Topic: Bit-bucket options and alternatives

[stlawrence]

I'm a taping noob but have a veteran buddy who sent me a link to Chris Church's cardoid mic/preamp set up last month. I picked one up and have run it into my minidisc, but it's time to upgrade to something I can drag and drop files with. With the Church setup as my only rig, I don't need optical line-in. I'll probably get a non-stealth rig in the future, but that's a ways off. I know the H120 or JB3 are probably my best options with optical, but what else is out there without that would be small and work well with my stealth rig? I use a Mac so I need something easily compatible.  Thanks in advance for any suggestions!
peace,
Stratton

[rePat]

Sounds like a Edirol R-09 would be right up your alley.  Just need an SD card reader for your Mac and your set.  Just got my R-09, and am loving it so far.  There are many threads here about it, try searching for them.

Good Luck

Pat

[dgodwin]

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buy my edirol R1!   $265 for you only, today only!

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[flintstone]

Recorder alternatives for less than $1000 include:

recorders with digital optical input, plus analog mic and line input
-- iRiver H120/140/320 with Rockbox software (discontinued, ~$150-$200 used)
-- Creative Nomad Jukebox 3 or "JB3" (discontinued, ~$100-$150 used)
-- Sony MZ-RH1 Hi-MD recorder ($325)

recorders with digital coax input, plus Mic and Line
-- M-Audio Microtrack 2496 ($375)
-- Marantz PMD671 ($700 at martelelectronics.com)
-- Fostex HD-P2 ($995)

recorders that have Mic and Line input only, no digital
-- Zoom H2 ($200, shipping in Summer)
-- Zoom H4 ($300)
-- Edirol R-09 ($375)
-- Fostex FR-2LE ($600, shipping in a week or two)
-- Marantz PMD660 (with Oade ACM preamp upgrade $709)

With the exception of the Sony Hi-MD, all allow drag and drop file
transfers to a PC. 

Generally, when you pay more you get sturdier construction, better
preamps, better metering, easier-to-use controls, and more features.   

Flintstone

[atxwolfattack]

I really like my iRiver ihp-120, and i have the exact same mics and preamp as you, STC-9000 correct?

It really is a great little rig, great for stealthing, and it also works as an open rig for me.

[H₂O]

Don't forget the new KORG MR-1 for about $699.  1Bit 2.6MHz DSD (SACD); 24bit 192KHz; 20GB HDD

No digital in's, but is very small and supports balanced and unbalanced analog input.

[flintstone]

Thanks, campbrs, for pointing out the Korg MR-1.

The MR-1's $700 price tag is more acceptable when you consider it includes the 20GB disc, enough for 6 hours of 1-bit 2.8224 MHz stereo tracks.  With other machines you have to purchase flash memory to store your recordings.

Flintstone

[petur]

I'm using (I think) the same mics/pre-amp from Chris, in combination with an iriver h380 (h340 after a disk upgrade ). Works very nice.

If you can find an h120/h140/h320/h340 somewhere, do consider it. And then load RockBox on it

[stlawrence]

thanks! i'm going to check out all those options and i'll post when i decide, maybe an ISO

[stlawrence]

Doing a lot of reading today. I think I've got it boiled down between the Edirol R-09 and iRiver h120. I plan to use it both for live concert recordings and with my job as a reporter - i'm tired of having to 'stream' interviews into my computer to save them. Is there anyone out there who's used both units and has some obvious pro/cons between them that come to mind?
A few questions...

Is the iRiver battery easily interchangable, and would I want an extra?

Since I don't need optical with my church st-9000 set-up, are there advantages to the h320? It might be nice to have it for the future though.

Is the iRiver significantly bigger than the edirol?

why the significant difference in cost? price is definitely an option but i want to spend wisely and get something i'll use for years.

thanks again!! this site is awesome.

[Gawain]

Is the iRiver battery easily interchangable, and would I want an extra?

not at all, you must open it and take all appart (screws, cases, hard drive,...). It has not an easy access and it's tricky (understand me, is easy do all, but nothing you can do during a show or can be done in 2 minutes)

Since I don't need optical with my church st-9000 set-up, are there advantages to the h320? It might be nice to have it for the future though.

not really concerning recording, just the colour screen and the usb-on-the-go thing. Besides that is a bit bigger and with no optical, as you already know.

[JasonSobel]

recorders with digital coax input, plus Mic and Line
-- M-Audio Microtrack 2496 ($375)
-- Marantz PMD671 ($700 at martelelectronics.com)
-- Fostex HD-P2 ($995)

actually, the HD-P2 is made by Tascam, not Fostex.  (offhand, I forget the model number of the Fostex recorders).  and, while list price of the Tascam HD-P2 might be $995, it retails for essentially the same cost as the Marantz PMD-671.

[Nick's Picks]

the R9 is superior to the Iriver boxes for several reasons:

1. no hard drive (thats a good thing, as they "go" quick in these older, used HP mp3 players)
2. no density (beats a wand every time)
3. new construction / technology
4. 24(ish)BIT
5. runs for years on AA batteries.
6. sounds better...a lot better.

[Kevin Straker]

It's not stealthy, but you can get an HD-P2 off of ebay for 799.00 brand new from a dealer.