MP3 Recording

[phil_b]

I'm looking to pick your brains on something.....

I've been experimenting with recording my students in MP3 format and I want to take it a bit further.

I used either Audacity running on a PC or Creative Zen Nano Plus with an external mic plugged through an old Minidisc player to give it enough power.

I'd like to get a few more MP3 recorders, because I think that they would be better for the classroom dynamic - especially if they are simple enough for students to be able to use and I wondered if any one here knows of any good models

These are the features that I would want:

-Mic (ideally) or line-in jack to plug in an external microphone. Many MP3 players have internal 'dictaphone' mics, but I find that using the mics in this way can be a little bit distracting - I'd rather have an external mic that's easier for learners to ignore.

-MP3 recording - just because it's the most convenient format to use. Having said that I'm sure I'd be able to convert .wav files to MP3

-Fairly cheap - Ideally under £50/U$100 - the capacity doesn't have to be huge, I've been using a 256MB version of the Zen Nano and that's plenty of capacity for what I want it for.

For what it's worth the Zen Nano seems to be pretty good - the only problem is that it doesn't have a mic jack, only a line-in one. This means that it really needs a powered mic to work. I tried using a camcorder mic that we had at work, but it wasn't powerful enough. My 'temporary' solution has been to plug a normal, unpowered, mic into an old minidisc recorder that I've got - and then to plug this into the Zen Nano. It works OK, it's just fiddly and a bit more complicated. I paid about £25 (U$50) for the Zen Nano (256MB)

If anyone knows of any good powered microphones that aren't too expensive please post details of those up here as well,

Thanks

[Matty]

Most small pen-style MP3 players include a dicta-phone function of some kind. I think what you're asking for - high quality, external mics, etc. is professional level equipment and you'll have to pay a respective price for it.

I've done a lot of recording in my time and good powered mics (electret condenser type) are going to be well out of your price range.

I think Creative's gear is very respectable and works well enough for classroom use. Beware of players with a built in HD-Drive as they can produce some unpleasant high-pitched noise in a built-in mic.

Creative's MP3 codec is also very good.

Hope this helps.