I need to buy something that is
- cheap
- will record in solid state some kind of MP3 stream of about 3 hours
length or more
- that can be stuck on a disk later as a record of meetings.
- that is relatively unobtrusive - no not trying to bug! just don't
want a huge box bristling with dials that looks pretentious.

quality only need be good enough to be able top prepare transcriptions
by a competent audio typist and to clearly ID what was said.

Any recommendations?

I do NOT have a smart phone or any other 'gadget' that might be able to
do this already, nor do I want one.


--
Ineptocracy

(in-ep-toc-ra-cy) €“ a system of government where the least capable to
lead are elected by the least capable of producing, and where the
members of society least likely to sustain themselves or succeed, are
rewarded with goods and services paid for by the confiscated wealth of a
diminishing number of producers.

The Natural Philosopher wrote:

... quality only need be good enough to be able top prepare transcriptions
by a competent audio typist and to clearly ID what was said.

Any recommendations?

No, because I don't know the capabilities of such machines.

I think you need to consider how & where it will be used. Is it, eg, to sit
in the centre of a conference table and hear everything going on around it?
Will everyone speak loud enough and clearly enough? Will people talk at the
same time? Will some people be much further away from it than others?

I would think the quality of the microphone(s) on the unit and their level
of directionality will matter. A machine designed for recording music etc
in stereo will possibly not cope well with people sitting all around it.
You'd really need omnidirectional mics for that.

On the other hand if it's for a small group of people in a small room, where
everyone speaks clearly etc then even a directional mic facing the wrong way
may be more than adequate.

Whereas when recording music etc one generally wants a system capable of
accurately recording a big dynamic range (ie able to differentiate between
very soft and very loud sounds), for your use you might want the machine to
'iron out' such differences. I'd imagine that transcribing audio is much
easier if the speakers' volumes are all more or less the same. So you maybe
need to look for a device designed to support that. I don't know what it
would be called, these days - maybe "automatic levels" or some such.


--
Jeremy C B Nicoll - my opinions are my own.

Email sent to my from-address will be deleted. Instead, please reply
to replacing "aaa" by "284".

In article , The Natural Philosopher
scribeth thus
I need to buy something that is
- cheap
- will record in solid state some kind of MP3 stream of about 3 hours
length or more
- that can be stuck on a disk later as a record of meetings.
- that is relatively unobtrusive - no not trying to bug! just don't
want a huge box bristling with dials that looks pretentious.

quality only need be good enough to be able top prepare transcriptions
by a competent audio typist and to clearly ID what was said.

Any recommendations?

I do NOT have a smart phone or any other 'gadget' that might be able to
do this already, nor do I want one.



Have a look at such sites as DV247 and studio spares for a small MP3
recorder. SWMBO has a Yamaha one works very well and can record from
very low MP3 rates up into the linear PCM ranges with a built in crossed
pair of microphones and makes excellent recordings. Cost around 100 quid
a few years ago not but there are several more models around these
days...

http://www.dv247.com/studio-equipmen...s-and-players/
--
Tony Sayer

On Mon, 07 Oct 2013 11:45:57 +0100, The Natural Philosopher
wrote:

I need to buy something that is
- cheap
- will record in solid state some kind of MP3 stream of about 3 hours
length or more
- that can be stuck on a disk later as a record of meetings.
- that is relatively unobtrusive - no not trying to bug! just don't
want a huge box bristling with dials that looks pretentious.

quality only need be good enough to be able top prepare transcriptions
by a competent audio typist and to clearly ID what was said.

Any recommendations?

I do NOT have a smart phone or any other 'gadget' that might be able to
do this already, nor do I want one.



I got a free gift of an MP4/MP3 player (ATIPIX) which I discovered had
a record function amongst its features and I've recorded a 5hr meeting
with it in my pocket. 1Gb memory + SD card slot.

Smaller than a mobile phone. Whilst you might not be able to find
that model it may well be that other MP4/MP3 players have similar
features.

