M-Audio Microtrack 2496 review

After testing out the Edirol R-09, (see previous blog review) I decided to go ahead and get an M-Audio Microtrack 2496 recorder.

Here's my quick positives list:
- supports 24bit 96kHz recording
- has 1/4" jack line inputs
- records to Compact Flash cards, which can be really BIG.
- can operate bus powered.
- can record uncompressed WAV and MP3
- microphone is not physically attached to body - less handling noise.
- has a phantom power mode.

And the negatives:
- you can't change the batteries
- can only charge via the USB cable
- boot time is quite slow
- supports only older slower CF memory cards.
- phantom power mode is only for electret / ENG style mics. Forget about using a Neumann.

Because it can only charge via the USB cable, I found that I needed to carry a iPod power adapter or something when travelling.

I've since tried it out in MP3 mode recording a few live gigs and ambiences, and it gets the job done quite well, given the price tag. Of course, it's not a truely professional box - no real phantom power for really nice mics.

Testing
With this box, I did some serious testing of the input quality. Thanks to Vic Kaspar at DSV we used a Neumann U87 connected to a Summit valve mic pre. This particular mic pre has a balanced output (+4dBu), which was connected to a Yamaha O2R and recorded via AES/EBU into Pro Tools; and an unbalanced output (-10dBV) which was connected directly to the Microtrack recorder.

The result was astounding. At first, the Yamaha O2R achieved a much cleaner and more natural sound. It turns out that even with the level coming out of the mic pre at -10dBV reference, it was too hot for the Microtrack recorder. Once we turned down the output of the mic pre, we achieved very similar results between the O2R and the Microtrack. Still, the O2R had a bit more of a natural quality and clarity to the sound, even with the volume turned down and leaving about 20dB unused headroom in the Pro Tools session.

We did this test to find out what the converters are really like, without the bias of the toy microphone that comes with it.

The toy mic, does have a surprising amount of stereo width in recordings. For example: recording traffic - sit the box on the side of the road and listen to the recordings and you get quite a realistic stereo impression of the cars going past. BUT the effect is much more noticeable on headphones, and less noticeable on speakers - I guess due to the fact that the capsules are only about 4cm apart.

All in all, its a good box for its price, but its worth knowing its limitations.