TASCAM recently announced a new digital audio recorder with a pair of XLR m=
ic inputs. It's called the DR-100mkII. Price is $329. Tascam has not set=
a date when the new recorder will be available.
As the name suggests, the new model is based on the DR-100, a handheld reco=
rder with XLR inputs which first appeared in January 2009. The DR-100mkII=
does have several important upgrades that will appeal to nature recordists=
.
First, Tascam claims the mic preamp section has been improved. Tests by Av=
isoft Bioacoustics (http://www.avisoft.com/recordertests.htm) show the orig=
inal DR-100 to have equivalent input noise around -113 dBu, which is a medi=
ocre performance, and similar to the input noise of Tascam's low budget rec=
orders. So an improvement in the DR-100mkII's preamp would be most welcome=
by anyone who records in a quiet environment.
Second, Tascam has added an S/PDIF electric digital input to the DR-100mkII=
. This allows the DR-100mkII to receive output from several high quality e=
xternal preamps. (You may need a converter to feed an AES digital signal in=
to an S/PDIF input).
Third, Tascam says the DR-100mkII's built-in mics are of higher quality tha=
n the original DR-100. (That would not be hard to achieve, in my opinion. =
The originals were poor.)
Otherwise, the DR-100mkII looks just like the original.
I was disappointed to read in the DR-100mkII manual that the battery is the=
same as the originals DR-100, and the factory estimates of battery life re=
main the same. My testing of the DR-100 in 2009 showed that recording time=
when providing phantom power was woefully short. So be prepared to change=
the rechargeable Lithium-ion battery several times during an all day outin=
g. Or use an external battery. Tascam makes one.
The DR-100mkII is already offered for $329 by several online sellers of aud=
io gear. The original DR-100 continues to be offered for about $100 less.
So now we have five affordable small recorders with XLR mic inputs.
-- Zoom H4n ($290)
-- Tascam DR-100mkII ($329)
-- Roland R-26 ($500)
-- Marantz PMD661 ($600)
-- Fostex FR-2LE ($600)
Specifications and the manual for the DR-100mkII can be found here
http://tascam.com/product/dr-100mkii/overview/
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