Topic: iRiver H340 experiences?

[Visionair]

I'm looking to replace my current audio recorder.
I've been reading a lot overhere and on some other forums as well.
I know all about the Edirols, the Sony's etc, but what about the iRiver H340? How does it compare to Edirol/ Sony as goes for audio quality, ease of use, battery life and reliability?
Any experienced users out there?
Pro's/ con's?

[fmaderjr]

I've recorded a lot line in with an iHP-120, which is about the same as recording with a 340.

Once you Rockbox it (an absolute necessity) and get the hang of it, it is capable of making great recordings and is quite easy to use. It's preamp is nowhere near as good as an R-09HR's or a Sony M10's, so unless you are recording very loud shows (in which case a battery box is OK to power the mics), it is imperative to combine it with a preamp like a Church Audio ST-9100.

I always used mine with a ST-9100 and made great sounding recordings both of acoustic and amplified music.

If you can afford it, though, go with an HR or M10 and if doing acoustic add an ST-9100 (even though these recorders do much better recording quiet stuff without a pre than the HP). 

[earmonger]

Unless you get an incredible price on it, I'd get something newer. There's a hard drive in there that's going to fail sooner or later--possibly sooner, given its age.

I also had the IHP-120, so if they're comparable...well, it was OK, though I never really warmed to the iRiver interface or even Rockbox. It always felt awkward. The IHP-120 is very finicky about its charger, and can be fried with the wrong charger, so you might want to check that with the H340.

It has an integrated rechargeable battery, which also has a finite life span, though I see you can get replacements on eBay or use an external AA pack. 

The drive makes noise spinning up, so you won't be using its internal mic for voice recording, if you care about that.

People loved the iRivers because they were so tweakable--wow, you could take out the hard drive and replace it! (for a considerable price)--but that was back in the day. Units now have better preamps, flash drives and expansion slots, and they run on AA batteries and that's all an improvement over the old school. The H120 did have digital in, but I don't think the H340 does.

Basically the state of the art has improved. I see some people are paying over $250 for complete kits on Ebay, and I don't see why anyone would do that when you can get a smaller, lighter, better recorder for the same price. 

[Visionair]

Thank you guys for your input.
Your replies are in a way confirming what I was thinking.

I know decided to go new and will choose between HR/M10.

Thank you once again.

[exxile]

I've been using a H340 for many years now and never had any problems. Still get 14+ hours battery life and the Rockbox software is just fantastic. Easy to use, robust units. I recently picked up a H320 on ebay pretty cheap to use as a backup rig. There's a lot of misused ones floating about on ebay but if you bide your time, it is possible to pick up a well looked after unit for a reasonable price. I did consider switching to Edirol or similar but the fact I can use the iRiver as a standalone HDD and play back FLAC files made me decide not to, at least for the immediate future.

[sunjan]

. I see some people are paying over $250 for complete kits on Ebay.

First of all, there's no benefit in going for a H340, from a tapers perspective. You should be looking at H320 or H120. They are thinner, since they don't have to accomodate the thick 40GB HD (which you'll take out anyway.

The going rate for a usable H320 on ebay can be as low as 70-80 USD on ebay, if you search properly.
But like fmaderjr and others pointed out, you add the CF mod (maybe 30-50 USD) and pair it with a ST-9000 or 9100 (another 100-150 USD) and you realize that a 09HR or M10 is better value.

The reason why I'm holding on to my H120 is the convenience of dual use, when I can use it as a bit bucket behind my UA-5.