Olympus DM-520 - Manual (Page 10)

D I G I T A L T E C H N I C A L S U P P O R T
O L Y M P U S I M A G I N G A M E R I C A I N C .
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Olympus Imaging America Inc. Page 10 of 15 Last updated on September 25, 2009
Usage
How is the recorder turned off?
The recorder is turned off by sliding the [ POWER/HOLD] control on the right underside
of the recorder downward and then releasing it. The switch should then be moved
upward to the
HOLD position to prevent accidental activation of button functions.
Which recording quality mode should I use?
Different quality modes save the digital record of a signal with different levels of faithfulness
to the original sound. The ST XQ and ST HQ modes are recommended for music, drama or
interviews that may be made for broadcast because they make very detailed digital records
of the sound and use a very wide frequency range.
Lower-quality modes, such as SP (Standard Play) and LP (Long Play), make a less-detailed
digital record of the signal and use a narrower frequency range so they will use up the
available Flash memory much more slowly. These modes are best used for audio note
taking or recording college lectures or seminars – situations in which large content capacity
is more important than high audio quality.
How do I select which type of memory to use?
The selection of built-in memory or removable memory card is made in the menu. When
a microSD or microSDHC card is inserted in the card slot for the first time and the
recorder is turned on, the option to select the memory mode is displayed on the start-up
screen. Thereafter the selection needs to be made in the
Device Menu through the
Memory Select function.
The available options are
Built-in Memory and microSD Card. MicroSD and
microSDHC cards from 512MB to 16 GB can be used. For optimum performance, it is
advised to format the card the first time it is put in the recorder. If the card is being
used for dictation and files are frequently erased, it is advisable to routinely download all
of the files to a computer and format the card to keep it free of a build-up of artifacts of
previous files. Occasional formatting of the built-in memory using the menu
Format
function is also advised.
One advantage of recording to removable media is that multiple cards can be used to
organize content (e.g. one can hold podcasts and another can hold a music library).
How is recording volume controlled?
By default, the DM-520 records automatically at 100% volume level to prevent accidentally
recording with the volume set too low.
The recorder has three levels of microphone sensitivity:
• High: The highest recording sensitivity, it is suitable for conferences with large
crowds and recording audio at a distance or low volume.
• Middle: Suitable for recording meetings and seminars with a small number of people.
• Low: The lowest recording sensitivity, it is suitable for close-up dictation.
Microphone sensitivity is set via the MIC SENSE option in the recorder’s menu.
The DM-520 also allows the user to manually preset a fixed recording level using the
Rec Level > Manual option in the recorder’s menu. It also disables the limiter. The
limiter automatically adjusts the recording level to prevent “clipping.” Clipping occurs
when the recording level allows sound levels beyond the dynamic range of a recording
device to be recorded. The result is distortion in the louder portions of the recording.