PCM-D50: First Look
- From: "Soundhaspriority" <nowhere@xxxxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Tue, 14 Oct 2008 19:07:47 -0400
For those of you who miss high end audio mags, this post is written in the
style of one.
I have one of these in my hot little hands:
http://pro.sony.com/bbsc/ssr/product-PCMD50/ The history of Sony is writ
large in the creative use of plastic, but someone at Sony, for twisted
reasons we can only imagine, determined to endow this device with high end
fit and finish. It shares more in the details of construction with a $2K+
Sound Devices recorder than with the general tastes of the mpeg
convenient-pocket crowd. To wit: a diecast aluminum frame, pressed aluminum
front and back panels, and even a hard crystal LCD panel, obviating the
scratch haze syndrome. All this came with the PCM-M1, but embodied here at a
quarter the price. In other words, the mechanical construction is dazzlingly
good. Sony advertises that it's built on four separate circuit boards to
reduce noise. And, poking a stick at the mpeg crowd, it doesn't record
mpeg!, although it can play it back.
It feels good in the hand, in a nonviolent way. It is alarmingly light, but
installation of four NiMH AA cells diminshes that concern, allowing
concentration on the jewel-like quality of the visible construction. It
accepts a Memory Stick Duo HG card, a particular type rated for 30
megabytes/second continuous read/write performance. I do not know why such
speed is required, but to hold twelve gigabytes in the palm of one's hand,
all runnable off AA's for many hours, inspires a moment reflection even for
the jaded.
To remain inspired, one has to pass over the built-in microphones as
irrelevant to the equation. The PCM-M1 has been acclaimed for the
performance of the entire signal chain, beginning with the built-in
microphones. The crudest of tests, with external microphones, conducted in
my family room, indicates that this is not so for the M50. I played a
bit-mapped version of "Daphnis and Chloe" over Polk Lsi15's, while listening
to the monitor out of the PCM-M1 on Sennheiser HX300 in-ears. In order of
perceived pleasure, the results were:
built-in mikes: Worst
18 year-old Sony ECM-959A mid-side microphone: Better
pair of Audio-Technica AT33R electret cardioids, one with noisy MOSFET and
diminished gain, phantom powered via a Dencke phantom supply: Even better
pair of Studio Projects C-4 externally biased, Schoeps-inspired, with
cardioid and hyper capsules, phantom powered via Dencke: Now we're cookin!
The absence of balanced inputs appears to be unproblematic, especially as
the design of the input jack reveals a desire to isolate the sleeve of TRS
from the body. A simple adapter cable and phantom supply interface to
professional mikes of any caliber. The preamp has tons of gain, enough for
harp or clavier with low output mikes. With respect to noise, the onus
appears to be entirely on the mikes, which surprised me, considering the
specifications.
Yet this is all promise. The Sony draws but a third of a watt per channel.
To come close to the promise of fit-and-finish, it has to fly in the face of
conventional audio wisdom: the more power something draws, the better it
will sound. This is like a law of audio gravity, modifiable, perhaps, with
parachutes, but book ended by "Everything that goes up must come down." So,
when I take it out, and examine the results, perhaps I shall have a
come-down.
But this is an enabling device. With the recorder, a Smith-Victor 10 foot
stand that weighs 3 lbs, and a single-point microphone attached via a skinny
cord, it becomes the I-Reporter of "found music." For my strange musical
tastes, which include the Romanian accordianist playing in the roar of the
subway, it's Pepsi. It brings it back alive. Hopefully, it will build
bridges into situations allowing more scope and elaboration.
To be continued, after first use.
Bob Morein
(310) 237-6511
.
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