Product Description

The R-09HR is a professional, high-definition recorder that travels light and performs like a heavyweight. With crystal-clear 24/96 fidelity, the R-09HR is the new flagship of EDIROLs award-winning R-series recorders. Includes: Owner s Manual, AC Adaptor, Remote control, Stand, SD Memory Card (512 M bytes), USB cable (Mini-B type), CD-ROM (Pyro Audio Creator LE)

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #184 in Musical Instruments
• Color: black
• Brand: Edirol
• Model: R-09HR
• Released on: 2008-05-01
• Dimensions: 3.35" h x 6.30" w x 8.86" l, 3.00 pounds

Features

• 24-bit/96kHz linear PCM high-resolution, low-noise recording
• High-grade, high-sensitivity stereo condenser microphone built i
• Records to SD or SDHC memory card (Up to 8 GB)
• Preview speaker built in
• Wireless remote controller included

From the Manufacturer
The R-09HR is a professional, high-definition recorder that travels light and performs like a heavyweight. With crystal-clear 24/96 fidelity, the R-09HR is the new flagship of EDIROL’s award-winning R-series recorders.

24bit/96kHz linear PCM + I.A.R.C. (Isolated Adaptive Recording Circuit)
Experience precise audio reproduction, and clarity with a wider dynamic range when using the higher bit and sample rates that the R-09HR offers. The R-09HR supports up to 24bit/96kHz linear PCM recording, which has over twice the digital audio resolution of a standard audio CD. I.A.R.C. is a newly developed, dedicated analog circuit optimized for recording with the R-09HR's onboard A/D converter. Electrolytic capacitors provide stable, reliable power with an independent power source for the analog circuitry, and another power source for the digital circuit board, thus eliminating DC interference between components in the R-09HR. The I.A.R.C. also contributes to high quality, low noise MP3 recording with the R-09HR.

• 24-bit/96kHz linear PCM high-resolution, low-noise recording
• Newly developed Isolated Adaptive Recording Circuit (I.A.R.C.)
• High-grade, high-sensitivity stereo condenser microphone built in
• Records to SD or SDHC memory card (Up to 8 GB)
• Compact, hand-held body for convenient portable use
• Wide view-ability on large OLED (Organic Light-Emitting Diode) display
• Preview speaker built in
• Wireless remote controller included
• High-speed file transfer via USB 2.0 connection to computer
• Cakewalk “pyro Audio Creator LE” wave-editing software included 
  

Professional-grade, high-sensitivity stereo condenser microphone built in
When recording with the R-09HR, there's no extra gear to buy or cables to connect. A professional quality stereo microphone is built right into the unit, complete with a dedicated analog input control, mono/stereo selector, low-cut filter, limiter/AGC (Auto Gain Control), and a gain boost. The onboard electret condenser microphone elements are very compact, ultra-sensitive, and placed to capture three-dimensional sound naturally and accurately. To further avoid possible noise interference from internal components, the microphone housing is separated from the main circuit board…another sign of quality design from EDIROL (For use an external microphone, the R-09HR offers a 1/8” stereo mic input).

Compact, hand-held body allows for convenient portable use
Small enough to fit in a shirt pocket, the R-09HR has a new tactile feel that is easy to grip. It also has a user-friendly graphic display for ultra easy operation. The large 1.5” OLED (Organic Light-Emitting Diode) display provides wide view-ability, at-a-glance level meters, peak indicators, and additional recording information on the screen.

Preview Monitor (Small Speaker) built in
Without headphones, you can easily check out the recorded sounds right after the recording, thanks to the preview monitor on rear panel.

Wireless remote controller included
With the included wireless remote controller, transport functions such as recording start/playback start, fast forward, rewind, volume control, and input level control can be accessed from a distance away. This allows the R-09HR to be placed in exactly the right position for recording, and allows for quick and easy touch-less operation.

High-speed file transfer via USB 2.0 connection to computer
The R-09 can connect to the outside world via USB for importing/exporting audio files to a computer very quickly. The R-09HR supports Hi-Speed USB (USB 2.0) mass storage so file transfers are very quick and convenient. The R-09HR comes with Cakewalk’s “pyro Audio Creator LE” CD-ROM. This software is perfect for WAV/MP3 audio file editing; to trim cut, or fade audio sections, to burn audio collections to CD, publish a web page with sounds, to publish a blog with audio, to podcast an interview or performance, and so on. With “pyro” the R-09HR package becomes truly a complete recording solution suite from recording to CD-burning.

Wide variety of optional accessories
Perfect for many recording applications from rehearsals, recitals, concerts, interviews, podcasts, research, photo journaling, law enforcement, to nature and field recording, and business meetings, the R-09HR optional accessories are useful to pros and novices alike.

