Hi Dave,

Yes, 700 & 800 series I think are the last ones with external mic option for recording & I'm quite satisfied with the result to record dialog or speech (in MP3 160kbps). But if I missed something here (that it could actually record in PCM mode), I'd be interested to know. :)

iRiver used to have a couple of very nice models, i think maybe the PD40 and PD80 or something like that, that had 40GB/80GB hard drives and would record line in or mic in to PCM files. These files had a .wav extension. Connect the unit through USB and it showed up as a drive letter. Simply drag the files to your computer's drive or vice versa for transfer.

Sadly, these models seem to have disappeared. The new ones only support compressed formats and probably don't have the simple file transfer option. I'm wondering if they had too much pressure put on them by other manufacturers and the RIAA.

SONY's newest version of the MiniDisc format has 1GB discs and uncompressed PCM recording. They're pricey, but they may do what you want.

I don't think current iRivers or the 799 record in anything but mp3 mode. Knowing of Spot's Eternal Quest for Honkin' Sweet Audio, he wouldn't/doesn't recommend this new crop. Either iRiver changed their format after the article posted or it's a minor typo - maybe "iRiver-style devices, provided you're recording in PCM vs. MP3" is more acurate? And as far as MD goes, Sony HighMD is better than MD.

Looking at how each newer generation of theirs are getting worse in term of the recording ability, it might be possible that they really did get a lot of pressure by other manufacturers and the RIAA. That's sad.

I know there's a lot of other devices can record PCM (wav) (i.e. M-Audio Microtrack 24/96, Edirol R-1, etc), but they are relatively much bigger in size than the 700 model that you just can put in the speaker's pocket.

Which article of Spot's are you refering to. I'd like to check it out.

I too have looked for the iRiver with PCM and haven't found it. They did have several models, but seemed to have discontinued them. The only one I found with the line input here locally required an optional docking station for line in, but the store couldn't find any information on where to get the option.

That having been said, I have a tiny Samsung I bought for mp3 playback and was extremely surprised to hear how good the voice recorder was with the built in mic. It has a line input, but I haven't tried it yet. It does encode to MP3, but you can set the bitrate extremely high. It also was the only one I found that listed the specs on the FM tuner. The sensitivity and adjacent chanel performance are quite good for something this size (equivalent to specs for some automobile tuners), and I have been really pleased with the tuner - aside from some quirks with setting channel presets It also has a timer setting to record from the tuner at a preset time. I've used it to catch Prairie Home Companion for later playback with it just sitting on the dresser unattended.

All this in a package about 2 x 1 x 3/4 inches - amazing!

Plasmavideo, here's the link: HDV Audio vs ATRAC

What's the highest bitrate you can set on your Samsung? iRiver is 320kbps (stereo) / 160kbps (mono). The quality is really good & I found out about this from a lot of videographers talking about it in videouniversity forum. I think it was GmElliott who also posted a recording sample out of iRiver and I bought the product right away.