> I think if I was in your situation, I would do the following (in spite of=
my previous recommendation of the DR-40). I would go for a quieter XLR c=
apable recorder like the Tascam DR-100mkii. It is only a little bit more e=
xpensive than the DR-40 but much quieter.
Jacek,
I would back up Chris's recommendation of a DR-100. I have a Mark 1 and I
can't fault it for recording quality on line in. I feel that they may have=
sacrificed something on the DR-40 to fit in "four track" recording which ca=
n
only use the built in mics for two of those tracks.
Using Sennheiser MKH mics on my DR-100, I find the input stage of the DR-10=
0
a bit hissy and I suspect the mark 2 will not be much better. However, the=
XLR inputs are useful although they are not impedance matched and balanced=
line.
The DR-100 has an onboard rechargeable battery which gives reasonable life=
as long as you don't use the phantom power. This is backed up by two AA
cells, so you get the best of both worlds.
What I really like about the DR-100 is the sliding switches which are much=
easier to use than fiddling about in menus all the time.
If you want to upgrade to pro quality inputs, you can add a stereo pre-amp=
between the mics and the Xlr inputs and get a really nice quiet rig up to
pro quality.
Note I said "mics" and you will probably want to upgrade to stereo. If you=
want to use a gun mic, I would recommend the shorter version and I would
again back up Chris:
> I would make up the difference in the recorder cost by getting the Sennhe=
iser K6 and ME66 instead of the 67. I think the difference between these t=
wo shotguns would not make a big difference when recording owls at night un=
less you are a really long way away and then your problem will be noise be=
tween you and the owl and behind the owl rather than off to the sides.
I use both long and short gunmics. The shorter ones don't need to be aimed=
exactly but the long ones are less forgiving, especially with moving and
unpredictable sources like owls. On occasion they cut down background noise=
s
better, and I would use one in preference to a parabola simply because I am=
more used to them and I don't have a parabola. Sorry Klas - will buy a
Telinga sometime. :-)
However if you want to move to stereo, two short gunmics give much better
stereo than two long gunmics. The are much easier to deploy and can use a
reasonably short windshield for windy work.
To summarise, spend out on a good mic and an easy to use recorder like the=
DR-100. You won't better the Sennheiser and it will hold its value. To get=
better than any "pocket" recorder, you will pay a lot more, and a little
input hiss can be cleaned up with a good editor like Audacity (free).
David Brinicombe
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