“Voice recording on the go”

Posted: 24 Aug 2010 04:07 PM PDT

COMPUTING on the Go

For a couple of years now, I've attended weekend sermons like a good Buddhist should do. As a good student, I'd wanted to record lessons preached by Pra Arjarn (the teaching monk) for later listening, which means I need to find a practical way to record what is taught in the temple. And so begins my search for the most practical and economical way to perform live voice recording.

iPod 5/5.5G, TuneTalk, and Tekkeon's Tekcharge 1550— the ultimate road warrior for voice recording.

First, I need a recorder and audio editing software. For the hardware, I already had at the time a Windows Mobile pocket PC. So I intended to record with this device. (It never hurts starting from what you have at hand.) As for the software, I've heard many good things about a freeware tool called Audacity (http://www.audacity.sourceforge. net). So, it's my software of choice. As it turns out, Audacity is the right choice. The application is easy to use and comes equipped with more features than I would ever need. and the price couldn't be more right. Be sure to download the plug-in if you need it to handle MP3 format.

My first recording session showed one major problem which I believe is shared among most MP3 recorders - the ambient noise. With the sermon delivered in a large non-padded Buddhist temple (or ubosot), and the recorder placed in front of a speaker, the recorded file was audible but far from good quality. In fact, the white noise made the playback quite irritating.

I've tried the Noise Removal feature in Audacity to enhance the recorded sound, but that doesn't help much. The recording sounded very metallic after the ambient noise was removed. On the bright side, the pocket PC has power to record the voice for hours. So at least it's suitable as a back-up device. The search for the main recording device continued.

A while later, I found out that Belkin manufactured TuneTalk, a device that once plugged into the iPod 5G or 5.5G, makes the unit a WAV-format stereo recording device (http://www.belkin.com/iwcatproductpage.process?product - id=277661). Belkin always produces good quality Apple accessories, so I bought TuneTalk without hesitation. Unfortunately, my initial test with TuneTalk produced mixed feelings.

First off, the device seemed to drain the power of my iPod at a very startling rate. I have no real scientific way of measuring this power consumption, but back then, my iPod 5G was only about one year old and could play back music for hours. It barely lasted one and a half hours when used in conjunction with TuneTalk. This was alarming because there were two sermons to record per each visit to the temple, and both sessions lasted between 1.5 and two hours.

For the quality of the recording, TuneTalk works as advertised. The sound quality is much clearer than anything produced by any MP3 recorder I've tested, my PPC included. (During the course of this search for the perfect recorder, I've borrowed quite a few recording files from fellows at the temple to compare sound quality.) It's safe to say that iPod-TuneTalk combination is by far the best voice recorder I've experienced, in terms of quality.

The recorded sound is clear, crisp and almost free from ambient noise. Unfortunately, besides the battery consumption issue, this setup also presented another setback. Every once in a while during the recording, the recorded sound would be skipped. In a session of an hour to an hour and a half, the skipping could happen as much as 15 times. With each skip, as much as seconds could go missing. This simply is not acceptable.

At first, I thought the problem was related to the low-powered issue due to fast battery draining. But logic dictated that it was not the case because during the first recording session of the day, while the battery was still full, I still experienced skipping. After some research on Google, I found out finally that the problem was somehow related to the iPod's firmware.

And the fix was very easy. You connect your iPod 5G/5.5G to a PC or Mac with iTunes installed, and then perform a restoration once. Note, however, that as part of the restoration process, all the files on your iPod will be gone and you will have to sync them back to the unit. But if you've experienced this record-skipping problem with TuneTalk, this might be your only cure.

Once the skipping problem was resolved, I only needed the iPod to last longer and it would become a perfect recorder. So I visited Apple and electronic stores in town and almost reached a conclusion that there was no way to extend the battery life of the iPod.

Some vendors even went so far as to mention that no one needed to carry a mobile charger anymore because one could feed the device from one's notebook. Such logic only works if one is willing to carry one's notebook around as a power source. In my case, there simply is not enough room to place the notebook in front of the speaker in the sermon room. Space is limited and only reserved for MP3 recorders.

Finally I got a small adapter at one local Apple dealer. At one end, this adapter connects to a 9-Volt battery. At another, it connects to iPod's connector. This was not a perfect solution because TuneTalk is connected to iPod via iPod's connector. So, to charge the iPod, I have to unplug the TuneTalk during the intermission, and plug in the adapter (and the 9-Volt battery).

Because of the impracticality of the unplugging and plugging, plus the fact that I need to find a rechargeable 9-Volt battery and a compatible charger if I wanted to maintain this scheme, I realised that I needed to find a new mobile charger that really works hassle-free, one that can charge right into TuneTalk's miniUSB port. So off I went again.

Finally, persistence paid off. And I've finally found the best charger ever. It's called TekCharge MP1550 from Tekkeon (http://www.tekkeon.com/products-tekcharge1550.html). This device is far from a low-ended one-battery made-in-China charger you can find abundantly in the local market. The first and most important distinction is that it works! This well-built black device features on/off switch, power meter, a USB port, and a mini-USB port. It houses 4AA batteries, works with both alkaline and rechargeable types, and comes with adapters to connect with various devices. Additional adapters are also available for purchase.

Besides being a mobile charger, TekCharge MP1550 also acts as a battery charger by receiving power from your car charger or USB port connected to your notebook or PC and then feeding it to the unit via its mini-USB port. What more can you ask from a portable mobile charger?

If you can't stand the ambient noise from ordinary MP3 recorders, and can't afford (or don't want the high quality of) a professional portable sound recorder like Zoom's H4n (http://www.zoom.co.jp/english/products/h4n/), you can't beat the combination of an iPod 5/5.5G, TuneTalk, and Tekkeon's TekCharge MP1550.

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Tuesday, August 24, 2010