At 11:31 AM +0000 9/10/10, Peter A wrote:
>
>
>Hello!
>
>I'm very exited to start making nature recordings of streams,
>storms, rain, crickets, etc., that are all very quiet and subtle
>sounds.
>
>I've read all the reviews on Amazon and I'm just about ready to pull
>the trigger on the D50. However, I've read that the D1 is even
>quieter (a lower "sound floor") but it's 3x-4x the cost.
>
>Money is tight but I want to buy the right gear the first time. I
>hear the Sound Devices 702 is the best but it's about $3K once you
>buy a decent stereo microphone, etc.
>
>I guess my question is this... is the D50 "good enough" to get into
>nature recording or is the D1 and 702 just so much better to justify
>the greatly additional cost?
>
>Pete
>
Hi Pete-
Smart of you to be researching the decision carefully.
I don't think that the D1 is on Raimund's chart, but it should have
the nearly the same input noise performance as the D50:
http://www.avisoft.com/recordertests.htm) [Higher value negative
numbers mean less measured input noise]. Any recorder with -127dBu or
better measurement should not contribute noise using the lowest noise
mics. The difference in performance between -127dBu and -126dBu is
basically insignificant unless you use the lowest noise mics made in
the quietest settings at full gain. David is right that the Fostex
FR2-LE is probably a tad quieter. Importantly, the Fostex FR2-LE has
phantom powering for condenser mics which the M10, D50 & D1 don't
have. You need phantom powering for expanding uses to include the
lowest noise mics. A work-around for lack of phantom powering in a
recorder is described here in the FAQ:
https://docs.google.com/View?id=3Ddcvd49w8_23fbw2vqg2#Using_Phantom-Powered=
_Condenser_Mics_on_Consumer_Grade_Recorders
Here's an explanation of the input noise considerations in the List
Community FAQ:
https://docs.google.com/View?id=3Ddcvd49w8_23fbw2vqg2#Sound_Recorders_with_=
sufficiently_Quiet_Microphone_Preamplifers
Should long duration recording be a priority now or in the future,
with an inexpensive 300GB drive installed, a one can record for weeks
with a SD 722 recorder using the loss-less flac format or to an
external FireWire drive. You can also link two 722's for surround for
the price of a 744T. Rob D.
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