Marantz PMD661 Portable SD Recorder

by Marantz

Product Features

• Digital recording at 44.1/48/96 kHz fs at 16 or 24-bit quantization
• Uses stable, reliable SD or SDHC memory cards
• WAV (Broadcast WAV File) or MP3 recording format
• Large, easy-to-read OLED display
• Ergonomic, one-touch transport controls

Product Details

• Item Weight: 2.8 pounds
• Shipping Weight: 3.1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• ASIN: B001O9X51W
• Item model number: PMD661
• Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (14 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,930 in Musical Instruments (See Top 100 in Musical Instruments)
  • #20 in Musical Instruments > Recording Equipment > Portable Recorders

Product Description

The PMD661 from Marantz is a professional-quality stereo field audio recorder that packs a wealth of recording, playback and editing features into a compact and ergonomic package. The recorder uses high-quality internal preamps to record pristine sound to SD or SDHC flash memory cards. You can use the on-board microphones or the dual XLR inputs to connect external mics. The jacks will supply +48V phantom power, allowing you to use condenser microphones. You can also use the S/PDIF digital or 3.5mm mini line input to connect other audio sources. Audio files can be recorded as WAV or MP3 at rates up to 24-bit/96kHz.On the output side, you can choose to review your material from the on-board stereo speakers or the 1/4" headphone jack with its own volume control. You can also use the stereo RCA line outputs to connect to a mixer or speakers. A USB 2.0 port allows you to connect to a computer to transfer your files for editing and sharing. The PMD661 provides an intuitive interface with easy-to-use controls and a bright, clear OLED screen. A 10-segment LED meter makes it easy to monitor audio levels at a glance. Designed for a life of mobility, the PMD661 is constructed from durable ABS plastic and can operate for up to 5 hours on 4 standard AA batteries.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

43 of 45 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A compact digital recorder with XLR line level inputs - finally, July 1, 2009

By 

HMMWV "God, Country, Corps" (santa clara, CA USA) - See all my reviews
(TOP 100 REVIEWER)    (VINE VOICE)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Marantz PMD661 Portable SD Recorder (Electronics)

Update Notes: 10/2010: Another buyer asked me to look into the power draw for battery usage reasons. After using the TWO independent battery conservation modes on the 661 (turn off the leds and minimize the big display from 5 rows to just one row of data) the jumpy current waveform settled down to 315 mA DC +/- 15 mA. For battery usage, you can use a 315mA draw for conservative recording power usage estimates. So that perspective users of the 661 can get a feel for it I've uploaded 5 most often seen sample screenshots with notes in the pictures section above. The notes cover what each screen does and how the function keys work. The instruction manual shows you how to wire pushbuttons and resistors to the 4 terminal remote plug which is VERY hard to find (most are 3 terminal - left/right/ground) - you can use the 3 terminal because the only 2 points you need are ground and the tip, but here is the 4 pin version for $0.28 on amazon 6FT 3.5 mm to 3 RCA AV Camcorder Video Cable Sony JVC 6 with this cable and the instructions in the manual you can build your own remote with LEDs and extended switches beyond the marantz remote from the PMD660 Marantz RC600 Mic Mount Remote Control which could be operated by computer or other automated systems. Basically the 4 terminal plugs are becomming more common now. The resistor values chosen for pushbutton operation are common values and easy to find.

UPDATE 8-2010:

I've put alot of hours on my PMD661, made a custom case for it, and now I must report a MINOR negative about a whole class of products (the 661, the H4n, certain flashlights, etc)

While doing flashlight testing on the Fenix TK-40, 'Menace' pointed out that it seemed to drain AA batteries without being used AT ALL while a similar light, the TK30 did not. I confirmed his findings using an inline ampmeter - a small amount of power was flowing with the light turned off. As I measured other products that used the AA NiMH cell, the problem proved to be a bigger issue than just one flashlight.

This "trickle" power is just like your car - leave it in a garage at the airport for 30 days and don't expect the battery to be full when you return. The amount is small, but placing a plastic strip between a battery and the spring then routing it out of the battery compartment will stop the power from flowing. The "off" power is higher on the PMD661 because it has a timer and can turn itself on for play or record functions with preprogrammed times which other recorders can not do.

Update 9-12-2009 - I just returned from a cruise ship using the 661. I used a Canon hs-10 avchd camera for capturing the main stage video and the 661 to plug into the ship's mixing board for audio. The ship's audio engineer was excited to see the 661 and hapily pulled out an XLR patch cord set to give me the house mix line level out, which was recorded in the same lossless format (24bit/48 khz) used by the camcorder audio making synchronization in adobe premiere pro a breeze. The final benefit was hearing the show audio as it left the mixing board to the amps instead of being picked up by the camera set on a tripod in the audience full of echo and laughter, clapping etc. The final production to blu-ray disc sounded like I was right on stage with the camera. The marantz ALC circuit performed better than expected and prevented digital clipping while maximizing dynamic range. End of edit.
[ACTUAL PRODUCT REVIEW BEGINS HERE]

When Marantz added a line level XLR input that bypassed the microphone preamps as opposed to just a mic level input in the 660 (prior model) I finally jumped at it. Since I work alot of mixing boards I have access to the final stereo mixdown at line level voltages. Whats the big deal? Recording at line level gives you 20dB more signal to noise - thats 100 times better for those who don't speak dB - compared to mic level xlr inputs. Also recorders that put an attenuator in front of microphone amplifiers tend to be noisy - marantz is not built this way (the H4n I use for MIC level recordings is - it is not well suited to line level input because it must attenuate the signal to 0.8% before recording it) If you look at your dvd player at home all the outputs are line level simply to get rid of noise. With such a fabulous recorder, why in the world would you want 100 times more noise in your recordings?

