Audio Recorder Recommendations? (1 Viewer)

[pyrrhula]

Hey!

Up until now I was using my phone to record bird sounds but it is really bad and since a few buttons on my phone are broken it is also quite impractical and annoying to use.

Hence I'm currently looking for a new recording device. It should 1. fit in the pocket of my pants 2. be easy to use - meaning I can quickly get it, record and put it away again 3. have better audio quality than a regular phone.

I want to use it for recording bird sounds to identify later, but also I was thinking that I could maybe replace my notebook by recording and counting birds via talking onto the recorder. Does anybody do this, is this a good or bad idea? I thought it might be much faster than writing everything down...

Best regards!

 

[Mono]

We seemed to have passed peak mini-recorder. Most the traditional office based mini-recorder tasks, dictation, meeting recording etc have been taken over by the phone. So the mini-recorder makers have moved over into sound production and music recording. The recorders have added better mics, multitracking and more formats but have expanded considerably in size.

If you want to make top notch recordings the world is your oyster but if you something small and simple to whip out of your pocket then you can't beat a phone, with an external mic if you don't think you phone's is up to chuff.

 

[Joop99]

Look at the new Zoom F3, seems to fill your questions. Its small but I don't know anything of your pocket.

 

[davpen]

Look at the new Zoom F3, seems to fill your questions. Its small but I don't know anything of your pocket.

The Zoom F3 is small by itself, yes, but it needs a microphone to go with it.

Might be worth trying one of the Tascams, eg the DR 05X or 07X. I haven't used either myself (I use the discontinued Olympus LS3 and LS11) but I know someone who gets decent results with the DR 05.

Re. using the recorder as a voice notebook: I tried this a couple of times but found it overall more time-consuming than making written notes in the field.

David

 

[Jason Bugay Reyes]

The Zoom F3 is small by itself, yes, but it needs a microphone to go with it.

Might be worth trying one of the Tascams, eg the DR 05X or 07X. I haven't used either myself (I use the discontinued Olympus LS3 and LS11) but I know someone who gets decent results with the DR 05.

Re. using the recorder as a voice notebook: I tried this a couple of times but found it overall more time-consuming than making written notes in the field.

David

Agree. I tried the DR05x, quite good even with the built in mics for nearby birds

 

[pyrrhula]

The Zoom F3 is small by itself, yes, but it needs a microphone to go with it.

Might be worth trying one of the Tascams, eg the DR 05X or 07X. I haven't used either myself (I use the discontinued Olympus LS3 and LS11) but I know someone who gets decent results with the DR 05.

Re. using the recorder as a voice notebook: I tried this a couple of times but found it overall more time-consuming than making written notes in the field.

David

Agree. I tried the DR05x, quite good even with the built in mics for nearby birds

Thank you guys for the recommendation! I did some research and found some very positive reviews. Thus I ordered the DR05x and am looking forward to try it. It seems to be a good recorder for beginners and I think you can't go too wrong for that price...

Re. using recorder as voice notebook: Thanks for sharing your experience. Nevertheless I will maybe give it a try and see how it works for me...

Best regards!

 

[pyrrhula]

Also thanks to everyone else who replied for your advice!

 

[Aldebaran58]

My very first post... and being completely new to birding I start with a "TASCAM DR-70D" recorder and "Rode NTG5 Set" for mic (total around 750€-800€ incl. SD card). Unfortunately this does not fit your specific requirements with regard to pocket size (although a question of how big the pockets are ;-) ) but nevertheless I just want to share for those who might be interested and it might also probably give you some advice with regards to specs, which are of some importance.

Reason to buy the TASCAM DR-70D are:

• low noise pre-amps (for me the most important feature, more important than i.e. 32 bit recording during learning phase)
• form factor
• powering with external USB powerbank (i.e. 20.000 mAh, provides also phantom power and avoids eating batteries)
• relatively low price (270€)

Beforehand I was thinking about a Sound Devices MicPre-6 II but decided to begin with an "easier to handle" recorder to learn and gain experience.

