I have explored the new Tascam DR-100, a hand-held recorder that offers XLR mic
inputs and phantom power, for the past two days. My initial impression is
mixed. The machine has shortcomings in three areas: preamp performance,
battery life, and SDHC card support.
First, the preamp. The DR-100 ($430) preamp self noise is similar to that of
the Tascam DR-1 ($200). The DR-100 falls in the "good, but not great" category
with recorders like the Marantz PMD620. This is a bit disappointing. In its
promotional literature, Tascam touts the DR-100 as a tool for professionals,
and I was hoping for preamp performance closer to the stellar Tascam HD-P2.
Compared with other small recorders with XLR input, the Marantz PMD661 easily
has the lowest self noise. The DR-100 is in second place, and the Zoom H4n,
recording via its XLR input, takes third, in my opinion.
Of the three recorders, the PMD661 would be the best choice if you plan to
record in a quiet environment, with mics like the Rode NT1A that have low self
noise.
[ It's worth noting that the $200 Tascam DR-1 has an unusual monaural 7mm phone
jack input. Recordings made with a Rode NT1A microphone and battery box via
this input are noticeably quieter than recordings made with the same mic and
the DR-100's XLR inputs.
A second unexpected finding is that the 3.5mm (1/8-inch) microphone input on
the rear of the Zoom H4n also has lower self noise than the XLR inputs of the
H4n or the DR-100. ]
I had problems using SDHC cards larger than 4 GB in the DR-100. If I first
formatted the 8 GB card in my PC or my Olympus LS-10, then the DR-100 could
recognize the card. If I tried to re-format the card after using it in the
DR-100, the recorder would say "unknown media." I had this problem with AData
and Sandisk 8 GB SDHC cards.
The DR-100 did successfully format and use SDHC cards of 4 GB and smaller
capacity, so it's possible to work around the problems with the 8 GB cards.
Perhaps a firmware upgrade will address this issue in the future.
The DR-100 has two battery bays. The first holds a Tascam Li-Ion cell, and the
second is for a pair of AA cells. The AA cells will continue to power the
recorder for a brief time while you insert a freshly charged Li-Ion cell, a
useful feature.
After several trials, I'm comfortable with the following conservative estimates
of battery life. Recordings were made with 16/44.1 quantization.
-- internal microphone and Li-Ion cell, 5 hours
-- external mics and phantom power, Li-Ion cell, 3.5 hours
-- internal mics and AA cells, 60 minutes
-- external mics and phantom power, AA cells, 15 minutes
I used Duracell Ultra AA cells, which are supposed to have a little more power
than garden variety AAs. I should note that when acting as the sole source of
phantom power, the AA cells became quite hot to the touch.
My problem with the DR-100 battery is consistency. The Li-Ion cell recharges
when connected to a computer via the USB port. The recorder would draw power
for several hours at a time, and then shut off. But it was impossible to tell
what level of charge had been achieved. Several times I thought I had fully
recharged the Li-Ion cell, but only got 3 hours, rather than 5 hours worth of
power.
Because of the inconsistent charging, I recommend that DR-100 owners purchase a
second BP-L2 Li-Ion battery (abut $40), and carry it with them in the field
even when the outing will be brief.
Tascam offers the PS-P520 AC adapter for the DR-100 for $20. Perhaps connecting
the DR-100 to mains power will recharge the Li-Ion battery more quickly and
consistently than via a USB connection to a computer.
My two days with the Tascam DR-100 have been a bit frustrating. With more
familiarity, workarounds for the battery recharge issue and the SDHC limitation
could be found. But the mediocre preamp performance would remain.
--oryoki
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