[Gerald Mucci]

I just purchased a DR40 a week ago and recorded my first MP3 speech today. I have the same “artifact” throughout the recording. It is a high mid frequency metallic scratchy, squeally sound, similar to the sound created by a worn out cassatte tape. There was no loudspeaker in the room so that is a poor excuse for a poor, artifact-laden recording on MP3. I used the internal mics on the DR40.

As with your experience, the recorded voice came across strong and clear. The artifact is annoying. Needless to say, I expected a better MP3 recording.

In the process of preparing this message I discovered the optional quality levels for MP3 recording: 32 (which is what I ignorantly chose), 64, 96, 128, 192, 256, and 320 kilobits per second. I’m sure even setting it at 64 K bps would have eliminated the artifacts. It would have been nice if the manual provided a warning about the consequences of a low MP3 bit rate.

The manual states that an SD card up to 32 GB can be used. That is 16 times the values of recording time for a 2 GB card indicated in the manual.