Audio Recorders

I'm often asked by students about recommendations regarding audio recording equipment. These days there are lots of choices, but it still takes some care to make a really good choice. For a person who is considering getting into audio recording to create audiobooks, other presentations, provide feedback for their students, to conduct interviews, and a host of other spoken voice uses, I suggest buying one of the three products described below. Next, I'll give you a great website where you can buy most of this suggested equipment. Finally, I'll provide short hints about some more expensive, but noticeably higher quality, equipment.

You can buy equipment for less than $250, but these days my strong, strong recommendation is to spend at least $275 on equipment. This will give you much better quality, longer lasting equipment, and better ease of use relative to the cheaper options.

Sony PCM-M10

This is a new recorder that was released around November 2009. This new device was born out of a legacy of excellence. While Sony makes a lot of middle-of-the-road equipment, their PCM-D1 recorder is legendary as a very portable, high quality, recorder of music. Alas, it costs about $1800. About two years ago they came out with the PCM-D50 which is also an excellent recorder, but was built using slightly cheaper parts and not built to quite the same high audio recording standards. And this new device costs about $500. So, for a great reduction in price, the consumer got a product that was about 80% as good. Quite a feat by Sony. Now they've take this one step further by creating the PCM-M10. At about $300 this device is noticeably smaller than the earlier ones (iPod size to be exact). It's probably not so good for recording music (relative to the pricier models) but it still very very good at recording spoken voice.

To learn more I suggest reading the review at Wingfield Audio about the Sony PCM-M10. There are some very nice non-audio features of this device. First, it has a tripod screw built into the backside. This means it's very easy to use any small tripod with this device—a real boon for those doing longer recordings. Second, it comes with a wired remote control—which can be very useful in some situations. Third, for Windows users, it comes with Sound Forge LE audio software for subsequent audio editing.

One key minus of the device is that it only records in stereo—for spoken voice recordings this means files are twice as large as they need to be. Thankfully you can convert stereo to mono easily enough in most audio editing software.

Marantz PMD620

This recorder has been around about two years. It's almost as small as the Sony. It also does a great job of recording spoken voice. One of the problems most small devices have is that they use ultra-sensative mics. This means almost any movement results in distortion in the form of wind sounds being recorder. For some devices this is true even if walking in an office with still air! Both the Marantz and Sony devices are free of this problem (except for relatively large winds).

The Marantz has some advantages over the Sony. It has bigger and clearer buttons. For some this may make the recording experience simpler and more intuitive. For others it won't matter. The Marantz can be set to record in mono—a big plus over the Sony. Finally it seems the recording quality may be a bit higher with the Marantz. It's also more expensive and is currently priced at $399. I recommend reading the review at Wingfield Audio about the Marantz PMD620.

Overall, the Sony PCM-M10 is probably the best choice amongst these two devices for most people.

MicPort Pro with AT8010 Microphone

This is a combination of two components that will allow you to record directly into your computer. This direct recording can have advantages, and disadvantages. In general, I'd recommend using one of the previously mentioned portable recorders. But if you're comfortable with computers (and generally taking care of your hard drive) then this may be a better solution, or a good complementary solution.

The MicPort Pro is essentially a small audio preamp that allows you to connect a microphone to your computer. (BTW, in all cases you need a preamp to raise the volume of your microphone's recorded audio.) There are competing devices, but this is by far the best option. It currently costs $150 (e.g. see the MicPort Pro at BSW). In addition you'll need a reliable microphone, and one that doesn't require a really strong preamp (none of these small devices have strong clean preamps). My suggestion is to spend $150 to get a small, high quality, microphone like the Audio-Technica AT8010 at Musician's Friend.

As you can see, this last option is also $300. However, you'll have to spend a wee bit more to get a tripod for the mic, and perhaps a 3-to-5 foot XLR cable to give yourself more flexibility when positioning the MicPort Pre and the microphone.

Stephanie Wingfield

Stephanie is a one-woman business who specializes in audio recording equipment. Her prices are very competitive, but more importantly she is extremely knowledgeable about all the equipment she sells. You can email her with practical decision-buying questions and she'll get back to you very quickly with a thorough response. Try that with some of the bigger stores! She doesn't sell all of the equipment I've discussed, but does sell much of it. I highly suggest reading her biography and visiting her store (complete with reviews, sound samples, and more).

Professional Recorders

Even professional recording equipment has gone down in price and up in flexibility over the past 10 years. For those who want a more professional recording set up there are two additional products that I'd suggest:

• Marantz PMD661. This is only a preamp and recorder. You'll need to get external microphones. (The device comes with built-in mics but they're not that good.) You can use this device with one, two, even four microphones connected! The preamps are very good, and by using the right microphone, you can easily record conversations (think "interview") or conversations between 4 people at a very high level. The PMD661 costs $599 plus the costs of the microphones that go with it. Our department has four AT8010 mics that we can use with this device.


• HHB FlashMic. This is the microphone (with preamp built into the casing) that the BBC uses for gathering news. The FlashMic only records in mono, and is built for spoken voice. But if you are interested in having a truly professional device, that's also truly mobile, then this is it. Not good for conversations, or very interactive interviews, since there's only one mic—but otherwise the best product you can buy for the purpose. The FlashMic costs $1099. Not affordable for most individuals, but a great institutional buy.

That's it. I hope this gives you a starting idea of some very good products to consider buying if you want to explore using audio to enhance your instruction or your research.