Has digi-in and digi-out, but no XLR input.
http://bssc.sel.sony.com/BroadcastandBusiness/DisplayModel?m=0&p=10&sp=83&id=90227
This thing could be a winner...
It's got a list price of $599, so hopefully street price will be around $400 (optimistic?).
It's essentially got all of the features of the R-09 w/the addition of the
optical inputAnother positive is that the A>D is probably pretty good considering the fact that it incorporates Sony's SBM.
This looks good too:
* Superior Audio Signal Path
The PCM-D50 is designed with four separate circuit boards to separate analog audio, digital audio, digital recording and power supply circuits. Separate circuit boards for each function helps minimize noise.
A negative is that it doesn't take compact flash or secure digital...makes sense since it is Sony.
The 4GB built in should do it for a lot of folks though.
If this thing is solid it could be the affordable bit-bucket people have been waiting for...and for someone like me who doesn't have an external A>D, it could possibly replace my R-09. I'm sure it will appeal to a lot of ENG people too.
Even if you don't care for the built-in mics, the rest of the features look pretty good!