Topic: Very versatile recorder

[Karl]

Are there any handheld recorders that can do phantom power xlr inputs AND plug-in power type input?

I know it's probably asking a lot but it doesn't hurt to ask! 

Looking at <$500 budget, good clean preamps.

[fguidry]

Zoom H4n has the inputs you seek.

Fran

[Karl]

Awesome! How are the pre-amps? And, if I want to use my own battery box, does it have a standard 1/8 inch line input?

[jbell]

I would avoid the Zoom and look at a Marantz PMD 661 or Tascam DR100 MKII!!

[Karl]

What are the issues with the Zoom?

[rastasean]

What are the issues with the Zoom?

just search the forum. Most find the zoon products to be too cheap and unreliable. You can spend a little more and have taper test trust for your recorder.

[Karl]

Very good. Marantz PMD 661 and Tascam DR100 MKII have been recommended, I will search and check those out, any other recommendations?

Basically what I am trying to do is simplify my recording gear. I used to have a minidisc (used mic and line inputs) as well as a better quality rig that included the UA-5 and JB3 (I used the phantom power for that one, and that has pretty nice pre-amps). I am trying to replace all of that in one shot and have a more simple easy to use option (not so many cables!)

[adrianf74]

Tascam DR100 MKII is my choice in this case.

[Karl]

It does not appear that the Tascam has plug in power for mics 

Though, if I can't find an all in one solution, this may solve half of my problem, and I can get something else for the plug in power situations.

[Karl]

Yes, I saw the 1/8 inch inputs, but no plug in power. I know I can use a battery box, but I would like the ability to just insert a single point mic and be ready to go with no additional cables as well.

[fmaderjr]

Tascam DR100 MKII is my choice in this case.

The Tascam is almost certainly better than the Zoom if you can deal with a small battery box for providing plug in power. IMHO, Tascam makes very good recorders and Zoom does not, though the H4n is supposed to be far better than previous Zoom recorders. I suspect that the Tascam preamps would be a good bit better than the Zoom's but you need to hear input from people who have actually used them.

[H₂O]

With the tascam you should be able to get a PFA to provide plugin power to power electrets off it's phantom power

[Karl]

Right. So either I go with the zoom (idea leaves a bad taste in my mouth) or look at buying two separate recorders to do my jobs.

[fmaderjr]

With the tascam you should be able to get a PFA to provide plugin power to power electrets off it's phantom power

That's certainly one option, but a small battery box is cheaper and the Tascam will run a lot longer when not using phantom power.

[F.O.Bean]

Right. So either I go with the zoom (idea leaves a bad taste in my mouth) or look at buying two separate recorders to do my jobs.

I use 2 x Sony M10s to record diff sources, and they are a BREEZE to matrix/align in post with WaveLab 6 I thought it would be a PITA, but just align on one section and BAM, done deal so dont be scared away from buying 2 x M10s

[fmaderjr]

I use 2 x Sony M10s to record diff sources, and they are a BREEZE to matrix/align in post with WaveLab 6 I thought it would be a PITA, but just align on one section and BAM, done deal so dont be scared away from buying 2 x M10s

He meant one recorder with phantom power & one with PIP if he can't get a recorder he likes that has both. An M10 would certainly be a good choice for the PIP recorder. He wasn't worrying about recording 4 channels.

[ScoobieKW]

The path I took, is one recorder, the M10 with two mic powering options. For P48 mics, I use a Denecke PS-2 phantom supply, and a 9V battery box for my AT853 mics.

[Karl]

Thanks fmaderjr for reading what I wrote 

So let me know if we are on the right track...the recorder I am looking for needs these things:

- 48V Phantom Power
- Nice clean pre-amp stage
- At least 24 bit, 48khz recording
- Ease of transferring files to computer
- Comfortable battery life (4-6 hours minimum)
- Price - the $300 range is about right

So far the Tascam DR100 MKII seems to be coming up as the choice. Are there any other obvious choices I am missing?

(in short, trying to replace my Edirol UA-5 and Nomad JB3 into a simpler [and more current] solution)

Thanks for the tip ScoobieKW!

[cd2go]

So let me know if we are on the right track...the recorder I am looking for needs these things:

- 48V Phantom Power
- Nice clean pre-amp stage
- At least 24 bit, 48khz recording
- Ease of transferring files to computer
- Comfortable battery life (4-6 hours minimum)
- Price - the $300 range is about right

Have you considered the Tascam DR-40? It has all the above, plus a smaller footprint, half the cost, and runs forever on 3AA's...

[fmaderjr]

Thanks fmaderjr for reading what I wrote 

So let me know if we are on the right track...the recorder I am looking for needs these things:

- 48V Phantom Power
- Nice clean pre-amp stage
- At least 24 bit, 48khz recording
- Ease of transferring files to computer
- Comfortable battery life (4-6 hours minimum)
- Price - the $300 range is about right

So far the Tascam DR100 MKII seems to be coming up as the choice. Are there any other obvious choices I am missing?

(in short, trying to replace my Edirol UA-5 and Nomad JB3 into a simpler [and more current] solution)

Thanks for the tip ScoobieKW!

That is a very good choice, but personally, I would go with a route like this rather than getting 2 recorders or a recorder with phantom power.

The path I took, is one recorder, the M10 with two mic powering options. For P48 mics, I use a Denecke PS-2 phantom supply, and a 9V battery box for my AT853 mics.

I would get an M10 for your recorder. For Phantom power I would get a Tinybox  instead of just a phantom power supply so you get 30 dB+ of clean gain as well as phantom power. Of course if all you record is loud stuff, I'm sure a simple phantom power supply would work just as well. The Tascam is supposed to have a good sounding preamp, but using a good external pre like the Tinybox should sound even better (again unless you only record loud stuff and don't need much gain).

If you go the tiny box route, you can also use it to provide PIP. Depending on the mics you use, however, the PIP of the M10 might be just fine. Illconditioned has stated that the M10 will power AT8853's and CA-11's just fine. If you have more power hungry mics and you want something smaller than the Tinybox to power them, you could order one of the Church Audio battery boxes which are barely bigger than a 9 volt battery.

[Karl]

Good tip, cd2go, it looks like the only real thing I give up is a digital coaxial input, and that's not a must for that price difference.

fmaderjr, I am trying to go as simple as possible. Even adding a tinybox would be one more piece of gear to deal with, one more set of cables.

[tim in jersey]

Right. So either I go with the zoom (idea leaves a bad taste in my mouth) or look at buying two separate recorders to do my jobs.

I use 2 x Sony M10s to record diff sources, and they are a BREEZE to matrix/align in post with WaveLab 6 I thought it would be a PITA, but just align on one section and BAM, done deal so dont be scared away from buying 2 x M10s

I'd say you got extremely lucky that you have 2 decks with clocks so similar. I *always* have to do some time stretching to get things "just exactly perfect".