--
AnthonyL

Olympus do a lot of those, some with internal memory and some with sd cards.
Usually you can trade off quality for length. The use wma files I think.
Brian

--
From the Sofa of Brian Gaff Reply address is active
"The Natural Philosopher" wrote in message
...
I need to buy something that is
- cheap
- will record in solid state some kind of MP3 stream of about 3 hours
length or more
- that can be stuck on a disk later as a record of meetings.
- that is relatively unobtrusive - no not trying to bug! just don't want
a huge box bristling with dials that looks pretentious.

quality only need be good enough to be able top prepare transcriptions by
a competent audio typist and to clearly ID what was said.

Any recommendations?

I do NOT have a smart phone or any other 'gadget' that might be able to do
this already, nor do I want one.


--
Ineptocracy

(in-ep-toc'-ra-cy) - a system of government where the least capable to
lead are elected by the least capable of producing, and where the members
of society least likely to sustain themselves or succeed, are rewarded
with goods and services paid for by the confiscated wealth of a
diminishing number of producers.

On 07/10/13 12:29, Brian Gaff wrote:
Olympus do a lot of those, some with internal memory and some with sd cards.
Usually you can trade off quality for length. The use wma files I think.
Brian

actually I dsocovered the ideal thing. an 4GB USB memory stick with a
tiny rechargeable battery, microphone and switch. For less than a
tenner its a no brainer.

Seems to simply dump .wav files into the flash memory

will report back on how it works.


--
Ineptocracy

(in-ep-toc-ra-cy) €“ a system of government where the least capable to
lead are elected by the least capable of producing, and where the
members of society least likely to sustain themselves or succeed, are
rewarded with goods and services paid for by the confiscated wealth of a
diminishing number of producers.

On Mon, 07 Oct 2013 11:45:57 +0100, The Natural Philosopher wrote:

I need to buy something that is
- cheap

Define... £30 £50 £100 £300

- will record in solid state some kind of MP3 stream of about 3 hours
length or more

All will do MP3 at varying sample and bit rates. 3 hrs shouldn't be a
problem as far as data storeage is concerned even at 96 kHz 24 bit
WAV. They normally have an SDHC card slot and will handle at least 32
GB cards. Supplied cards tend to be small, only 2 GB ish. Battery (2
x AA's) should be OK for 3 hrs without trouble.

- that can be stuck on a disk later as a record of meetings.
- that is relatively unobtrusive - no not trying to bug! just don't
want a huge box bristling with dials that looks pretentious.

Take a peek at the Tascam DR05 or DR07. I've played with a DR07, bit
plasticy and the side buttons to drive the menu system where a bit
fiddly but it worked well enough.

There are many out there from cheap and cheerful through to semi-pro
with phantom powered XLR mic inputs and bigger price tags. Tascam,
Zoom, Yamaha, Olympus spring to mind.

Not sure how big a range of these things would be in a Currys or
similar to allow a "kick the wheels" session.

quality only need be good enough to be able top prepare transcriptions
by a competent audio typist and to clearly ID what was said.

These machines are pretty high quality technically, not like compact
cassette or "dictaphones" of old. The limiting factor will be the
room acoustics and how structered the meeting is, as has already been
mentioned. The cheaper machines won't have the best quality mic
preamps but they won't be absolutely terrible.

--
Cheers
Dave.

On 07/10/2013 11:45, The Natural Philosopher wrote:
I need to buy something that is
- cheap
- will record in solid state some kind of MP3 stream of about 3 hours
length or more
- that can be stuck on a disk later as a record of meetings.
- that is relatively unobtrusive - no not trying to bug! just don't want
a huge box bristling with dials that looks pretentious.

quality only need be good enough to be able top prepare transcriptions
by a competent audio typist and to clearly ID what was said.

Any recommendations?

I do NOT have a smart phone or any other 'gadget' that might be able to
do this already, nor do I want one.



'Fraid I can't recommend any specific kit - but you do need to consider
how viable the whole thing is.

I attend a regular meeting of 8 people where the 'secretary' leaves his
phone on the table to record everything, and subsequently uses the
recording as the basis for writing the minutes - without taking any
written notes in the meeting.

The resulting minutes are *crap* because the recording simply indicates
what was *said* but can't distinguish between important stuff and casual
'asides' - with the result that the minutes often fail to correctly
reflect what was actually agreed!
--
Cheers,
Roger
____________
Please reply to Newsgroup. Whilst email address is valid, it is seldom
checked.

