Alesis Masterlink vs Laptop Setup for 2 track recording

[johnnyc]

Looking for a setup for 2 track classical recording. Looking for pros/cons of a dedicated 2 track recorder like the masterlink vs a laptop based setup, mostly thinking in terms of ease of use and stablity/reliability. Also noise is a big concern, how noisy is the masterlink?

[bishopthomas]

Masterlink

Pros:
dedicated hardware, ultra stable

Cons:
Big
Heavy
Expensive (if you don't already have one)
must transfer to another medium


Laptop

Pros:
You probably already have one, so all you need is a decent interface
Can operate on battery if at least for a little while
Very portable

Cons:
Takes a lot of effort to get it to be super stable
I wouldn't trust a laptop to be the only recorder on any gig

[d1rtynyc]

If you don't own a Masterlink already you might want to consider one of the many portable recorders out there.
They will be much smaller than a Masterlink or Laptop set-up, more stable than a laptop, and much easier for set-up.

There are some really nice ones out there depending on your budget.

[nadsatrebel]

Originally Posted by bishopthomas

Masterlink

Pros:
dedicated hardware, ultra stable

Cons:
Big
Heavy
Expensive (if you don't already have one)
must transfer to another medium


Laptop

Pros:
You probably already have one, so all you need is a decent interface
Can operate on battery if at least for a little while
Very portable

Cons:
Takes a lot of effort to get it to be super stable
I wouldn't trust a laptop to be the only recorder on any gig

Agree.

I've done two track remotes with a Tascam CD700R (I think that was the model) and NEVER EVER had a problem-and that's bare bones.

[johnnyc]

Originally Posted by bishopthomas

Cons:
Takes a lot of effort to get it to be super stable
I wouldn't trust a laptop to be the only recorder on any gig

this is what i'm worried about. i've used a fostex d-824 in the past for location recording which works great but the fan is really noisy and transfer to a daw is a royal pita.

was looking to spend $400 or so and used masterlinks fit that range. basically something with digital ins and cd burning capability or at least effortless daw transfer.

[Baithak]

Originally Posted by johnnyc

this is what i'm worried about. i've used a fostex d-824 in the past for location recording which works great but the fan is really noisy and transfer to a daw is a royal pita.

was looking to spend $400 or so and used masterlinks fit that range. basically something with digital ins and cd burning capability or at least effortless daw transfer.

Hi Johnnyc: I would no longer invest in a harddisc based recorder unless I wanted hours and hours of recording and I had good isolation. Harddiscs need cooling so the fans are noisy.

Most of the flash based recorders with digital inputs should suffice. I am attaching a BSW search link. The Marantz PMD 560 and the Tascam SSR05 at about $500 seem adequate for your purpose.

Professional Studio Equipment for Audio Broadcast and Recording | BSWUSA.com

Good luck
Baithak

[MaTr1x2051]

I started my classical recording with a Masterlink and never had a problem. Got a new one for just over $600 years ago. I would have jumped right into the HD24 then if I had the cash. I still use the Masterlink in conjunction with the HD24 to record live stereo mixes and burn possible edit CDs for clients. It saves me tons of time from importing the HD24 files into PT and then re-bouncing all of them in real time to get edit discs out.

Pretty good converters, very stable, decent amount of available recording time.

I'd NEVER use a laptop in a live recording environment.

[Tjm7844]

I've used a Masterlink recording classical programs. Their build quality is good, and their sonics are OK.

They are a bit heavy, and their technology is a bit dated. They are quite reliable, but personally, I've had a few issues with the ones that I have used. Not regular occurrences mind you, but occasional "ghost in the machine" type glitches - pops, clicks, completely dropped input (both digital and analog), etc.

I haven't worked with many other dedicated 2-track recorders in the same price range, but I do know that there are many other options that are just as reliable (if not more so), a great deal smaller, and are of a better aural quality. Examples that come to mind are the Korg MR-1000, and the Sound Devices recorders (the 744t, specifically - I haven't used their newer models).

The Korg records 2 channels of DSD or PCM, and is quite small.

The Sound Devices recorders are some of the best quality field recorders I've ever had the pleasure to work with, and their price tag shows it. They seem to be designed primarily for sound-for-picture recording, but I wouldn't hesitate to use them for classical recording, especially with external pre's (not that there is anything wrong with their preamps - in fact, they are very good - I just haven't used them on classical program material).


As far as I'm concerned, the fact of the matter is that you should always have a backup recorder when recording any live program.

While I wouldn't recommend using a laptop as your primary recorder, if you have a stable and reliable main recorder like some of the ones mentioned in the thread (Masterlink included), a laptop with a good interface can certainly serve as a usable redundancy.

[Marik]

I worked with Masterlink for classical piano recordings on locations quite a bit. That was a unit I heavily modified for my particular liking.

Apart from a problem (at one point it just stopped recognizing digital in), I hated it with great passion!!! The main problem was the way it transfers the files--excruciatingly... painfully S------L------O-------W.

First, I alway had to keep my eye to not to exceed 40 minutes of playlist duration, as otherwise I will need to do all kinds of manipulations to bring the playlist down to that time limit, because that's exactly how long the 24/48 red book can fit on the CD (and the system works so that you can put on CD only entire playlist).

On top of that, you have to wait forever until the damn thing burns the CD--ALMOST real time. So, after the 5 or 6 hours session, instead of relaxing and having a beer or wine with the performer, like an idiot you sit for half a night (about 5-6 hours, to be precise) just making backups and transferring all that crap on CDs???!!! No thanks!!!
Have to admit though, I made some pretty good commercial recordings with that beast.

As far as I am concerned, in that respect I almost feel more comfortable to operate an old reel-to-reel 2 track, or just get something like a Microtrack II, and use its S/PDIF in, together with something like Mini-Me.

As far as laptop concerned... have you ever had a painful experience of hearing crashed computer, beeping like crazy during live performance?
I did! Luckily, that was not me recording, and I'm gonna tell ya, you don't want to be the one in that place .

Best, M

[RickZ]

I had been looking into SD Recorders for years, but when they recently upgraded the 702 to record to Ext FW disk, I bought one. Fabulous. I use a good sized 12V SLA for power, laCie Rugged Ext Drive(250GB, which gives around 130 hours recording time at 24Bit/88.2KHz). You can set the file size to 636 MB, for convenience in writing backup CD-ROM's. When I get home from a gig, just attach Ext Drive to FW cable, copy the .wav files to editing computer.

I then use Samplitude Master to put together all the files on a time line, and bounce the tunes out to another hard drive for editing. The boundaries of the 636MB files are frequently in the middle of songs, but there is no gap.

At the moment I'm using MKH8040 pair with this machine, so far very nice results on choirs.

FWIW,
Rick Z