The Mayah Flashman is a new portable CompactFlash
audio recorder, identified as one of the
"10 Best" new products at May 2002 NAB show.=20
This unit is designed for electronic news
gathering, but it has sufficient dynamic range
and frequency response to be useful to nature
recordists. Mayah is a German company. European
firms like HHb, Sonifex, Maycom, Nagra, and Sonosax
have an enviable history of innovation in audio
recording.=20
In addition to linear WAV recording, the Flashman
offers MP3 recording at the 192K and 256K bitrates
necessary to capture 15-20Khz sound accurately.
The Mayah Flashman has no US distributor yet;=20
for more info see www.mayah.com or send email
to
Mayah Flashman in brief:
accepts one Type 1 CompactFlash memory card
records in 3 standard formats, mono and stereo
PCM (WAV) 16 bit resolution at
32K, 44.1K and 48K samples/second,
MPEG 1 Layer 2 (BWF) and MP3 formats up to
256Kb bitrate, 48K samples/second
decent audio specifications
freq response 10hz - 21,000hz (44.1Khz sample, -3dB)
signal to noise ratio > 94dB
distortion < 0.05%
very compact size and weight
approx 5" wide x 5.75" long x 2" thick
(127mm wide x 147mm long x 53mm)
weight 25 oz (715g) batteries and CF card installed
uses 4 AA batteries, 3 hours continuous recording time
aluminum case, in ergonomic shape
designed to be held and operated in left hand=20
while right hand holds mic
connectors:
XLR mic (mono only) w/ phantom power
mini phono stereo mic in
mini phono stereo line in and out
S/PDIF stereo in and out
mini phono stereo headphone
RS-232 serial port for firmware upgrade
price May 15 2002 1500 euros ~ 1545 USD
includes recorder, soft case, power supply
and PC editing software
256MB CompactFlash card costs ~$90 today, which provides=20
~45 minutes mono Linear WAV recording or
~3.75 hours of mono MP3 at 256Kb bit rate
Similarly priced competitors:
Marantz 680/690
can record on PCMCIA Type 2 hard disc,
which provides longer recording times
records in WAV and MPEG I Layer 2 (BWF), no MP3
690 has stereo XLR inputs
small speaker built in
uses 8 AA batteries
larger and much heavier 10x7x2 inches, 47 oz
Denon F20R
has stereo XLR inputs and small speaker
records in WAV and MPEG I Layer 2 (BWF), no MP3
uses 6 AA battereis
has two CompactFlash card slots
for longer continuous recording
longer and heavier 8x6x2 inches and 35 oz=20=20=20=20=20
HHb Portadisc
stereo XLR inputs, small speaker
minidisc recording medium, up to 2.5 hours mono
records in Sony ATRAC format only
much larger and heavier 10 x 7 x 2 inches, 71 ounces
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