Portable High Resolution Linear PCM Audio Recorder

Superb recording unit

It is not portable at all but it has great build quality and usability. I bought it to improve the audio quality of my videos. According to the manual, the battery lasts 44 hours recording at 44khz / 16 bit (CD quality) Although it only supports 2 channels -- when XLR ports are used, internal mics are disabled, there are so many nice features about this recorder and I especially love the ergonomics and usability of the button layout, as well as the feel of each button press. The gain dial is buttery smooth and a pleasure to use! It is definitely pricy compared with other recorder brands like Tascam and Zoom. But I think it is worth it to pay the premium for the SONY design and extreme audio quality -- I almost forgot to mention that it is a fantastic sounding MP3 /AAC / FLAC player with "Hi-Res" support! (D50 and D100 have legendary playback quality). The only drawback is that it cannot be used as an external computer USB recorder, while cheaper models from other manufactures can do that. I hope this can be improved in future firmware updates. Therefore I cannot give it 5 stars.

I can do a remote from ANYWHERE with this, an external mic and a computer for processing. Just about studio quality. I can audition for ads, do radio shows, interview anybody anywhere and it all sounds great!! The on board mics are ok with a filter (one comes with the unit) but an good external mic is better....SM7B is perfect. Love my Sony....expensive? Absolutely. But it is worth the price. Love, Jonny James

I am recording oral histories. It is important to me to have very high quality sound - I would say high fidelity sound while reducing ambient noise, being highly portable, working well with our without external microphones. I am totally impressed with the performance of this device. I read many reviews before jumping in the deep end with this SONY. I am not disappointed. The unit is large and I keep it on a mini tripod during use. The quality of the sound is 99%, I do a little noise filtering in post, but that's a one button preset and I'm done. I love the use of AA batteries. I think the microphones are about as good as any out there. This beats the heck out of my old Mxxxx 620 and clubs to death any other voice recorders with dinky micorphones purchased at office supply stores.

Old style. Excellent audio quality and very easy to use. A good investment.

-Almost as good as the sony D100! Love the sound quality of the microphones, it's cool that you can power the external XLR Jack's. - However, I had to return it to AVLGear. If you buy from these guys, you are charged $25 for shipping.... then they will send you a defective unit wasting your money and time.... and then you'll have to pay $25 to send it back. Something to keep in mind if you like wasting extra money.

So glad that you all had this on Amazon! Shipping was quick too!

Use it for recording orchestra performance