Voice Recorder, Will this model work?

[Jenna Klingensmith]

Okay, recently I posted a thread about doing my first wedding video, and I was urged to get sound equipment. Now, I know this is not what was recommended, but my sister just came home from college and for free, gave me a digital voice recorder.. I was wondering if anyone would check out this product and tell me if it will work for doing the wedding..

It is a Memorex Digital Voice Recorder model number 2059, 15 hour, has a mic input and an "ear" input, for headphones. but I see no way to output this to a computer.. (which I just now noticed) So I probably can't use this if I can't upload it to computer then huh?

Any help is appreciated

[John Moon]

Jenna:
Not sure if that model has a stereo mic. I use the Edirol R-09, which has been a great tool and the sound quality is very crisp. It has a firewire for getting the content on the computer. Very easy to use. I would lean toward the stereo mic and firewire type units.
John

[Dave Blackhurst]

You probably could use the line in on your soundcard... should just need a 1/8 or miniplug cable to connect the head out to the line in. It's worth a test! You can probably also use the mic input to get better audio than the internal mic.

Having a couple audio sources is nice when mixing - I've had more than a few surprised clients who couldn't figure out how I got portions of the audio that weren't audible throught the mains... even a cheap VHF wireless can be a handy feed...

DB>)

[Jenna Klingensmith]

Ya, i'm having alot of trouble finding the right product for me. Am I looking for a digital voice recorder, or an mp3 player that also records? I've heard people recommending the Iriver.. but I don't know which model (then ones that were recommended to me I could not find on ebay) I need to get it within a month.

I found this one on amazon http://www.amazon.com/Remanufactured...9108735&sr=1-2

I found one mic
http://cgi.ebay.com/Olympus-ME-15-Ti...QQcmdZViewItem

Basically, I'm clueless. I know I need a recorder that has audio input, which would be the mic jack right? I also need a firewire or usb output for my pc.

Can anyone recommend me specific brands and models that have these? Because I am having no luck on ebay with an iriver.

Also I found a few Olympus Digital voice recorders with these specs, but I don't know if olympus is a good quality product, any suggestions?

I just feel the urge to hurry up and find something, before I put it off for to long.

Also, if you want to send me links to the items on ebay, that would be great.
I'm looking for something $100 or under preferrably. I also would love some suggestions for lapel mics. Check out the link i posted above and tell me if that is worth buying?

THANKS SO MUCH to EVERYONE!

[Eric Gan]

Hi Jenna,

I'll share my experience during my quest for a low-cost audio solution from about 6 months ago. The thread from that time can be found here and has some useful information:

http://www.dvinfo.net/conf/showthread.php?t=74832

I've been using a couple of iRivers for audio and have obtained some pretty good results. I'll summarize some of the pitfalls when working with these. If done right, you can get very good results for well under $100.

First, the iRivers that everyone talks about here are the iFP-7xx/8xx series. This is because they can accept a mic-level input (meaning it has a built-in preamp). Later models do not have this feature (as with most other mp3 players, they only accept a line-level input). This is important because most lav mics are not powered, therefore, they only send a mic-level signal to your recorder.

As for the actual choice of lav mics, there are a ton to choose from. The one you pointed to on eBay seems okay, if a little overpriced. The frequency response is only 100 - 12,000Hz....could be better. A lot of members here recommend lavs made by Giant Squid. I can personally attest to the quality of those mics. The specific mic you probably want is this one:
http://www.giant-squid-audio-lab.com/gs/gs-mono1.htm

Alright, some caveats to using the iRivers:

1) For whatever bizzare reason, iRiver did not use the standard way to record a mono signal (has something to do with the L/R on the mini-plug). The result is that if you use a normal mono mic, you have to set the recorder mode to stereo, thereby, losing half your potential recording time with the amount of memory available. Darren from Giant Squid has kindly created a "reversed" version of the lav mic so that you can record in mono specifically with the iRiver.

2) When using an iRiver, you pretty much have to guess what levels to set. It is not practical to try to change the volume during an event. Set it too high and it will peak, (clipped, unuseable audio). Set it too low and you will have to boost it in post (more noise). With some experience and experimentation, you can get it just right. The trick is to speak to the person you will put the lav on and get a sense of how deep/loud his or her voice is. Then set a level accordingly (or clip the mic closer/farther away).

3) You have to deal with iRiver's Music Manager. I was hesitant about this at first, but it is actually no big deal at all.

You can get the Giant Squid mic for $30, and if you're lucky, maybe a used iRiver on eBay for $40.

Good luck with your audio solution. Most people here will say to get a "real" system, meaning a proper UHF wireless setup. I agree, but it might not be necessary in every situation. If you can get a feed from the house board, backed up with iRivers, maybe that's good enough. Get what you can afford and upgrade when you can.

Cheers,

[Ian Briscoe]

Jenna

Looking at the manul of the memorex - it suggests 185min recording time (in best quality setting) with 32mb of memory. This works out at approx 172k per minute. Decent mp3 is at least 4 times this so I would suggest this product wouldn't cut it.

Ian

[Jenna Klingensmith]

Ian, thanks for looking into that product for me, I suppose I have no use for it then, which is alright because I didn't pay for it.

I wish I wasnt so confused by all of this, for example I don't understand frequency response? What is a good one to use? What should I be looking for?

And when you say the iriver ipf-7xx? do the x's stand for zeros? I did a search for the 700x today and I found ONE on ebay

http://cgi.ebay.com/IRIVER-IFP-700-1...QQcmdZViewItem

Is this what this item looks like. It's so hard to tell if it is the right product because the description is very vague. It doesn't say whether or not they can accept a mic-level input, etc.

