Topic: Best handheld for singer/songwriter/guitarist?

[mandoman]

I've got a singer/songer/acoustic-guitarist friend looking to upgrade from minidisc. Looking for something with built in mics with decent sound quality for sketching out song ideas. Unit must be dead simple to use as he is not super tech savvy. Any recommendations? Budget around $150-$300.

First thought was Sony M10 for familiarity coming from a sony minidisc recorder.
Second thought was Tascam gt-r1 for added guitar player friendly features (metronome, tuner, effects, guitar trainer, guitar input).

Anything else to consider? I'd say ease of use is most important, followed by sound quality through internal mics, with some guitar features (tuner/metronome/etc) as a bonus.

Thanks!
Mandoman

[jbou]

I just picked up a Roland R-05. I think this would be good for this application (very easy to use) but it doesn't have a tuner or metronome. Look into some of the small Tascam units like the DR-05, DR-07mkII or the DR-2D. I think some of those might have tuners and/or metronomes. In terms of the internal mics, The Roland R-05 and the Sony M-10 have omni mics. The Tascam DR-2D has cardioid mics. Im not sure about the other models.

[YYzepp]

Get a separate tuner, it'll be more accurate. I 2nd the Roland R-05. Great, great unit and super easy to operate. The only possible drawback could be no internal speaker. For me, that's not a big deal at all. I could use cans if I need to monitor.

[earmonger]

As a recovering minidisc user I will say that the PCM-M10 feels pretty familiar. And oh, the battery life, nice display, solidity...

A lot of posts here suggest that the PCM-M10 is very expensive in Europe, where the R-05 is by far the better deal. So geography is a factor.

Meanwhile, there's an iPhone tuner app, Cleartune,  that professionals like for all of $3.99.

http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/cleartune-chromatic-tuner/id286799607?mt=8

[mandoman]

Thanks everyone for the suggestions. I'll provide the best options to my friend as r-05 (budget), m10 (minidisc familiarity), and GT-R1 (guitar features).

Cheers,
Mandoman

[SmokinJoe]

We went to a show the other night. 5 tapers with Schoeps, Gefell, AKG, etc. Ted (tgakidis) had a new R05. For the first set he patched the R05 out of his Sax, for set 2 it sat on the table recording with internal mics. In the car on the way home we listened to both sets. The internals sounded amazing! I joked "what do we need that $5000 worth of gear in front of it for?" It wasn't funny. I feel confident the R05 will do what your friend wants.

I've seen quite a few musicians who own Zoom H2. It must be pretty damn simple because most of these guys are not techies. I haven't used one myself.

[jbou]

We went to a show the other night. 5 tapers with Schoeps, Gefell, AKG, etc. Ted (tgakidis) had a new R05. For the first set he patched the R05 out of his Sax, for set 2 it sat on the table recording with internal mics. In the car on the way home we listened to both sets. The internals sounded amazing! I joked "what do we need that $5000 worth of gear in front of it for?" It wasn't funny. I feel confident the R05 will do what your friend wants.

Glad to hear that about the internals! I was wondering how they sound.

[F.O.Bean]

I havent done this yet, but I bet the DR2D internals sound sweet since theyre cards