I've done recording obviously and I run a recording studio but what I've been looking into lately is recording myself remotely or simply using any type of gear to record without the need for a computer. This stems from my need to record my live sets. I welcome all suggestions as long as it's affordable :) But for now, these are what I've been looking into...
iPod - I have my ipod touch handy so I'd say it's one thing I directed my attention to initially. Unfortunately, it was harder than I thought. So far, recording my live sets are out of the question unless I buy a connector in the form of something like the iRig
Beyond the intended purpose along with its app, the iRig can be used to record line level sources like synths or whatever so I'm really looking into this. It's primarily made for use with a guitar while being able to monitor yourself with your headphones. It literally gives you thousands of dollars worth of gear all inside your app (should you decide to get hardware versions of the models included). Good thing is as mentioned earlier, it's not limited hardware-wise but you can also use various apps with it. I have to mention though that this is actually one of many products like this. I've read that there have been DIY cables of these since I'm sure it's pretty simple to make but the dedicated connector with the app seems great... and I love the colors black and yellow (notice my blog?).
BUT I don't plan to spend YET and if I wanted this, i'd have to order it abroad so it's not simply a matter of spending but the hassles of getting it shipped and all. So there goes my dilemma.
The thing with the iPod is, you can't just get any line out off a mixer and plug it into its port. You can try but the thing is, how will you monitor the sound right? but for a recorder, I guess direct monitoring isn't that essential unless you're running a 4 track recorder app and you can find a cable connector.
SO.... I decided to think of what I already have and that is a Mic for the iPod. I have the 2nd gen iPod so mine didn't come with the mic but the good thing is I had to seek out an external one and came across the iPill
iPill, put simply, is a mic. Easy right? Thing is, it's just useful for voice recordings but to record live concerts and such, forget it. I lost a whole audio recording of John Mayer's concert here becayse of this. There are better hardware connectors out there that have input level control. With the iPill, if you shout into it and your levels go red, then that's it... distortion. BUT don't get me wrong. It's a nifty piece of recording equipment and it looks interesting, right? I got the black and yellow one...oh we're back to those colors! hah.
Initially, I used the iPill to record a talk I did and it was perfect for that. I even just used the onboard voice recorder of the iPod but I came across this new app named Blue Fire, which is a recording app on steroids. It's an offshoot of the paid app FiRe meaning Field Recorder but the differences are very small, the free app is worth it already. If I get the iRig, I would definitely try to use this in case I wanted to record my sets but that's still up for debate in my head.
With all things to consider, I figured, why not just get a dedicated recorder right? But most of the ones I know are pretty expensive. You can even buy a new iPod with the amount and so I came across the new releases from Tascam which are the Dr03 and the DR07. Of course, the higher the number, the better (a bit) but upon further research, it's not as clean with the signal as I'd like it to be like it's a bit "hissy" using the onboard mic's and forget about holding it while recording. Just little movement from your hands will be recorded like this noise which I'm sure most are familiar with so it's better if it's placed on a table. BUT remember my initial purpose for getting one? The line in. So I'm guessing this will be able to handle the task nicely since it doesn't need the use of the onboard mic's.
Remember, portable recorders are expensive and I'm thinking about the tascam because it's cheap. It's less than a hundred dollars for the base model whereas the other brands from Yamaha to Roland to Zoom will cause you higher than that unless you get the base model of Zoom which is roughly the same price. I just haven't found the cheap Zoom recorders locally that's why I haven't considered it yet. And the Tascam's been mentioned a couple of times in portable reviews I've read so I guess it also says something. If had the money though, I'd go with the Samson Q3HD and that's the end of everything for me but I don't have that much to spend for a recorder so I guess I'll read my blog entry again and maybe it will help me decide soon. Hope it helps you as well :)
Cy
and if you own an ipad, you'll love this:
