Hi,
I've started doing some piano duets with my teacher which I'm really enjoying but this week as I was struggling with my part as soon as my teacher was joining in, she kindly offered to do a tape for me of her part so I could practice at home my part while listening to hers.
The thing is...I don't have a tape player/recorder (I threw mine away years ago!!). I was thinking of going to buy one at the weekend together with a few tapes but was wondering if anybody here could think of something maybe slightly more "modern" I could use instead. Ideally I'd like something really easy to use, something that doesn't require transferring files from the device to a PC so my teacher could use the device to record her playing and listen to it (or delete it) easily. A good sound and easy rewind/forward would also be great. I remember tape players being a nightmare to locate a track. You had to stop, listen, forward, stop, listen, etc.... and somehow the thought of doing that is putting me off a little bit
Any advice would be appreciated...

I recently bought a Sony PCM-D50 digital recorder. I bought it through eBay from an American company, because even with shipping, import duty and VAT added it was a lot cheaper than buying the identical item in the UK or the Netherlands.

I considered the Zoom H2 and Zoom H4, but this device is in a different class, and seems a lot more sturdy too.

It is quite brilliant. If professional quality recording is better than this then it is really something special.

Here is a review: http://digitalmedia.oreilly.com/2008/01/10...der-review.html

My boyfriend has one of these, the quality is excellent and I think some of the stuff recorded on it was even deemed good enough to be used on an album!

Thanks MT and pianodub!
I've checked the review this morning (together with a few others) and was so impressed! Very simple to use and excellent quality, exactly what I need. The price is the only thing stopping me ordering it straight away though!!! I think I'll sleep on it tonight and make up my mind with which one to go for in the morning...PMC-D50 or Zoom H2 (which is more affordable but after reading about the Sony doesn't appeal to me so much)...hmmm..decisions...decisions...

Mad Tom, it was good to see this, and thanks for posting the review. I've been wondering about buying a portable recorder for my son, and I think the Sony is out of my price range. I was thinking about the Edirol R-09 HR. Any reason I should know about why you didn't even consider this? I'm sure I've seen two or three people on the forums recommend the Edirol.

I did consider it ... I found out about a dozen or so recorders before deciding on the Sony. Unfortunately I could not try them all out, so I had to go off the reviews and the audio files posted on them. The Edirol looks like an excellent piece of kit, but the Sony gets consistently better reviews, and buying from the USA there is very little difference in price. The only machines I had actually seen and heard before deciding on the Sony were the Zoom H2 and H4. The sound quality from the Sony is a lot better than either of those, and it is a much more solid and professional feeling/looking machine too. That said, the H2 is half the price and would have been easily good enough if I could not have afforded more.

Thanks, Tom. I've gone with my gut feeling and ordered the Edirol. BerkshireSon is very into MP3 format, so I thought it might be useful to have that. I just hope he doesn't have time to look at the forums and spot what he's getting for Christmas!

I've got an Edirol and I'm very happy with it - the quality of the recordings is excellent. Anyone who is computer savvy will have no problem transferring data etc. It is very compact and easy to use - I think your son will be very pleased with it. Lucky him - that's a big pressie!

I recently heard about the Roland CD 2E which is expensive but you can record direct to a CD without having to use a computer. I did a Google search and there is quite a lot of info about it on the Absolute Music Solutions website.

Thank you all so much for your input which has been very useful!
After reading more reviews this morning, I agree with Tom that the Sony PCM-D50 is probably the best but unfortunately was a little bit too pricey for me. I was going to order the Zoom H2 but after reading the reviews about the Edirol R-09HR have decided to go for that one. The reason for this choice is that my teacher will also be using it to record pieces for me and I wanted the most user friendly recorder I could find (for the same quality sound). This recorder has a built in speaker so also much easier for her to listen to her recording straight away. I didn't want to scare her off by bringing her a set of headphones and having to explain for too long how to use the recorder!!!
Can't wait for the delivery now...hopefully tomorrow!!!
It costs much more that I originally planned to spend (even though I ordered it at a very good price) on a recorder but with my birthday and Xmas coming I feel less guilty....I see it as a nice present for myself!!!!
Again thank you all so much for your input.

