Tascam iM2 in the house - A review

[uspino]

So I finally got the iM2 (they are in stock at B&H) and I thought I might as well share my impressions.

First thing first, this thing is not small and light, it is extremely small and ridiculously light. I can't feel any difference in weight when it is plugged in. Even the package is minuscule. I don't think anybody is going to be able to spot it at the Apple Store when it gets there, that's how small the box is.

Now, on to more important matters: stability and sound quality. Connection-wise, it works as advertised. You plug it in, the blue light turns on immediately and you are ready to record on any audio App, from Garage Band to Skype, and, of course, on my all-time favorite, TwistedWave (the Tascam App is nice but there's nothing too fancy on it). The dock connector is long enough to fit securely in place but not long enough to satisfy bumper-case users: you'll have to take out the iPhone to plug the Tascam unit. Oh well.

I've tested on an iPad 2 and an iPhone 4S.

If you plug in some headphones you can monitor the input in real time, but beware: if you use a headset, the mic on the headset will be the input source and the Tascam unit will be ignored. This is clearly stated in the Instructions Manual that miraculously fits in the Lilliputian box.

And when you finally press Record, $79.99 (+ $1.60 for next day delivery at B&H!) suddenly looks like a fair price to pay: the sound quality is terrific, almost glorious. Audiophile tests will sure be made and people will complain about this and that, but from a standard user point of view, this absurdly tiny piece of hardware is going to put my Zoom H2n to rest (by rest I mean eBay). Stereo separation is impeccable and input volume control on the side is handy. If I'm forced to complain about something, I'd say the capsules are too sensitive: they captured a clock ticking on the wall 10 feet away from me. On their defense, Tascam probably threw some sort of windscreen inside the device because there's no popping effect when you talk to the mic a few inches away from your mouth. As expected, handling noise gets into the recording if you move your fingers on the iPhone while recording (which is a problem on most handheld recorders). All in all, this might be as good as it gets in terms of portability and quality. I'm sure the Sony PCM-M10 gives you a slightly better dynamic range, but nothing beats the outstanding versatility of the iPhone audio applications.

I haven't tried the limiter but I assume it will work as advertised. Tascam says in the box that the limiter allows anyone to record "live music, conferences and auto racing", which is a curious mix of activities and assumes the user has a pretty cool life.

You can charge while recording trough the USB port on the side. One final note, I'm really disappointed by the fact that Tascam chose a design that does not include a Line-In connection. Journalists like me feel totally let down. Let's now join in prayer for v2.0.

[Dewaine]

Looks like a slick piece of gear! Nice review!

No use for one myself, but I can see it's value.

[knockman]

At last! I've been waiting for another user to confirm it works. Thanks uspino.

I too can vouch for the pristine qualities. I haven't used it for any critical recordings or tested it widely, such as close miking in noisy environments, but I've used it for work (presentation training) and had excellent results.

When I get a chance to do some of my own recording I hope to post a sample.

One reason I bought it was to use with the video app on my iPod, both for work and my own stuff. It finally means getting a half decent audio track to match the HD video. That makes a huge difference

Finally, I hope to hear from another iPod user as I've had no success connecting the iM2 directly, I can only get it to work via a dock extension cable. So in my case it doesn't work 'as advertised' but surely, that's a problem with my hardware. Still I'd like to know others are working fine. Currently, it means I have to use this ridiculous set-up for video recording:



Hardly hand-held convenience, but the quality worth it for now.

In fact, in many video situations, having the iM2 separate from the iOS device will be an advantage. Perhaps I'll invest in a longer extension cable.

The quality really is pristine.

[olja]

At last! I've been waiting for another user to confirm it works. Thanks uspino.

I too can vouch for the pristine qualities. I haven't used it for any critical recordings or tested it widely, such as close miking in noisy environments, but I've used it for work (presentation training) and had excellent results.

When I get a chance to do some of my own recording I hope to post a sample.

One reason I bought it was to use with the video app on my iPod, both for work and my own stuff. It finally means getting a half decent audio track to match the HD video. That makes a huge difference

Finally, I hope to hear from another iPod user as I've had no success connecting the iM2 directly, I can only get it to work via a dock extension cable. So in my case it doesn't work 'as advertised' but surely, that's a problem with my hardware. Still I'd like to know others are working fine. Currently, it means I have to use this ridiculous set-up for video recording:


Hardly hand-held convenience, but the quality worth it for now.