*Cakewalk “pyro Audio Creator LE” is compatible with Windows Vista and Windows XP.

Customer Reviews

Top quality field recorder
The Edirol R-09HR is an amazing device. It looks a bit like an electric shaver and fits in the palm of your hand. A friend of mine has the Zoom H4 which is much larger, has cheap plastic finishing and a clumsy user interface. Although the H4 may have a few extra features the Edirol R-09HR is much better made and designed and I think it is a better buy.

I read reviews about its predecessor the Edirol R-09 WAVE/MP3 Recorder and the main gripe seemed to be about the flimsy battery cover at the base. Well Edirol obviously reads the reviews since they have changed to a sliding battery cover on the back of the device. The device itself is covered with a sort of rubberised material and it feels solid and sturdy (I think the old version was smooth hard plastic). The flap at the bottom where the batteries were kept on the R-09 is now just used for the SD card and USB port. It is made of the same flexible rubber and doesn't look in any danger of breaking off.

From what I can gather from comparing with R-09 reviews, the following are the other new features on the R-09HR
- Higher resolution recording (that's what the HR stands for) with sampling rates up to 96kHz
- Support for SD/SDHC cards up to 32GB (It comes with a 512MB card and I bought an 8GB card for mine).
- A built in monitor speaker to play back the sound without needing to use headphones (not that useful because the sound quality is not great)
- A wireless remote control for hands free operation (this is handy)
- A speed control which allows you to vary the playback speed (without varying the pitch). This is great for transcribing.

I was impressed at the intuitive interface. It comes with a detailed instruction book as well as an owner's guide though you can master the controls in no time. Basically you just press the record button once, set the levels and then press it again to start recording. The owner's guide is helpful because it suggests what settings to use and where to position the device in various different recording situations (recording band, vocals, meetings, outside, individual instruments, etc). Once you are done recording you can just connect it to your PC and pull down the files. It also comes with Cakewalk Pyro Audio Creator software to help you edit your recordings and help you create CDs.

I bought this device to record my music practice (I play trumpet and guitar) and to record the rehearsals and performances of my jazz band. I am not an expert, but the recording quality sounds great to me.

The only problem I have is not with the device itself but the accessories - they seem a bit overpriced and the descriptions are a bit confusing (maybe even misleading). If you want to mount the device on a microphone stand (which is handy if you are recording an ensemble) you would think you would just need to buy the Edirol Microphone Stand Adapter, however read the fine print and you will see that you also need the Edirol Cover and Stand for the R-09HR (at the time of this review not currently available at Amazon).

Whatever you do, don't do what I did and order the Edirol Cover and Stand for the R-09 since it doesn't fit the R-09HR! The R-09 must have been slightly smaller.

Nevertheless, I think the device itself is very good value so I am happy to excuse the hassles I have had with the accessories.

Good product, questionable company
As everyone else has noted this is truly an amazing sound recording device. It is accurate, easy to use, and durable. The sound resolution can be adjusted across a wide range depending on how much memory you want to use for your recording (or how detailed a recording you want, your priorities are your own :0). I am particularly impressed by the fact that though the mikes are only two inches apart you clearly get a stereo recording. That is good engineering.

The sound editing software that comes with the unit is a bit complex to figure out, but very useful once you do. For instance, I made a recording at low gain that ended up too low to hear easily. I was able to go in and raise the gain of the whole recording. I was then able to take the original wave file and save as an MP3 to make it easier to share. Nifty.

My only misgivings are about the customer support from Edirol. The first unit I was shipped did not work (the computer didn't see it when it was connected). When I called customer service first he asked me all the obvious questions, things I would never have called without checking first, and then he said, "You need to go out and buy a new cable." I wasn't amused since I just bought the whole thing brand new. I was not rude but I asked why I would need to go out and spend more money to get my brand new product to work. He immediately got very defensive, said "I am just a tech rep", put me on hold, and handed me off to someone else whom he had clearly briefed that I was a "problem" customer. She was just shy of rude from the moment she came on the line. At that point I just said, "Screw this" and I sent the unit back to the seller who promptly sent me a new one that works fine.

Everything is fine right now, but I worry what will happen if I ever need tech/warranty support from Edirol.

Edirol/Roland R-09HR Field Recorder
After a year's use of the R-09, Roland released this updated version with simplified controls, more options, a nicer case (rubberized!) and the ability to choose between AGC and LIMITER. I had been very impressed with the original R-09, but find the "HR" to be a great improvement!

On the 4th of July I took it to a fireworks display to try out the difference between AGC and the LIMITER. I quickly found that the limiter worked much better than AGC for this application. There was no "AGC Pumping" while using the limiter, and no distortion. AGC would be better for recording meetings with people sitting at varying distances.