On 07/10/2013 11:45, The Natural Philosopher wrote:
I need to buy something that is
- cheap
- will record in solid state some kind of MP3 stream of about 3 hours
length or more
- that can be stuck on a disk later as a record of meetings.
- that is relatively unobtrusive - no not trying to bug! just don't
want a huge box bristling with dials that looks pretentious.

quality only need be good enough to be able top prepare transcriptions
by a competent audio typist and to clearly ID what was said.

Any recommendations?

I do NOT have a smart phone or any other 'gadget' that might be able to
do this already, nor do I want one.

A quick google for "digital dictaphone" came up with a a number of
links. One such link was for "digital voice recorders" at Currys.

SteveW

In article ,
The Natural Philosopher wrote:
I need to buy something that is
- cheap
- will record in solid state

So not a tape recorder? ;-)

--
*You! Off my planet!

Dave Plowman London SW
To e-mail, change noise into sound.

On 07/10/13 17:43, Dave Plowman (News) wrote:
In article ,
The Natural Philosopher wrote:
I need to buy something that is
- cheap
- will record in solid state

So not a tape recorder? ;-)

nope.

AS I said a bit of googlng resulted in a 'spy drive'
USB stick with a battery and a microphone.

Cant wait to try it out..



--
Ineptocracy

(in-ep-toc-ra-cy) €“ a system of government where the least capable to
lead are elected by the least capable of producing, and where the
members of society least likely to sustain themselves or succeed, are
rewarded with goods and services paid for by the confiscated wealth of a
diminishing number of producers.

On 07/10/2013 17:43, Dave Plowman (News) wrote:
In article ,
The Natural Philosopher wrote:
I need to buy something that is
- cheap
- will record in solid state

So not a tape recorder? ;-)


I was thinking DAT tape to start with :-)

I don't think you can call that solid state!

In article ,
The Natural Philosopher wrote:
On 07/10/13 17:43, Dave Plowman (News) wrote:
In article ,
The Natural Philosopher wrote:
I need to buy something that is
- cheap
- will record in solid state

So not a tape recorder? ;-)

nope.

AS I said a bit of googlng resulted in a 'spy drive'
USB stick with a battery and a microphone.

Cant wait to try it out..

Snag with a lot of these sort of things is you still need the mic in a
half decent place for a good recording. Regardless of how it records.

--
*I never drink anything stronger than gin before breakfast *

Dave Plowman London SW
To e-mail, change noise into sound.

On 07/10/13 19:26, Dave Plowman (News) wrote:
In article ,
The Natural Philosopher wrote:
On 07/10/13 17:43, Dave Plowman (News) wrote:
In article ,
The Natural Philosopher wrote:
I need to buy something that is
- cheap
- will record in solid state

So not a tape recorder? ;-)

nope.

AS I said a bit of googlng resulted in a 'spy drive'
USB stick with a battery and a microphone.

Cant wait to try it out..

Snag with a lot of these sort of things is you still need the mic in a
half decent place for a good recording. Regardless of how it records.

That of course is what 'trying it out' will consist of.

User feedback suggests it produces intelligible results from simply
lying on a table at a meeting, or even in a top pocket.

Although tending to go mushy and noisy over 4 feet distance in a crowded
room. Probably has some crude AGC in it.

Hi-fi it aint, but that's not the requirement.



--
Ineptocracy

(in-ep-toc-ra-cy) €“ a system of government where the least capable to
lead are elected by the least capable of producing, and where the
members of society least likely to sustain themselves or succeed, are
rewarded with goods and services paid for by the confiscated wealth of a
diminishing number of producers.

On Monday, October 7, 2013 7:20:35 PM UTC+1, Fredxx wrote:
On 07/10/2013 17:43, Dave Plowman (News) wrote:
In article ,
The Natural Philosopher wrote:
I need to buy something that is
- cheap
- will record in solid state

So not a tape recorder? ;-)

I was thinking DAT tape to start with :-)
I don't think you can call that solid state!

