On 11/27/05, j r <> wrote:
>
> Does anyone record in the field using a laptop?
>
> Are there reasons not to do so?
>From my limited experience:
I recorded some stuff using a powerbook and a firewire powered
interface and it worked out rather nicely. However, I was limited to
setting up in a stable place (the back of my car) and was limited by
run time. It was 24 bit and I think it came out nicely. Many talk
about the instability problems of a computer recording, but I've
personally never had a problem.
However, I just recently got a Sound Devices 722. Holy crap! This
thing destroy a laptop for 2 track recording. A $75 battery gives me
~4 hours of recording time, all self contained. It has a good amount
of gain, great metering, and is a little larger than a paper back
book. Of course, it costs as much as a laptop + a nice recording
interface, but hey...
In my mind, it's a shame that HHB never came out with a suitable
successor to the Portadisc, either flash or HIMD, because that looks
like a really nice machine.
In summary, if you already have the laptop and the recording
interface, etc, sure, why not, go out and use it. However, if you are
about to drop a bunch of money on nature recording, I say go for the
dedicated recorder.
For the record, I was using a Metric Halo UNL-2. Plenty of gain, very
quiet, and can be powered by firewire. It also have a 4 pin xlr power
connection if you wanted to rig up a battery solution.
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