Advice on hand held MP3/other recorder for band practices

[Clarky]

We are writing some new material but waste a load of time remembering how each song goes at rehearsals (and none of us writes the structures down properly as we are so disorganised). It would really help if we could record the new songs live, download onto a PC and email them to each other in MP3 or other transferrable format (preferably something that can go onto an iPod). That way we could all know our parts when we arrive at the next practice and - perhaps more importantly - also allow us to work on improvements between rehearsals.

There are a bunch of hand held recorders out there but is there one that ticks the bollowing boxes?

- idiot-proof for downloading onto PC and sending on to band mates via email
- able to deal with very loud rehearsals!
- good on-the-spot playback capabilities (thus needs in-built speaker) to check the recording is of an acceptable standard
- oh and not too hefty cost-wise too (say £200-ish)

Thanks gents and ladies

Edited March 23, 2010 by Clarky

[thisnameistaken]

[quote name='Clarky' post='783758' date='Mar 23 2010, 06:04 PM']- able to deal with very loud rehearsals!
- good on-the-spot playback capabilities (thus needs in-built speaker) to check the recording is of an acceptable standard[/quote]

Hmm. Yeah. These are the difficult bits.

Get something with at least one input, take at least one quality mic, route it through your mixer if it needs phantom power, then out to your recorder.

Similarly - route the recorder's output into a mixer channel to listen to the playback.

Tiny little mics and tiny little speakers are no use.

FWIW we use an old Boss digital multi, it's not hand-held but it runs on 9v so we just plug it into a pedal daisy chain. I think our guitarist paid £70 for it.

[aj5string]

At schools I've worked at we've had various HD recorery things (handheld ones), Zoom ones are OK, but overall I found/find edirol's the best...

HTH

[ikay]

Hi Clarky,

I use a Zoom H4 for exactly that. Just plonk it on a strategically positioned chair in the middle of the rehearsal room, press the button and go. The internal condenser mics do a good enough job for what I need which is just to get a rough but listenable take of each track to learn arrangements and changes etc. Re your stated requirements:

- idiot-proof for downloading onto PC and sending on to band mates via email
>> The H4 records directly into MP3 format and connecting to PC is dead easy. Plug in the provided USB cable, select 'connect to PC' from menu and you can just copy the MP3s to your hard disc. I then load the MP3s to a file sharing website but you can just as easily email them (around 4MB a song).

- able to deal with very loud rehearsals!
>> I've never had a problem, you just need to set your recording levels up once and make sure the mic sensitivity switch (lo/med/hi) is set appropriately.

- good on-the-spot playback capabilities (thus needs in-built speaker) to check the recording is of an acceptable standard
>> It doesn't have built in speakers but it's no hassle to connect it to a desk via the line out or headphone jack for playback. You'll need an appropriate cable with a stereo mini jack at the H4 end.

- oh and not too hefty cost-wise too (say £200-ish)
>> Mine was around £200 new. As it happens there's one on ebay closing in 22 hours, current bid £107 - [url="http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Zoom-H4_W0QQitemZ120544631172QQcmdZViewItemQQptZUK_Recorders_Rewriters?hash=item1c11051984"]http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Zoom-H4_W0QQitemZ120...=item1c11051984[/url]

The buttons and menu system are a bit fiddly but there are only about half a dozen things you ever need to do and easy once you've got the hang of it

Anyway, good luck with whatever you end up with!

Ian

[Clarky]

Thanks for the advice guys. As I do not need hi fi rreproduction the Zoom sounds like a good option

[Shambo]

I'm looking for a recorder for the same reasons and the Yamaha Pocketrak CX keeps catching my eye because, depending where you look, the price has come down to around £100. [url="http://www.dolphinmusic.co.uk/product/38818-yamaha-pocketrak-cx.html"]http://www.dolphinmusic.co.uk/product/3881...cketrak-cx.html[/url] Anybody used one of these? I'm loathe to buy sh*te and pay twice.

[JackLondon]

Line 6 BackTrack? Can be had for under £60 and does the job, when you need you can simply plug your bass, guitar or mic and record straigh to it or do as we do and plug into mixing desk! It's idiot proof to download and manage the recordings!

[Clarky]

Update: I have been offered a cheap s/h Zoom H4 by a BassChatter and am going to give this a go as this looks like it might be up to the job (bar the in-built speaker bit, so will need headphones)

Thank you everyone for the feedback/advice/comments

[Happy Jack]

If you're using it at rehearsals, just plug it through the PA. Plenty of combos these days also have an mp3 input.

I find the jog-dial thing on the H4 a PITA but it's an excellent recorder. The H2 is even more idiot-proof though.

All this connect-to-your-PC malarkey is VERY easily avoided ... simply take the SD card out of the H4 and stick it in your PC. Sorted.

[dave_bass5]

Its probably too late (and too expensive) but my vote goes to the Edirol R09-HR.
Ive been using one for a couple of years now and cant fault it. Its recently had a firmware update that adds two types of tuner, a graphic EQ. Not sure i have any use for them though.
It also has a speaker but to be honest its rubbish so i dont use it.
what i like about it is its very simple to use, the display is nice, bright and big and it comes with a remote control.

Clarky, your welcome to borrow it for a few weeks if you wanted to.

EDIT: Sorry, i see your sorted. Good luck with the H4.

Edited March 24, 2010 by dave_bass5

[Clarky]

Thanks for the offer Dave, much appreciated

If the H4 doesn't work out I may take you up on that

[dave_bass5]

[quote name='Clarky' post='784632' date='Mar 24 2010, 01:08 PM']Thanks for the offer Dave, much appreciated

If the H4 doesn't work out I may take you up on that[/quote]

No problem. I dont need to use it until May 1st so just let me know.

Im sure the H4 will work out though. I almost got one (or a H2), they offer a hell of a lot of features, much more than my Edirol. I think thats one reason i didn't go for a Zoom though.
I much prefer the bigger brighter display, the one touch record/pause and the remote. Plus its smaller and more discrete. Its a lot simpler to use as well, which i like, especially at gigs when i sometimes dont have time to set things up properly. I just strap it to my singers mic stand and it seems to pick everything up with a nice stereo spread.

[solo4652]

[quote name='JackLondon' post='784329' date='Mar 24 2010, 09:00 AM']Line 6 BackTrack? Can be had for under £60 and does the job, when you need you can simply plug your bass, guitar or mic and record straigh to it or do as we do and plug into mixing desk! It's idiot proof to download and manage the recordings![/quote]

I've just bought one of these with the in-built mic off Ebay for £50. I want to use it to record band rehearsals without using the desk. Please tell me it will do so.

Steve