Olympus DS-30 Digital Voice Recorder

I got my DS-30 last week and I love it! This is the first digital stereo voice recorder I have owned. I am very impressed with the quality of manufacturing and the quality of the recordings. I uploaded some photos above to show the size of the unit and the contents of the package.

The DS-30 can record with or without the attachable stereo microphone. This mic is so small though that even attached it still fits in my pocket.

The "Hold" feature is nice. Press the Hold button will lock the DS-30 buttons until taken off hold. This is handy if you are moving around a lot or want to save the current recording or playback settings without fear of accidentally touching any of the buttons.

It has a lot great features for recording both dictation (voice in quiet, close quarters) and conferences (voice in large, noisy rooms). These features include a Variable Control Voice Actuator which will automatically turn on/off the recorder based upon the volume level it senses, a microphone sensitivity setting and a Low Cut Filter. (Playback mode also has features like noise cancellation and voice filter.)

The DS-30 can playback AVI and MP3 files. It can also play Audible format files as well as Podcasts. The device has a full-featured menu including adjustments for backlight, contrast and LED, powersave, 3 alarms and a voice guide. The alarms are very kewl. You can set them to play various alarms sounds or even use one or your own recordings!

The D3-30 comes with ear buds and it can play MP3 and AVI files. I transferred some music to it and the quality of the MP3 player is really nice! I am not an audiophile but the DS-30 plays MP3s every bit as well as they sound on my laptop.

Transferring files from my D3-30 to my computer was plug-n-play easy. I just attached the USB cable to my PC. Windows XP immediately recognized my DS-30 as a new device and displayed it as a new drive letter in my Windows Explorer list of drives. I could drag-n-drop files to and from, including MP3s. It could not be any easier. I did not install the DS-30 software. At this point I won't even need it and I prefer not to install a bunch of unnecessary software on my computer.

The DS-30 package comes with:

DS-30 Digital Stereo recorder

User Manual (well written)

2 AAA batteries

Ear buds

USB cable

Olympus DSS software

* Optional accessories include a remote control, telephone pickup and AC adapter.

After doing quite a bit of research I purchased this to "podcast" some events (seminars). Our first event was today and this device allowed me to get the podcast up right after the event, though with some effort, which is why it gets 4 and not 5. See below.

The device is very small, very lightweight, well thought out ergonomically, has an excellent built in (and removable) stereo MIC, and connects via regular USB. The software interface on it is very good (for recording), the screen is easy to read. The batteries will last quite a while, or you can use AC (optional), or Lithium Ion batteries (optional).

You do not need any add on MICs to record most events the MIC can be set to pick up nearly everything; to cut low end noise, etc. In short, this is a very high quality, easy to use (but powerful if you need it) dedicated audio recorder.

The issues are that it only records in WMA format (Windows proprietary) and the software is not very good for editing. For example, if you record in stereo, it will not download the WAV file when you download the file, nor can you convert it to mono. To do the podcast, I had to import the WMA file into iTunes, then open the Mp3 iTunes created in Audacity (audacity.sourceforge.net). From there, I was able to edit the file, and compress the bit stream.

This device can also be used to listen to podcasts, and the software has some kind of organization for that; but for the life of me, I cannot imagine anyone doing this, if they had an ipod. It is just clumsy and not intuitive for podcast listening. If you want to listen to podcasts, do what the rest of the planet does get an ipod, use iTunes.

I would recommend this device as a high quality dedicated recorder, that is not too expensive, but not for mp3 or podcast listening.

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I'm am oral historian using the recorder to record oral histories from elderly interviewees. I actually bought this recorder to upgrade from my old "Sony ICDP320 64MB Digital Voice Recorder w/ PC connectivity" I purchased from AMAZON a few years ago for around $60.00. I needed to upgrade my sound quality, I figured at an original price of 200.00and all the great reviews, the Olympus was the way to go.

First of all, the sound quality is amazing. I use it with an external microphone, "Sony ECMMS907 Digital Recording Microphone" also purchased on AMAZON for around 75.00. It's great as it cuts down on the external noise that the recorder tends to produce. Less paper shuffling background noise, or when you have to pick up the recorder-it doesn't distort the sound. This recorder plus the sony microphone produce wonderful quality audio. I'm not a professional, but I am very happy with the results.

When I got home tonight to upload my audio on my computer and do a little editing, I was shocked to find the recorder WILL NOT CONVERT THE FILES FROM WMA. I did not realize I could not edit/move or generally touch the WMA files with any program. There is a button on the task bar that offers to convert the files to .WAV, but it never lights up. After much hair pulling I purchased the $ editing program upgrade offered. No luck and still no conversion. bucks wasted.

Interestingly, my old 70.00 recorder will download the audio into ANY format you want, MP3, Wav, WMAwhatever. I am shocked to learn this 200.00 recorder limits me to one format. Now I have to search the internet to find a free conversion program that will not sacrifice the quality I just paid so dearly to get. I certainly don't want to shell out another 50.00 for a conversion program just to be able to access MY files!

Also, the downloading program is not intuitive and it is difficult to use. Editing is a joke.

I don't understand why the software side of this recorder is SO horrible when the recorder is SO good! I don't know whether to keep it and deal with the frustration or return it and deal with bad quality.

Update November 23, 2008: I have been using this recorder for quite awhile now. Yes, I decided to keep it. I'm using it with Vista, which helps b/c I don't use the software that came with it to download it onto my machine. I connect it and just put it where I want on my computer. Also, Vista has no problem burning these WMA files onto a CD for me, also better.

I do now use a converting program and a separate editing program to play with my audio. I understand having to purchase a separate editing program, but am still disappointed I have to bloat my desktop with another program to convert the files.

Positively, the recorder has been very easy to use. It's very point-and-click. Although, it comes with a recorded advert for audible.com (I JUST found this, prompting my update) Make sure and delete it for more memory. If I had this to do over again, I would do more searching to find something that would convert my files more easily. While not as bad as it was w/o Vista, it continues to be an annoyance.

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FYI, I don't know why people are saying this recorder is not Mac compatible, I've had no problems. I'm not using it for podcasting or anything, but I can attach the cable to my machine, it pops up in finder, and I can copy the .wma files to wherever. Quicktime has no trouble playing them, but more than that, you can still install the DSS software that comes with the recorder. Yes, there is a DSS-Installer.app file in the ENGLISH subdirectory of the installation CD that will install the application to your Mac. Then you get all the editing and cue-ing etc. functionality that the windows users are enjoying. FYI, I'm using OS X (10.5.1) Leopard.

As a recorder, it's great so far. Haven't had any problems, could do with a longer battery life, but I'll live.

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This is by far the best voice recorder I have purchased and I have purchased many! The quality of recording is incredible. I used it recently at a conference and despite much background noise, the recording was very good. But don't touch the recorder while is taping otherwise you will record substantial amount of noise. To get the best use, you should also order the following:

1. A 3-6 foot audio extension cord for the stereo microphone (get a thin flexible version). This will eliminate the noise if you end up having to touch the unit while recording.

2. The protective case if you want to keep the unit free of scratches and protect it against accidental drops.

3. An ac adaptor if you spend long hours transcribing or listening.

I wished they had bundled them with the unit but that's only a minor inconvenience.