Martyn Stewart wrote:
> ...The wife is going "down under" in February and
> i want her to take a recorder with her...
> I thought of the Marantz PMD-620 the Sony PCM-50 or
> another Nagra but this time the MIII?
I don't have any information about the Nagra ARES III? Do you mean
ARES-M or ARES-P series?
The PDM620 and PCM-D50 are both very good recorders. I think they
have different target audiences. The Marantz is very small and light,
a great "point and shoot" recorder that can be carried in pocket or purse.
The Sony is twice as large and 3 times as heavy, so it's more of a
burden to lug around. (It's smaller than the ARES-PII+, however). The
PCM-D50's preamp provides much more gain than the Marantz. Its
built-in mics sound a little "bright" but are acceptable.
The PCM-D50 sounds very good with an external mic. The PDM620 can too
if you keep the gain below maximum, thus avoiding adding noise from
the preamp.
Both recorders are susceptible to noise if you're recording hand-held.
Both have a way to attach a small tripod for placement on a table top.
The PCM-D50 has a 50% higher price, which is reflected in its sturdy
construction, high quality buttons, pre-roll feature, higher
digitization rate (24/96 vs 24/48) and LCD display that is large and
legible in daylight (the PDM620 is all but illegible outdoors during
the day).
None of this will help if the size of the Sony recorder means
it will be left behind.
--oryoki
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