Problem is, there is only one, and in having such a hard time finding the iriver, i don't know if I'll be lucky enough to win a bid on one. Besides the 700, and 800 (which I could not find on ebay) is there any other products out there for a decent price?

Edit: Oh.. So is the Irivers any model between 700 and 800 the ones that i can use? Not just the number 700 and 800? I was really confused by that, But I read the post "tell me about iriver" and read people use 790, etc. So does that mean any model that is below 700 or above 800, not have the "mic level input" with the preamp, that i am looking for

So I've decided to purchase my mic from Giant Squid. Am I supposed to buy the Omnidirectional Mono Microphone? The Iriver Omnidirectional Mono Microphone? Cardioid Mono Microphone ? There's quite a few on there, and I'm not sure which to buy, so before i place my order, I'd like to know exactally which one I should get.

Thanks for all the help so far, I appreciate it.

[Bill Anciaux]

Jenna,

You will want the iRiver omnidirectional mono microphone from Giant Squid. These are specially wired to work with your recorder.

Bill

[Ian Briscoe]

Any iriver that starts with a 7 or 8 (and I THINK 9) will be fine. The difference between 7 and 8 is pretty much just the design. The numbers which follow the 7 or 8 - eg 790, 795, etc relate to the amount of memory, the higher the number the more memory - I think the lowest is 128mb up to either 512mb or 1gb - can't remember exactly.

Ian

[Vito DeFilippo]

The specific model numbers that are good are:

ifp-790
ifp-795
ifp-799
ifp-890
ifp-895
ifp-899

The differ mostly in available memory.

Get the Giant Squid omni lapel for Irivers.

[Jenna Klingensmith]

Thanks for giving me the specific model numbers that really helped me find them on ebay, but the only problem is.. they seem quite expensive. It seems like EVERYBODY wants one.

In fact, I was looking up the ifp795, and there was some around 100 bucks. But the thing I caught was that every single 795 in working condition was bid on by "filmmakerwannabe" so i know he's going to be using it for the same reasons.

So is it smart to bid on more than one item? I always opted against it because what if I won two. Then I'd make one seller angry.

My problem also is that i have no feedback, I bought my canon gl2 off of there, but by the time I got it.. The "leave feedback" icon was gone (it was like 2 months seriously) so they didn't leave me feedback, and I couldn't leave them any.. makes me think they take that long on purpose so other buyers won't know that they take their good old time.

So maybe no one will sell to me. But, man these irivers are popular. I really want to get my hands on one.. But I have to get it off ebay, because I don't have a credit card (i'm 20.. a credit card would probably not be a good idea for me just yet, lol) So I like that i can pay with a money order, etc.

I'm SO afraid i won't be able to get one before the wedding, i'm just getting really anxious..

I'm waiting until the auctions are almost over, no use in bidding on too many of them, or no use in being outbid.

Wish me luck..

[Vito DeFilippo]

Do a search on Ebay for:

300110138090

You can buy it direct for $40 plus shipping. Get the Giant Squid mic and you'll be all set up for less than $100.

If you have the extra money, here's the 1gig version for $30 more:

300111959156

I bought one from this guy and he shipped it to me quickly in Canada. The iriver works great. You'll be covered for your wedding, and have an mp3 player to boot!

Read the instructions carefully. You need to set it up correctly.

Go to this page and read it carefully. It will save you time and frustration:

http://www.videouniversity.com/iriver.shtml

Good luck!

[Ray Johnston]

I have two iRiver 890 models with Giant Squid Lavs (all obtained for around $100) On my most recent wedding shoot (as a helper) I forgot to set the "Lock" switch before the groom put one in his pocket. The push buttons are too easily activated when used this way. However, when the "lock" switch is set, it will happily record until unlocked. But the grooms sound was no good.

At this same wedding I used the 2nd iRiver with Giant Squid as an area mike on the platform as a "back up" source. It turned out to be good insurance. The pastor did not get his lav mike turned on, and the sound system that we were plugged into only picked up some other house mikes. These units are so compact, that I had it hid along with the mike under a plate on the platform, right under the bridal party. However, I got very good audio from this source.

Best $100 investment I've made in my videography gear to date!!

[Jenna Klingensmith]

Thanks so much Vito, I did a search on ebay and found the item, and the price seems very reasonable. I found a buy direct source for an iriver earlier and it was 45 bucks on top of 40 bucks for shipping.

I think I am going to buy one off of these people, It saves having to bid and wait.

I appreciate everyones help so much I don't know what I would do without this forum! Thanks for answering my questions and explaining the things I didn't understand!

So I have one question about the Iriver. On the iriver thread, I saw someone said that they used their iriver to record a live music performance. This is something that I want to do in the future, (audio on a camera is so terrible with loud music)

Is it really possible to .. like hook up to the mixer.. or sound board, or whatever it's called, and record the live performance?

[Grant Harrington]

Originally Posted by Jenna Klingensmith

Thanks so much Vito, I did a search on ebay and found the item, and the price seems very reasonable. I found a buy direct source for an iriver earlier and it was 45 bucks on top of 40 bucks for shipping.

I add this only incase you aren't aware of it, but MicroMemo makes a recorder/lavalier mic that attaches to an iPod. So if you already have an iPod the investment in the recorder attachment and mic is about the same as the iRiver. It records in stereo and is easily transfered to the computer.

I've used it for recording vows at weddings and it works great!

There are other threads discussing it on the forums if you are interested in getting more information.

Grant