mp3 recorders
Around 7/24/07 Luisma and a few other SW brothers asked:
Do you know how I could record talks to mp3?
This is what I sent:
The key specifications that I was looking for in a talk recorder were:
-record directly to mp3 format
-run on a rechargeable lithium ion battery
-have a built-in microphone that captures good sound
Here’s the one that I bought to do that: Support Plus 512 MB SP-MP363A-0062. I found it for $28 dollars total and it arrived within a week. You can also find a 1GB model (black in color) for around $75 (check ebay). All I have to do is hit a record button on the side and then set it on the table in front of the person speaking. Voila!
Support Plus is sort-of an obscure brand, but their reputation is solid. There are a lot of choices out there for flash-based mp3 players with more of a name-brand. Many of them have a built-in microphone, but it’s real hard to tell if they’re going to be able to capture good quality sound. I picked this one originally because it encodes directly to MP3. It just turns out that the built-in mic is good, too.
Finally, as mentioned in a post on audio editors, you could download MP3directcut for free and just use your laptop to record direct to MP3.
-Brian LaLonde
audio editors
This one goes back to 05…Paul Jordan wrote on 11/10/05:
> Hi Brian,
>
> Looking for a word of advice…
>
> I want to get my hands on something that
> – allows me to play with MP3s a bit like audacity did
> – allows me to read in from line in and record direct to MP3 a bit like MP3 Direct Cut did – although – I never got that to work again, once I left the US…
> – allows me to add effects, esp. my own reverb ideas
> – allows me to mulitrack inputs, vocals, guitar and mix em…
> – imports and exports multiple formats
>
> Any quick words or ideas?!
>
> Think I’d spend a couple hundred…
>
> God bless bruv,
> Paul,
Quick reply without doing that much research:
Of course MP3directcut is the best for recording in MP3 if you’re only going to do one track:
http://www.mpesch3.de/
For Multi-track, everything you BUY these days is going to import and export a lot of different formats… but it won’t record direct to mp3 because you can’t do any effects right onto mp3. Everything works in WAV and then exports to MP3 or whatever (this is what audacity did).
Another trick is that software seems to break down into these four areas:
- Single Track WAV audio editing/tweaking (CoolEdit, GoldWave… noise reduction etc)
- Multi Track DJ Remix type software (Acid. This will also record a song… but maybe not so well)
- Pro audio multitrack suite (protools, etc… will do everything but is too expensive)
- Multi-track home studio (Apple Garageband – cheaper, designed to record songs like you’re trying to do, effects, but a little weak on the single track editing)
There are so many options that you could spend a lot of time looking around… and one could try to get away with just using some freeware, but you have money, and I haven’t been into this stuff in a while… but here a couple that I think could work:
1. Get a macintosh and use the built-in GarageBand program because I think it does exactly what you’re looking for.
http://channels.lockergnome.com/media/archives/20050401_windows_xp_needs_a_garageband.phtml
http://www.jakeludington.com/ask_jake/20050401_garageband_for_windows_xp.html
2. I think you could get away with a Goldwave/Multiquence combo for about $100.
http://www.goldwave.com/
3. I’ve used Acid Free a lot from Sonic Foundry (because it’s free and to me seemed really user-friendly like Apple’s GarageBand) but if I were to buy something I’m not sure I’d go with acid or not.
http://www.acidplanet.com/tools/?p=acid
http://www.sonymediasoftware.com/?keycode=7777-4701
4. cakewalk used to be standard, and is huge…and they have about 50 names for all their software now…
http://www.cakewalk.com/homemusicians.asp
Have fun,
-Brian
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