Maybe bendy-solid state


NT

On Monday, October 7, 2013 7:20:35 PM UTC+1, Fredxx wrote:
On 07/10/2013 17:43, Dave Plowman (News) wrote:
In article ,
The Natural Philosopher wrote:
I need to buy something that is
- cheap
- will record in solid state

So not a tape recorder? ;-)

I was thinking DAT tape to start with :-)
I don't think you can call that solid state!

Maybe bendy-solid state


NT

Dave Plowman (News) wrote:
In article ,
The Natural Philosopher wrote:
On 07/10/13 17:43, Dave Plowman (News) wrote:
In article ,
The Natural Philosopher wrote:
I need to buy something that is
- cheap
- will record in solid state
So not a tape recorder? ;-)

nope.

AS I said a bit of googlng resulted in a 'spy drive'
USB stick with a battery and a microphone.

Cant wait to try it out..

Snag with a lot of these sort of things is you still need the mic in a
half decent place for a good recording. Regardless of how it records.

It also makes life a *lot* easier if you record in stereo, as then you
can physically place the voices, and they're easier to understand over
any background noise.

Sony used to sell a stereo tieclip microphone which worked with their
minidisc recorders, and was quite unobtrusive in use.

--
Tciao for Now!

John.

On Mon, 07 Oct 2013 20:04:57 +0100, John Williamson wrote:

Dave Plowman (News) wrote:
In article ,
The Natural Philosopher wrote:
On 07/10/13 17:43, Dave Plowman (News) wrote:
In article ,
The Natural Philosopher wrote:
I need to buy something that is - cheap - will record in solid state
So not a tape recorder? ;-)

nope.

AS I said a bit of googlng resulted in a 'spy drive'
USB stick with a battery and a microphone.

Cant wait to try it out..

Snag with a lot of these sort of things is you still need the mic in a
half decent place for a good recording. Regardless of how it records.

It also makes life a *lot* easier if you record in stereo, as then you
can physically place the voices, and they're easier to understand over
any background noise.

Sony used to sell a stereo tieclip microphone which worked with their
minidisc recorders, and was quite unobtrusive in use.

I just got a Sony recorder and tieclip microphone for recording my
lectures. So far it seems fine....

--
Use the BIG mirror service in the UK: http://www.mirrorservice.org
My posts (including this one) are my copyright and if @diy_forums on
Twitter wish to tweet them they can pay me £30 a post
*lightning surge protection* - a w_tom conductor

On Mon, 07 Oct 2013 11:45:57 +0100, The Natural Philosopher
wrote:

Any recommendations?

You've just described an mp3 player I bought years ago. Size of a
matchbox, runs for hours recording/playing, takes SD cards, AAA cell.
I'm utterly sure such available now would better it and cheaper too.

In article ,
John Williamson wrote:
Snag with a lot of these sort of things is you still need the mic in a
half decent place for a good recording. Regardless of how it records.

It also makes life a *lot* easier if you record in stereo, as then you
can physically place the voices, and they're easier to understand over
any background noise.

Bit of a mixed blessing as stereo also picks up more background noise,
over a directional mono mic.

Sony used to sell a stereo tieclip microphone which worked with their
minidisc recorders, and was quite unobtrusive in use.

That's fine if all you're recording is yourself - but not much use for a
discussion.

--
*When you've seen one shopping centre you've seen a mall*

Dave Plowman London SW
To e-mail, change noise into sound.

Dave Plowman (News) wrote:
In article ,
John Williamson wrote:
Snag with a lot of these sort of things is you still need the mic in a
half decent place for a good recording. Regardless of how it records.

It also makes life a *lot* easier if you record in stereo, as then you
can physically place the voices, and they're easier to understand over
any background noise.

Bit of a mixed blessing as stereo also picks up more background noise,
over a directional mono mic.

The cocktail party effect lets me listen through quite bad background
noise, others may not be able to.

Sony used to sell a stereo tieclip microphone which worked with their
minidisc recorders, and was quite unobtrusive in use.

That's fine if all you're recording is yourself - but not much use for a
discussion.

I found it quite useful if it was mounted on the aternative desk stand.
Still very unobtrusive, in black,and about half the size of an AAA cell.
I wish I still had it.

--
Tciao for Now!

John.