Hi David and everybody,
after a couple weeks of using the FR2LE I arrived to similar
conclusions (although I couln't hear any noise on my headphone preamp,
wonder if yours is working properly?). Just to add that the recording
level leds are too faint to be any use under the strong light of my
recording scenarios.
So my feeling about it is bitter-sweet. Yes, the machine is nice,
compact, and sounds good.... but I prefer my former combo
(ShureFP24+Edirol R09) over this Fostex. Not just because it provides
more gain and has brilliant leds; it's also smaller, rock-solid and
less hungry for batteries.
Here you may listen to a sample I recorded with FR2LE:
http://freesound.iua.upf.edu/samplesViewSingle.php?id=3D34583
Saludos
Dobroide
> The FR2LE makes good recordings. If you are looking for a beginner's
> all-in-one machine, this is a good choice. It is fairly rugged and
> cheap enough to get all the rest of your gear straight and still
> make
> very high quality recordings. After all, it is the recorder that
> depreciates in value the fastest of anything in your setup, so as
> long as it does its job without a hitch, you can cut corners here.
> Heck, given this philosophy I could probably have bought some killer
> mic preamps and an M-Audio recorder instead (though this scenario
> would still have been more expensive than the FR2LE which is priced
> lower than most decent mic preamps). The recordings I got were very
> clean with lower noise than the sound of the highway 6 miles away
> (though I was using an MKH30/40 pair).
>
> Beware of one thing: the interface design is a total travesty. I can
> forgive the cheap feeling knobs and casing (because the recordings
> were good), but between the incomprehensible and seemingly haphazard
> button layout, the card slot which faces up and LCD which faces
> outward when using the unit with a strap (was it opposite day in the
> lab?), it is painfully obvious that usability (and maybe logic
> itself) took a backseat to feature set with this unit. I am not sure
> there was even a design team... just engineers and marketing dudes.
> As always, there is a reason this machine is 500 and not 1500.
>
> All in all, I can see myself using this machine for quite some time
> while upgrading the small things along the way. I suppose that if it
> was in high school, I would give it a B-... or perhaps 3 stars on
> a 5
> star scale. I would generally recommend it for anyone just starting
> out with field recording.
>
> As soon as I get my servers straight I will post some recordings so
> that you can judge the sound for yourselves.
>
> David
> -
> Unnature
> New York City
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