Content area
Full Text
I'm a portable recording freak: I've used cassette, DAT, Minidisc, and TASCAM's PS5. I've used 'em all, dropped 'em all, been in situations where recording was . . . uh . . . hazardous to my health (see sidebar), and am always looking for something better, smaller, and groovier.
In this corner: Edirol's R-1 with the virtues of no moving parts or mechanical noise, and serious recording options that lift it out of the "toy" category. It records uncompressed WAV (16/24 bits), as well as MP3 up to 320kbps, to CompactFlash (CF) cartridges up to 4GB in size. (However, note that the cartridge format - presumably related to the Windows FAT protocol - imposes a 2GB file size limit.) Recording sampling rate is 44.1kHz, but the R-1 can play back files at all common sampling rates.
And in this corner: Sony's MZ-M100 Hi-MD, the latest and definitely greatest iteration of MD technology. Now, just in case your opinion about MD is based on early models, it's time for an opinion update. This recorder/ player uses 1GB discs, can record uncompressed WAV files, talks to computers, and implements the latest version of ATRAC (which sounds better than MP3) if you want to use data compression.
THE STORAGE STORY
With the R-1, a 2GB CF cartridge accommodates slightly over two hours of 24-bit WAV files, and almost 14 hours of MP3 data at 320kbps. Drop the MP3 rate to 64kbps for 69 hours (!) of recording time. MD's 1GB disc yields about one and a half hours of uncompressed recording, and with ATRAC3plus, almost eight hours at 256kbps, 34 hours at 64kbps, and 45 hours at 48kbps. Still stuck on MP3? Do 17 hours at 128kbps.
But if you need to record a lot of audio, consider media cost. After googling around for a bit, a 1GB CF cartridge averaged around $70, and a 1GB Hi-MD disc, $7 in a 10-pack. In either case, you'll likely end up transferring the contents to your computer - so if you don't need lots...