclusion - I have been recording with the 722 for 2 years now. It has been proven to be an amazing field recorder. It is fairly easy to use, extremely durable and of superb sensitivity to very weak and distant sounds.

Pros
- excellent pre-amps
- superb sound quality
- best field recorder on the market

Cons
- very expensive
- heavy, 2.6 lbs without battery

Field Recorders - Pt 3

This short series on recorders is not to compare units of $200 vs $5000, but instead is simply my recommendation within each price range.

Last time we looked at a recorder that was listed under $450. The next step up is:

Around $1000.

In the high-priced range is the Marantz PMD 670/671.



In an attempt to make the pre-amps quieter Oade Brothers Audio does modifications on various recorders. It is my suggestion that anyone looking at the Marantz for nature recording only buy a unit from Oade that has had the pre-amps modified. The quality of my recordings were dramatically improved after this modification.

The manufacturers website:

PMD 671

The user's manual can be found at:

Users Manual

Forums discussing this recorder are:

The Taperssection Forums

Thread one

Thread two

Thread three

Thread four

Thread five


Recording media - uses a CompactFlash card.

Maximum recordable time - Using a 4 GB card the record time in .wav at 44.1kHz 16bit CD quality mode is 6 hours 30 min.

Batteries - uses D batteries - about 8 hrs record time, I use an external battery supply.

Recordings:

Sound clips -

1 - Using a non-modified Marantz 671 DB Donlon recorded what he calls the East Central Ohio Chatter.

2 - Using a modified Marantz 670 I recently recorded this lone coyote. Most of the recordings on my website were made with this recorder before I had it modified.

Microphones - both DB Donlon and myself have been using the AT3032 Omnidirectional Condenser Microphones. However these mics are no longer being made. I typically use omnidirectional mics because I am leaving my gear overnight in the woods therefore I do not know which direction the sound will be coming from.

Conclusion - I have been recording with the 670 for 4 years now. It has been proven to be consistent, easy to use and durable. After having the unit modified the quality of my recordings were greatly improved.

Pros:
- great sound quality
- very easy to use
- sturdy build

Cons:
- battery compartment is poorly designed
- plastic body

Field Recorders - Pt 2

My main technique for recording is to leave the recording gear in the woods overnight. The amount of quality sounds I have been able to obtain with this method has far outdone what I could gather if I were only recording when I was hiking. Overnight recording does require more recording space and larger batteries.

Last time we looked at a recorder that was listed under $200. The next step up is:

Field Recorders under $450.

In the mid-priced range is the Sony PCM-D50.


The manufacturers website:

Sony PCM-D50

The user's manual can be found at:

Users Manual

Excellent reviews can be read at:

f7 sound and vision

O'Reilly digitalmedia

Brad Linder's blog

Forums discussing this recorder are:

The Taperssection Forums:

Thread one

Thread two

There are several videos posted on YouTube.

Sony PCM-D50 video review

Sony PCM-D50 Backs Up Heftier Price With Heftier Features

Sony PCM-D50

Recording media - 4Gb internal flash memory (accepts additional 4 GB Memory Stick)

Maximum recordable time - Using both the internal flash and external memory stick the record time in .wav at 44.1kHz 16bit CD quality mode is almost 13 hours.

Batteries - uses 4 AA batteries - Sony claims 14 hours record time

Recordings:

Sound file courtesy of f7 sound and vision

Sound clip - Woodpecker

Conclusion - I have not used this particular unit but those who have appear to think it has many advantages over others in this price range.

Pros:
- great sound quality
- long battery life
- sturdy build quality

Cons:
- no xlr microphone ports unless you purchase an expensive adaptor box
- records only in .wav and compressed .wav

Field Recorders - Pt 1

Nature recording is a very difficult pursuit. Weather conditions are always a consideration. Then the ever present noise from trains-planes-automobiles always tends to happen just when something interesting is going on. And to that list add wind and water sounds. Our brains filter out those extra sounds when we are in the environment but on a recording they are very noticeable.

I am frequently asked what equipment I would recommend. I am certainly no expert but I have used a variety of recorders and can share my thoughts. So I will post a series of 4 articles, each dealing with a different priced recorder. I will not do much of a review, as that material has been thoroughly covered by others and you can follow the provided links.

Field Recorders under $200.

On the lower end of the price range is the Samson - H2 - Handy Recorder.



The manufacturers websites:

H2 Handy Recorder

Samson Zoom H2

This website also has 3 videos describing its operation.

The user's manual can be found at:

Users Manual

Excellent reviews can be read at:

Ron's Tech Blog

O'Reilly digitalmedia

Brad Linder's blog

Forums discussing this recorder are:

Zoom Gear & Home Recording

The Taperssection Forums

There are several videos posted on YouTube:

Zoom H2 Digital recorder

Zoom H2 Tutorial

Quick guide to Zoom H2 MP3 recorder

Use Instructions for Zoom H2 Recorder

Recording media: SD card

I've been using a Transcend 16GB class 6 card (TS16GSDHC6) for some time now with my H2 and it works flawlessly.

Maximum recordable time - In any card not all of the stated capacity is available for data. Using this 16 gb card the record time in .wav at 44.1kHz 16bit CD quality mode is 23.5 hours.

Batteries

Using two Energizer L91BP-4 AA Lithium Batteries I was able to record for 14 hours 5 minutes.

Recordings:

I recorded this recently in the woods near my home in Central Illinois.

Sound Clip 1

Conclusion - I think this is a very good recorder and gets researchers into a nice, reasonably priced unit and away from the voice-only models so many purchase when they are just starting out.

Pros:
- reasonable price
- great sound
- easy to use
- built-in microphones

Cons:
- light weight plastic