East Midlands Oral History Archive: Solid state recorders

For good archival recordings it is best to record .wav files at a minimum of 44.1Khz 16 bit quality, and all the recorders mentioned below will do this. For the professional sound recordist the difference usually lies in the recorder's ability to work well with professional quality microphones, which the cheaper machines often don't do well, but most of these recorders have very acceptable built in microphones (not all do - be careful!) and your decision will probably come down to affordability and ease of use.

There are many portable sound recorders on the market such as the Zoom and Tascam ranges, the Edirol R-09, the M-Audio Microtrack, the Sony PCM-D50, the Olympus LS-10 and others. Prices vary from the Zoom H1 at £80 to the Zoom H2n and Tascam DR-07 at around £150 to most of the others at upwards of £250.

EMOHA's Opinion

Zoom H1 - we have used these for the past year and have recommended them as they are cheap - £80 to £90 - easy to use, and can produce good recordings in quiet environments. The batteries last for a long time too. They require a small tripod as the microphones will pick up handling noise ridiculously easily, they don't come with a USB cable, and some people find the buttons small and fiddly. Now that other manufacturers are starting to produce recorders at a similar price (see below) Zoom will probably bring out something better in the near future.

Tascam DR-05 - at the start of 2013 this has taken over from the Zoom H1 as EMOHA's budget recorder of choice. It has the advantage of buttons which are easier to use and much less handling noise. Generally, the Tascam products we have tried have been good and we would recommend considering any recorders from the Tascam range.

Zoom H2n - a definite improvement on the Zoom H2, this is better designed, has a larger screen, and reviews suggest the sound quality is better. It's cute too. The Zoom H2n has several internal microphones and is able to record surround sound. How useful this is for oral historians is debateable and although we like the H2n we have not been tempted to buy any, although there are plenty of groups who have used these and like them.

Zoom H4n - now we are up to the more expensive recorders that can accept high quality microphones. We like the quality of the inbuilt mics but with high quality external mics the more expensive recorders come into their own. The Zoom H4n remains popular because it isn't as expensive as most of its rivals, it's easy to use, and the recordings are of good quality. We like them so much we have bought some.

Roland R-26 - we have only played with this rather than using it seriously but it feels well built, accepts high quality mics and has a very large screen. It also has a menu system that we wouldn't recommend for those of you who prefer to just press a button and record. Try this before buying to make sure you're happy with it.

Tascam DR100 mk11 - again, we have only played with this rather than recording interviews. It feels very well made and comes with a good reputation (see reviews below) and EMOHA would have no qualms about having a few of these.

Marantz PMD661 - this is the most expensive of the recorders we have used and many people are choosing Tascams, Zooms and other recorders because once the cost of good mics is added the whole kit can be pricey. You also have to engage with a menu system to set everything up, which not everyone enjoys. However, EMOHA likes the quality of the sound, the design, and the general ease of use once you get to know it. An added bonus is the ability to wear this over the shoulder like a radio reporter.

For photographs of many of these recorders have a look at Inquit Audio website, linked to at the bottom of the page.

Reviews

There is a useful comparison of many of the main recorders at the Transom website, where there are also recommendations and reviews: http://transom.org/?page_id=7514

mp3 recorders

This is often a cheap option, and there are many different units available in the shops. For the best sound quality you should make sure they handle uncompressed .wav files, but other formats such as .mp2 or .mp3 provide acceptable results. These types of units provide an option similar to the digital dictation machines - you can transfer the information to a computer and copy onto CD should you want - but there may be issues with how well they handle large files and compatability with different sorts of microphones. These machines are not specifically designed for interviewing, so are probably not the best choice for high quality recording of lengthy interviews.

Having written this, by the time this page is next updated we may have arrived at the point where telephones, tablets, or laptops can accept microphones good enough to convince us that they are a replacement for the dedicated recorders listed above. At the start of 2013 this is starting to happen but, for the moment, the best advice is to still buy something designed for recording long interviews at high quality.

Where to buy sound recorders

If you are thinking of buying a solid state recorder you may wish to visit the following companies. They should not be considered to be approved or recommended by the East Midlands Oral History Archive.

Sound Recorders

Recording Sound

EMOHA's Opinion

Reviews

mp3 recorders

Where to buy sound recorders