Good MP3 Recorders

[Blackwolf]

I'm looking to get an iPod like device that works in reverse - I want to be able to record from a microphone input into an MP3 or WAV file.

I've looked at the iPod's iTalk expansion, and I decided it won't cut it. It doesn't work with the Mini, it's $50 extra bucks, and it only records in 8k or 16k mono WAV files.

I know that there are other MP3 players out there that probably do better on the recording part, so I wanted to throw it out here to see if anybody knew of any good ones or recommended any good ones. It will be used "on the field" in recording reports and doing interviews that will be later streamed back on AGR.

[dcNate]

I came across this (http://forums.anandtech.com/messageview.aspx?catid=40&threadid=1409694&highlight_key=y&keyword1=dell+dj) thread yesterday and was reminded of it when I saw what you were looking for here. The Dell DJ has a built in mic and recorder, although who knows how the quality is, and there's no mic jack, so you're stuck with the little pinhole one on the unit. Reviews should probably say how the quality is though.

Or, there's always sony's minidisc format, you can get a recorder for pretty cheap compared to those hard drive-based mp3 players. Probably $149 or less, and you might even get a mic jack.

[Digital*Firefly]

does it have to portable? You could just record your voice directly to your pc into wav or mp3 format. I'm pretty sure MusicMatch does that. That would be the cheapest solution.

[Blackwolf]

Yeah, I have strict requirements for a recorder:

Must have a Mic In jack
Must have a Headphone jack so I can hear what's being recorded in real time (to know if I'm getting the right volume levels.)

I noticed that Olympus sells recorders, but the one that has a Mic In jack doesn't record to WAV or MP3, it records in some proprietary format. The other one records in WAV but doesn't have a Mic In jack.

EDIT: And, to answer Digital*Firefly's question, I repeat the final sentence of the original post:

It will be used "on the field" in recording reports and doing interviews that will be later streamed back on AGR.