Topic: KORG PROMO: TALK TO KORG

[jb63]

OK, so my new MR2 is sitting on my desk.
I like it.
The MR1 was nice, but I like the MR2 as well.

I'll put up a few pictures and ask a few questions.
Let's just see... one nice new thing is the memory card slot, which has no cover.
It took me 13 seconds to swap cards and be running again.

Also, no case this time, so get ready to get it all sticky with tape.

:-)

[jb63]

Now onto the tricky part.
I hope the pictures illustrate my point.

Its my first question directly to RichF, and don't let it get you down.

There are a lot more menu items to delve into, and I'm sure they're relatively well-thought out for the recording composer.
(things like including a tuner)
but it will take me a while to read and experiment with all of them.

The MR1 was a really simple recorder. It looked great on the face, had the only buttons you needed, and a good hold switch.
The MR2 will have a lot more uses, the main one being the internal mikes.
I know that everyone on this board says they'll never use them, but I am always, ALWAYS somewhere where the interview takes place without all my gear.
Either I've already torn down and the band is having drinks at the bar and I get pulled aside and I get a million questions I would love to record, or my daughter just decides its time to sing Christmas Songs in May, and I need something quick & dirty that's stereo (ie: not a phone) and that's where the built-ins come in.

I have a PMD620 for this now, and hope the MR2 will eliminate that from the bag.

So here comes my built in mic question:

There is a grid along the top, with the mics encased within, that allows them to rotate 180° so that they can (I imagine) point towards the front of the recorder, or rotate all the way to the back of the recorder. I imagine so that it fits in a breast pocket, with the faceplate facing either way.

The first 2 images are the internal mic dial as far as it will go in one direction. The mics sit on a small slab within the cage and it corresponds to the picture of the mic on the dial.
All the way forward lines them pointing straight up.

The 3rd image is where the questionable content begins.
After turning as far as I can go clockwise and getting straight up, the only other option is counter-clockwise, where I can now point the internal mikes down into the gear of the MR2.
Not very useful.
I can then continue to the 4th image to point the mics in this useless position.
So while I CAN rotate them, I can't really utilize the 180° path I should have.
Do I have a manufacturing flaw, or are they all this way?
Can I open it up and fix it myself-- it can't be all that difficult-- or do I have to spend further money sending it back and all that?

Finally, what exactly is the mic that is place in here, and what kind of power is it getting?

The last picture is the mics pointing at you through the screen.

Thanks!

[F.O.Bean]

I wish they would have taken out the internal mics[which prob sound like shit anyway] and just made it smaller

[jb63]

Seems like here's the place to put together the wishlist.

;-)

If all the space used for the internals was used for a digital in, I don't think they'd have sold batches and batches more of these, but they would have sold US a lot more.
But we were really only interested when they went below $400.

I really like having the internals, though, even though that is wasted real estate most of the time. If those were NON-ROTATEABLE, like the M10, and took up the top corners, then all the space inbetween were the COAX digi-in (that's right, right on top like a cyclops, this would be the perfect recorder.

I still haven't road tested it, though, just waiting to find out if these mics mean I have to return it for a swap.

[boyacrobat]

can someone confirm rec times on aa batt

g

[H₂O]

someone posted on a different thread the got over 6 hours record time on a higher mAh rechargable set of AA's with the MR-2

[RichF]

Hi jb63,

Sorry, I tried to reply to the thread before and for some reason it didn't go through.

It looks like your MR2 is working just fine. The mic is actually supposed to rotate 210 degrees, and when it's in the 8 o'clock position (fully counter-clockwise), it's pointed mostly towards the front, slanted slilghtly downwards.

This position would be ideal if you want to place the MR2 face-up on a table in front of you and record yourself speaking, while still being able to read the display.

Hope this helps,
-Rich

[jb63]

Hi jb63,

It looks like your MR2 is working just fine. The mic is actually supposed to rotate 210 degrees, and when it's in the 8 o'clock position (fully counter-clockwise), it's pointed mostly towards the front, slanted slilghtly downwards.

