Olympus DS-40 Digital Voice Recorder

This product works well for me. I used it for recording lectures in a class size of about 400 and the sound was pretty amazing. I would recommend it.

The manual does not specify the most important quality difference between recording in STXQ mode versus STHQ.

STXQ results in 128kbps WMA recording.
STHQ results in 64kbps WMA recording.
Both modes are 44.1KHz 16 bit.

The conclusion is that if you are recording music or otherwise want the highest quality, you must record in STXQ mode.

This is a fantastic recorder. But it is not the ultimate recorder for musicians. For example, see the Zoom H4 or the Olympus LS-10 Linear PCM Recorder.

If you have a Mac or otherwise want to convert the WMA files to the more universally playable MP3 format, consider downloading the EasyWMA program (or one of many other similar free or inexpensive programs). This recorder is compatible with Mac computers if you are willing to convert WMA files after transferring them to your Mac (setting USB class in the DS-40 menu to "Storage Class" allows drag-and-drop from the DS-40 to your PC). The manual does not make this compatibility clear, and might mislead you to think it is only compatible with Windows.

See also the Olympus DS-61 (2GB) and DS-50 (1GB) for basically identical recorders at different price points. The DS-40 is a great bargain for those with more limited budgets or who do not need as much recording capacity. The DS-61 is not yet available on amazon, but is available elsewhere.

If you want an easy-to-use and reliable digital recorder, this one's for you. It took me 5 minutes to learn how to use it. The sound quality is excellent when recording multiple voices in a room. Over the phone, the sound was not as clear but perhaps I could have used a different setting. The disk space is generous, and you can organize recordings into separate file folders.

Outstanding sound quality in stereo. The mono is OK too, but at its lowest quality levels, it produces an annoying metallic echo. I really like the DSS Software Player Plus program (I had to pay $10 to upgrade). It is easy to use. I can split and join files, easily control noise reduction, rename file folders (even templates that appear in the device), and control the recorder's menu. The menu feature is especially great because in the device, the menu display is somewhat cramped---given that there are a ton of options available in the menu. Also, I use Windows Media Player to play files and burn to CD's. I use a hard glasses case to store the recorder in, as it appears delicate. Some are saying it is made of metal---it seems too lightweight to be metal, maybe aluminum??

The timer feature is oustanding. It has settings for daily, weekly and you can set the record quality. And, there are 3 separate timers!

So far, I've recorded a few hours and the battery meter is still on full power with the generic batteries out of the box.

Without the software, the computer recognizes the recorder as "remote storage" and you can easily drag and drop files to other programs, or load them onto free WMA editor software available online.

The audio files are not as easy to e-mail as I thought. A 20 min recording in high quality stereo is about 8 MB, and when I try and attach it to an e-mail, it takes maybe 20 min to load it on there. But I was able to do it.

I looked long and hard for voice recorders before buying this one. And I am well pleased at the quality and sound control features, as well as file management.

Chris (Duluth, MN)

Works excellent, both sides of conversation are clear using the peripheral TP-7 mic cable. The DS-40 is worth the extra expense for the ability to connect the USB seamlessly to drag and drop the 'non-proprietary file format' WMA files to a PC.