TEST: Olympus LS-100

 Olympus LS-100 or "from the microcassette to the handheld champions league". Of course, the first thing that comes to mind when the name of the Japanese manufacturer is mentioned is always cameras. Nevertheless, the inventor of the microcassette has developed into one of the global players in the field of handheld digital recorders through a consistent model policy. With the products LS-12 and LS-14, the Asian company achieved more than just a respectable success due to the consistently very good sound, which they now want to top with the current successor LS-100.


Dimensions

Like its predecessors, the Olympus LS-100 is small and handy. With the dimensions (W x H x D): 70 x 159 x 33.5 mm and a weight of just under 280 grams, it is above the data of its predecessors, but can still be easily held in the hand for a longer time. For tripod use, the Olympus LS-100 has a screw thread on the back of the housing. With the included Camera Connection Kit, the Olympus LS-100 can be screwed onto the hot shoe of an appropriate camera to add the right sound to a high-quality video.



Microphone

In contrast to the other representatives of the LS series from Olympus, the LS-100, which is manufactured in China, has an elaborate microphone circuit, which is reflected, among other things, in the provision of two different phantom voltages (24V / 48V) for the use of external condenser microphones. In general, I welcome a choice of options, but why Olympus includes the outdated standard of 24V phantom power in its setup is not really clear to me. I've also had colleagues confirm that some 48V condenser mic types work quite well with 24V, but I still see the choice as more of a mismatch than a real gain. Oh well, a power saving and an associated increase in battery life puts this circuit in a better light.

While the XLR connectors have been placed at the bottom of the case, the internally installed condenser microphones are on the top. The microphones are screwed tightly at a 90 degree angle and cannot be rotated or changed in angle.



Accessories

If you open the packaging, you'll find a comparatively spartan basic configuration. Besides a USB 2.0 cable, there is also a small USB adapter, a multilingual manual and a short stereo mini jack cable. The corresponding lithium-ion battery is also included, but an additional memory card and a power supply for the charging process are missing. Fortunately, the Olympus LS-100 has an internal flash memory of 3.2 GB, which is completely sufficient for the first activities. Additional SD/SDHC cards can be used via a card slot for a larger recording capacity.

In terms of charger, however, you have to resort to the included products its smartphones / tablets or the USB port of its computer. Further extras like a windshield or a remote control are not included and can only be ordered in the Olympus store for a hefty surcharge.



optics

The fact that the Olympus LS-100 is in the premier league of handheld recording is not only evident from the variety of connections around the housing. The product also knows how to please in terms of looks. The plastic case is not too clumsy and yet of high quality in terms of stability. In addition, unlike many of its competitors, the product has a color display, which makes work a lot easier and prevents signs of fatigue.

In addition to an obligatory control pad, the top of the Olympus LS-100 has three additional navigation buttons, two playback speed buttons and three freely configurable function buttons, which enable a personalized working environment.



recording formats

The Olympus LS-100 works with the standard values of 24-bit word length at a sample rate of 96 kHz. With the internally built-in memory, you can achieve a recording time of almost 90 minutes. However, if you can manage with lower values (44.1 kHz, 48 kHz, mono), you can get up to about 10 hours (44.1 kHz mono). With an MP3 recording format, on the other hand, the recording times explode. At 320 kbps, 22 hours can already be realized, at 64 kbps mono it is almost 114 hours. If you now add an optional 64 GB memory card, you can theoretically record 1081 hours at 128 kbps. Makes music or voice messages non-stop for almost 45 days. The NSA is looking forward to a hole in the stomach.

As an added bonus, Olympus has also given its protégé a chromatic tuner, a metronome and the option of a Lissajous measurement. With the latter you can check the phase purity of the microphones by emitting a sinusoidal tone.


Practice

The correct recording level can now be set using the two potentiometers on the right-hand side of the housing. Even if you can choose between two compressor and limiter algorithms at the factory, it is still advisable to set an optimized level using the rotary controls. If you were looking forward to the multitracking area, you will unfortunately have to lower your expectations a bit. Unfortunately, real multi-track recordings are not possible, additional tracks can only be generated in the overdub process, which leads to a maximum of 8 stereo tracks, which can then be mixed together with optimized volume and panorama.

Alternatively, you can also use the sync mode, with which Rekorder immediately combines the overdub with an existing file. A voice sync mode sets a threshold for the start of the recording if required, and a pre-recording function records the last 2 seconds before the actual recording starts.

In terms of sound, the Olympus LS-100 really knows how to impress. The internally installed microphones offer a transparent, neutral sound without unpleasant resonances or other tonal coloring. Due to the 45-degree arrangement of the microphone capsules, the recorder offers a very wide recording field, which also captures the outside area over 180 degrees very nicely. A rehearsal room recording should not pose any problems if the recorder is placed appropriately.

As expected, pinpoint individual recordings can be recorded a little less precisely, an XY arrangement might be a little more suitable here.


Conclusion

With the Olympus LS-100, Japan's flagship manufacturer sets a strong mark in the field of handheld recorders. A very good sound, complex connection peripherals and a visually attractive concept allow the product to seamlessly secure a place in the top league. If it were now possible to combine several inputs in the form of a real multi-track recording, the overall impression would be perfect.


Additional Informations:

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