Hey all… I try to not be too commercial in my posts but I thought you might be interested in this piece of gear:
http://www.whistleanddrum.com/ProductInfo.aspx?productid=EDI-R1
It’s a portable compact flash recorder that records either mp3 or wav files and has a built in metronome and tuner AND you can slow down your recordings 1/2 speed.
We are now taking pre-orders. They should start coming in March.
Best,
Wow! That is very close to exactly what I’ve always wanted! Could this be “it”?
Uses standard AA batteries, a standard compact-flash card, USB connection for uploading, and both built-in internal mics and plug-in power! Finally someone is listening to us.
Before I spend a huge amount of money tho, I need to know how “instant on” it is. I bought a friend of mine an iRiver, and I was repulsed by the need to boot the thing up after power-on. I am an old fart who is used to old tape recorders, and I expect to just press a record button and start capturing.
Caj
I hear you about the IRiver… It’s like booting up a desktop computer! I would imagine that this unit would turn on as quick as my Marantz Compact Flash Recorder, which is just a few seconds… You’re not dealing with a spinning hard drive so that right there helps out…
Best,
Although a big iRiver fan, I’ll admit that being able to record as soon as you press the button is a big plus, it takes a while for the iRiver to “boot”, same with a minidisc player.
I’m very close to buying that one:
http://www.iriver.com/html/product/prpa_product.asp?pidx=33
Is very small, has flash memory, etc. Doesnt have a tuner or slowdowner, though.
I actually don’t care about either a tuner or a slowdowner. I prefer to learn from a recording at normal speed.
My minidisc player has no real “boot-up” time. When you first put in a disk it must scan it, but if a disk is already inside, you can just press ‘record’ at any time and you’re recording, whether the minidisc is on or off. There is a short delay, but but that’s “instant-on” enough for me.
This is why I like using the MD while driving. I never have to look at it when using it. Whether it’s on or off, you just press one button to start playing. And the disks are sturdy enough to sit in a pile on the passenger seat, unlike CDs.
Caj
[plus you can tell by feel which side is up.]