There are many other factors Marantz did that made the 661 the optimum professional recorder to get - the display is bright and easy to read under all lighting conditions, they used a 1/4" headphone jack so the little 3.5mm headphones wouldn't pull out at the worst moment (another pro move) - and they improved the case quality. There is also a digital input for people who are 100% digital already, however it stops at 44.1/48 KHz sampling.

Given these features, the PMD-661 sits head and antlers above all the other compact recorders out there offering professional connectivity at an economical price. It's also fully customizable - the bright display is dimmable through 8 steps for indoor club use at night, and it features dual rca line level outputs for analog playback. About the only thing I would like to have seen would be a worldclock input for synchronizing analog recordings to digital cameras, but the size of the bnc connector would have nixed that option in this handheld product.

Prices are starting to drop - I bought in early but you can save 50 bucks off the original price. Good job Marantz (from a former dedicated tascam fan!)

PROS:

+2 levels of power saving (dual VU meter cutoff and 5 line down to 1 line OLED display) - both are independent of each other
+runs on AC power through a 5V converter and also runs off USB power when doing file transfers
+Easy to create multiple folders and levels within them using the 4-way rocker buttons for character selection - in fact naming your settings is also easy.
+remote control is customizable with just resistors and switches if you know how to solder and need to operate it by computer or other external devices
+XLR ins are well designed and quiet compared to other products on the market.
+1/8" line level TRS input as well lets you use a 3.5mm trs male to male jumper for recording computer outputs
+digital input as well [COAX] - I purchased a Cables to Go 40019 Optical to Coaxial Digital Audio Converter (Black) when needed for $13
+2 ea built in mics as the 4th source
+tripod mount
+pre-record buffer captures 3 seconds of audio prior to entering record
+standard SD card format can be ejected and read on a pc quickly instead of doing USB transfers
+easily updates firmware when improvements are made
+12 hour runtime on 2700 mah nimh cells with full power conservation recording mp3 from XLR in (tested)
+When batteries are exhausted it closes all files and shuts down politely.
+internal stereo speakers can be used to monitor recordings or 1/4" headphones
+rugged, well built design including the battery door which has a large latch to prevent accidental opening or loss
+ALC design is well engineered and not noticable in recordings - seems like it uses fuzzy logic to prevent clipping.
+coaxial manual level adjustment allows for separate l/r level difference and ganged level adjustment of both simultaneously

Cons
-timer based recording draws more "off" power - inserting an insulator made from a plastic battery case easily prevents draining batteries until you need to start if you do not use the timer functions.
-can not entirely shut off the display - most minimal power usage is to shut off LED vu meter and just have one line of text in the OLED window with essential data on it.
-lacks a 1/8" mic in but has a 1/8" stereo TRS line in instead so all mic level voltages must go in via XLRs
-4 input sources but only 3 personalities means one input won't be used without reconfiguring (usually digital in)
-lacks digital out (other than USB and removing SD card)

14 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Skip the Small Fry., December 2, 2009

By 

Coug Moog "s_gil" (York, PA, USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Marantz PMD661 Portable SD Recorder (Electronics)

Yes, the price on this baby is steep. You can get a pretty good Marantz HT receiver for this money.

But what you get for the price of two Edirol HDs is a leap in sound quality, build quality, and ease of use. Build quality may or may not matter in your situation. The way my stuff gets hit in the field, it's important for me. Camera tripod mount is great for this unit--it sets it apart from the mics on mic stands and helps others to notice the piece of high-end gear on the stand and try to be careful around it.

Data dumps are a breeze in Mac and Windows. I've had no file misreads yet, anywhere.

Line-in XLR allows full low-noise field mastering in a multi-mic stereo setup.

hi-res lossless is the selling point for many at this price level. There is simply nothing else at this price point that can do this resolution.

And because of the XLR line ins, your hi-res lossless recordings will have an exceptionally low noise floor.

None of the mid-level digital recorders can do this, and this is why I ponied up.

It sounds so much better than its lower-priced competition that it belongs in this price category beyond them.

If you want Edirol quality sound, Marantz makes the 620 for you, a thoroughly competent unit in its price class.

But if you have significant audio to record and you are willing to spend an extra 300 bucks to get far better audio quality, this unit will make you happy.

16 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Highly reccomended, January 3, 2010

By 

I am el Jeffe (MPLS) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Marantz PMD661 Portable SD Recorder (Electronics)

I'll be brief; First off I will state that I am very particular, and hard to please. I have been in the audio/music/broadcast business about 40 years

I have not used any of the other flash recorders. Prior to purchasing I did heavy research and the PMD661 fit my needs. This has the features I want, and the sound quality is amazing. I have used it with a Rode NT4 stereo mic, a Sennheiser shotgun mic, a Sennheiser broadcast headset, and direct from the console via spdf digital. All produced great recordings.

The internal mics will do in a pinch, but are not the best, and the preamp for the internal mic is noisy. The external mic preamps are clean and quiet. At first I though there was a lot of noise, but it turns out to be from the headphone amp. The actual files sound great.

Transferring tracks is a breeze
The design and build quality are fantastic

cons;
Headphone amp is VERY weak - seriously. I would pay for a mod.
Software included is for Windows only
Internal mics pick up a lot of handling noise.
No timecode sync

Cost - a bit high but then - well you get what you pay for. This is suitable for professional work.

My purchase through Amazon was quick and easy as usual.

Buy one. You will not be disappointed