According to various internet sources the "Rode NTG5" seems to have a good reputation for birding with

• low self-noise
• good SNR
• good sensitivity
• low weight
• good package price (425€)

The NTG5 Set includes the mic, a pistol grip, wind shield incl. "Dead cat" etc..., only a mic cable to connect the mic to the recorder needs to be bought extra. Don't save money on the cable (50€ will do), buy a shielded one (i.e. Mogami) to avoid that i.e. your mobile scatters electric noise into the cable.
In addition I bought an ORCA OR-28 bag to carry the equipment in the field (240€). I own an older AKG-K702 headphone, I assume that will do. If you prefer a light and open system I can recommend the "Koss Porta Pro" (wired less than 40€, wireless 60€). I am using Koss headphones for decades and I love them for their specific sound.

Best regards from Germany - Klaus
PS: if there is any interest I could share my experience with the equipment over time.

 

[leonardo_simon]

I have the Tasman DR05x and am happy with it. Sometimes I use it with a microphone sometimes on its own. Relatively cheap so happy to leave it unattended.

 

[Lazarus Taxon]

Can you share some recordings Klaus? Danke!

 

[Borjam]

According to various internet sources the "Rode NTG5" seems to have a good reputation for birding with

• low self-noise
• good SNR
• good sensitivity
• low weight
• good package price (425€)

Late to comment, but the NTG5 has another very strong plus for wildlife recording. It belongs to a special class of condenser microphones: RF biased.

Until recently RF bias was only used in very expensive microphones (Sennheiser MKH, I don´t know about others) with prices well above 1000 euros. But Rode's NTG-3, NTG-5 and NTG-8 are RF biased.

The big advantage is: they can work in high ambient moisture environments where the most common DC biased microphones will begin to crackle.

I own an NTG-8 and it's a really outstanding microphone.

 

[Joop99]

I never understood why users choose for the Tascam DR-70D and not for the Tascam DR-701D. The DR-70D is plastic with shielding and connectors soldered on the prints while the DR-701D is full metal and connectors connected to the housing. Next the specs of the DR-701D are far better. And in practical use you have more options like listening to only ONE channel instead of all four as with the DR-70D. And the list with favours for the DR-701D goes on. In the end the Tascam DR-701D is more rugged and better for in the field, but this is my opinion. The only reason I can think of is money, but the price difference between DR-70D (€329,=) and DR-701D (€469,=) is not that big.

 

[Jason Bugay Reyes]

My very first post... and being completely new to birding I start with a "TASCAM DR-70D" recorder and "Rode NTG5 Set" for mic (total around 750€-800€ incl. SD card). Unfortunately this does not fit your specific requirements with regard to pocket size (although a question of how big the pockets are ;-) ) but nevertheless I just want to share for those who might be interested and it might also probably give you some advice with regards to specs, which are of some importance.

Reason to buy the TASCAM DR-70D are:

• low noise pre-amps (for me the most important feature, more important than i.e. 32 bit recording during learning phase)
• form factor
• powering with external USB powerbank (i.e. 20.000 mAh, provides also phantom power and avoids eating batteries)
• relatively low price (270€)

Beforehand I was thinking about a Sound Devices MicPre-6 II but decided to begin with an "easier to handle" recorder to learn and gain experience.

According to various internet sources the "Rode NTG5" seems to have a good reputation for birding with

• low self-noise
• good SNR
• good sensitivity
• low weight
• good package price (425€)

The NTG5 Set includes the mic, a pistol grip, wind shield incl. "Dead cat" etc..., only a mic cable to connect the mic to the recorder needs to be bought extra. Don't save money on the cable (50€ will do), buy a shielded one (i.e. Mogami) to avoid that i.e. your mobile scatters electric noise into the cable.
In addition I bought an ORCA OR-28 bag to carry the equipment in the field (240€). I own an older AKG-K702 headphone, I assume that will do. If you prefer a light and open system I can recommend the "Koss Porta Pro" (wired less than 40€, wireless 60€). I am using Koss headphones for decades and I love them for their specific sound.

Best regards from Germany - Klaus
PS: if there is any interest I could share my experience with the equipment over time.

Did you have the chance to compared the Sennhiser ME66/K6 with the Rode NTG5?