Sangean DAR-101 Professional Grade Digital MP3 Recorder (Black)

I had a hard time choosing because I’m more of a hands on shopper rather than online, but I must say I’m more than happy and satisfied with my choice. This thing is amazing at recording all of the calls that come in and go out. The playback feature is awesome because you can turn the volume up and hear it anywhere in the house, and you can also remove the SD card and listen to it on your computer. I like that the system stays set up and there’s no extra work or fiddling when you are done listening or when you put the SD card back in... it’s still ready to record.Some little quirks though... if you are trying to record discreetly, you have to make sure the volume is all the way down because sometimes there’s feedback through the device if you don’t and you may get caught! And also, there are lights that turn on when the call begins recording so you will either have to put the device somewhere hidden or cover up the lights. I put a bit of black electrical tape over the lights and placed the unit with my stereo equipment and nobody has noticed yet.The regular recording mode picks up everything! It’s like a super ear.Recording calls and recording the environment were the reasons I bought this device and it has worked amazing. I haven’t checked out the other features yet but I have no doubts it all works as awesomely as the rest.

In our days we not so used to see something working much much better then expected. This is why I got so amazed about it.will tell you in short how many usage I have from that,1. when I need to record a phone call, I can just leave it plugged in into any phone jack of the same line, it will turn on when I start and stop when I hang up.2. the recording is very clear and balanced.3. simple to operate, even a kid from 5 years old will know how to work with it (so if your time is valuable or you just hate complecated technology, buy it now).4. it does an amazing job while recording a speach in a class room (I give seminars and I found this better then other machines that cost 7x more).5. I can insert a SD card (or a micro SD with adapter) and it works like playing a tape-recorder (with out the boring "Loading" that we face daily).6. it's strong build, therefore I can give it for my wife while doing laundry and for the kids in bed.7. has the ability to work with chargeble batteries so I do not have any issue with power (it's extremely portable).8. the gain control is fantastic it's able to pick up even what you can't hear (and it's so easy to unjust on the spot).9. the speaker works high enough that I can not use full valume (will cover around 1200sq ft. area).10... ok the rest I will leave for you after buying it.

I have been looking for a smaller portable recorder to use for my podcasts to be more mobile and flexible. This unit is great as it has a retro 70's vibe to the look of it. Its not very large and pretty lightweight. It does have microphone inputs for DYNAMIC microphones, no 3.5mm condenser microphones. It has built in mics, but I have not used those yet. I was hoping to be able to plug the condenser mics in, but alas I was not able. I plug those into my soundcard/soundboard and then run a LINE-IN into this recorder deck, works and sounds great. Very easy to use out of the box. I tried 32GB SD card and it worked ok, I also tried to use a higher capacity of 64GB and it would not even register its existence, so 32GB might be it folks. Still it records only in mp3 (highest quality being 192kbps). The only drawback here is I wish it allowed you to record 320kbps and even more, I wish it had WAV recording options. I was hoping when I read that it records phone calls that I could use the deck for my podcast as a call-in and record option, but oddly enough it only records old school landline phones Weird for sure. So, that is pretty useless for me, I wish there was a cell phone input to record, that would be a great upgrade if they make a new version. Sound is very good as you control the levels, treble and bass. Overall a sturdy well made recorder, I recommend it highly if you are looking for something a bit easier to use than a small voice recorder or elaborate setup recorder.PROS: Ease of use. Sound quality, SD card option. Rechargeable Battery option (3xAAA) I guess you can use rechargeable's and it will charge them up!? Also comes with a AC adapter.CONS: No 3.5mm condenser mic inputs (2 would be ideal, 3 even better). Phone landline recording but not cell phones. NO WAV recording ability, only mp3.I am thinking of picking another up to keep in storage in case this one stops being made, as I like the overall product and can see this lasting a long long time.

I've used this recorder for a few months now and it works great. I've been using to transfer my vinyl records to mp3 files so I can listen to them in the car.One drawback is that you can only use SDHC SD Cards and you have to format them correctly or the files won't record properly (they'll skip during playback). I've recorded entire albums only to have the audio skip when played back.Another drawback is that I ordered it because it showed it has a usb port for flash drives but the unit only came with a SD slot. There is nothing to tell you which model you're ordering. The only model number I can find is DAR-101. I wish the company would distinguish which models have the USB port.The menu and settings are somewhat difficult to figure out. There is a knob on the front that you need to set for the audio input and different settings on the screen menu. But, once you figure out how to use the recorder it's pretty straight forward.So far I have loved this recorder and have even used it in the car because you can put batteries in it and take it with you. It reminds me of the professional cassette decks I used to use for recording in the past. I've read some bad reviews on amadon but I haven't had any problems and highly recommend it.