Hi Rich.
Somehow I don't think you understand what I was explaining with the pictures, because it is clearly NOT doing that.

;-)

Please look at the 3 side-view figures in my post above again.
Assume it is rotating counter-clockwise from the first picture to the last, and the mic is actually placed exactly as it is pictured on the dial. Yes, it appears that the total arc is about 210° or so, (I'd say slightly less, and you can measure well enough with the pictures) BUT its rotation seems to be off. One cannot utilize the grid in the back at all, and all of the angles I can set this at are useless except for about 45° between the "mic up" picture and the "mic down" one.

I think its quite clear that mics should do this:
Rotate 45° clockwise from the "mic up" picture, (they don't, that's as far as wheel turns) and stop about 45° BEFORE they rotate counter-clockwise to the "mic too far" picture.

I'd still like to know what kind mics are in it, as well.

Thanks,

j

[drchen]

Could someone from KORG tell me how long the special offer on MR2s will last(roughly)?

thanks!

[RichF]

Hi jb63,

Regarding the kind of mic, I'm sorry but we don't publicize our individual component sources.

Regarding the orientation, I think I see the problem. The gray line on the dial shows where the mics are facing. In your picture labeled "mics straight up" I see that the capsules are actually pointing towards the rear of the MR2, assuming we're looking at it from the front. In the picture labeled "mic up," it's pointing to the rear, and in the picture labeled "mic down," the mics are facing the viewer. So, the accurately-named "mics toward viewer" pic should match the "mic down" pic.

That little mic pictured on the dial is likely the culprit here. On a tabletop cardioid vocal mic similar to the one pictured, when it's upright, the capsule is pointing to one side. So when you see the mic standing straight up on its base, the gray line is pointing to the rear of the MR2, and that's where the capsules are facing.

Hope this helps,
-Rich

[jb63]

Hi jb63,

That little mic pictured on the dial is likely the culprit here. On a tabletop cardioid vocal mic similar to the one pictured, when it's upright, the capsule is pointing to one side. So when you see the mic standing straight up on its base, the gray line is pointing to the rear of the MR2, and that's where the capsules are facing.

Yes!
So the internal mics are cards, and the caps are not pointing straight up as in the picture on side.
That's confusing for cards, but I think it will make sense to anyone reading.

Thanks! That is what I needed to know!

Taking it out for a spin now, more later.

[RichF]

Great news, enjoy!

-Rich

[jb63]

So I just got 6 hours & 36 mins recording overnight in MP3 mode with 2 Sanyo Enloop batteries that I took out of my camera after being in there who-knows-how-long.
I imagine MP3 takes less of a drain than DSDIFF.

Also, I have thoroughly tested the internal mics now.
They are actually pretty good at "songcatching" and speech, which is what I want them for.

In the pictures on the scroll wheel to adjust them, the long raised notch that you use to turn the wheel is actually the indicator of where the caps point.
I don't know how I didn't get that.

On an un-related note, I went out of my way to go to the not-so-close-but-nearest Guitar Center and took the battery part number for my MR-1 and they told me they could not help me.
They said it had been discontinued and i could not get parts.

Is there a way we can get battery replacements through some kind of online source?

Thanks!

back to work,

jb

[H₂O]

Nice!!!

[jb63]

More MR2 stats:
Took it out last night and ran it 1:1 against the MR1.

DSDIFF files burn the battery down faster than the MP3 recording did.
I got a 2hr20min tape, then listened to about 20mins of it in the car before the batteries died.
Now these were older Enloops, so I'll report back after I have new ones.

I ran it along with an M10 & a PMD620.

The level adjusting on the MR1 & the M10 is really the best, but the Menu system on the M10 is awful, and so is the micro SD. Yuck.
I'll get used to the menu on the MR2, but the MR1 was a better menu/control system for live recording.

Being able to easily swap batteries on the MR2 pretty much makes the battery test moot, until I come across another band that likes to play for 3 hours straight.

Mr1s are starting to show up on ebay and I'm tempted to just keep buying those till they die off. Of course you never know how long the battery will last...

Gee, I wish I could get a battery replacement for the ones I have.

;-)