I have the Edirol R-09 HR. It is a superb piece of kit and records in very high quality WAV 96bit as well as 48/44 and MP3 formats. I have recorded many piano pieces of mine and others and the recordings produced really are far superior compared to CD audio quality, if you use it in 96 WAV sampling. It comes with a useful remote control and mini-stand (not much use). You can fix it to a tri-pod and direct the stereo heads at roughly the middle of the soundboard with the lid up(on a grand). I have found that this produces a balanced sound recording. Definitely worth the £200.00 (I paid)

I've had a look at the review re PCM-D50 and although it is really good, it does not record mp3 (so you can't record your music onto your ipod or send mp3 files via email), which is a shame. I'm not sure why Sony did not include mp3 recording on it (I suspect Sony wants people to buy the converter/adapter etc in order to be able to convert etc...and the Sony converter/adaptor is just as expensive as the actual digital recorder! ). In any case, I have decided on the Olympus LS10. It is meant to give PCM-D50 a run for its money and it also records mp3. Plus amazon.com is selling it for USD 310. I only just ordered it yesterday (after looking at a dozen review sites etc) so hopefully it will be just as good as the PCM-D50.

Here's the review: http://digitalmedia.oreilly.com/pub/a/orei...iew.html?page=1

Thanks, SueHM. It was reassuring to read your comments.


Thanks, Roger. The machine arrived today (isn't the internet wonderful?!) and I hope BerkshireSon has lots of fun with it. Good to hear from someone with the same model who's very pleased with his purchase.

I am sure that many of the alternatives to the PCM-D50 are fine machines. I was not trying to promote it. I don't get commission from Sony! It just happens to be the one I chose by studying the specifications. If money was no object there is at least one other machine I'd have preferred.


Recording directly to mp3 may be convenient, but for me it was not important. .WAV to mp3 conversion is no problem anyway. It doesn't need additional expensive software or hardware (at least -not on a Mac). You can do it in iTunes.

If you are mastering tracks for publication you'll have a music editor that will save in any format, but you'll want to start with the best quality possible, which rules out a compressed format like mp3

Cheers
MT

Here is an example from the Sony PCM-D50.

Bach Prelude recorded on Sony PCM-D50

It was recorded on a clattery, metallic-sounding, and slightly out of tune Yamaha B upright, in a tiny practice cabin with terrible acoustics. The slight hesitations, uneven-ness, fluffed ornaments, and a couple of missed notes in the bass are my fault and cannot be blamed on the piano. [Angela Hewitt needn't worry for another year or two!]

The recorder was just rested on a chair behind me. Recording was at 48khz 16-bit WAV format. The WAV was converted to mp3 in iTunes, then the head and tail (sounds of piano stool being adjusted and me getting up to turn of the recorder) were trimmed with MP3 trimmer (Free download - $10.95 to register)

The piece is Prelude No 9 from Bach's Well Tempered Clavier Book 1.

If you can get this quality of reproduction with one of the middle quality recording modes, from a less than perfect performance on a not outstandingly good piano in poor acoustical conditions I am looking forward to re-recording at 96khz 24-bit on a Steinway or Bosendorfer with correctly positioned mikes.

Nice recording. If you can tell me how you got it into your post I could post a short mp3 recording using my Zoom H4, for comparison.

Nice recording MT. I love the WTC, both books, and play at least one prelude and/or fuge every morning before leaving the house and a few more in the evenings. They're so captivating and I seem to be playing these and little else of late. The piano didn't sound too bad, it's difficult to position the mics effectively when playing on an upright.

Thanks for posting that recording; the sound quality is very good!

I agree about the Sony PCM-D50 - this is an excellent machine and was on my short-list of portables to buy.

The others on my list were the Edirol R-09HR and the Olympus LS-10.

I eventually bought the LS-10.

It's a good deal cheaper than the Sony, but of high quality.

It is small and pocketable and with a very nice build quality "feel". Batteries (2 x AA) last for ages.

It has a 2GB internal memory or you can use SDJC cards (I use an 8GB one in mine).

It's about half the size (or less) than the Sony PCM-D10.

Very important - the LS-10 is instinctive and extremely easy to use.

So - if the Sony is a little too much or too large, then the LS-10 is a good choice.

Highly recommended.

Details HERE.


OK - when I record piano seriously I use a Nagra VI and Sennheiser MKH microphones from which you won't get any change from £7,000. But I am very happy with my little "carry everywhere" LS-10.

John

I can second that. It's a fantastic bit of kit, and a good reduction can be had on the r.r.p. if you shop around.

I have great news....my parents are allowing me to spend some money on a recorder like this!

I would like to be able to record, mainly, piano.

Could I just put these recording things on a nearby chair and it would record?

I have narrowed it down to these ones:

Zoom H4
Zoom h2
Olympus LS-10

which makes the best sound quality? Which is strongest and most resiliant? Which is most portable?

thanks...I can't wait to start recording!