Audio Recording Pains

I’ve been having a blast recording audio content lately but also stumbled upon a very irritating problem. I’m tethered to my PC! I need a better way to record – a portable solution. Not because I travel so much – hardly go anywhere but as a mom, the household cook and cleaning lady 😉 sitting at the computer is a luxury. So I thought if I could get a portable audio recorder that I could plug my headset into – hey! That’ll work. Never did I imagine it would turn out to be such a hassle.


First, I tried recording with my MP3 player. It’s a generic and recorded into this obscure file format – ACT. Though it came with a converter, it only did ACT to WAV I’d have to submit the audio to another conversion step to get it to MP3 – awful lot of work. Eventually I did find a free converter that would do ACT to MP3. You can get it here if you’re having this problem. Yet I wasn’t happy with how much noice it picked up because it didn’t have a line in to which I could plug in my headset.

Then, I needed a new camera. I got one of those video capable cameras which also could record voice. If you get one of these make very sure you know what format it records is voice into. Unfortunately most manufacturers don’t tell you that even in the detailed specs. Well mine recorded into Quicktime’s MOV format which is great for video but audio? It has been such a bear trying to convert the MOV audio into MP3. I tried all kinds of software they either didn’t work on my PC (XP only or MAC) or the sound came out worst than when I recorded it. Now I’m getting very pissed.

In the end – I should’ve just sprung for a iRiver MP3 Player instead. It records directly into MP3 format so you don’t have to do all that conversion mumbo jumbo and it sounds great. On top of that it has one very important feature many portable recorders don’t. That is a line-in. This will allow you to plug in a mic or a headset for a much better quality recording. Built in mics pick up too much background noise.

Hey if it’s good enough for the podfather Adam Curry, it’s good enough for me! So if you want to podcast from the road or just a portable solution for your podcasting ventures without spending too much money, get the iRiver and get the 79x series because it’s USB 2.0 which translates to faster downloading/uploading time between computer and player.

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7 Comments

  1. Colin Maddocks on September 17, 2005 at 11:42 am

    I have the iRiver, great for recording, but wonder of you could tell me more about the Griifin mike you mention. Or what mike you use yourself. I am off to Egypt to record a Nile Cruise trip and need something that wont’ pick up too much wind noise, etc.

    Thanks, Colin, Liverpool, UK



  2. Colin Maddocks on September 17, 2005 at 6:42 am

    I have the iRiver, great for recording, but wonder of you could tell me more about the Griifin mike you mention. Or what mike you use yourself. I am off to Egypt to record a Nile Cruise trip and need something that wont’ pick up too much wind noise, etc.

    Thanks, Colin, Liverpool, UK



  3. Lynette on September 17, 2005 at 9:23 pm

    Hey Colin,

    Unfortunately wind is something that wasn’t considered since my recordings are done indoors. I also opted for the Sony ECM-TL1 Electret Condenser Earphone-Style Microphone instead because that way I could record a telephone conversation on my cordless (or cell) phone if need be and double up as a mic. I did a quick wind test on my Sony and it didn’t fare too well. I’ve heard the Griffin didn’t too but won’t comment too much since it’s not my first hand experience.

    That is going to be tricky – though on the cruise. Will you be recording only your voice or a conversation with others? With my Sony, I’ve found it picks up my voice nicely and less background if I put earphones over my ear – but that’s just going to look silly on a cruise! 😉 plus wouldn’t work too well for conversations.

    Another consideration is the Sony ECM-DS30P. It comes with a windscreen but I don’t really know how it’ll perform and reviews of it are hard to come by.



  4. Lynette on September 17, 2005 at 4:23 pm

    Hey Colin,

    Unfortunately wind is something that wasn’t considered since my recordings are done indoors. I also opted for the Sony ECM-TL1 Electret Condenser Earphone-Style Microphone instead because that way I could record a telephone conversation on my cordless (or cell) phone if need be and double up as a mic. I did a quick wind test on my Sony and it didn’t fare too well. I’ve heard the Griffin didn’t too but won’t comment too much since it’s not my first hand experience.

    That is going to be tricky – though on the cruise. Will you be recording only your voice or a conversation with others? With my Sony, I’ve found it picks up my voice nicely and less background if I put earphones over my ear – but that’s just going to look silly on a cruise! 😉 plus wouldn’t work too well for conversations.

    Another consideration is the Sony ECM-DS30P. It comes with a windscreen but I don’t really know how it’ll perform and reviews of it are hard to come by.



  5. Colin Maddocks on September 20, 2005 at 12:46 pm

    Thanks Lynette,

    I think I will look at the Sony having read a litlle about it.

    Cheers,

    Colin



  6. Colin Maddocks on September 20, 2005 at 7:46 am

    Thanks Lynette,

    I think I will look at the Sony having read a litlle about it.

    Cheers,

    Colin