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Gear / Technical Help => Recording Gear => Topic started by: flintstone on July 23, 2013, 05:37:27 PM
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Sony has a new voice and music recorder with specs and price similar to the PCM-M10. The primary difference is the size of the machine.
M10 ... 64 mm x 114 mm x 23mm, 187 g
SX1000 ... 39.6 mm × 110.8 mm × 14.6 mm, 83 g
To reduce size, the SX1000 uses a built-in Li-Ion battery. Sony rates the battery for 19 hours of recording.
The SX1000 has features useful for recording music, including pre-record, mic sensitivity, limiter, and low cut filter. The SX1000 also can simultaneously record PCM and MP3 versions of the input (for some reason).
The SX1000 has 16 GB of flash memory built in. There are two other models with less flash memory. The ICD-SX733 ($148) has 4 GB. The ICD-SX734 doesn't appear to be imported to USA. It has 8 GB. All three models accept microSD cards if you need additional memory.
B&H offers the SX1000 for $250.
http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/925981-REG/sony_icdsx1000_digital_flash_voice.html
Here's the Sony Store page.
http://store.sony.com/p/Flash-Memory-Recorder,-Voice-Recorder/en/p/ICDSX1000
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no line input.
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no line input.
::)
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Line Input is covered in the manual under "recording from external devices." basically, there's a setting that changes the mic input to handle line level.
menu - external input setting - sensitivity setting - audio in (instead of Mic in)
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Sony has a big line of ICX recorders, basically for dictation. This is billed as a "voice recorder" for a reason: the low frequency cutoff. A crucial difference in spec from the PCM-M10.
Frequency Range : LPCM 96/24: 40 - 40,000 Hz LPCM 44/16: 40 - 20,000 Hz MP3 320k: 40 - 20,000 Hz MP3 192k: 40 - 18,000 Hz MP3 128k: 40 - 16,000 Hz MP3 48k (Mono): 40 - 14,000 Hz
I'm not a megabass fanatic, but I do want that bottom octave (20-40 Hz) for fidelity. Lowest key on a piano is 27.5 Hz, and concerts rumble lower. 20-20000 Hz for me.
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The PCM-M10 is rated 20 Hz - 20,000 Hz for line input only. I think most built-in mic sensitivity drops off fast below 40 Hz, hence the rating for the SX1000. Just speculation until we can hear samples.
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For the price I'd just stick with the M10!
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After awhile it was hard to find that proprietary "gumstick" battery for the Sony MZ-RH1 mini-disc.
I'm really liking the AA battery use on the M10, especially because recording and playback times seem to last so long! For day long festivals, it's nice to have another set of batteries to pop in, if needed.
Sony website gives a typical warning for battery life on the ICD-SX1000:
"Actual battery life will vary based on network, product settings, usage patterns, battery, and environmental conditions."
Also, to me - the M10 looks more like a cell phone than the SX1000. Nice to have it look that way for certain circumstances.
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This recorder looks strangely like the Olympus ls-7. http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/751670-REG/Olympus_LS_7_LS_7_Linear_PCM_Recorder.html. The ls-7 is tiny.
I like to have it around in my pocket to record things happening around me ie tree frogs, birds etc. It also sounds pretty good as a backup with my rode nt4 plugged into it's mic input.
Like the sony it also has a third built in mic which is an omni for recording deeper bass sounds. It can also be used as a computer interface. It's a fun little box but certainly no match
for the m10 as a recorder. Thirty years ago I would have killed for one though.
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I have the SX-750 as a carry around recorder, and its stereo imaging is somewhat better than the M10. The SX1000 appears to use cardioid mics rather than the M10 omnis so - in terms of stereo image - it should also outdo the M10. In other respects, probably not.