Topic: Minidisc replacement

[Karl]

Remember the good old days of minidisc? A nice small unit, just plug in a mic and you can get a good recording (I had/have a single point mic with very low sensitivity, so I always got away without having a battery box).

I am looking for something that essentially replaces this simplicity. I am essentially looking for two things in a modern unit:

1. Plug in power input (with a relatively clean pre-amp stage [The old Sharp MT-15 and Sharp DR-07 were good enough])
2. Line-in that doesn't suck (I will sometimes be passing a signal through the old Edirol UA5 (digimod) and into the line-in).

I have already done a bit of homework, and things are falling into two categories: Smaller, inexpensive and a *possible* compromise in quality. Other category is more expensive, a little bigger, and you know it's going to work well.

Smaller, inexpensive:

Tascam DR-22WL
Tascam DR-05
Tascam DR-2D
Olympus LS-14/LS-12

Bigger, high quality

Sony PCM-M10
Roland R-05
Marantz PMD620 MKii

Thoughts? Pros and cons on these units?

[lsd2525]

M10. There are no cons, other than not having a digi in.

[nulldogmas]

M10. I went the same route from minidiscs (with a stopover at an iRiver), and have been thrilled with the quality and ease of use. And don't even get me started about the battery life...

[aaronji]

If you really prefer no battery box, the Marantz may be a good option. It has ~ 5 V plug-in power. Defintely better than the M10 (~3 V, I thnk). Otherwise, the Sony and Roland are both good options (both with their supporters, as I am sure you will see)...

[lsd2525]

If you really prefer no battery box, the Marantz may be a good option. It has ~ 5 V plug-in power. Defintely better than the M10 (~3 V, I thnk). Otherwise, the Sony and Roland are both good options (both with their supporters, as I am sure you will see)...

Good point. I see in the OP's signature line that a set of 853's are listed. I've tried running my 853's on the M10's PIP and not had any luck. I've been powering them with the AT power modules, and still have to go mic in.  You are correct that the M10 provides 3v.

[nulldogmas]

If you really prefer no battery box, the Marantz may be a good option. It has ~ 5 V plug-in power. Defintely better than the M10 (~3 V, I thnk). Otherwise, the Sony and Roland are both good options (both with their supporters, as I am sure you will see)...

Good point. I see in the OP's signature line that a set of 853's are listed. I've tried running my 853's on the M10's PIP and not had any luck. I've been powering them with the AT power modules, and still have to go mic in.  You are correct that the M10 provides 3v.

Agreed as well. I always use a battery box with my M10, whether mic in or line in. Though for the price of a Marantz, you could get an M10 *and* a battery box, and have 9v of power to mics.

[Karl]

If you really prefer no battery box, the Marantz may be a good option. It has ~ 5 V plug-in power. Defintely better than the M10 (~3 V, I thnk). Otherwise, the Sony and Roland are both good options (both with their supporters, as I am sure you will see)...

Good point. I see in the OP's signature line that a set of 853's are listed. I've tried running my 853's on the M10's PIP and not had any luck. I've been powering them with the AT power modules, and still have to go mic in.  You are correct that the M10 provides 3v.

Good to know the plug in power voltage of the M10. I only use my AT-853's with my Tascam DR100, with the new unit I will use the old single point mic that came with the Sony WM-D3 TAPE recorder.

What's the best place to look for a good deal on the M10?

[Karl]

Does anyone have experience with any of the Tascam's or the Olympus? For half the price do they do the job?

[aaronji]

Depends on how you define "do the job". In particular, some models don't deal well with hot input levels, so you need to think about the mics and SPLs a bit. Tascam's customer service is not particularly popular, either. The DR2D seems to have served a lot of people well, but I think it has been discontinued...

[MakersMarc]

I can't speak to the other small recorders, but I've been hugely impressed with the adc in the m10 running line in.

[earmonger]

I am a recovering minidisc user and the PCM-M10 has been ideal.

That said, B&H seems to have the Marantz PMC620mkII at the moment for $229, which seems to be a big price break for a unit that's usually around $400.

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/bnh/controller/home?O=&sku=898191&gclid=CP-EldHoicsCFdcYgQodu3YIwA&is=REG&ap=y&m=Y&Q=&A=details

Exacty the same price as the Sony PCM-M!0

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/bnh/controller/home?O=&sku=898191&gclid=CP-EldHoicsCFdcYgQodu3YIwA&is=REG&ap=y&m=Y&Q=&A=details

I'm not familiar with the Marantz, but it is a favorite of radio journalists who just use the built-ins.

[bombdiggity]

The M-10 seems to get down to about $179 when the time is ripe. 

I've settled on it after an intermediate stop. 

Given the comparative point (minidisk) any modern digital recorder will be better.  Trying to go without the battery box line-in is a wrinkle that may drastically narrow the field (or eliminate everything). 

COnsidering all the money you'll save not buying single use media you might aim toward the better options...