In fact, in many video situations, having the iM2 separate from the iOS device will be an advantage. Perhaps I'll invest in a longer extension cable.

The quality really is pristine.

Thanks for the reviews and info, uspino and knockman. Very close to getting this. Does it seem to work with every app that records audio? Could you possibly list the apps you have tried? And maybe put up a sound example, just recording some ambience in a room or so?

[ObiWonder]

At last! I've been waiting for another user to confirm it works. Thanks uspino.

I too can vouch for the pristine qualities. I haven't used it for any critical recordings or tested it widely, such as close miking in noisy environments, but I've used it for work (presentation training) and had excellent results.

When I get a chance to do some of my own recording I hope to post a sample.

One reason I bought it was to use with the video app on my iPod, both for work and my own stuff. It finally means getting a half decent audio track to match the HD video. That makes a huge difference

Finally, I hope to hear from another iPod user as I've had no success connecting the iM2 directly, I can only get it to work via a dock extension cable. So in my case it doesn't work 'as advertised' but surely, that's a problem with my hardware. Still I'd like to know others are working fine. Currently, it means I have to use this ridiculous set-up for video recording:



Hardly hand-held convenience, but the quality worth it for now.

In fact, in many video situations, having the iM2 separate from the iOS device will be an advantage. Perhaps I'll invest in a longer extension cable.

The quality really is pristine.

You should take a look at our iKlip MINI to hold your iPod Touch.

[darsho]

At last! I've been waiting for another user to confirm it works. Thanks uspino.

I too can vouch for the pristine qualities. I haven't used it for any critical recordings or tested it widely, such as close miking in noisy environments, but I've used it for work (presentation training) and had excellent results.

When I get a chance to do some of my own recording I hope to post a sample.

One reason I bought it was to use with the video app on my iPod, both for work and my own stuff. It finally means getting a half decent audio track to match the HD video. That makes a huge difference

Finally, I hope to hear from another iPod user as I've had no success connecting the iM2 directly, I can only get it to work via a dock extension cable. So in my case it doesn't work 'as advertised' but surely, that's a problem with my hardware. Still I'd like to know others are working fine. Currently, it means I have to use this ridiculous set-up for video recording:



Hardly hand-held convenience, but the quality worth it for now.

In fact, in many video situations, having the iM2 separate from the iOS device will be an advantage. Perhaps I'll invest in a longer extension cable.

The quality really is pristine.

You should take a look at our iKlip MINI to hold your iPod Touch.

no, please don't.

Loving that creative setup you have, that's awesome, way better then to just buy something readymade

[jseale]

At last! I've been waiting for another user to confirm it works. Thanks uspino.

I too can vouch for the pristine qualities. I haven't used it for any critical recordings or tested it widely, such as close miking in noisy environments, but I've used it for work (presentation training) and had excellent results.

When I get a chance to do some of my own recording I hope to post a sample.

One reason I bought it was to use with the video app on my iPod, both for work and my own stuff. It finally means getting a half decent audio track to match the HD video. That makes a huge difference

Finally, I hope to hear from another iPod user as I've had no success connecting the iM2 directly, I can only get it to work via a dock extension cable. So in my case it doesn't work 'as advertised' but surely, that's a problem with my hardware. Still I'd like to know others are working fine. Currently, it means I have to use this ridiculous set-up for video recording:


Hardly hand-held convenience, but the quality worth it for now.

In fact, in many video situations, having the iM2 separate from the iOS device will be an advantage. Perhaps I'll invest in a longer extension cable.

The quality really is pristine.

Thanks for the reviews and info, uspino and knockman. Very close to getting this. Does it seem to work with every app that records audio? Could you possibly list the apps you have tried? And maybe put up a sound example, just recording some ambience in a room or so?

It works great in MOST applications. What I've discovered is that some third party Video apps don't use this as the audio device. Notably AlmostDSLR and Filmic. I've contacted both companies and both have said they would 'look into' support of external audio devices. I sincerely hope they do, as those are two of my favorite video apps. Evernote works like a charm and my recordings a re pristine.

I have, however noticed some weird noise when I use a 6 foot extension. The 2 foot extension works great and lets me mount the microphone to get true left-right audio with the camera.

[KungKrille]

I read the specs and only iPhone 4 models are listed. Does it really not work on 3GS? It would be a quite expensive mic if I had to upgrade the phone too