Topic: Recommendation for recorder with XLR/P48

[yates7592]

Can anybody give me a recommendation for an XLR/P48 recorder that ticks as many of these boxes as possible:

* Easily handheld (small as possible)
* Good preamps
* Takes hot input signal
* Good battery life

Don't need 4/6 channels, not bothered about internals.

Don't want to break the bank, but thinking £500 tops.

Thanks for any help.

[cashandkerouac]

Can anybody give me a recommendation for an XLR/P48 recorder that ticks as many of these boxes as possible:

* Easily handheld (small as possible)
* Good preamps
* Takes hot input signal
* Good battery lifeDon't need 4/6 channels, not bothered about internals.

Don't want to break the bank, but thinking £500 tops.

Thanks for any help.

i too am interested in such an item, but i think you'll need to compromise on size if you absolutely need full size XLR inputs and +48v phantom.  to my knowledge there is nothing with XLR inputs and +48v phantom that is even close to the small size of a Sony M-10.

wanting to eliminate the need for an external pre-amp for my stealth rig i recently searched for an item that met your criteria above and i came up empty.  i ended up settling on a used Marantz 661 with the Oade concert mod and i love it.  the pre-amps are very quiet, the recording menu lets you select from a -6db, -12db and -18db pad (so you can tame a hot signal) and it has great battery life.  with the phantom power on i can get a solid four (4) hours from four (4) NiMh rechargable batteries, which is plenty because i don't want to play human mic stand for more than four (4) hours anyhow.  if i'm in an open taping situation the 661 will accept an external battery and will run as long as i need it to off of 5v.  the other thing that i really like about the 661 is that each file has a mazimum size of 4GB rather than 2GB. 

all in all it's a superb machine that i highly recommend.  the only variable where it falls short is the size.  it's still extremely "stealthable" as long as you don't have to worry about a patdown going into the venue.  i've been using mine for stealth and it has been rock solid.       

[yates7592]

^ Thanks for the info, I had a feeling that the 661 might be my best bet.

One question, does the -6/-12/-18 switch only work on XLR going mic-in, or on XLR going line-in, or either?

[aaronji]

The Olympus LS-100 might be another option. I have been curious about it since it came out, but haven't gotten around to trying one yet...

[chinariderstl]

The Tascam DR-100mkII is a 2-channel handheld recorder with XLR inputs.  B&H has it for $280 US.

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/832911-REG/tascam_dr_100mkii_portable_2_channel.html

HTH

[F.O.Bean]

The Tascam DR-100mkII is a 2-channel handheld recorder with XLR inputs.  B&H has it for $280 US.

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/832911-REG/tascam_dr_100mkii_portable_2_channel.html

HTH

Its about DOUBLE the size of the M10 tho Its pretty damn heavy too. My taping partner and great friend, tonedeaf, runs one and ive seen it in action alot. Plus, the battery life is HORRIBLE

[yltfan]

Never used one, but what about the Tascam DR-40?

It's 70 x 155 x 35mm

M10 is 64 x 114 23mm

[adrianf74]

The Tascam DR-100mkII is a 2-channel handheld recorder with XLR inputs.  B&H has it for $280 US.

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/832911-REG/tascam_dr_100mkii_portable_2_channel.html

HTH

Its about DOUBLE the size of the M10 tho Its pretty damn heavy too. My taping partner and great friend, tonedeaf, runs one and ive seen it in action alot. Plus, the battery life is HORRIBLE

That's what EXTERNAL battery packs are for.     P48 drains batteries FAST.

[F.O.Bean]

The Tascam DR-100mkII is a 2-channel handheld recorder with XLR inputs.  B&H has it for $280 US.

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/832911-REG/tascam_dr_100mkii_portable_2_channel.html

HTH

Its about DOUBLE the size of the M10 tho Its pretty damn heavy too. My taping partner and great friend, tonedeaf, runs one and ive seen it in action alot. Plus, the battery life is HORRIBLE

That's what EXTERNAL battery packs are for.     P48 drains batteries FAST.

Neither of my [2] LBs have external power jacks and they last just fine, and thats at +60v, not +48

[jbell]

The Tascam DR-100mkII is a 2-channel handheld recorder with XLR inputs.  B&H has it for $280 US.

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/832911-REG/tascam_dr_100mkii_portable_2_channel.html

HTH

Its about DOUBLE the size of the M10 tho Its pretty damn heavy too. My taping partner and great friend, tonedeaf, runs one and ive seen it in action alot. Plus, the battery life is HORRIBLE

That's what EXTERNAL battery packs are for.     P48 drains batteries FAST.

Neither of my [2] LBs have external power jacks and they last just fine, and thats at +60v, not +48

P48 will drain the batteries faster than running the KCY with 60v!!  If you were running P48 mics you wouldn't get the long run times you get running polarization voltage with the kcy cable. 

[yates7592]

Struggling with this. I'm leaning towards the PMD 661, has great preamps and v.good battery life, but I read elsewhere the input signal it can take is not that hot, even with -18dB switch? DR100-Mkii would be my next choice because its a bit smaller, takes a hot signal, but battery life sucks.

[mccordo]

Struggling with this. I'm leaning towards the PMD 661, has great preamps and v.good battery life, but I read elsewhere the input signal it can take is not that hot, even with -18dB switch? DR100-Mkii would be my next choice because its a bit smaller, takes a hot signal, but battery life sucks.

As a DR-100Mkii owner/user, I cannot stress enough the need for an external battery if you're running P48. I use the Anker Astro Pro 14400mAh battery (http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B005NGLTZQ/ref=oh_details_o05_s00_i00?ie=UTF8&psc=1) and find it will easily last for an entire show with P48 on. The DR-100Mkii and Anker should run you less than $400 and provide what you're looking for.

Like Bean said, the DR-100Mkii is larger than an M10 (I own and use one of these too), but it's definitely not huge or unwieldy.  It also has decent onboard preamps that I used with no complaints for over a year until I got a V2 from the Yard Sale.

[cashandkerouac]

^ Thanks for the info, I had a feeling that the 661 might be my best bet.

One question, does the -6/-12/-18 switch only work on XLR going mic-in, or on XLR going line-in, or either?

not sure.  the pad is definitely an option with "mic in".  i don't see why it wouldn't also be an option with "line in".  i'll investigate the menu and will get back to you with an answer.

[aaronji]

^ Thanks for the info, I had a feeling that the 661 might be my best bet.

One question, does the -6/-12/-18 switch only work on XLR going mic-in, or on XLR going line-in, or either?

not sure.  the pad is definitely an option with "mic in".  i don't see why it wouldn't also be an option with "line in".  i'll investigate the menu and will get back to you with an answer.

Pretty sure that it is mic in only...

Might also be worth asking John Willet about the LS-100. No personal experience, but, on paper, it seems like it might do the trick.

[willndmb]

Bigger then a lot of recorders but check out the fr2le in the yard sale
Sounds good
Good meters
Trim if need be
Multi battery options
Xlr or trs in