OVERVIEW:
There are a lot of features I like about this recorder, including the numerical gain control (more precise than turning a dial) and a large, single button to start and stop recording. Also, it’s small and lightweight and really good for mounting to a camera cage, because it doesn’t add much weight.

MAIN POINTS:
PART 1: IS IT PORTABLE?
PART 2: IS IT AFFORDABLE?
PART 3: IS IT COMMON?
PART 4: HOW’S THE QUALITY?
PART 5: IS IT EASY TO USE?
PART 6: NEEDS ADD-ONS?
PART 7: WHERE DO I BUY?

PART 1: IS IT PORTABLE?
Yes, it's very small and lightweight.

PART 2: IS IT AFFORDABLE?
Yes, it still pretty affordable, if you can find one.

PART 3: IS IT COMMON?
This used to be the most common audio recorder on the used market (besides maybe the Zoom H4n) because it was also the best budget audio recorder, for over 10 years. Now, it's becoming rare (the version 1).

PART 4: HOW’S THE QUALITY?
It is truly capable of creating good quality audio recordings, and there are custom settings on our website that really help...but this is from pre-32-bit float days...

PART 5: IS IT EASY TO USE?
Before 32-bit float audio recorders existed, this was probably the easiest good audio recorder to use...but now the skills required to manually set the audio levels would probably be considered difficult (in comparison).

PART 6: NEEDS ADD-ONS?
Yes, it needs a furry windscreen (I use both indoors and outdoors, so the sound/EQ is the same) and it needs a shock mount.

PART 7: WHERE DO I BUY?
There are a lot of these (the version 1) available on the used market, and there are even a few new ones up there on Amazon.

RECOMMENDATION:
This used to be the first audio recorder I would buy. It still does provide a good learning experience (as opposed to getting into a 32-bit float recorder right away) and it also has a lot of features that make it a great tool to keep on hand, but for about the same price you can get the 32-bit float version of this, so that is what I recommend.

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These reviews are just my opinion and are focused on my Q.P.A.C.E. packing method, so they're not comprehensive. I wrote these mostly to help me remember what items worked for my KIT PLANS (and which didn't). If I said anything negative I apologize, as these products still may work well for you in your situation, but they were not Q.P.A.C.E (Quality, Portable, Affordable, Common, Easy-to-Use) enough for my budget filmmaking KIT PLANS.